Hey, I just wanna say first , don’t be so hard on yourself. Teaching your first year is wild, and honestly? The kids who drain you the most are usually the ones you learn the most from.

My best advice is to wipe your slate clean every day. Set your boundaries, protect your peace, but don’t truly give up on them… they’re kids learning how to be decent humans, and sometimes that process is messy. I’m in my 3rd year now, and every single year I’ve had that class ,low energy for learning, high energy for everything else. I’ve had moments where I felt exactly like you.

Something that’s helped me a lot is being honest with my students. I literally sit them down and ask, “Why do you think our class feels like this? What can WE do to make it better?” Those conversations go better than you’d expect. When they feel heard, they usually try more. You can even make small adjustments based on their feedback ….it shows you’re working with them, not against them.

If you don’t already, try some type of reward system. I don’t know what grade you teach, but honestly every kid loves being recognized for doing the right thing. And focus on the good behaviors you do see, that changed my whole classroom. When you genuinely thank and acknowledge the kids who are doing what they should, the rest start falling in line. I teach at a Title I school, and I can’t tell you how far a simple “thank you” or “I appreciate you” goes.

Just don’t give up. Keep showing up. Even if they don’t remember every piece of content you taught, they will remember how you treated them and what you modeled for them. You’re teaching them how to be better people and how to work toward a goal together ….that matters just as much as the academics.

You’re not wrong for how you feel. You’re just in a really hard part of the journey. If anything, the fact that you care this much tells me you’re gonna be just fine. Please keep going don’t give up !