2nd Week of 4th Quarter Placement

I am now in the home stretch! Sort of...This is my last placement of student teaching before I graduate! I'm currently teaching at an elementary school in Menomonie. Though the school is relatively new, attractive school (it was built in 1997) it has a fairly high poverty rate of 43%. Many of these students don't have stable home situations as well. Some families move several times a year because they can't pay their rent, and have to switch schools every few months. In some cases, parents are too busy figuring out where to live next, that their child's school work isn't a priority. Because their home life isn't stable, there aren't rules or structure, children come to school not knowing how to function in an environment that has set rules. I've found this to be true at my last placement as well; regardless of socioeconomic status, when parents don't enforce rules at home, their children tend to struggle in public social settings. Learning that behavior at home isn't necessarily appropriate for school I think will always be an issue. Students come to school not only without supplies but also coats and warm clothes. There is now a program at the school where a local dentist comes into the gym every few months to clean students teeth for free who can't afford to go otherwise, and in this case this is the situation for many students. I believe the school is also starting to set up a system where they provide hygiene products for students in need, because that is also an issue at the school as well.