Headaches

I have to leave for work in about 5 minutes, but I just wanted to vent for a moment about teachers that attempt to use sarcasm as a way of getting through to students.  Don't get me wrong,  I can be sarcastic and joke with my students often, however, there is a huge difference when I do it with a smile on my face.  It drives me crazy when teachers think that they can get through to a student by being mean to them.  I have been reading Teaching with Love and Logic and while I'm not a huge fan of the book I really like the concept.  There is no room for sarcasm in a classroom and there is NO reason a student should be made to feel stupid.  If I have to leave a classroom with a headache every day I can't imagine the students feel much better.

The funny thing about it is that all I need to do is give them a look and they usually stop what they are doing.  They don't need a 20 minute lecture about how rude, disrespectful, inconsiderate, obnoxious, etc. they are.  Just because they're young and still in school doesn't mean they aren't people.  I constantly try to put myself in their position.  As an adult, would I want someone coming up to me and telling me all of these things...absolutely not!  No one wants to be belittled.  I've always been very empathetic, and I honestly believe that this is one of my better qualities.  Classroom management doesn't have to leave everyone exhausted, frustrated, and completely miserable at the end of the day.  Smiles, kind words, a positive attitude, and respect go a long way and are much easier than yelling and insulting.