Learning How to Line Up

We learned how to line up today. I've let some of the little things go- kids on chairs at circle, some kids sitting at desks at circle, a little less orderly in line. My glossing over those things doesn't help when we flip flop, because when someone else expects them to be in order (or be more than a mob) they won't comply. I need to take stock of my surroundings, and understand that my own looseness isn't helping them in the long run. I their teacher for 6-10 weeks, while this is their home for 6 YEARS. When in Rome, be a bit more Roman, no?

It isn't that I am Napoleon visiting Rome, or even some wee serf. I have been fortunate to try out some ideas, and to have some work fairly well. But I must also be aware of how my classroom, and my kids, are perceived by others in the building. If we walk down to lunch as a mob (more happy and hungry than angry) while others are in lines, I should instill some discipline and get them in a line. My tolerance for noise is another one of those items that is less bothersome to me, but makes me look like I have little to no order.

All of this makes me want to read the Last Days of Socrates again.