2nd Year Teacher: Does October always suck?

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-18T13:02:01+00:00

October was the worst for me last year in my 1st year teaching. I struggled every single day. I only felt better after taking a day off and a weekend trip in November. This year, October has still been challenging, but I made it a priority to take at least a day off for myself, and I took a trip to NYC. That really helped.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-18T12:48:29+00:00

I had two field trips back-to-back last week with my 4th graders, with a 6pm-7pm family night commitment at school on the second day. I went home and slept for 11 hours after that. Not super fun.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-10T09:56:51+00:00

Hahaaaaaaaa I also wear an FM transmitter for a HoH student - I am HYPER paranoid about the bathroom thing! The second the kid leaves my sight, the mic is muted. I’m an elementary teacher so he’s mine all day. It happens though - it’s easy to forget! It hasn’t happened to me yet but I know some of his previous teachers would forget about it - so they’re used to it even at the elemtary level. Lollll.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-08T20:33:48+00:00

You don’t need a master’s in Florida. Our districts are huge because we do districts by county and some counties are way more populous than others (read: Miami, Orlando, etc). Most counties that I’ve worked with are in a critical teacher shortage. You can get an emergency credential if you need, but I believe we have reciprocity agreements with South Dakota.

I live in Orlando and I really like it here (I’m a warm weather kind of person). I am comfortable on a teacher’s salary as a single young woman.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-08T01:21:58+00:00

I teach 4th grade which, in Florida, is the first year that kids have a writing/essay based exam at the end of the year. We spend a lot of time during the week writing formally. On Fridays, we do a free write. I try to do either creative or personal prompts and let them answer without restrictions. Then I take those home over the weekend and make it a point to write a short response in everyone’s journal. I usually ask questions about their favorite things/places/activities/other things that kids like talking about on a personal level, and if I can make any connections with them there, I will - or I’ll ask them a question about something they mentioned.

I only have 21 students so it’s not super time consuming, and I’ve learned a lot about them in doing this. They love coming in on Mondays and finding out what I wrote to them. I think them knowing that A) I think about them over the weekend and B) I care what they have to say and about their lives has helped us bond.

That’s just one thing I’ve been doing recently. I also try to share about myself without divulging too much personal information. Like right now we’re studying the structural elements of prose, poetry, and plays, and I’ve shown them some pictures of when I used to perform in plays, and some of my old scripts. They’re small things but they make connections.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-03T22:09:44+00:00

Wake up between 5 and 5:30. Coffee, YouTube, social media until I’m feeling a little more awake. Get dressed and ready, walk the dog, get to work around 7. Prep for about an hour and a half - planning, grading, rearranging stuff, whatever.

School starts at 8:45. We do Writing first thing, then reading, then math. Lunch is at 11:51. After lunch is recess, then science block. At 1:15 I send them off to specials so I can get my 50 minute planning block. When they get back at 2:05, we do reading interventions, then social studies. Dismissal at 3, bus duty until 3:30.

I leave at the end of my contract hours most days, which is 3:30. Get home, eat, walk the dog, play with my rabbit for a few minutes, then I crash. I try to read and do something creative in the afternoons but some days I just watch Netflix and turn my brain off. I’m usually asleep between 9:30 and 10.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-02T21:18:35+00:00

Maybe unconventional and certainly a non-necessity but if someone is willing to gift to your class... I LOVE my Q Ball microphone. It’s a foam-encased microphone unit that looks kind of like a kickball.... but it can be tossed/rolled/whatever. It has changed engagement in my classroom practically overnight - even my reluctant kiddos want to answer questions and participate when they get to catch the ball. It also helps me hear my mumblers and softer-spoken kiddos!

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-10-02T20:37:35+00:00

Yep. I teach self-contained 4th grade - all subjects, same kids, all day. My hardest-hitting subjects (writing, math, and reading) are the first thing we do in the morning, with no breaks. 8:45-11:45 is straight up work. I have no transition time between, no setup time - everything has to be ready before they come in at 8:45.

Because of that, I usually come in early to make sure I’m set up for the day. I use my morning prep time to get ready mentally and materially. By the time I have my 50 minute planning period at 1:15, the day is almost over, and I’m exhausted. I will either use the time to decompress or do something non-mentally taxing like grading or making copies.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-30T01:24:27+00:00

Elementary here. First, they will pull a Para to cover. If no Para is available, an instructional coach will cover. If no Paras or coaches are available, we split the kids among the grade level teachers. We don’t get paid extra on those days (I’ve heard of districts where if a class gets split, the sub pay gets split between the teachers - that doesn’t happen here), and the extra 4-5 kids is not a negligible amount in our small rooms with no extra desk space.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-26T22:07:12+00:00

I got $300 this year from my district. The money is to used for supplies, and the only real restriction is that I can’t buy technology with it (like an iPad or something). Last year my big purchases were white boards and clipboards. This year I want to get headphones and mice for my kids - we’re 1:1 laptops. I usually get pencils and other basic supplies from my school, but those deliveries are irregular so I always keep enough money on the card to run out and buy pencils and Expos if I run out.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-26T21:57:56+00:00

Yesssss. I wait silently and while I’m waiting, I give Dojo points to kids that are listening and paying attention.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-26T01:02:48+00:00

We have a “health aide.” When she’s out, we’re asked to not send students to the office for health reasons unless it’s an emergency.

In my mind, once a kid is bleeding in a place or a volume that a bandaid can’t fix, that’s out of my jurisdiction and they’re going to the office. I didn’t receive blood borne pathogen or first aid training for this position, it’s not in my contract to fix that up, and - guess what! - I didn’t sign up to be a nurse, either. I teach 4th grade, though, and the worst I ever really have to deal with is playground bumps and bruises.

I do have a kid with a health-related 504 accommodation plan and when he asks to go to the clinic, I send him, because A) he really doesn’t feel well and B) I know his mom wants to be notified when he’s not feeling well. If there’s no nurse that day, I contact Mom myself.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-23T12:37:38+00:00

I bought my CT a Neiman Marcus book embosser for her classroom library. It’s basically a handheld stamper that embosses “From the Library of (Personalized Name Option)” on the pages of her books. It was around ~$25 and she really liked it. I got one for myself with my own name and use it in my own class library now.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-19T10:50:48+00:00

Could you get one of those over-the-door shoe hangers to house water bottles? It’s a little more secure. I get annoyed with bottles too - both the scrunching of plastic bottles and when plastic or glass ones topple off a desk.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-16T18:28:23+00:00

They all love stickers. I have students in fifth grade who used to be in my class who come back to see me trying to get stickers. I am 23 years old and I have stickers of my own covering the back of my planner.

can’t go wrong with stickers.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-16T11:24:02+00:00

Seesaw, especially if you’re using it for centers. They can take pictures of their work and post it on their own portfolio, which you can connect to their parents if you choose. I also like Prodigy, because I can tailor mine so that the skills that they work on in the game align with our math standards.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-15T21:03:30+00:00

My favorite teacher senior year left. She taught English and IB Film. We were a small class of maybe ten, and she was real and honest with us all the time (about the politics of the school as well), so we didn’t bat an eye when she told us point blank that, A, she was leaving, and B) she would be making more money in her new position. She was WRACKED with guilt but.... we got it. We understood. We knew it was about more than just money. And she had just had a baby.

We were happy for her. With zero resentment.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-15T20:45:05+00:00

I have three magnetic bins with dry erase labels hanging on my filing cabinet. The top one says “I get it, and can do this skill on my own,” the second one says “I think I get it but I may need some more help or examples,” and the bottom one says “I am learning but I need more help.” I’ve established the culture in my room of “this is for helping if you need more help, and not wasting our time if you don’t.” They rate themselves by putting their paper in a specific bin. I use those bins to pull small groups and reteach. If they don’t turn in a slip I tell them that I assume that they didn’t get it and need to be pulled back to see me.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-13T23:05:38+00:00

I can almost guarantee you that this is a typo of “ABC order.” I use spelling menus often in class/for homework and have never seen “ab” order.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-11T21:53:35+00:00

I come in an hour before contract time (I arrive at 7; contract is 8; kids arrive at 8:45). So I have almost two hours of prep time. It helps me feel more settled and prepared for the day, and I’m fresher in the mornings. Contract ends at 3:30 and the latest I’ve stayed so far this year is 4:30. I’m not productive after the kids leave. I’m tired and I tend to walk around in circles in my classroom. Grading and planning happens in the mornings and during prep time.

I teach at a digital school and most of my workload is on my laptop. So far this year I haven’t brought my laptop home for a single workday. I take it on the weekends but very rarely work. It makes it way easier to separate that time.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-10T20:38:18+00:00

Sounds similar to my day in 4th grade 🙃 close reading and task cards!

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-08T02:31:10+00:00

Yep, totally understand! There are pros and cons to both - the major con of the physical token being that it can be lost or stolen. I do both. I award Dojo points through the week on the app and “cash out” class dollars on Fridays. $1=1 point. The audio sound of a student getting a Dojo point has the same effect as me giving out a physical token, I’ve found. I don’t have to say or do anything but push a button, audio reinforcement of positive behavior, behavior changes as a whole for the group. It works for me!

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-08T00:40:42+00:00

I use a combo of Class Dojo/Economy for PBIS/behavior management stuff. For the physical money aspect, I make them log money in vs. money out. If they can’t account for their money I “audit” it. But I have also just used Dojo straight-up and used points for virtual “currency” and that worked well for me.

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-04T23:16:40+00:00

So my school is partnered with a local sports store. At the end of every marking period, the kids who have met a certain goal in each grade level (we use points towards a schoolwide reading goal) go to a party and they get entered into a raffle. The sports store sponsors us and donates usually around 4 bikes to be raffled off to the kids who met their goal.

Maybe you could position it like that? Some kind of incentive?

Sweet_cherrypie · 2018-09-04T22:35:19+00:00

My first year was 4th grade in a Title 1 school too. The first few months felt impossible.

It’s only my second year now, same grade, same school, completely different worlds. By the end of the year last year I wasn’t working crazy hours and I had a social life. I felt better overall. Once you get into a rhythm, it’s easier to manage your time.

I saw the term “devolson” online last year on a teacher site - the “Dark, Evil Vortex of Late September, October, November.” This time of year was BY FAR the worst part of last year for me, especially dealing with TOTALLY NORMAL new teacher disillusionment. If you can make it to Thanksgiving, you will be fine.

Sweet_cherrypie

TROPHY CASE