The Best Medicine

After a long and hard week of being sick, I dreaded waking up on Thursday morning to get ready to go into the schools. I asked myself if it would really hurt to miss one day. I could always make this day up right? After dragging my aching body out of the bed and taking medicine through the immense pain caused by my throat when swallowing, I managed to get dressed and to get to my car. I made it to school on time and walked into the classroom. Through the chaos of the children preparing for the day and the teacher doing the same, I was able to sneak in a few comments about my current state of health. The teacher did not do what I was hoping for which would have been a, "I'm sorry you don't feel well. Why don't you go home for the rest of the day." Instead I received a, "You'd better get used to it." followed by a "Yes you can get your coffee." I was slightly upset but knew that I needed to get to work in order to make the day go by a little smoother. Once the children returned to the classroom, I began to feel something weird. The children in the classroom were laughing and enjoying life. I immediately forgot about how bad I was feeling and realized that I was there for them. They needed to be taught and it was my job (along with the MT) to do so. That's what we are there for. We may not get paid the most money, or have fancy titles, but our jobs are some of the most important jobs in the world. Knowing this I was instantly cured. I guess it's true what they say....laughter really is the best medicine.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

LLED Ray Ch. 12

During my week in the schools, I was able to discuss the topic of creating a routine for the different areas of the classroom. One of the areas we talked about was the Reading and Writing Workshop areas. My mentor teacher advised me to be sure to "practice" the way things are done for the first couple of weeks. I was even instructed to practice these things over and over again. This allows for younger children to forget the habits obtained the year before and to create the habits you want them to have for the year ahead.

This can also be shown in more detail in the writing workshop by taking the time in those first couple of weeks to work very closely with each group of the writing workshop until each student knows exactly what to do at each station. This helps with issues that might arrive while students are in their workshops throughout the year. The teacher should also always be sure to give some directions each day to remind the students of the various activities going on at that time in the year.

I agree that creating a plan in which you as the teacher know exactly how long you intend to spend on each topic. As with any unit, a teacher plan for activities as a backup in the event that the class finishes the unit a few days early or if the class needs extra time to complete the unit. This is tough as a new teacher to plan for. For my first writing lesson during my unit plan, I simply had too much information for the children to cover in the time planned. It is always important to plan our units according to the students we have in the class at the current time. This is another reason why the first few weeks of schools are very vital.