You certainly have your work cut out for you!

If you haven't already done the things below, you might try them for several months. I wish I'd known these at the beginning of my many years of teaching. I came to realize that managing behavior was the first step in being able to share information and very little behavior management was taught to aspiring teachers when I went to college.

Hard as it is to do, avoid sarcasm. In spite of your students' attitudes and weak academic skills, they need to know that you respect them as potential learners and as people. This is a difficult age group--late tween years with teenage hormones present, the awareness that adults don't know everything, often valuing peer opinions over those of authority figures) in the US, too. Sarcasm is one thing among friends, but you are not their friend--you are their mentor. Keep being firm and consistent.

If you haven't already done so, post rules in your classroom, but keep them few and simple, like: Be polite to everyone. Listen. Raise your hand to ask and answer questions and wait to be called on. Take good care of material things. (Explain the last term.) When someone breaks a rule, point to it and then get back to teaching (unless of course it is a severe infraction).

Reinforce good behavior. Tell the class as a whole or individuals, "I like the way you . . . ."

As much as possible, model simple politeness. Say please, thank you, and you're welcome, pause, wait, and if necessary prompt when students should say these to you.

If handshakes are customary between adults in business situations in Guam, shake your students hands on their way into and out of class.

When you show a video, tell them why and what they should look for.

Choosing the shortest book possible is something else many children in the US do, too. It's good that you are continuing to have them do daily silent reading. I could make other suggestions but with your shortage of materials they would probably be irrelevant. I know that lots of US schools are short of materials, too, with students even having to share textbooks, and sometimes I taught in schools like that.

Find out who are the "best" teachers at your school and ask them how they deal with some of the problems you face. The best teachers will probably be those with experience and also enthusiasm for teaching and their students.

Good luck!