Callings and Questions....

[natsumi]

I recently was called to be a Primary Teacher for the younger class, ages 4 - 7. We are a small ward, so my class size is expected to be about 4 - 5 kids every Sunday, give or take. I accepted my calling, despite my weariness. I am a recently married (just under 7 months), childless, a 2nd child, convert of just under 3 years with no primary experience and even less doctrine experience. I just recently was endowed in the temple, and my ward is an apartment ward of newly married, newly child couples who move in and out with the year (turn over rate is very high) so the need for callings is always there. As soon as someone with a temple recoomend enters the doors, you are called to give a talk in sacrament and given a calling! Luckily, I bit the bullet of a sacrament talk and skipped directly to the calling in Primary.

My first Sunday, my lesson was about wanting to serve a mission. I planned my lesson very thoughtfully, and I even invited the missionaries in our Ward to come give a little talk. I was told I'd have the younger class and that I would have a co-teacher. Upon the switch between the 2nd and 3rd hours (when you go from the first hour of primary to the classes of primary) it was announced just to the class of children that "Sister L." would be teaching ALL the primary kids in a combined session in "the classroom".

I may note here, that it was a baby blessing Sunday so we had some visitors. A whoping 22 kids were here this day which is larger than our normal 11 kids of full primary and I was going to teach them all on my very first Sunday. Oh, did I mention this "co-teacher" I was suppose to have, never showed up?

So I venture over to this "classroom" which is so tiny. We are packed in this room, and the kids are running around and won't sit down - reminding them of revence (which generally works) isn't getting to their ears and the missionaries are even begging me to just give their little testimonies and go! I got 15 mins into the lesson (after I let the missionaries tell the little children why they should serve a mission and go) before this little girl got up and starts just crying in the middle of the floor for no reason and says she needs a band-aid.

I go into the next room, to get the Primary President, who is just sitting in there with 3 other teachers just relaxing during the 3rd hour, to tell them what is happening. Needless to say, someone else finished my lesson. I was told later by several of my other LDS friends that someone should have been in that classroom with me. I was shocked that I would even be given the entire primary on my first day of teaching!

I kept my chin up though! I did not just give up, even though I had a break down and cried for the rest of Church because I didn't know how to handle 22 screaming children who have never been taught reverence or manners (at home or at church). I started as soon as I got home on my second lesson. The Primary President told me from the day I was called that if I "needed anything" not to hesitate to call, text, e-mail her, or anyone in the presidency! After my horrible experience teaching my first Sunday, she was begging me to give it one more try (as if I were going to ask to be released) and told me again that she was there for me if I ever needed anything.

So, after mulling over my ideas with my sister-in-law who is the primary president in her own ward, my mother-in-law, who has been in and out of the primary since she was 14 and grew up LDS, as well as my friend at work who has taught in the primary as well, I now had a lesson plan ready to be put into motion! All I needed from the primary presidency was a list of the names in my class! (Remember, there should only be 5 names max!) I called, I text, I e-mailed the president every day since Tuesday...when I had finalized my plans. "Oh great! I'll e-mail that to you no problem!" "Oh sure, I'll get it to you as soon as I get home" "Sorry, I'm at dance rehersal right now, but I'll be sure to e-mail it to you tomorrow!" "Let me contact Sister H. she's got the list" and after that, she just stopped responding or let me calls go to voicemail. I tried calling or texting anyone else (including Sister R. who use to be my VT companion) and no one would respond or pick up or get back to me.

So, the list is kind of essential to my lesson plan and my husband and my friend at work both tell me just to contact the bishop. So, reluctantly I do. I am very worried about stepping on toes here. The bishop contacted her apparently because right after I text him I get 3 e-mails from 3 different sisters in the primary with the list of my names. The list the President sent out says "if you need anything, please contact me or someone else in the primary presidency first" to which I did not respond to because she knows very well that I did contact her and many of the other sisters to get my list. I got this list this morning, and now I have the rest of today to throw together the last of my lesson which I may or may not get finished beacuse of the lack of time...

The advice I need is - what do you do when you are in a calling, where the Presidency of that calling isn't willing to work with you, to get you the things you need? I mean, I don't think I'll be needing much else from them - but if I do, what am I suppose to do in times like this where they aren't responding or ignoring my calls? I gave them plenty of time, I gave them 4 days! I understand work, lives, etc get in the way, but it's 5 names! All I asked for was 5 names...was giong to the bishop the right move? I feel like I am going to get released now because of these events. I am offended by her actions, but not enough to quit the church or my calling, I just need advice on how to deal with situations like this. Does this happen often?

[beefche]

What do I do when I don't feel I have support from the presidency on my calling? I do my calling to the best of my ability.

All you can do is all you can do. These kids need a teacher. You may feel unappreciated or that you aren't supported or unqualified. But, you have accepted a call to serve these children.

I suggest you keep asking the presidency for help when you need it. If you have 22 kids in a class and no other adult in there, then you ask the presidency to come in to help supervise. If they don't come in, then I would let them know it isn't safe for one adult to handle 22 children and that you will find the bishopric counselor to assist.

Keep focusing on the kids. They are what is important.

[Just_A_Guy]

When I've taught primary I've been blessed with genuinely supportive presidencies; but my attitude is still pretty much "give me the manual, schedule, and class list; and I really don't need you anymore". I typically look to the kids' parents for support/substitutes, not the primary presidency.

Moveover--and this isn't "calling" advice, just "people" advice: If what you say is correct, this primary president has just revealed herself to be weak on follow-through, unaccountable, and willing to blame her subordinates for her own failings. I'd steer clear of her as much as possible.

[Suzie]

but my attitude is still pretty much "give me the manual, schedule, and class list; and I really don't need you anymore".

THAT and animal crackers (for ME) and I am set.

[Suzie]

About the OP, what else can you do? Continue doing your very best even if it means without support. I worked in primary in different countries and kids are the same everywhere: HYPER. Specially in Church, I would suggest lots of songs and fun activities rather than a formal type of lesson.

[Gramajane]

God bless you, as you have been and may continue through a refiners fire of sorts. I have taught primary and loved it since I was in primary myself. The key is to love the kids and help them to come to know and love Jesus Christ. You can do that without ANY lesson manual- as long as you know and love the Lord yourself.

--- Though I would REALLY hope that others will come to help! Still, God will bless you for whatever you can do with your heart in the right place.

My husband had never taught primary, but I was sick one Sat night and had him teach. He had taught older teenagers but even though we had 5 kids of our own, he usually didn't interact with them much till they were school age. -- So anyway- he prepared the lesson, and then when he got there he quickly realized that it was going to be all he could do to get the small 3 year olds to get ONE idea from the lesson. It was about "I came to earth to get a body" or something like that. So, then he switched to focusing on ways to just get that item across to the kids. He felt he had failed, but then in the next part, where the kids were with the rest of the Primary for singing/sharing time, one of the leaders asked the question- that was something like- "why did we come to earth" and ONE little girl he had taught, looked like the light had come on, raised her hand and said "to get a body". he was thrilled!!

So, if you will do as I understand the general authorities do, "fill yourself with prayer and with the scriptures and stories pertaining to the lesson, and focus on keeping a loving attitude with seeing each child as a child of God, and you as an undershepherd, you can do this. :)

Sometimes I have been blessed to be asked to teach a primary class as I left the chapel ready to go to the next hours, and God has helped me. One time it was a class of about 5 boys, all about age 10 (rowdy ones) I felt inspired to notice that most all had their scriptures with them

(and I had been handed a manual but NO TIME to even skim it!!!)

--- So I decided to work to help them get interested in their scriptures, so I asked them if they thought that dragons or unicorns were in the Bible. I told them I was pretty sure they were, but how could they prove me wrong or right? Then I worked with them as they learned to look things up. :) They had a ball along with a new appreciation for the scriptures especially with the LDS edition helps!

--- Another time, very similar- I just felt to tell them true stories of my families experiences in AK on our commercial fishing boat, with storms, breakdowns etc. How God had answered our prayers etc.

---- The "lesson" is not the important thing, it is actually just a means to reach the kids hearts. Any teacher can do that if she has a heart for God and for his children, and can be calm enough to feel the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Again, God bless you and us all to do His will. :)

[Guest]

This is my 3rd year teaching primary and it is a complete No-no to have one teacher in a classroom of more than 10 kids when there are kids under 5 years old. If I was put in that position, I would either drag one of the parents or Primary Presidencies in there or drag the kids out of the classroom and move them to where the Presidency was meeting. By the way, I wouldn't assume that the Primary Presidency was just chatting away. They do have to plan and such and a lot of times, Sunday School is the only time the presidency can get together to do that.

As for support, if I don't get what I need from the presidency for a lesson plan, I wouldn't go to the bishopric. I will go ahead and revise the lesson.

The only time I would get a bishopric involved is if the issue is regarding the health and safety of the children or if it is a matter of the children getting taught false doctrine.

Hope this helps.