My blog this week will be shorter, since I am pretending that school hasn't started back and spending one final week at the beach. This will probably be the last time I am able to vacation at the end of August, as in years to come I will be getting ready to start the school year as a teacher and not a student.
Obviously, I was not able to make it to my school this week but I have been in contact with my clinical educator and she is expecting me for majority of the day next Tuesday. In the mean time, I gave her a copy of my clinical experience checklist and she has sent me a few things this week that she thought would help me in completing it and prepare me for her classroom. Some of these things included the school handbook and schedule, as well as her classroom schedule.
I have focused on reading and becoming familiar with the school handbook. Knowing this informtion may seem like a simple task, but it is an important one. The information in it helps prepare me to be a better leader in the school (NCTCS 1), and helps me create an environment in my class that best suits the needs of the school (NCTCS 2).
Tomorrow, my vacation comes to an end and next week I will be forced to buckle down and focus on school. While I dread it, at the same time I look forward to embracing it and finishing my last semester of course work with a bang. I am super excited to see what my time at Shelby Middle School will bring.
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Let's Get It Done
I'm sure everyone is just as excited as me about this being the last semester of course work. I am indeed excited, but I'm also terrified! It's only week one and I am already feeling overwhelmed. There is so much to be done before December and I stress over wondering if I have what it takes to get it done. Then there's student teaching a mere 5 months away, another exciting yet terrifying experience.
During this time, I have found myself reflecting (NCTCS 5) on all that I have done and learned up to this point. Thinking back on 4 semesters of EDUC classes, I feel a little more confident to embrace the next 2 (and final) semesters for what they are. I know my content (NCTCS 3); I have been trained in classroom management (NCTCS 1&2); and I have a vast pool of resources, strategies and teaching methods to assist me in facilitating learning for my students (NCTCS 4).
On another note, I met my clinical educator on Tuesday and took a tour of the school. While I was there I had the opportunity to sit in on a team meeting. That was interesting as I was able to watch a team of 4 teachers plan for the school year. I'm already tucking away ideas for my own classroom. For example, they agree as a team to not fight the "pencil and paper battle." Students are able to check out pencils and take paper from a classroom stack, no questions asked. Another thing I loved is my teacher's "turd warnings." She has a stack of small, medium, and large poop emoji cut outs. If a student is "being a turd" she quietly places a small poop emoji on their desk while continuing to teach. The student knows this is their warning and they shouldn't let their poop emoji get bigger or they will face a consequence.
I was there for several hours and absorbed a lot more than just poop emojis, that was just a favorite of mine. I really like my clinical educator and look forward to working with her. She seems like the kind of teacher who establishes a relationship with all of her students. She said that everyday her students are not allowed in her classroom until they say hello, give her a fist bump, or acknowledge her in some other way.
Tomorrow, I get to attend student orientation and meet some of my students and their parents. So exciting! As I have typed out this blog my stress has started to fade away (I'm sure it will be back) and I am getting really excited for what this year will hold!
During this time, I have found myself reflecting (NCTCS 5) on all that I have done and learned up to this point. Thinking back on 4 semesters of EDUC classes, I feel a little more confident to embrace the next 2 (and final) semesters for what they are. I know my content (NCTCS 3); I have been trained in classroom management (NCTCS 1&2); and I have a vast pool of resources, strategies and teaching methods to assist me in facilitating learning for my students (NCTCS 4).
On another note, I met my clinical educator on Tuesday and took a tour of the school. While I was there I had the opportunity to sit in on a team meeting. That was interesting as I was able to watch a team of 4 teachers plan for the school year. I'm already tucking away ideas for my own classroom. For example, they agree as a team to not fight the "pencil and paper battle." Students are able to check out pencils and take paper from a classroom stack, no questions asked. Another thing I loved is my teacher's "turd warnings." She has a stack of small, medium, and large poop emoji cut outs. If a student is "being a turd" she quietly places a small poop emoji on their desk while continuing to teach. The student knows this is their warning and they shouldn't let their poop emoji get bigger or they will face a consequence.
I was there for several hours and absorbed a lot more than just poop emojis, that was just a favorite of mine. I really like my clinical educator and look forward to working with her. She seems like the kind of teacher who establishes a relationship with all of her students. She said that everyday her students are not allowed in her classroom until they say hello, give her a fist bump, or acknowledge her in some other way.
Tomorrow, I get to attend student orientation and meet some of my students and their parents. So exciting! As I have typed out this blog my stress has started to fade away (I'm sure it will be back) and I am getting really excited for what this year will hold!
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