Tips for New Teachers

I have been in this profession for two years. This is my third year. Ms. Teacher asked for tips. This is what I have learned:

1. As in any profession/job, some of the people you work with are insecure jerks. Education is not a haven for the self actualized. I have expressed this before: most people do not mature past the age of twelve. Deal with unprofessionlism with professionalism. Your administration and your stress level will appreciate it.

2. Don't be afraid to ask questions. My first year, I frantically tried to teach the whole curriculum map for the first 2 six weeks. Finally, three months in, I asked Mentor Teacher how he taught all this material since he created the map. He laughed so hard at me that he fell off his chair. He said "I just wanted to make it look good....you don't have to do it all." I was so scared that I would be thought of as dumb I was too scared to ask. This hesitation lead to my students and me being more stressed and confused with the pace of the class... and me looking more dumb in the long run.

3. The way you set up your classroom is important for classroom management. Make sure you can see the door. (I couldn't see the door until the second semester my first year.) Make sure you can see all the students. Make sure you keep an eye on all turned in work. I had a genius who just went in the turned in work bin and copied it. This was because the turn in bin was on the other side of the room from me.

4. Consistency is important. If you make a rule, be sure you are able to enforce every time and the same way for every student. Rules must be enforced from first day to the last day the same way. I always had the rule I didn't accept late work. But I was "lenient" and thought I was being nice by accepting it. And work just kept coming in later and later until I had kids handing in stuff two days after I turned in grades!

5. You are not their friend. I know, you had all these fantasies about being the "cool" teacher and your room was going to be a place for "beatnik" kind of students and you would have a free exchange of ideas and it was going to be so wonderful and butterflies were going to fly out of everyones' butt.

Hell, no.

Don't watch those "teacher" movies. The closest is maybe "Mr. Holland's Opus," but even that is a little too cheery to represent our profession. And that lady that took on second job to buy supplies for her students in "Freedom Writers," and lost her husband, and all that....well, that's just torturing yourself. Look forward to maybe one kid in twenty actually thank you for their education.

6. Be ready for long days. My first year I worked from 6 am to 6 pm plus usually a Saturday. New teachers have no materials...no posters, no handouts, no lesson plans. Oh, and those lesson plans you wrote in teacher college?....get ready to throw out half of it, because you will have no time to do all of that stuff.

And if you are reading this and you are a student in college....get some stuff before you start!...START NOW. Professional books... lesson plans for everything you might teach... desk do - dads.... stackable trays.... refrigerator magnets. And if you plan on teaching English, read as much as you can. There is nothing like being a chapter ahead of your students in the novel you are reading.

7. Read and write blogs. Nothing more helped me realize that I was not crazy than reading Miss A's, Frumteacher, Ms. Teacher, But Wait, There's More, What It is Like on the Inside, So You Want to Teach, Tense Teacher, Pissed Off Teacher, , Clix, Dolce Belleza, California Teacher Guy,Huffenglish and many, many more. Some made me feel very lucky to work where I do. Some gave me excellent tips and support. Some are just crazy. (I won't say who is who.) They will even let you lurk without commenting.

Writing a blog (or even a paper journal) is the best form of reflection on your teachings. And sometimes you just have to vent and can't do it with your colleagues at work. I think venting is very important to people's health. Do it constructively.

8. Don't worry if you are doing "it" right. It's your first year. Enjoy it. Experiment. The administration will not let you get away with it again.

Not every lesson is going to work. Deal with it without guilt.

9. I avoid the teacher lounge. Sometimes (maybe once every two months) I will sit in there and eat lunch. However, I think the complaining really gets to be too much, and I want to join in, and that makes me feel guilty, and brings down my morale. Your lounge might be different...but be careful. You don't want to be perceived as part of the group of complainers/whiners.

10. Begin setting up your classroom and planning your lessons ASAP. Don't wait until the first "work" day at your school. There is not enough time...and... oh.... and there is never enough time.

11. Sometimes even the worst behaved students are still likable. If they know that you like and respect them, they will behave better for you. Not always, but sometimes.

12. For me, the strict teacher with a sense of humor works. I would watch the sarcasm though. The students see you using it, they feel ok to start using it. And when it crosses the line into disrespect, you are unprofessional and they are disciplined.

13. Call parents... right away... don't wait.

14. Take care of yourself. Remember who you are. Do fun stuff. Watch TV. Do your hobby. Spend time with the dog or kids or significant other. Eat.

15. It is legal to drink alcohol and write lesson plans at home.