"In teaching others we teach ourselves" - Proverb
I believe that all of students have something absolutely amazing about them! One of my strengths as teacher is my never ending passion to evaluate and discover each students unique talents and learning styles. I believe gaining knowledge of each students unique abilities gives me so many more possiblities of how they can successfully and happily learn.
I have definitely improved in my classroom organizational skills, but I think its still an area that I could continue to improve. I really like to keep things fresh and new each year, so I am not repeating the same year over and over. With keeping things new and fresh means finding more time for prep and organizing new materials which gets overwhelming at times. But I am finding that I am continuing to improve in this area each year.
I think a way that I have surprised myself the most would be my abilitly to evaluate students progress and improvment. As a Kindergarten teacher alot of "testing" comes from observation. This year I was happy with my organizational skills to make sure evaualtions were well documented. I was able to use those evaluations to to create lessons for class needs as well as indiviual needs way more effectively.
Professional Goal
A professional goal that I have is to continue to come up with creative and innovative ways to make learning experiences exciting! I have really learned that if a lesson is not fun for me it will not be fun for my students. They truly learn the best when I have done my homework to bring the subject to life. My goal is to not let mundain or rountine lessons take over my classroom. Although classroom procedures and schedule should be routine for a happy classroom environment, my lessons do not always to be predictable and rountine!
Connected as an educator
I have enjoyed connecting with my reflective coach during my induction expereience. She always gave me innovative ways to approach lessons. I hope to continue connecting with my teaching team to further our ability to help each other create positivie and amazing classrooms! I also feel that through the teachers pay teachers website I have been able to connect with teachers blogs that have been very helpful in my own development as a teacher.
Keeping my energy and zest for teaching!
Because I feel so excited about teaching, I feel that its very easy for me to put too much on my plate at times. Over the years I have needed to manage my time better so that I am not working all the time. Even though sometimes preping for lessons doesnt feel like work, I have to realize it is, so I need to put it aside sometimes to save energy for when my kids are in the classroom! Managing my time efficiently so that I do not feel overwhelmed or tired will continue to be a focus and goal throughout my teaching careeer.
Advice for new teachers entering this profession
For Anyone thinking about being a teacher or about to finish programs to be a teacher, my advice to them would be to get into the classroom as much as possible! Whether you are volunteeiring or observing, I feel that talking with numerous veteran teachers has helped me greatly. Emmersing yourself in classroom settings to see what works well and what could go better was so valuable for me! I knew I wanted to be a teacher in highschool, so I would go help in elementary classrooms as much as I could! Through college I would volunteer in classrooms of all grades, I was so grateful for that experience as it really prepared me for someday having my own classroom.
From my Reflective Coach
"Alissa is a creative, loving, and dedicated teacher. She believes that all her little students have the ability to achieve at the highest level. Alissa engages students in learning by making her lessons fun, active, and meaningful. She is an exceptional teacher which will bless students for many years to come."
Advice to future educators
My advice to future educators would be to take one day at a time. Sometimes when looking at the year as a whole it can be overwhelming at all you need to accomplish. Its amazing how a little bit each day accomplishes more then you think! Also, preserve your energy as much as possible! Have fun outlets disconnected with school that you really enjoy. It is so important to get enough rest and down time. And above all, sometimes things do not go as you planned, but as long as you learn from it and try your best that is all you can do!