At the end of my first week of student teaching, one of the aspects I found most beneficial was talking with my co-op and other teachers about some of the realities of a high school classroom. I have found it beneficial to hear all of their different strategies about classroom management such as teaching strategies, student behavior, organizing, and the never ending list of a teacher's responsibility. My co-op's classes are all semester classes with this past week being the last of the first semester. I will meet my students this coming week, however I did try and get to know the students. I was able to help a student who just got accepted to Bloomsburg by finding a few phone numbers for departments on campus she needed and gave her tips for getting around on campus. It felt good to help her out! I completed my elementary and middle school BCIT observations this week which helped to reinforce my preference of becoming a high school teacher. I enjoy working with the younger kids, but I would rather teach content classes such as marketing or personal finance rather than computer classes. You usually don't find those classes at the elementary or middle school levels. I enjoyed my time at the two schools, I was really impressed to see the fifth grade students learning keyboarding and eighth graders putting the finishing touches on their websites they had created. They are more advanced than I was at their age!
Overall this week went well and there really isn't much I would change about it. It was nice to have a week to get used to the school's operation and my co-op's schedule. One thing I would do though is to take on more responsibility of the little things I could do, like taking attendance or doing homework checks. My co-op didn't have me start that until Wednesday or Thursday when I could have been helping him out earlier. I am hopeful next week will go as well as this one did as the real teaching begins!
That sounds like a great start. I too have had the chance to help a few students on an individual basis like you mentioned, and I've also done a whole lot of grading and attendance taking this week! I believe it was Friday that I spent the first 3 hours of the day grading finals non-stop. I also brought tests home from earlier in the week and did a couple hours of grading at home. I found myself feeling somewhat on the spot when the students got the tests back, because you always get the questions, "Why did I lose points on this??" but it actually went well, and to the best of my knowledge I didn't make any mistakes.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to hear that your first week went so well though! I'll be looking forward to reading more.
Best Wishes :)
Helping the students this week was a great way to get to know them. I have found that some students don't like to ask for help, I noticed that if I ask them how they are doing they will say great even if I know they are struggeling. Helping that student find contact information at bloom helped you gain her confidence and trust. Remember word of mouth travels very fast and I am sure she is saying good things about you to the other students!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that your first week went really well. I hope you have a great second week and good luck meeting all your students. I know you will be a great teacher!
Casi - I applaud you helping the student who was accepted to Bloomsburg University. You didn't have to do that, but you did! You have no idea how that will reciprocate back to you twofold or more!
ReplyDeleteThe attention, concern, and genuine guidance we offer our students is huge! I had a superintendent tell us time and time again; "Be nice to all students. You never know... you may be the only adult in their lives who is nice to them in a whole day's time." Wow...what an absurdity if this is really what some of our students face in their home lives.
Take care of your students. They will always remember that you cared!