My First Friday

So I missed the jeans memo for today and wore a dress while all of my colleagues chilled in jeans, but that's okay. I planned morning meeting yesterday and today, and they both went great. I also jumped in and taught a little reading yesterday and math today so that my teacher could get some last minute things figured out. Although I would prefer to plan out when I teach, it's still teaching which means I still loved it. The kids are starting to see me in that 'teacher' role, which is definitely a good thing. Next week I "officially" start planning Morning Meeting. I have to upload the plans to the 5th Grade lesson plans on this website. It feels so official. Anyway, I'm having fun planning morning meeting activities and discussing lesson ideas with my mentor teacher. We decided on my Calendar of Requirements for the semester. She really is great to work with! I am glad it's Friday though. I am wore out!

Starting to get into the swing of things...

Today was another great day. Mon., Wed, and Fri. one of the gifted teachers collabs with my class for part of the day. It's always interesting to see how collab teaching works in different classrooms. Sometimes the main teacher still runs the show, sometimes not. It's a delicate dance of teaching, when done correctly. However, my mentor teacher was perplexed with what to do when the gifted teacher ran over time. They sort of wing it when it comes to the day's lesson. I feel like more communication would benefit the teachers and the students. But it is still early in the year. I'm sure everyone will get the hang of it.
I also sat in on my first grade level meeting. Since we submit one lesson plan as a grade level team, the teachers divvy up subjects. My teacher does S.S. and sometimes math. It'll be nice to see these subject areas, especially since I was in an ELA 5th grade all last semester. I feel like I know that curriculum like the back of my hand.
My teacher had to leave a little early today, so I was left to write tomorrow's morning message, plan a morning meeting activity, and grade some math tests. I have to be honest, it felt pretty good being the only one in the classroom working on things for the next day. It was like a little glimpse into the future. Tomorrow night is curriculum night! I'm excited to meet my kids' parents. Anyway, that's all for now.

My First "Official" Day!

So, although I went to the first day of pre-planning and the first day of school, I did so on my own time. My first official day was today. Yesterday everyone met with their supervisors to get the low down on our student teaching requirements this semester. Basically, I slowly start taking on more and more responsibilities in the classroom and build up to at least 2 full weeks teaching everything. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Today we had Data Team during planning. Basically, the whole 5th grade meets with the instructional coach and they go over assessment data to determine how the kids are doing(aka. boring). Nevertheless, the majority of the day was trying to make copies while the copier was on the fritz and trying to remember my kids' names. I think I've got most of them. Oh, and I also gave a few students reading assessments this afternoon. So now I'm off to look at the curriculum guides for 5th grade so I know what I'm in for this semester!