My hope in asking for a junior division assignment was that the students would be more independent however, I also knew that in exchange, I would be likely dealing with the issues of the tumultuous “tween” years. My expectations for this group were particularly high because I had taught nearly half of them for two […]
Mentorship
Here’s your test
The good old days are a product of a bad memory Sept 2009 – I remember entering the classroom like it was yesterday. For this new teacher, the night before my first day was understandably complete with a several concerns: Would I wake up on time? What if the staff weren’t nice? Am I prepared? Thankfully, I […]
Always a Mentee, Always a Mentor
This year, I‘m in a new school, in a new role. This September, every school day, I’m trying to figure out where my class is suppose to be and what and how I need to teach my students with special education needs. I am gradually learning the names of my colleagues but it seems […]
Report Cards Are Coming: Professional Reporting
Elementary Report Cards … the mere mention of report cards can send some teachers into anxious ridden days and sleepless nights. Even after 17 years of writing elementary report cards, I anticipated that my levels of anxiety would be non-existent but, no, for me, the thought of report card writing still stresses me out. I […]
Getting Past “The 5 Year Wall”
As a new elementary teacher, I believed I would really know what I was doing after 5 years of practice. After 5 years in my previous careers, I could handle just about anything. I had 8 years experience as a student in elementary school. And, yes, I had watched my elementary teachers teach. I thought, […]