The most valuable aspects I found this week have to do with being flexible. After this week the word 'flexible' has new meaning to me. It encompasses not only an attitude toward what needs to be done and when it will be done, but it can also be an approach to handling the students.
The week started off by making up things from the previous week when there were two days that had two hour delays throwing the schedule into chaos. So, we (my co-op and I) came up with a plan to have everyone complete what we started the week before and back on track. But that was before the snow flew... and that was before two days were cancelled due to the weather conditions. So, our plans to get back on track were thwarted and we were thrown even further behind in the schedule. As I look to plan for the upcoming week I now realize the importance of good planning. By having plans in writing and even an outline of a weekly schedule, it allows me to easily identify what was missing and prioritize what needs to be made up. Without the detailed plans and the higher level plans, I would spend a lot more time trying to figure out which end is up and how to get back on track. The higher level outline allows me to review the schedule at a glance and rearrange lessons. The detailed plans give me the freedom to quickly rearrange activities and/or lessons in order to consolidate material while still ensuring that everything is covered. Up until this week, the true value of planning lessons was lost on me.
Another aspect of this week where flexibility played a role was during a class where a student was very mouthy and yelling at the co-op. The co-op did not back down but showed enough flexibility that the student didn’t feel trapped to the point where she had no choice. The co-op was flexible but stern which allowed the student a way out without any further escalation. This could have turned into a nasty confrontation but because of the quick thinking and flexibility of the co-op, it was resolved.
If I could change anything about this week it would be to plan with even more detail. I once thought that detailed planning would not allow flexibility because every element was being arranged. I now realize that careful planning is what permits you to rearrange a schedule, get back on track, or to be spontaneous and improvising while not missing any aspects of the lessons.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I, like you, had two days off and then when we returned to school on Friday we had a "lock-down" drill for four periods, so I know where you are coming from when you use the word "flexible". It was a great learning experience having those two days off because we saw that we had to be flexible yet organized to keep the flow of the class going to stay on track. Sounds like you did well though, nice!
ReplyDeletePaying attention to detail is so important as a new teacher. First, you really don't know how long your instruction will take and how long students need to complete projects successfully until the first year is in for the course.
ReplyDeleteThe second year and every year after that you become the master of the content, lesson, and your assessment. Then watch the creativity flow!
I sometimes wish I could personally apologize to my first year of teaching students. It was truly a learning experience for me that I didn't realize until the second year!