Cafeteria Duty ~ blech

I have cafeteria duty this week and I dread it. This group of sixth graders make it such a miserable experience. I have never disliked cafeteria duty before this group. They just do not care. We have tried all our tricks and still their behavior is awful. I don't mind talking, laughing, even a little playing is ok by me. I mean, it is their lunch. But this group has no self-control. 

Some of our teachers are really strict and I have duty with one of those teachers. Our styles conflict. But she is my senior and outranks me. She wants quiet. She wants complete obedience. She has and will never get that from this group. 

Help me? Do you have ideas? Tricks? How can I turn that 25 minutes into a respite for nearly 300 kids and not lose my mind?

Sick Day

I spent Sunday getting intimately acquainted with my toilet bowl. 

The stomach virus hit in late morning and by 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning I knew I would never make it to school. I logged on to the sub finder, entered my absence, and spent 30 agonizing minutes sketching out a sub plan. Back to bed. At 6:30 a.m. I checked the sub-finder, the absence had been covered, and called my VP. I let her know that my husband would leave my lesson plans at the front desk with several of my teacher edition books I had taken home.

All good!

I spent the day in bed. Despite feeling horrible, I got to watch a gorgeous snow storm blanket my back yard. 

I watched as my corgis cavorted and tumbled in the snow. 

Today I go back to work, dragging heiny like nobody's business, and despite the best laid plans, things were not as I expected. My VP wrote some good lessons plans because no one could find the plans I had my husband drive out of his way to drop off at my school. Oddly, those plans were at the front desk when I came in this morning. The sub who picked up the duty, called in before school started and they had to scramble to fill the gap. Then I get a new kid. Argh!!! 

But, this is the good thing. I got a new kid! He is sweet and quiet right now. 

One of my most credible boys, quietly said to me after lunch,  "He's cool." So I think new boy will do just fine.