#firstyearteacher

[carlton01]

[misslamarteaches]

My 7th grade class made this banner for me. They are also the ones that wrote the note on the board. It's a quote from a motivational speaker that came to speak to the kids.

[douglaswittnebel]

The designers among us recognize a case of the plan oblique study and some of us can tell the name of the pavilion under study … . . #dougwittnebel #diagram #teaching #firstyearteacher #firstyearstudents #architecture #interiorarchitecture #interiordesign #designdiagram #instructor #drawing #illustration #zooming #zoom #chicostate #chicostateuniversity #color #colors #designthinking #planoblique #3D #2dto3d #arnheim #aldovaneyck (at Chico, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVdmGSIPK04/?utm_medium=tumblr

[fornewteachers]

It’s the vibe for me. You never know how much you impact a student. So shine your light on them and keep them coming back for more. #teachersofinstagram #ritapiersontedtalk #fornewteachers #teachers #teachersofig #teachersgonnapray #newteachers #newteacherstruggles #helpateacherout #helpateacher #lendahandtoateacher #teachernewbie #newteacher #firstyearteacher #firstyearteachers #firstyearteacheradvice #firstyearteachersadvice #firstyearteacherfollowloop #iamateacher #summerteacherfun #iamateacherhearmeroar #virtuallearning #virtualteaching #prayfornewteachers https://www.instagram.com/p/CNEWnHZM797/?igshid=1lbfsxeuq88lm

[schoolyourbrain]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ramon Torres (@schoolyourbrain)

The Art Of Explanation #explanation#communication#speeches#teaching#education#teacher#firstyearteacher #presentation#powerpoint #googleslides #ideas https://www.instagram.com/p/CIbOYIthL01/?igshid=5uw9nnpvc7p2

[adventuresinhikingboots]

So excited to be joining the Cesar Chavez Elementary School team for the 2020-2021 school year! Looking forward to the start of this next chapter and new adventure that’s ahead! #CCES #cesarchavezelementaryschool #GUSD #firstyearteacher #teacher #elementaryschoolteacher #greenfieldunionschooldistrict https://www.instagram.com/p/CChEHhvA0sB/?igshid=1k455rqq5kozf

[bipolarbear]

C3

There was so much work to do in so little time that first semester, that a lot of it blended together. I know some students loved me and hated their teacher-there were now three sixth grade teachers instead of one-to the point where I was deemed the popular teacher among the sixth graders. Most parts are a blur. Again, still living at home alone and as a functioning alcoholic. 

Throughout the spring semester, I started getting the hang of things and the routine became normal for once. I grew to know some facts about a few teachers. Our principal arranged for daily PLC meetings each morning, and when one coach would blab on with another sixth grade teacher, I observed the room and the rest of the teachers and principals. These are my observations and knowns:

1. Principal Kathy Martinez-grandma doesn’t like her yet, mom to a smart kid that went to school with my little sister, Catholic, has two other sons-one that goes to school there, strict, passive aggressive

2.Assistant Principal Erin McNeil-my former health teacher from middle school, she dated my friend’s mom when we were in middle school, knew she was gay then, still gay now but with more power, friendly toward students, not much for discipline despite her role, friends with Desi

3.Counselor Mary Carter-mom of one of my friends from high school, wife of my grandma’s accountant, Catholic, sweet

4. **7th grade math teacher Rosa Saiz-my seventh grade math teacher, member of the golden team of teachers

5. **7th grade English language arts teacher Kim Aguilar-best friend of Desi, member of the golden team of teachers

6. **Desi-friend of Natalie, hot and mysterious, former science teacher, former EMT, joined my Relay for Life team, had similar experiences with the law as me, seemed down to earth, married with one daughter, lives in rural area outside of town, possible “gay-dar” alert, 7th grade guidance teacher, member of the golden team of teachers 

7. Positive Behavioral Intervention Specialist Natalie Wilson- Natalie’s formal title, former elementary school counselor, supports sixth grade class, mentorship, community advocate, general rock star, gives me daily affirmations and positive insight as I leave each night, looks out for me like a big sister

The rest of the teachers are a blur until the end of the school year. Over the summer, Kathy registered various teachers to attend different conferences. I remember two in particular: Washington DC and Copperhead. I have always wanted to visit DC for the history and the museums and this was the only way I could go for free. Plus, the package included tickets to see The Lion King at the Kennedy Center, which was an amazing experience that I will never forget. 

Our Copperhead conference was much different. I learned way more about ‘real’ teachers, or who I thought to be ‘real’ teachers at the time, than what was presented at the conference. I always thought teachers were goody-goodies that stayed safe and sober and all loving and motherly. These teachers were not those teachers. This conference included me being cross faded from whiskey and edible mary jane candies, hot tubbing at high elevations, nakedness and boobs, and drunk girl-on-girl wrestling.  

[todorokiaimee]

First Day of Kindergarten: Complete. Strong, Independent, Kindergarteners in the making! 💪🏾 #firstyearteacher #firstdayofschool #myfeethurt https://www.instagram.com/p/B2DJYR4nchM0tOOxsinD4DcW4n_2tpR1CRDm2s0/?igshid=e3tt06gf8mzy

[treesandteach-blog]

It’s almost Thanksgiving...

I honestly can’t believe that I have almost made it to Thanksgiving. I’m still hanging in there, week by week, day by day. At this point I’m hopeful I’ll make it to Christmas. Definitely couldn’t see myself making it here back in late September.

[carlton01]

An insightful, lovely interview with an exceptional new teacher. Listen on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other platforms! https://anchor.fm/carlton-holden/episodes/Special-Guest-First-Year-Teacher-DAsia-Dunn-e1segcb/Special-Guest-First-Year-Teacher-DAsia-Dunn-a92loaf #newteacher #newteachers #firstyearteacher #firstyearteachers #teachers #teacher #school #schoolteacher #schoolteachers #elementaryteacher #educator #podcast #podcastersofinstagram #podcastlife #books #audiobooks #carltonholden https://www.instagram.com/p/CmVCAdBuFQ3/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[kramersamantha]

Lesson 1: Document Document Document

MONTY ADAMS*

1st Quarter - 2008:

Mini-Skateboard

Spare mini wheels

Mini screwdriver

click...click...click...click...whiiish...wheeeee

Grinding the board on the edge of a desk then SLAM SLAM...”hehe nice”

In a classroom. 20 other students. Cooperating teacher looks at me for an answer.

This was my first year of teaching. One student. Would he take me down? Would I let him? Would they let him? Who could stop him?

2nd Quarter - 2008:

AXE body spray

Blue

Orange

Mini can

Value Pack

Spritzz....spritz....SSSSSsssssssss......”aaahh nice”

Coughing. Sighing. Complaining. 

“Miss...do something!”

What now?

That’s the moment as a first year teacher when I had to find my voice and find my way. Monty wouldn’t take me down. He wouldn’t derail every lesson, every day, all year. Or would he? He wanted to. He could if we let him. So what do you do?

LESSON #1 Document Document Document

It was this early in my career that I learned to keep a paper trail. I didn’t know yet what I would need it for, but when I didn’t know what else to do, I stood in the back of the room and wrote down everything.

9/2/2008 

Period 2: Monty asked to borrow a pen rather than take one out of his bag.

Intervention: I asked him to take out his own and he complied

Period 5: Monty took a very long time to fill out the book receipt.

Intervention: I sat next to him and walked him through each blank space, it was completed successfully.

Period 6: Monty clicks the end of pen on the desk for 10 minutes. He refused to take out his notebook.

Intervention: Mr. Shell from the middle school came up and spoke to him. He told him to act like he is in the 9th grade and that there is plenty of room back in Junior High if he wants to do 8th grade again. Reminded Monty that his "mom fought hard to get him here but MS Franklin Heights would take him back in a minute."

Period 8: Monty was talking out. Later he wouldn't fill out the note card about himself. Monty wouldn't take out his notebook or take notes.

Intervention: I asked him if he wanted to dictate the work to me. He did for a few minutes and then took over on his own so that he could participate in the activity that was going on in the classroom.

THINGS ESCALATE QUICKLY...

9/12/2008

pd 1 8:45am Class is doing work in Math and the instructions do not allow calculators. Monty takes out his calculator and begins using it do his work.

Intervention: Both teachers in room ask him to put it away multiple times. He is told it is not allowed and he needs to learn how to do these exercises without a calculator. He refuses and ignores the teachers. When I get my notebook out to write down his behavior, he stops using his calculator and puts his books away. 

pd 2 9:15am Monty does not want to sit in his seat for the Quiz. He finally sits but then picks his desk up and bangs it on the floor. 

Intervention: Ms. Kang tells him it is unsafe and not appropriate for the classroom. He still does it. Kang goes to get the Dean. Monty says to me, "Ya get Ms. Corn. I wanna talk to her right now!" Ms. Corn is in a meeting and can't come to the class. During the Quiz Monty taps loudly on the desk and whispers to classmates.

9:35am Ms. Kang begins lesson and Monty yells out, "Shit!" Another student says, "Watch your language?" Monty responds, "What up nigga?" 

Intervention: Kang tells him to talk in a professional way. He says, "I don't wanna talk professional! I'm not professional."

pd 5 11:15am Monty comes into class with a note that he was just with Ms. Corn. He slams door, sits down and puts feet up on the desk. Then says, "The F**king nigga teachers got me in trouble for no reason. I don't wanna be in this school."

11:35am Monty is banging loudly on desk to a rhythm, singing along with himself, "Uh…hey…uh…hey…soul….my bitch."

Intervention: I ask him to stop banging because it is impossible to teach with the banging. He stops and then starts clapping loudly to the same beat and sings the same tune. 

11:40am Ms. Curtis hooks her computer up to the LCD projector.  On her background is a picture of her son. Monty yells out, "Ugh! Get those niggahs off the screen!"

Intervention: He sees me write it up and says, "See, now she's writing me up for saying niggah."

And on and on and on...

Have you had a Monty? What happens to them? 

Well I could write for three days on all of the incidents there were between September and December, and the pages of anecdotals I was forced to type from my handwritten Composition Book for the lawyers at the inevitable hearing that took place after he was jumped on the street outside of school and both kids went away for a while.

LESSON #2 The Most Extreme Cases Usually Take Care of Themselves (more on these later)

What did I learn and how did it impact who I am as an educator and a leader?

The hundreds of interventions we tried and used and tried again and tweaked; that’s the “win” here. We may not save every student. We learn from each case and make it better for the next one, and help ourselves to help other students who are crying for help. 

SO here it is. Interventions we used that began to fill my toolkit that I would take with me wherever I went and with whoever I was working:

WITH ONE STUDENT!

Prompting

Redirecting

Refocusing

Positive praise of appropriate behavior

Clear expectations

Repetition

Directions read and explained

Direct Language

Verbal prompts

Non-verbal prompts

Student conferences

Timer for work completion

Timer for breaks

Timer to take data on off-task

Tallies of foul language

Tallies of aggressive behavior

Point system for on-task behavior

Planned ignoring

Assigning seats

Moving seats

Removing materials

Providing additional materials

Scaffolding tasks

Chunking tasks

Kindness

Soft-spoken encouragement

Jokes and laughter

Build Rapport

Modifying classwork

Modifying homework

Modifying assessments

Pair with preferred group

Pair with non-preferred group

Monitoring duties

Leadership opportunities at school events when possible

Referral to the Dean

Lunch detention

After-School Detention

Conference with the Dean

Functional Behavior Assessment/Behavior Intervention Plan

Edible incentives

Work related incentives

Conference with administration

Conference with guidance

Counseling with guidance

Teacher collaborative meetings

Parent meeting with teacher

Parent meeting with guidance

Parent phone calls with administrator

Parent meeting with administrator

WITH ONE STUDENT! 

EVERY STUDENT DESERVES THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT THAT “MAYBE THIS ONE WILL WORK...” UNTIL YOU’RE OUT OF ROAD...OR UNTIL THE STUDENT HITS THE POINT OF NO RETURN.

Recap:

Lesson 1: Document Document Document

Not because the lawyer needs the data, that may be the reason at first. Ultimately, the paper trail you keep becomes your road map and personal professional development. Reflect, rethink and revise the action plan to achieve a greater result next time. There’s always a next time. 

Lesson 2: The Most Extreme Cases Usually Take Care of Themselves 

Unfortunately, teachers are the first line, and an extremely crucial component, in the growth and development of children when they are in our care. But we don’t have them with us ALL day, and it is often in the unstructured and unsupervised hours, they have free will to do what they impulsively will do. It is then that they end up making the bad decisions that remove them from our classrooms and schools, and thus out of our hands without warning - and there’s nothing we can do about it. 

Just as students do, they come into our classrooms temporarily and they are told we will teach them. More often though, we are taught many lessons from our students and it is those lessons that we take with us after they have left out doors.

[a-little-bit-of-thisandthat]

[theonetobreakthespell]

Summer break: day 67 Second day of classroom decorating and organizing. I spent most of today digitizing my classroom library, so I can set up an online scanning checkout system for my students. Then, in the last half hour or so, I started mapping out where I want some of my posters to go, and even getting some on the walls and door. Most of the ones I got up in this round were my Black Friday DFTBA purchases, and they’re fitting in perfectly. • • • [Image 1: front classroom door with the side window having two posters. The top of a rabbit with a speech bubble saying, “Take a minute to breathe,” and the second poster from the TWLOHA campaign, We’ll See You Tomorrow. On the classroom door is a poster of the Statue of Liberty hugging a refugee with the text, “You are welcome here.”; Image 2: plastic purple orchid plant in the foreground with stacks of books on tables and posters on the grey walls in the background]• #classroomdecor #teachersfollowteachers #firstyearteacher https://www.instagram.com/p/Bmwwx0Bn2hl/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=npl5l4u3tiq4

[fornewteachers]

We are ready for Remote Learning! Going to make the best of it know matter what. I rearranged to make this area just for her, and she loves it!!! #teachersofinstagram #fornewteachers #teachers #teachersofig #teachersgonnapray #newteachers #newteacherstruggles #helpateacherout #helpateacher #lendahandtoateacher #teachernewbie #newteacher #firstyearteacher #firstyearteachers #firstyearteacheradvice #firstyearteachersadvice #firstyearteacherfollowloop #iamateacher #summerteacherfun #iamateacherhearmeroar #virtuallearning #virtualteaching #prayfornewteachers #remotelearning #2020schoolyear https://www.instagram.com/p/CD99AIjBpVj/?igshid=3ktgqul9csh2

[relizany]

WINTER BREAK IS HERE! TIME FOR SOME MERRY AND BRIGHT! I HAVE CUPCAKES AS BIG AS MY HAND AND EVERYTHING IS ALL RIGHT! To all my fellow educators, rest up and have a wonderful break. See you in 2022. #firstyearlibrarian #firstyearteacher #winterbreak2021❄️ #christmas #wemadeit https://www.instagram.com/p/CXmaJp2pfq_pJJVh3WVK8QiCp4PfyJ0zjlelVw0/?utm_medium=tumblr