First Day of School...as a Teacher!

Day 13: Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012

Naturally, I wore red shoes for my first day.

I woke up to an encouraging email from Mom...I called her and she reminded me to be fun but also FIRM. Marney called to check on me and she prayed with me over the phone - these two women were SO helpful on that first morning. I put on my funky new apple ‘teacher earrings’ and wore a ‘Ms. Frizzle dress’ - I only call it that because it’s colourful and kind of fun!

I walked into the school feeling surprisingly calm, confident and excited (of course I was nervous too). I stopped into Al’s office and asked for any last minute advice...he just told me to “be confident and be yourself, be enthusiastic and capture their attention.” 

I honestly can’t remember “my first words” - but I welcomed the students into our classroom, keeping in mind that the first impression is CRUCIAL - especially at such a young age. I tried to look at each one of them...I had them print their names on their desk labels and we chatted a bit about various topics - one being rules, of course. I introduced myself and showed some pictures of my family, my cat, my home, etc. I tried to explain how far I’d come from. I told them that they can ask me ANY questions at anytime. Of course, I got the “do you have a boyfriend?” question.

I am on duty for morning arrival, morning recess, lunch bus duty and at the end of the day on Wednesdays - so yes, I was on duty for my first day. The tricky part is that I’m the ONLY teacher on duty during recess - responsible for Grades 1 through 3 and it was actually borderline INSANITY! There were several young children playing on high equipment, expecting me to watch them all do cool tricks on the monkey bars - which really freaks me out! Plus, there are a bunch on the swings, a bunch playing near the concrete steps and door...and then some running in the field along the bushes. Wow. I had to really ask the Lord to watch over these children, because I couldn’t possibly! I was helping some students at the swings and one of my students said... “You’re different than any teacher I’ve had.” Oh. I asked her why and she said, “Well, you’re nice and young...” But as soon as she finished her explanation, another boy chimed in with: “You look old, because Grannies wear flowers.”

My friend suggested that we choose a mascot as a class to build some community and just for something fun to carry on throughout the year. The kids were making HILARIOUS suggestions...(for example: Dancing Bananas, Dancing Worms, The Tank, Butterflies, etc. - once someone suggested Dancing, we had a LONG list of name options with "Dancing" as the first word). We finally arrived at the decision to be called “The Happy Birds.” My students were suggesting Angry Birds but we agreed to make it more positive-seeming.

Throughout the day, some of my students openly expressed that they were bored, some said they wanted to go home, and some wanted to stay longer. It was very clear after a day with my Grade 2s that some think I’m brutal but then others wrote in their books that I’m “the best” - somewhere in the middle, I suppose I am just a beginning teacher trying to find her way! Ah well, can’t please em’ all I suppose! (But, as a teacher - I need to try! That’s what differentiated instruction is all about - meeting each of them at their needs and based on their individual preferences/learning styles, to ensure that they all have an equal opportunity to learn and thrive!) EEKS.

We came in from recess or some other transition - and I decided to have some fun with the kids, so we played a game to see who could make the funniest face and cause everyone else to laugh. As soon as someone laughed at their seat, they would have to stand out and try to make the others laugh. It was cute to see them being silly and afterwards, I spontaneously decided to read “Mr. Funny” - a cute little book that I’d picked up for my classroom. It was quite fitting - and we continued to make funny faces as we read the story together.

Halfway through the afternoon (there is no longer a scheduled recess break in the afternoons), but the Grade 1 teacher saved the day. My kids were getting restless and seemed to be quite bored. The Grade 1 teacher offered to take them outside. I went outside, too - but it gave me a chance to take a breath and a bathroom break! Thanks Ms. J! :)

I noticed Ms. J singing a lot of songs with her kids and that reminded me that I have a nice little collection of camp songs in the back of my mind...so while we were waiting for some students to come in off the play equipment, I broke out into “Here we sit like birds in the wilderness.” I also tried “The Petunia Song” with my Grade 2 class at the end of the day - it went quite well, they seemed to really enjoy it.

Throughout the day, I felt mostly prepared and it seemed to flow fairly well...But there are always little things that I forget - simple little things like ensuring my pencils were sharpened and that there were erasers out for the kids - oops!

Done day one!

I was feeling a little bit insecure with regard to teaching, not feeling overly confident and caring too much about what others think. I prayed in the morning to start off the day - recognizing that I’m going to need the Lord to guide me, every step of the way...It’s a scary profession to start and I feel a HUGE weight of responsibility to educate these children. I do not feel qualified, to be completely honest - and I’m convinced that I’m learning more than they are so far! I was blessed throughout the day  - in many ways...one being that a parent of my student (she works in the school) - randomly handed me a “How to Plan your School Year” resource book - SO SWEET!

It was a nice first day...a fun first day, but incredibly overwhelming. I knew it would be a lot of work, but I have to really deal with my time management issues (which is stretching and good - but TOUGH!)

2 other new teachers, still smiling after the 1st day!

I think I cried on the phone with my mom that evening - mostly just feeling relief to have the first day over with. I was feeling EXHAUSTED by 9:30 so I napped until 10, woke up and then decided to get ready for bed! I looked over my list of things to do and went back to sleep...until 5 am. I am typically able to wake up and get things done rather than trying to do it while half-asleep during the evening. I felt that night as if God was just saying “go to bed child, it will get done tomorrow.”

I have been taking a lot of pictures of my students (and I do have permission from their families to use the pictures for educational purposes...) but unfortunately, this public blog is NOT really educational. SO: I won’t be sharing the sweet pictures with all of you. But, please know - my kids are SUPER adorable and I really enjoyed my first day with them - all the overwhelmingness aside!