The First Friday

I made it my first full week! That said, I don't really have that many responsibilities yet. But the transition to waking up early every day and actually having a morning commute is something new I'm adjusting to.

Everyone keeps asking me what it's like to be teaching. I haven't really gotten it through to everyone that this is a gradual process and that I wont be fully taking over for a few weeks. That always disappoints them. I have to try to explain that right now I'm observing and getting to know the school, the staff, the students etc. I kind of act like an assistant in the classroom, which is helpful because I can run back to the office if we forgot something or to the nurse when a kid has a bloody nose, yeah that already happened.

My CT is awesome. We seem to get along really well and she is genuinely interested in seeing me become a great teacher. After a lesson she likes to "debrief". I'm hearing this word a lot which means there is a lot of information coming in. I hope I can remember it all because everything she says seems so practical. I've gotten so many tips about classroom management, student motivation, diverse learners, having backup plans and just being at this school in general.

On Friday morning the fifth graders Skyped with their penpals in France. It was so much fun to watch their reactions when they saw their penpal for the first time face-to-face. Some of the students were really nervous to speak to French students but once they saw how easy it could be, and that my CT was always standing near by to help, they seemed more eager to talk. But the process showed me just how much you have to set up an activity like this. The time difference made coordinating with the other school a little tricky. And a lot of our students didn't know what Skype was before so that needed to be explained. And a few days before the chat my CT told the students what the procedure would be, how they would line up and take turns introducing themselves, and how the chat would go on the other side, and if there was time a few people could have a longer conversation with their penpals if they wanted, etc. So I'm really getting to see how much time and effort and planning it takes for one 25min Skype chat, or just any 25min lesson.