I have completed my first solo year and, in my opinion, it was a spectacular success! I still love my job, I didn't estrange my husband (lol), I feel enthusiastic about next year, and to top it all off, most important of all, my kids showed some impressive improvement! I still have so much to learn and so much growing to do, but I feel I am headed in the right direction. So, here are some things I noticed that I need to work on, or was very successful at, that make a first year smooth and effective.
Certainty
(Not to be confused with knowing everything all the time)
Certainty is a quality of all effective teachers. It often develops with experience, but some people have natural certainty or have already developed certainty in their lives. Certainty is akin to authority, but without the power connotation. It is the simple ability to convey your expectations in a way that makes it clear that there is no other option but to comply. It is speaking in a calm, even tone, standing tall and proud, and commanding attention, even when there are 30 fifth graders looking back at you and you are shaking in your boots. When I say commanding attention I don't mean like a drill sergeant, commanding attention can come in many forms, depending on your personality. Maybe you have that soft, kindergarten, "I'm going to pull you in with my sheer delightful, quiet enthusiasm." Or maybe you are hilarious and pull the kids in with your charisma. Or maybe you have that special cool, quirky quality that draws people in because you're just so interesting... Whatever it is, harness it and portray absolute certainty that your students will listen, comply, and learn.
Certainty comes with preparedness, passion, and understanding. You must be prepared before you ever step in front of your classroom. Understand your subject matter and curriculum, set up and practice routines, and have organized lesson plans arranged. As a first year teacher, occasionally preparedness won't happen. It is ok to apologize and wing it as best you can, but DO NOT MAKE A HABIT OF IT! Students will get frustrated and will begin to act out. They will see you as powerless and unreliable.
Your passion for the subject, process, content, students, learning, etc. also needs to be evident most of the time. Finally, you need to be understanding with yourself and students. Part of certainty is not always knowing you are right, but knowing you are knowledgeable, prepared, and caring and are doing the best for these students that you can. You need to be understanding of yourself when things don't go as planned, when you change your mind, or when you say something stupid. It happens. Deal with it, and move on. You also need to be understanding with students. Students act the way they do for a reason. Do not confuse leniency with understanding, though. Students need to be held to consistent high expectations.
Preparedness
This is something I excelled at in some areas and really need to work on in other areas. You should always be at least a week ahead in planning curriculum, but be flexible enough to adjust as real life happens. The beautiful thing about being planned a week ahead is that it generally turns out to be about two weeks because you plan so much! I utilized the summer before my first year to plan, plan, plan. I basically worked full time during the summer, but I was so excited that it was fun. Really, though, I started planning for my first year when I stepped into my first education class in college. I saved, sorted, organized, and categorized every piece of material that I received from a class or a classmate. It has really come in handy!
Beyond having your curriculum prepared, you should also have your activities, projects, parties, and field trips planned as far ahead as you can. This is something I really struggled with. I was always so focused on making sure my lessons were going to go off without a hitch that I would put off the actual preparation until the night before. If you are planned ahead, have the materials ready, and encourage volunteers to help in your classroom, you will save yourself a lot of late nights. I often let that glorious bulletin board slip by because I wasn't prepared enough to delegate the task.
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