Supply Work

Well, here is our family photo for 2006. I've been so bad that I haven't mailed my Christmas cards yet...awful eh? I'm hoping to get them done by Sunday night so I can mail them Monday morning (they'll probably still be late).

Anyway, I was staring at my blank screen trying to think of what to write about. For some reason I just don't have the energy to delve into a deep topic right now, so I thought I'd talk about being a supply EA.

Being a supply EA is such an awesome job for me. First of all, I get to pick and choose the days that I want to work. We have a wonderful system where I can change my availability from day to day (or hour to hour), by doing it all online. This is super for those bad nights when I haven't gotten any sleep and just can't imagine putting in a full day with challenging kids. I'll go in the system by 6:30 am and take my name off for availability for the day.

Thursday night I got a desperate phone call from the teacher I used to work full-time with when I was pregnant with Izzy. His social worker's son had broken his collarbone and she couldn't come into work the next day...could I help him out. Despite the fact that I'd barely seen Joel for the last week (as he worked 96 hours), I decided to take the shift. Friday was an interesting day. It was a Section 20 class which is seperate from the actual school in that they have their own recess times, and almost the whole class is segregated. These kids have had tough lives and have made bad choices. Let's just say they are a challenging little bunch. I haven't heard that much colourful language in the last year as I did in that one school day. I find that now that I'm older, have more experience, and have kids of my own I have much more confidence to deal with kids like this. A lot of their behaviours I've found are just to get attention so I really pick my battles. I even had a riveting game of basketball with a couple of the guys. It's such a great feeling when you break through the tough exterior and get them to laugh and have fun.

Suprisingly to me, the shifts I've enjoyed most during my years as a supply are those I've worked in the classes for kids with developmental disabilities. Growing up I just did have any contact with kids with developmental disabilities really, so I never knew how to relate to them. I would get nervous around them and not know how to engage them or talk with them. Not that I looked down on them, it was probably more that I felt sorry for them, I don't really know. Now I've really come to appreciate them and have a new outlook on their situations on the whole. I mean, many of the kids that I see with down syndrome and other disabilities that put these kids in wheelchairs do nothing to diminish their spirits as children. In fact, the kids that I"ve worked with that have these conditions seem so HAPPY! Even the teenagers I've worked with in the high schools seem to take so much joy out of every moment and every day. They laugh easily, and respond to what you're saying (most of them). It's such a great feeling when I can get them to smile. I've found myself becoming more comfortable and knowing that I can talk to them just like other kids. It's been a real blessing for me.

The other thing I like about supply work is the variety. Some days I work in the same classroom with the same kids, other days I'm jumping from class to class. I work with kids with developmental disabilities, attention deficits, learning diabilities and autism. All these kids have different challenges and different methods that you use to relate to and support them.

The down side of being a supply is that you often don't know where you'll end up that day until you get that phone call from the computer at 6:30 am. I also find it difficult when working with kids with behavioural problems and aggresion because the fact that they have a supply often throws their day into a tailspin. When you haven't developed a relationship with these kids, it's often hard to know what forms of discipline actually work. It's pretty frustrating when you can't get a kid to listen to you, or when you can't get a child with autism to even respond. But, on the whole, I enjoy the challenges that come with the job.

Yes, I certainly have a lot of variety in my work. From pregnant women, their spouses and newborns, to kids from kindergarten to grade 12. Each day a different challenge, different goals and joys. It's fun. I wouldn't change it for the world. I'm thankful to have a job like supply EA where I can also pursue my dream of doula work. With a full time job it would be much more difficult to make it to births.

Thanks God for blessing me with my jobs,

Mel