Middle school subbing, Day 4

Today I was a substitute teacher at a local middle school.  I was assigned the in-house suspension room and had as few as three kids to as many as six.  Most of the day there were five. When I looked at the room number on the sub sheet, I held my breath, hoping for the best for the rest of the day. I had been bracing for the in-house room since the day before; I'd been warned.

Surprisingly, the kids were well behaved and did all of their assigned work.  Well, some read quietly but I'll take reading when they are in middle school.  There were two kids in particular, and maybe even three now that I think about it, who really stuck out.  Once we got to talking ("about life", they requested. "Mr. So-and-so usually does") at the end of the day, it became clear that these are good kids who are having a hard time.  Or aren't getting the help that they need.  Or are not getting the attention at home or from school.  There's a divorce, a parent in jail, denial that a student has mental/physical health issues, family deployed, the list could go on.  Never mind just being 12 and 13 years old, these kids are dealing with a lot more. 

I know the teachers are doing their best and mean well, and only from my limited experience as a sub do I see the challenges they face at the secondary level with not just 25 kids at once, but sometimes more than 100 a day. How are you able to give each individual attention and teach all of them?

Days like today I just want to take the hands of a thousand kids and help them through school.