First Day Teaching

The long awaited day--teaching all day long for the first time--came to me Thursday. I had taught little lessons that never seemed to fit into the plan the teachers working for them. I would just show up as some college student and figure out some wonderful lesson and teach.

Earlier last week I begin to look at lesson plans and the general idea of the thematic unit that my intern teacher is working on. I begin to put together a lesson that I thought would be out of this world. Indeed it turned out great for me, but I also learned a lot about myself in those three periods of teaching.

Giving directions to a large class is a one of my weaknesses. It my third period class of thirty to tell me that I had to work on this. I could not survive as a teacher if I could not answer all of their questions and detour some of the confusion before the assignment started. Because I had repeated the directions twice already that morning, I kept forgetting what I had told them and not told them. I had great directions, but I could not remember what class knew what.

The second thing learned in the class is that I talk a lot. My class, each period, went way over the bell. I had planned a lesson that needed an hour and a half to each and work the assignment. Determined to not let this be a reoccurring thing, I am going to try and work out a time schedule with each activity in my lesson.

Over all it was a great day and truly a learning experience. I will never forget the queasy stomach and the slow recovery as the morning progressed. I am confident that I can do this and enjoy my future job!