Have you ever heard terrifying stories about the first year of teaching? CLC director, Bethany Silva, told me about a time she broke down in tears in her first year of teaching. She grew up in New Hampshire and her first year of teaching was in Philadelphia. In early February, she realized that THEY DIDN’T HAVE FEBRUARY VACATION. Bethany tells me that she’s always paid better attention to calendars after that.
To calm some of my fears about the first year of teaching, I interviewed a first-year teacher to get some insight and information on how her first year is going and what I can expect when I enter my future classroom. Megan is a 3rd grade teacher at an elementary school in Massachusetts.
How do you manage your classroom?
I have rewards cards and every time students are on task or being kind to one another (like helping each other with class work), they get a hole punch on their card. Once a student gets ten hole punches, they win a sticker. I also try to keep the same routine. That keeps them on task.
What was the most surprising thing that happened in your first week of teaching?
The impacts of COVID-19 on students’ learning. My students were very loud and off task because it was their first time in a classroom since pre-COVID. It took a lot to get them focused. However, I still wanted them to socially interact with one another because they had missed out on so much.
How did you gain your confidence this first year?
I gained my confidence by working closely with my team members and planning together. I also gained my confidence by communicating and working with educators in other school districts and sharing ideas with one another.
What is something you implemented to make your classroom special?
The punch cards and sticker store. I create stickers from the “Among Us’ video game that is very popular with their age group. I feel as though those themed stickers motivate them more to be on task and to be kind to one another.
What’s one book you read to your students this year that was awesome?
One book I read to my students that they loved was Our Class is a Family by Shannon Olsen. This book allowed my students to understand that family can have many meanings. This book helped them to understand our differences within our classroom and to treat each other with kindness.
What is one thing that didn’t work out the way you expected?
After their time outside, I tried to get them to either organize their work space or do 10 minutes of individual reading or work. My students were too distracted and couldn’t calm down independently. So, I decided to read aloud to them after their time outside for 10 minutes, or so, which was more productive to get them to relax and to be back on task for their next subject.
How do you structure your literacy block?
During my day, I have one hour for ELA. For my literacy block I do full instructions for 15 minutes followed by 3 rotations of 15-minute centers. This includes independent work based off of the lesson, reading groups with the teacher, and technology group, which is usually to practice word work and phonics.
Megan, thank you so much for sharing some of your first-year experiences with us. We wish you luck for the rest of the year, and we hope we can catch up with you in a few years to learn how your practices change over time.
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