Professional Learning and Growth

September 30, 2012October 1, 2012 Katie Pryde Diverse Learning Needs, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources, The Daily 5

The Daily 5

This year, the initiative our Primary Team has taken on in regards to literacy, is implementing The Daily 5 and CAFE. For those of you whom are unfamiliar with the 2, they are based on books written by “The Sisters”, Joan Moser and Gail Boushey. These books are a great (easy) read and gives you a wonderful basis and understanding of the 2 concepts, and how to set it up in your classroom. The Daily 5 is a framework that allows students to participate in 5 different activities each and every day: Read to Self, Read to Someone, Listen to Reading, Work on Writing and Work on Words. CAFE is an acronym standing for C- Comprehension, A- Accuracy, F- Fluency and E- Expanding Vocabulary, and are the strategies good readers and writers need to be successful. The 2 work very well and I feel, go hand in hand with one another. If you buy (or read) both books, they give you examples of how your first few days will look like when you are setting up the program in your classroom.

Since the 2nd week of school, I begun implementing these programs, one by one, illustrating what each Daily 5 looks like. We also created anchor charts that have been posted around the room illustrating the “expectations” both students and teachers have during our literacy block. Our chart is set up with the headings Students Do vs Teacher Do. Many of the activities are very similar in what the students and teachers are expected to do. Students, for the most part, are expected to work the whole time, remain quiet, work in one spot, get to work right away, and have fun! The teacher is expected to work with students at the guided reading table, conference with students, and watch/listen to how students are reading/writing.

The first concept I introduced to my class was Read to Self (independent reading). When we were practicing,
we were working on our stamina. This means, how long our brains are working without any breaks. Students should be reading for 20 mins each day, but first, we needed to build up our stamina, to reach the 20 mins. My students are quite fabulous, and really enjoy reading and it only took us 7 days to reach of goal of reading for 20 mins consecutively without any breaks. I encourage my students to have 2-3 books with them at their desk so if they finish a book before the 20 mins is over, they will have some more books at their desks so they can continue to read without stopping and interrupting others by getting a new book. Then, we moved to Listen to Reading, which is when I introduced our class read a loud. I brought in all my old Goosebumps Books for our classroom library, and my students are now obsessed with them. So, we took a classroom vote, and our first read a loud book was a Goosebumps Book- The Ghost Next Door. Then, we moved on to Read to Someone. How I set this up in my classroom, was by practicing buddy reading. We discussed how it looks like when you are reading to your buddy and EEKK (Elbow to Elbow, Knee to Knee). We did this for 2 days, and built up our Read to Someone stamina of 20 mins. Then, I introduced Work on Writing, where students had the opportunity to write in the writing journals. We created success criteria for journal writing, so students knew exactly what was expected of them when they wrote in their journals. Finally, I taught a mini lesson on syllables, and our Work on Words introduction allowed students to add their names to the class word wall, and they needed to sort all the students’ names based on the number of syllables in each name.

Once we went through all of the lessons and talked about what each Daily 5 looked like, as well as modelling some of the CAFE strategies (such as Check for Understanding, Choosing Good Fit Books and Go Back and Re-Read), we started our Daily 5 centres last week. The Daily 5 is all about choice, but for the first week, I decided to split my class into groups and they rotated through the Daily 5 centres so they could become familiar with the whole process. In our 100 minute literacy block, my students have the opportunity to be engaged in the Daily 5. My students first start off with Read to Self, where they read independently for 20 minutes. Then, I ring the bell which is an indicator to my students that they need to quickly tidy up and meet me on the carpet. Then, I teach a mini lesson on the CAFE strategy that we are currently working on. Sometimes, I read a read a loud picture book to my students and either model how to use the CAFE strategy, or get students to help me with it (so it becomes a shared reading and shared use of the CAFE strategy).
Once the lesson is complete, students are told which centre they will start off with. Students will rotate through 3 centres in one day. Last week, our centres were: Read to Someone (Buddy Reading) or Read to Someone (Guided Reading with Ms. Pryde), Work on Writing (journal writing which integrated with Social Studies- If I were a First Nations person, I would live… I would eat… I would travel by…), Work on Words (Read and Write the Room) and then I would finish off the 100 minute literacy block by reading a few chapters from our chapter read a loud book. Students spend 2 min at each centre. Next week, now that the students have had the opportunity to complete one complete rotation of our Daily 5 centres, students will be able to choose which centre they will go to and will keep track of which centres they would like to go to (a great Responsibility indicator, for students to make sure they go to each centre at least once, as well as keeping track of it on their own).

So far, it has been a success in my classroom and I look forward to seeing how it will look like in my classroom this week!

September 27, 2012September 27, 2012 Erin.Grewar Before School Starts, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Reinventing the Wheel – Improving Past Practice

One advantage of entering your second or multiple year(s) of teaching is being able to go back and reuse materials you had previously gathered and created. The mad and desperate scrambling for resources during the first year of teaching a subject is what many would attribute as being the most stressful part of the job. Having a bank of lessons/activities/assessments allows you to devote more energy and thought to the many other aspects of teaching. As everyone is aware however, the need to consistently update, revise or in some cases, entirely revamp your program is a necessity. Apart from being an obvious benefit to your students, it is a way to push your own limits of creativity. I’ve found that this task is much easier and productive if undertaken sooner rather than later. It can be particularly tempting when your best plans and intentions go awry to want to immediately block out the experience or at least relegate it to the realm of distant memory with “well, I know I won’t be doing that again”. Without belabouring the “reflective process”, I try to efficiently take stock of the success or failure of activities and assignments as soon as they are completed by jotting down impressions on a sticky note and then adhering them to my printed master copy. At the same time and using the same sticky note procedure, I also solicit the input of students and ensure that everyone has the chance to comment at some point during the year. At the end of the process, I have a bank of input available when it comes time to plan for the following year. Sometimes, “reinventing the wheel” can be as simple as changing the assignment pairing (from an individual to small group) or restructuring the order in which things were taught or assessed. Of course, this process can be more stimulating and interesting if you have the opportunity to debrief and compare with your grade team or teaching partner, all of whom will bring a different perspective and insight to the table.

September 26, 2012September 26, 2012 Sangeeta.McAuley Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

A Little Perspective

This past summer, my family and I spent 6 weeks in India. Apart from the wonderful moments we enjoyed with family and the extraordinary travels we embarked on, there was one experience that helped us all gain a little perspective.

Our son, Sunjay, turned 12 in June and decided that in lieu of gifts, he wanted to collect money to donate in India when we would be there. Once we arrived, we discovered that one of my cousins had volunteered in a school that needed help and it seemed like the right “cause” for Sunjay’s donation money.

The school was in Dharavi, one of the biggest slum areas in Mumbai. Families live in shacks one on top of the other, with an “outhouse” that drains into a creek. Due to the location and inadequate drainage systems, there are often floods during the monsoon season. It is estimated that anywhere from 600,000 to 1 million live in this one area of the city, so few children get the opportunity to attend school.

My cousin explained to us that the school she volunteered in was running solely on donations from charitable organizations and they offer free education until grade 7, but only for three kids per family. If you have a fourth child, you have to pay for their education.

When we discussed making a donation, it didn’t feel like enough. We wanted to visit the school ourselves and meet the children. Sunjay and our daughter, Maneesha, had also brought stuffed animals from home that they wanted to give the students. Communication between my cousin and the classroom teacher led us a small store in the local market, where Sunjay used his money to buy blank notebooks for the students so they could have something to write in.

That day at the school was one we shall never forget. The students were curious to see 4 foreigners walking in the hallways and while some were friendly, most were shy and hesitant. They were wearing school uniforms, yet some did not have shoes.

The classroom looked so different from what we are all used to…there were 3 kids to one desk, paint peeling off the walls, and no visible school supplies. The noise level when we entered was very high, and the teacher was trying to control the class by pulling some kids apart who were fighting. We learned that parents have very little time to supervise their children because they are often out working when the kids come home from school. It can then fall upon the teacher, to create a community of learners that not only trust her, but each other and the world around them.

Once we handed out the notebooks and the stuffed animals, the teacher asked if the students had any questions and one student said, “Why did you give us these things?” It was a hard question to answer, but we tried to explain how special the school was and how we just wanted to help. Really as I look back on the experience, they gave us so much more than we gave them.

Each day when I walk in my classroom this year, I am grateful. Grateful to have pencils, paper, chairs and an area where I can keep my own belongings. Grateful to have colleagues to talk to and learn from. Grateful that parents are able to send their children to school and they do so with hope, appreciation and respect for what we do every day. But most of all, I’m grateful for the 26 faces I see at the door in the mornings. They remind me why I’m a teacher.

August 30, 2012August 30, 2012 Carmen.Oliveira Before School Starts, Learning About Your Students, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Getting Ready for the Art of Teaching and Learning

If you would thoroughly know anything, teach it to others. –Tryon Edwards

As I headed into my classroom today to set up our learning environment for this year, I stood in the middle and looked around at the space which, in a few days, will be filled with curious faces wondering what this year will be like. A teacher candidate who was helping me mentioned that any advice I could give her would be appreciated because right now, it all seemed a bit overwhelming. I told her that there are a few things I have come to know for sure about teaching and learning and proceeded to share them with her. At the end of our conversation she had a big smile on her face and looked so much more at ease! The truth is, my advice was simple. Everyone knows it, but it’s sometimes forgotten as we go through our busy teacher lives! Here are a few things I shared with her:

1. Connect! Life and learning are about connections, to each other and to the world around us. If you put in the effort to really connect with your students and create learning opportunities where they explore the connections within the world around them through cross-curricular activities, the learning environment will be charged with an energy that keeps students engaged and willing to take risks as their learning progresses.

2. Start small. The journey to becoming a great teacher begins with mastering one aspect, topic, or subject at a time. Choose one (or if you’re very courageous, two) areas to focus on this year to really explore, practice, and begin to master. Become the best possible teacher in your chosen area of focus. Celebrate your learning and success!

3. Become resourceful. No one who has become great at what they do reached their peak without some guidance and support from mentors. Network and reach out to teachers, administrators, support staff and anyone else who may help you on your path of professional development. Contact the bloggers on our site! A useful resource is the “Heart and Art of Teaching and Learning” to get you started this year.

Teaching isn’t always easy. That’s a fact. But the journey is well worth it when you realize the potential you have to inspire students, parents, staff, and the community around you.

Below you will find a few items that may be useful for the start of the year (some of which appear in the “Heart and Art of Teaching and Learning” resource.

BT Building effective Classrooms

curriculum night information newsletter

september wanted poster

my t-shirt and summer shorts

In a Million Words or Less…

if math were

grade 6 student intro letter

grade 6 math introductory letter

grade 6 homework newsletter

grade 6 first week newsletter

June 18, 2012June 19, 2012 Roz.Geridis Diverse Learning Needs, Learning About Your Students, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Planning for Next Year

As the school year is coming to an end I use this time to reflect upon my lessons and look forward to next year’s planning. What will I keep, what didn’t work, what needs to be tweaked for next year’s students? Some of this planning will be based on my next year’s students needs and learning styles. Where do I go for new ideas, support for planning and resources?

1) I sit down with the previous teacher.

Most schools will have sheets or some sort of meeting to share information and build the new classes. Looking to evenly distribute the boys and girls, ESL, Special Education, HSP and which kids should be or not be placed together. The sheets are usually given to next year’s teacher to help understand the student. I find the information on the sheets give limited information and don’t always share who the student is as a learner. I listen to the information being given, take notes on every student and review all this information later. At some point, I go back to the previous teacher and ask for further information. If the previous teacher is an LTO, I need to connect with the teacher before s/he leaves for a new school. If you are a new teacher to the school in the Fall, ask for the sheets and try to connect with previous teachers as soon as possible.

2) If you are lucky to get the same grade, I look at my previous year’s planning.

Now I know a little more about my new students. What are they going to be interested in? What do I need to change? Everything should be tweaked for my new class.

If I am teaching a new grade, I still look at my previous year’s planning and build the new year from that starting point. I have learned more about my personal teaching strengths and areas of professional development which I will look into.

3) Where do I get new ideas?

Most boards have teachers who specialize in curriculum areas and provide that support with ideas and resources. Some can even give field trip ideas, support with combined grade planning, will come to your class and teach a model lesson. If you are finding it difficult to locate a name, ask your librarian or administration.
Your board website should have some resources available to the teachers. Many board website resources are open to the public and are available for all to find information. There are Science and Social Studies units available for combined grades. I usually don’t use all the information available on the websites but it helps me gather ideas and lessons for my unit.
Sitting down with my colleagues to team plan. New people have new ideas. This year, I was the only grade 6 English teacher and my Extended French colleague had already developed his program and found it difficult to devote the time needed to team plan. But we still found smaller opportunities to team plan. I also found support on line, a volunteer who went to different classes throughout the board, student teacher and colleagues who were in the same board but in different areas of the board. Many people have ideas, I find ideas help get me thinking. Whether I take the idea as is or tweak it to suit my student needs, I find all ideas are helpful.

4) Next year’s class – the students.

As we all know, students achieve more when their interest is in the lesson. At the beginning of the school year, I ask my students what you would like to do, what would you like me to teach you in language. This year, my students wanted to write a graphic novel using bit strips. I took their lead and used graphic novels to teach them about narrative writing and to help develop their plans for writing. I also share the Science and Social Studies units and give them an idea of when we are covering certain units.

At this point of the year, you are looking at finishing things off and planning for your next year. I personally prefer to reflect and think about my next year’s planning now. For some people, they need that down time before they reflect and plan for the following year. It is up to you and what suits your lifestyle best.

June 1, 2012June 1, 2012 Samantha.Perrin Occasional Teaching, Professional Learning and Growth

My Continuum of Professional Growth – An Attitude of Gratitude

Over the past couple of months, I have had the privilege of teaching in numerous schools and classrooms throughout the TDSB as a daily occasional teacher. I have been the ‘new kid at school’ so to speak, meeting new principals, other teachers and more students than I can count. The greatest benefit to meeting these new people and working in different classrooms has been being able to witness and learn from the great practices that are going on in the classrooms throughout the board, and taking these ideas with me as something that I might later implement in my own classroom.

In my conversations with other teachers, I am reminded of how lucky I am to be doing this. Some teachers were hired straight from pre-service, and developed their programs using the knowledge that they gained in pre-service and through the support of the school and board. One thing that I (and many new teachers that are navigating daily occasional teaching and LTO’s) have, that many experienced teachers did not have, is the opportunity to see and practice the other great ideas, lessons and systems that are going on in other classrooms. Some of the teachers that I have met in my day-to-day encounters expressed that feel that they ‘missed out’ on daily occasional teaching and getting to see great ideas from other classrooms that they could later experiment and make it ‘their own’. I have been fortunate to learn from so many of the great teachers and classrooms that I have taught in as an occasional teacher.

Referring to the ‘Continuum of Professional Learning and Growth’ in Chapter 8 of The Heart and Art of Teaching and Learning (ETFO, 2011), I have reflected on how I have evolved through the stages of the Continuum of Professional Learning and Growth. The stages of Orientation and Beginning Practice in my first year of teaching as a full-year LTO were challenging and rich in new learning. Taking in a multitude of information and making sense of how it applied to myself as a teacher was an intense and rapid learning curve- one that has resulted in a steadfast commitment to my own learning and improvement as a teacher.

Over the last couple of years in my continued work as an LTO, I have journeyed through the examination of my own practice, working to find the right fit of strategies that can be used for planning, managing my time, establishing an organizational structure, developing lessons, developing community in my classroom, utilizing school and professional supports, and the list goes on. For me, the Examination of Practice is the ongoing reflection that I do to help me identify how I can best serve and lead my students, and improve my practice. I feel that this is something I will never, and should never, stop doing for as long as I am an educator because it plays a large part in my commitment to being a better and more effective teacher. I have worked alongside great experienced teachers who make this a part of their daily and weekly practice, so that they can make improvements and adjustments daily and yearly. This is probably one of the things that contributes to how great they really are! I have taken note and learned so much from them.

Now, as a daily occasional teacher, teaching in other teacher’s classrooms, I get to observe, practice, and execute the great ideas that I haven’t yet learned or seen over the course of my teaching journey. It is inspiring to see the creative approaches to classroom management, community building, collaboration and so forth, seeing the things that I can later experiment with. Having such exposure, and the opportunities to Experiment and Apply are helping to inform my teaching identity and style (on a course to establishing my Embedded Practice), and I am grateful for having these opportunities.

There are many ways in which a teacher can arrive at opportunities for new learning, experimentation and application. We can collaborate with one another, attend workshops, take courses, read books, follow online blogs and we can also poke our heads into each other’s classrooms and find out what is going on ‘in there’. I have been fortunate that my teaching journey has led me to poking my head into many people’s classrooms, and learning from other teachers through my occasional teaching.

I am also thankful for the opportunity to write for this blog, where I can intentionally share my knowledge and practices with other beginning, experienced and occasional teachers. Intentional Sharing of Knowledge and Practice is located on the end of the Professional and Learning and Growth continuum (p. 122); I am able to do this now through this forum. This is just the beginning for me in the early stages of my career, but sharing knowledge is embedded in my practices as a teacher and as a colleague and it will continue to be a large part my approach in wherever my teaching career takes me. The other loggers have also broadened my perspectives, I have been mentored by their posts and they have helped me to identify other learning opportunities and priorities that will inform my embedded practices. Thank you! This year has been another vast learning opportunity, and I feel it is only just the beginning as I continue to navigate the challenging, rich and rewarding path of teaching.

May 28, 2012 Samantha.Perrin Planning, Professional Learning and Growth

Communicating Forward: Supporting our students’ learning journey

Having been in a different school every year, I have been able to see the different ways teachers wind down their school year and transfer information forward to subsequent teachers. I do my best to observe and adapt to the different end-of-year practices so that I am effectively adapting to the school culture, and continuing to hone my teaching practices. In some of the LTO positions that I held that started in September, I experienced firsthand how communicating with last year’s teacher and communicating information forward about the students can help prepare a new teacher for meeting the students’ needs from the get-go, in September. The sharing and transferring the knowledge a teacher has about his or her students at the end of the school year to the following teacher can be as simple as passing along a reading assessment, a writing sample or even a students’ journal that would give a glimpse into the student’s life of the previous school year.

I have benefitted from good communication practices in several of the Long Term Occasional positions that I held and had started in September. One example that stands out for me was when I was beginning as a Senior Kindergarten teacher, I was given a file from the Junior Kindergarten teacher which revealed her own learner background summary on her students from the previous year as well as an outgoing assessment performed on each student (a self portrait, printing their name, letter printing with markings showing whether they could identify the letter, the sound, and number printing). In reading those files, I was able to get a picture of where the students left off and where some of them were developmentally. That information allowed me to get an idea of my classroom profile and where I would need to begin in my teaching with them (for example, based on their printing, I could get a sense of a student’s fine motor skills, letter identification, from their drawing, I could get a sense of where the student was developmentally). Having that information before even meeting my students also gave me a starting point for what I would diagnostically assess them on at the beginning of the school year (which was great learning for me, as I was new to teaching kindergarten).

It was through this experience that I learned that communication can continue and be transferred past the end of one school year, into the next and that the transfer of this information can provide teachers with a more comprehensive picture of their new students. While teachers can access previous report cards and schools maintain the Student Ontario Student Record (OSR) folders as a record of the students’ learning history, having additional access to a tangible student work sample can fill some of the blanks and prepare the new teacher for continuing to meet of the students’ specific needs from the very start.

I am sharing this learning as some ‘food for thought’ for my fellow teachers to view the finishing of a grade in June as a pause in the students’ learning journey before they move onto their next chapter, a new grade the following September, and an opportunity to continue supporting the students as they progress by communicating forward information. By passing the detailed information that we worked diligently to maintain, forwarding student information to the next teacher we can benefit our students and help each other prepare continuing to meet the students’ needs as well.

May 1, 2012May 1, 2012 Carmen.Oliveira Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Professional Learning: an AHA! Moment

How many of us have sat through professional learning meetings, in-services, workshops, and lunch-and-learns and went back to our classrooms feeling inspired and motivated to take some risks in our practice to better our learning and consequently, that of our students? The answer: all of us.

On the other hand, how many of us have left the workshops and meetings and questioned the relevance of what we “learned” as it connects to our teaching, wondered why we were strongly encouraged to participate in the first place, or felt confused and frustrated with respect to how the PD could possibly help us meet our learning needs and those of our students? The answer: all of us.

I recently had the pleasure of attending a PD session that really got me thinking about the difference between professional development and professional learning. It was one of the most beneficial experiences I’ve had as a teacher because it really expanded my understanding of professional learning and challenged me to rethink my role as a teacher and leader in my school. I’ve come to see it as a way to build the capacity of ALL educators in our schools based not only on the needs of the students but that of the teachers as well. I’ve found that not all professional learning builds a dynamic culture in schools that fosters collective responsibility among educators and we, as teachers, need to question what, why, and how we are learning just as we do with our students.

If you’re interested in exploring how continuous professional learning can expand and refine teaching and increase results for students, a great place to start are the resources created by Learning Forward (the National Staff Development Council based in the USA) and the Leadership Development Unit at TDSB.

Resources:

Becoming a Learning School by Joellen Killion and Patricia Roy www.learningforward.org

Toronto District School Board Leadership Development Unit

April 26, 2012 Erin.Grewar Assessment, Diverse Learning Needs, Learning in a Real Life Context, Professional Learning and Growth

Communicative Approach – On y parle!

In my recent blog, I commented on the latest approach ripping through the world of Core French like an F5 tornado. In all honesty, it might not be all that avant-garde since many of you are probably already covering some of the basics. What makes the communicative approach interesting to both students and teachers alike is that it is quite practical and offers kids an opportunity to actually speak French. I say “actually” because having students speak in French can sometimes seems achingly futile when, once dialogue scripts are removed, they seem not to be able to say much of anything. However, based on some suggestions from the workshop I attended and feedback from my students, we came up with a summative task that was quite successful for all.

For the past month, we had been working on a music-related theme and focusing largely on the grammatical concepts of adverbs, making comparisons and opinion-based statements. For our speaking assessment then, I proposed 3 options for having them create a natural, authentic dialogue between two/more people discussing their musical tastes:

(A) meeting in a music store
(B) calling in to a radio station and debating between two newly released songs
(C) scenario of their choice.

After handing them all a sample dialogue, I had them find and highlight the grammatical concepts (e.g., find and underline all the adverbs) to draw their attention to familiar elements. I find that always handing out an exemplar is fundamental in establishing your expectations and getting them to use vocabulary and language structures taught in class instead of ending up with a bad Google translation. What I did a little differently after that was ask the class what could be incorporated to make the dialogue sound more realistic and authentic. At that point, we brainstormed a bunch of expressions and inserted them appropriately and by the end, had come up with a great conversation.

Lastly, here are two suggestions that I have also found to greatly improve the quality of work (to be used also with written assignments). Make sure to continuously reference anchor charts posted around the room which for me, included how to structure a comparison, adverbs that add meaning, phrases related to expressing an opinion and brainstormed vocabulary. Finally, as a daily shared speaking activity, have four to five students answer various questions orally that could relate to the dialogue to get them accustomed to spontaneously speaking in French. Take a sample level 3 answer, write it on the board, and then modeling the use of anchor charts, insert expressions to demonstrate how to construct a level 4 reply. By the time of the dialogue, students will feel more at ease with the vocabulary/pronunciation and they will independently be able to add more complexity to their speaking. Bonne chance!

April 22, 2012May 11, 2012 Roz.Geridis Classroom Management, Occasional Teaching, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Working with or as an Occasional Teacher

When thinking about occasional teacher planning many questions could go through one’s thinking process (what do I leave, how much, what do I bring?). If you are an occasional teacher you need to be able to teach for the time you are in the class with plans or not. If you are a contract teacher, you want the occasional to teach what you would do even if you were there. I just finished having a student teacher in my classroom and as her practicum was coming close to an end, the conversation of occasional teaching came up. She wanted to know how I decided what to leave for an occasional and how much but also what she should expect as an occasional teacher. Below is a summary of what I shared with her:

Planning for an occasional teacher

1) Make sure you leave a current seating plan.

2) Leave tips and notes about your students but remember to be professional as sometimes notes are left in the room for kids to see. Only phrase things in a positive language, leave strategies to help the occasional connect with your students, and 1 or 2 students who the occasional can ask questions about the routine.

3) Leave as much information about your class as possible but remember all information will not always be read. Don’t forget to highlight the allergies in the class and if epi-pens are used (if so, where the epi-pens are stored).

4) Leave lessons which your students will be able to complete. Usually, I still leave my lesson (as if I am there), I make sure I am prepared to complete an assessment for learning when I immediately return. The reason for this is the classroom teacher understands how each student learns, the comfort is there for the student to ask questions and clarify misunderstandings. Also, sometimes occasional teachers don’t have enough background information to connect the lesson for the students, students sometimes behave differently with occasional teachers and lessons are taught differently; the full lesson might not have been taught. I can’t tell you how many times I have returned to my class with a note stating the effort was made but the redirection of behaviour took up too much class time. That being said, I make sure lessons are connected to the curriculum but sometimes I may need to do something different than following my unit plan. It sometimes helps to make the occasional teacher’s day a little more fun.

5) Schedules – leave them in the supply folder. All resource, yard duty, classroom schedules need to be available for an occasional to view.

6) If you need items for a science experiment or art lesson, leave items out or in one location and share the location of items with the occasional teacher.

Working as an Occasional Teacher

1) Arrive as early as possible to give yourself time to review notes and lessons left by the classroom teacher.

2) Be familiar with the grade curriculum (if possible).

3) Try to connect with the neighbour teacher and ask any questions you may have.

4) Have a Language, Math, Science lesson in your bag, as a back up. On very few occasions you may walk into a classroom which has no lessons available for the day. If you have a lesson for each of these subjects, you can fill the day. Based on the grade, have some addition, subtraction, multiplication, division review fun sheets in order for the kids to complete (begin with asking the students to complete any 5, then to pick another 2, and so on). If no photocopier is available, write the questions on the board or display them on the smartboard and have the students record the questions and answers in their math workbooks. For Science or Language, you can have a story book related to the environment. “Where the Forest Meets the Sea”by Jeannie Baker or “The Lorax”by Dr. Suess are two great examples which can begin discussion on environmental issues, based on a situation you give them have the students develop different endings. Another Science activity might be a recycle sort — go through the classroom garbage bin (bring plastic gloves) and sort out what can be recycled or put in a compost. Again, there are many story books you can tie this theme to. For Language, you can use the newspaper and have the students discuss an article you feel is age appropriate. You can also have the kids write down 3 truths and a lie about themselves — then each student presents the 4 statements to the class. The class has to guess which is the lie. The students really enjoy this activity and it does take up an hour and sometimes even more (if the class size is bigger). Please don’t forget about your diversity of learners and adjust your lessons as needed.

5) Don’t forget about yard duty.

6) Try to deal with classroom behaviour in the class. But of course, if safety of yourself or other students is/are at risk, make sure you immediately contact the administration. Having a little reward planned for the end of the day helps students to look forward to something. Making the connection by saying hello/good morning to every student as they enter helps to start off the day well.

7) Say good bye to the administration and thank you to the office assistant(s).

8) Most of all…enjoy the day!