Stories: Just another week at the internship

Last week was supposed to be like any other at my internship but instead a lot of stuff came up about my students and I took on some new ones so its getting harder to think about leaving them in May. The nice thing was that on my toughest day, my mom was at her office which is on my way home and I was able to go decompress with she and her co-workers before getting on with my to do list for the evening. I share this because I don't think we know what some kids are dealing with when they go to school and we wonder how poverty, drugs, and violence are taking over schools...well here's why. I'd ask that you please read this with sensitivity and be mindful of the fact that this is shared for the purpose of educating my friends and family who may not be involved with this population.

1. One of my little girls is the little mother to her four younger siblings and has just been so exhausted in school she can't remember basic things. It looks like her Grandma may be getting custody of her so that should help but if this continues we may need to get CPS involved. It's just so sad to see someone so little burdened with so much responsibility and I wonder how this will impact the rest of her education. I pray for intervention and renewal for her.
2. Another one of my students was so difficult in class that I decided to pull her out of lunch for an intense one on one in my office. She kept it surface level for a little bit before her guard came down and she opened up about the violence at home and how it is affecting her at school. She said she comes to school so angry about her parents hitting and yelling at each other that anything can set her off. She said her mind just keeps thinking about that and she is not able to focus on her school work or anything else and she gets frustrated when she doesn't understand things because of that. She presents as being such a tough girl but she is just breaking inside and finally put out the cry for help. I pray that things do not get worse for her with CPS involved but she shared that she wanted to hurt herself to make it stop so I can only hope her parents will be receptive to home based services or other support services to help her and them. She seemed relieve to know people were trying to help her but I am all too aware that sometimes good intending help can make things worse and not better.
3. I asked my students to write a journal entry on what they have learned in Club Paws, what they liked, and what they didn't. Some wrote very basic things like "be respectful, be nice to others, treat others the way you want to be treated," while others wrote the obnoxious like "the girls get on my nerbes" (yes thats how he spelled it). One student who has really been reaching out for support throughout this year wrote a very meaningful entry that I asked him if I could share (but will take out names to keep it confidential). This is what he wrote: "The things that I learned in Club Paws is how to work with others and be a good sport and to have fun even if we lose in a game we still have fun. I like my classmates in Club Paws too. And the games help us to be good like Perfection it means no one is perfect. Club Paws is a safe and perfect place to learn. Plus Ms. Deem is a great teacher and I am not afraid to tell Ms. Deem my problems in class. That is why Club Paws is my favorite place to learn. Ms. Deem is the #1 best teacher." So maybe I am biased and maybe it is because that was one of the most detailed and enthusiastic of the journals, but that was such a blessing to be able to look at while on call waiting with CPS.
4. My student who recently married a soldier who is in boot camp now is having some difficulty after initially doing really well with it all. The good news is that she is talking about it and trying to stay focused so that she can graduate. She is so sweet and constantly expressing how thankful she is to have me to help her navigate the military system and to normalize her feelings. I don't really feel like its that big of a deal but for someone who is not used to having support I can see how it would be.
5. There were some very generous donations that helped pay for glasses for one of my clients since the county's referral system is so annoyingly backed up.
6. I made it through a Club Paws where I wanted so badly to send two kids to the office but held off and it was totally worth it in the end when we got the basic agenda accomplished and two of them owned up to their part in the chaos and made up for it by helping to clean up.
7. My selective mute is definitely not one and was talking up a storm this past week. I am so happy for her and that she is learning so quickly. Turns out it was most likely an ESL issue.
8. My one little girl is really aggressive about calling herself fat and talks about thinking she will have to be rolled out of the room soon. She really isn't and it breaks my heart that she feels this way and yet I am not sure she completely understands it. It appears that her parents and babysitters are telling her this and it just breaks my heart. I am hoping for inspiration to strike in terms of a way to help address this negative self talk.
9. The teachers are so worn out and I pray for their strength as the year rounds out and the kids seem to be getting more distracted and challenging.
10. My heart goes out to my kids who don't have much and it has definitely made me feel more fortunate and served as a reminder for me to be mindful of my finances and to give more to organizations who serve those in need.