I love the posts that crop up at the end of school about teachers reflecting about their school year. At the same time, they ruminate about changes they want to make for the next year. What changes do you want to make?...
My school is starting a new policy next where kids aren't allowed to have cell phones on their person during class. Teachers need to collect them in a bin at the start of each class period. I disagree with this new policy. I think students will have these distractions and MUCH MUCH more in college so we should be preparing them to work productively with their technology, not taking it. I am in the minority in my school though. Most teachers are happy about the policy. I just think it's babying them, plus I don't want to be the custodian of all these phones. The phones make some kids who would otherwise be a nuisance less of a nuisance too As far as changes I want to make, I am teaching one (maybe 2) new preps next year so that'll be a nice change in itself.
I'll be making a slight change in teaching assignment--I've been teaching Grade 7 for the past few years and will have a combined Grade 7/8 next year. I'm looking forward to the change and am working on actively petitioning to keep a few of my current students (and no, they aren't the "good" ones--no one will fight me for them, but I love them). I'm revamping much of my Literacy program next year, incorporating ideas from some of the teachers who inspire me on Twitter. I'll be focusing much less on written responses to reading and more on allowing students to communicate their thinking in ways that work best for them. I also want to be more purposeful in having social justice, global citizenship and Reconciliation at the forefront of much that we do. Two of my best friends and I will be doing a fair bit of planning together--they will both be moving into new positions teaching Grade 7. Our philosophies are very much in sync, and we are determined to do great things! I'm really excited!
I am proposing a change in my position and my hours. Referring to my career development plan, I would like my position to focus more on training and coaching. I would rather help teachers with their work, than constantly doing their work over!! I would like less time in the classroom. I can handle the paperwork for the Head Start teachers. That will free them to focus on the kids, lessons and teaching!! Additionally, I want a change in my schedule, starting an hour later. Tired of fighting traffic and being the opening teacher!! One hour makes a huge difference. No blinding sunlight, the snow has melted and streets are plowed. Daylight savings time won’t bother me...it will always be light outside when I am leaving. I would even be able to run an errand or two. Ok, maybe one. Like going to the drive up bank teller for sure!!
I'm with you. It's an instant confrontation at the door every, single period and could possibly result in the teacher getting a razor across the face over a cell phone. Then there's the kid that lies and tells you that they don't have a cell phone.......then you have to stop the class when you discover yes, they do indeed have a cell phone, and now you have to get it away from them. There's another 10 minutes of the period wasted. Finally, when it has to be brought to the attention of an administrator, they say either, "That's YOUR fault" or "What do you want ME to do about that?"
Here are just a few faves for all things Literacy: @Catlin_Tucker @Jess5th @MaggieBRoberts @ctovani @KyleneBeers @pennykittle @pernilleripp @writeguyjeff
Have you ever seen/used Flipgrid? It's really great for students who are more comfortable responding to things verbally than in writing. It's also fun for sharing responses between classes, grade levels, or even schools.
I facilitated a digital storytelling club after school this year - basically, simple video creation using regular video but also green screen, stop motion - and the last few weeks I've brought some of it into my classroom, just to shake things up. I've discovered that my kids are MUCH more willing to write if they know it's going to be turned into a video of some kind, even something quick and simple. I teach self-contained special ed and my kids really respond to these more non-traditional ways of demonstrating learning so it's engaged them and tapped into some of their areas of strength. I'm going to spend some of my summer thinking about ways to inject some of this stuff into our curriculum. I also have one eye on potentially moving from the classroom to the library in the 2019-2020 school year so I'm going to be doing some work to get prepared for that and make my resume a little more librarian-friendly. Not sure exactly what yet though!
One of my best friends has been a teacher-librarian for the past 10 years or so. For next year, she is transferring to another school and returning to the classroom. She loves the library (and I'm having a hard time imagining anyone else in her place) but feels the need for a change as she's looking to going the administration route within the next few years. If I wasn't just 4 years from retirement, I would definitely consider getting my teacher-librarian credentials.
Oh MrsC you should get them! The courses are not difficult and you'd like them! Totally worth the time/money investment IMHO
I am looping up to second next year, from first this year. I looped up to first from kinder last year. I want to change the way I set expectations. I want to have everything thought through and ready to present to the class from day one. I also want to get better at pulling in various resources to supplement curriculum. And I really want to become more disciplined about grading. Sheilah
Yep. I have several students that were new to the school this year. But most of them will be with me for three years by the time we are done with second grade. Sheilah
I will be co-teaching again, and my co-teacher was able to add an extra 30 minutes to the schedule, so she and I will be together for 2.5 hours everyday. I’m excited to see how much more growth we’ll be able to see with the students with the extra time! We are also going to implement individual goal setting and tracking for all the students. We did it this year with our special education students to give them ownership of their IEP goals, and we loved it, so we would like to expand it to become a whole class routine.
Currently, all of my high school math homework assignments are paper and pencil. I am considering turning them into an electronic submission format and programming it to auto grade whenever possible. If I go this route, I would need a way to hold students accountable for showing their work. Maybe I will give them the original paper handout to do their work on and keep in their binder to be included as part of a unit notebook check. Or maybe they could work out problems in a notebook as needed. The goal of the electronic format would not be to save paper but rather to expedite grading and make feedback instantaneous when possible. Thoughts?
I'm heading back to classroom teaching after being a literacy coach. I'm excited to have my own class again and use all the things I've learned while coaching.
I'm trying really hard to hop to a gen ed ELA position in my current school. We're waiting on some budget news. I won't know until June!
Your idea will also look good in your evaluation! It shows your initiative to use technology in the classroom. I think that’s great JimG! Many high schools in my area have already implemented digital classwork assignments, similar to Blackboard in college. Tablets are required on their school supply list, and the school loans tablets to students in need.
