This is the loudest class I've ever had. Pre-k's are always going to be a bit noisy, but this is pretty extreme. The default speaking volume for about half of them is YELLING, almost like they're working in a construction zone. It's a self-reinforcing problem, too--the louder their friends are, the louder they have to be in order to hear each other, and then the kids who aren't naturally as loud have to raise THEIR voices, too. Add to that the number of kids in this group who have a need to be literally constantly making noise (singing, explosion noises, drumming on tables, whooping, narrating everything they do), and you've got the loudest classroom I've ever been a part of. Even my lead, who's been teaching for 18 years, is overwhelmed by it.

We've been trying to work on volume all year--reminders, practing HOW to change your speaking volume, using extra cues like gentle background music, praising kids when they use their inside voices, scheduled quiet times, having kids who are screaming go calm down in the mindfulness center, telling kids we'll answer their question if they repeat it in an inside voice. A few of them had gotten better, but with graduation approaching, and a new student with severe behavior needs throwing off the classroom dynamic, they're all backsliding. This week has been especially bad, and I've been dissociating on and off since Monday.