H.- Near the End of His Rope.

H.

H. is in two of my classes, 1st Period and 8th Period, as well as my study hall. I see him more than anyone else in school, about 2 1/2 hours per day. He is also one of the most difficult students in the school.

I have written extensively about H. before, but let me recap. H. has had a tough life, with a drug-using mother, no father and no discipline structure for much of his life. Recently, his mother abandoned him and left him with his Grandparents, where he now lives, along with his 15 year-old sister and her 1 year-old baby boy.

He is resentful of authority figures and has a hostile demeanor towards people in general. He is rather bright when he applies himself, but will only try in school if he is really interested in the project.

When H. is not given structure in the classroom or activities that hold his attention, he is very disruptive, to the point that the teacher cannot teach. He likes to rock in his chair, walk around the room, throw pencils into the ceiling, write on the board, make fun of other kids, etc.

He has a stack of referrals a mile high and has spent numerous days in ISS (In-School Suspension) or in the office.

I tried to make a deal with him about two months ago wherein he could work on any project that he might find interesting, as long as he remained engaged throughout the class period. In exchange for his participation, I would make sure that he passed my classes.

About two weeks ago, he was suspended for a week in ISS. Since his return to the classroom last week, he has been very difficult to manage. He has not been participating at all in any of the classroom activities. I have had to stand very close to him for much of the class to keep him from walking around. This has been very frustrating.

Today in class, H. did not spend any time at his computer at all, but was out of his chair constantly, talking to other kids, poking other kids, writing on the board, stuff like that. About halfway through the class, a student was standing near H.'s computer, facing the other way. H. calculated the proper distances and kicked him right behind the kneecap, making him almost fall down. I saw the end of this and told H. that I was going to have to write him a referral.

He came up to me aggravated, saying, "Great, now I am going to have to go to Mountain View! Thanks!"

The school has told him that another referral will result in his removal from the school and placement at "The Teen Learning Center," also known as Mountain View, a school for emotionally disabled and troubled kids.

I was greatly irritated, but told him to wait in the hall and I would see him in a minute.

When I went out, he was sitting on the floor of the hallway, with his head slumped down. I sat down on the floor with him and asked him what was going on. He reiterated his story about my referral taking him out of school. We talked at length (about 5 minutes) about this. Apparently, he does not want to go to TLC, even though I think that the smaller class sizes and more structured environment might be good for him. We talked about "getting referrals." I tried to get him to see that if he got referrals or not was his decision. If he would like to stay at CLP, he needs to decide inside himself that he will start participating and behaving appropriately.

I don't know if he really gets it. I am afraid that he has been lacking in structure for so long that he does not know at all how to discipline or restrain himself. I think that he will probably "screw up" sometime in the next couple of weeks and get his referral and be placed in the alternative school. I probably should have done it today, for kicking another student is a referrable offense. I didn't.

I feel bad for him and his situation. I have done what I can to help, but I am not sure I made much of a difference.