Science Lab Haiku

Eighteen third graders
Excited geologists
Is it Friday yet?

The first Science unit of the year is titled “Soil, Silt, and Rocks”. The entire school is studying rocks in one form or another. For the most part, teaching in the Science Lab has been fun. Today was the most stressful day so far. The third graders were wired and restless. Trying to do a lab with antsy 8 and 9 year olds turned out to be quite the challenge. One table was goofy and chatty; another had a group who could not get along. Everything turned into an argument with them. Their lab should have taken about 20 minutes. At the end of their 40 minute class period, most had just barely finished. One table will have to finish up with me the next time they come to science so that the rest of the class won’t have to wait for them. I’m hoping that these kids are just testing the waters, so to speak. Trying to see just how serious we are about the limits we’ve set for them. Up to this point, they’ve never dealt with me outside of the Computer Lab. They behave for me in the Computer Lab…but in the Science Lab it’s like they couldn’t even hear me. I’m really hoping this is a temporary situation.