Trying not to Leech off of my Teaching Partner

Because I'm new to first grade (but not new to teaching at my present school) I sometimes feel like I'm not doing a great job.  I don't have a good sense of where we're going.  I don't have a wealth of activities and resources that I can whip out if a lesson is going south.  And sometimes I feel like I'm leeching off of my teaching partner. 

She does a lot for me.  She was sending me her lesson plans in the beginning.  She gives me advice (our adjoining door is always open before and after school, and she let me know I can text or Email her on weekends.  Which I did a few times per week in the beginning).  And she shares resources.  I have no clipboards, listening center materials, or visuals for science and social studies.  Not only did she let me know that I'm welcome to them; she has even checked in with me on Constitution Day, "Do you want to use this photo of the Constitution?  I don't need it back until after lunch." 

If you're reading this blog because you are in transition, and having some insecurity about no longer being the expert in your domain, here are some things I've done to help me sleep at night be a good teaching partner.

Listen.  I make an extra effort not just to go to my partner teacher for advice and resources.  I ask how her difficult students are doing.  It doesn't matter how experienced you are, there are always going to be those students who struggle.  It lets her vent as well as gives me insight about the student (who I supervise at lunch and recess duty) and playground dynamic.

Make copies.  Whenever I can, I'll offer to do those menial tasks that take a little time.  Having a test?  Preparing a notice home?  If you are on your way to the machine with something you know she will be copying too, ask if she's made copies yet.  It saves your partner time and takes very, very little of yours. 

Find a niche.  The moment my partner said, "I notice that's something you're good at," I offered to take on that role for the two of us.  For me, it was typing up reminder notes and notices to communicate with parents.  Maybe yours is bulletin boards.  Whatever your special skill is, share it.

Share resources, but do the right thing.  Before school started I had briefly looked through the resources that I "inherited," sorting and categorizing anything that would be used for September through December.  Anything that I felt was lacking went on my Teachers Pay Teachers wish list and when the Back to School sale rolled around, I did a lot of shopping.  So I've offered materials to my teaching partner and she has been grateful and used some of them.  But please, do the right thing.  Anything that she has been interested in and seen her use, I be sure to go back in and purchase an additional license.  It's the law and the ethical thing to do. 

Transition from the mentee to partner, not mentee to independent.  For the first few weeks of school, my teaching partner was Emailing me her lesson plans every Sunday night.  I didn't ask; she offered.  I felt a little guilty, like she was doing my job for me.  I accepted them graciously because I didn't want to insult her by rejecting her help, and (more importantly), they helped me tremendously, haha.  However, I knew I couldn't just leech off of her lessons for the whole year.  So when she let me know one of her evaluation goals that she chose for herself for last year and this year was to meet weekly, I saw an opportunity.  

I asked if we could meet Friday before she sent the plans, that way I could be part of the planning process.  I told her, "I'm not asking you to do your plans for next week two days early; maybe if we could look at your plans from last year together, you could have a refresher and I could get a sense of what I should start prepping before I leave school for the weekend."

I'm still at that stage where I'm looking to her for guidance at this point.  However, I'm in more of a position where I can contribute ideas instead of just being at the receiving end.  Once I start getting those ideas, I have the time and place to share. 

I still feel like the scales are not balanced with the first grade team.  However one day when I was thanking my teaching partner for the lesson plans, letting her know that her advice in math made a huge difference when I implemented them the next day, she told me, "It's fine.  I've benefited too.  You've given me resources that have been really helpful." 

So I don't feel like too much of a leech.  And things will only get better, I'm sure.

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First Grade Math Block in September

I'm starting to get a better sense of what first graders can and can't do.  Of course, every class and every child is different.  There is a range of abilities in my room, and overall this class is known as being a pretty good group.  But I'm feeling more like a first grade teacher than a fish out of water.  Here are some things I tried in math that did and didn't work in September.

"Take out your workbooks, everyone."

Now, first of all, I'm not a workbook kind of person.  They have a place, but I did lots of hands on activities and games in fourth, and I want so badly to be that teacher that does just as many, if not more, in first.  But I can't do it overnight.  Not every day, anyway.  So there were a couple days that I just didn't have a new game for them and we used the workbooks.  Let's just say it did not feel as though they were engaged in their learning.

So I asked my partner teacher for some guidance on how she structures her math block.  First, she explained, "Six minutes of direct, whole class instruction is all their little brains can handle at this point in the year." 

Whoa.  It makes sense, though.  Fourth graders shouldn't be lectured to for more than ten.  I need to be really careful to mix things up. 

She also told me that splitting the class helps.  Have half the class do the workbook while the other half plays a game with me.  Then switch. 

This made perfect sense to me.  Giving them a change of scenery from rug to desks was a strategy I used in fourth grade; I just needed to be doing so even more frequently.  I guess I was worried about all the transition time back and forth, but honestly they're not so bad at it.  I have developed a system of attention getting and releasing (a post for another day) that works very well for this group, for now. 

I was also worried that I couldn't be in two places at once.  What if a child was stuck on the workbook page?  I realized that what I needed to do was basically teach the workbook page in those 6 minutes.  I needed to show them the exactly layout of information (if there's a line, draw a line.  If there's a box, draw a box.  If there's a circle, draw a circle.  If the illustrations are above, draw them above). 

Voila!  Here it is, the 6th week of school, and they can work independently. 

I'm really starting to look forward to the day that we have lots of centers in reading and math.  I still feel like I'm not reaching my struggling learners enough; I'm still doing too much whole class instruction over the course of a week.  But I also feel like I'm making progress working toward this goal.  And I'm able to forgive myself for now, because even an experienced teacher like my partner teacher is not doing centers at this point in the year.  In first grade it's important for them to learn the routines during the first six weeks. 

Once again, I feel really lucky to have a supportive partner teacher.  I know what it's like to have a difficult one (makes your job dreadful) and I know what it's like to have a more hands off one.  That I could handle.  It's easy when you're experienced.  But it is true that having a great teaching partner can make your job SO much easier.  I think in my next post I'll write more about how I've made an effort to make sure I'm not the only one benefiting.

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Shutterfly Share Site

When I taught fourth grade, I created a classroom blog in 2012.  It was a big hit; the kids would read and reply to posts and parents could see what went on in the classroom.  I didn't post student photos online, but there was still plenty to post about.

Then in 2013, I created another blog as well as an Edmodo site.  This was password protected, so I did post student photos.  The kids also had more freedom to create posts and reply to each other.  There was no direct messaging between students, so it was another fun, safe way to bring learning from the classroom to their computers/mobile devices at home.

When I got moved from fourth to first grade, I knew there would be no blog for the kids.  There would be no comments, no kids reading posts to study at home, no kids logging in to view the videos I created in Educreations.  My principal brought up the great blog I did during my evaluation and I said with a thinly veiled sour note in my voice, "Of course I won't be doing that next year."  He started to disagree, but then realized no, not so much.  I said, "At least not in the same format."

My partner teacher has been using Shutterfly, so I knew that was an option.  The target audience would be the parents, not the children, which never appealed to me as much.  The reason I waited until 2012 to create my first classroom blog was because I never wanted to write something else for the parents to read; my first priority was the kids.

Well, after a month of getting to know the children and their parents, I learned something about first grade parents.  Not that they love their children more than fourth grade parents, but they are so much more involved.  They have to be when their children are little.  I guess it's obvious and I knew that, but seeing it firsthand really drove the point home.  I have more supplies than I know what to do with, even from the parents who have very little to spare.  I write notes on a daily basis so parents can be informed.  I have so many parents who have asked to volunteer; I've only ever had one parent come in on a weekly basis in fourth grade.  I'm not even sure I know how to delegate tasks to parents.

So I looked into Shutterfly because I am just so grateful; I wanted to give something back to parents in a way that I didn't feel when I taught fourth.  And I'm so glad I looked into it because I'm really excited about it!

There are so many great features when it comes to the Shutterfly Share site.  Like Edmodo, the teacher has control over who has access to the site.  So once I get permission from parents, I will be posting student photos.  They will see them using manipulatives in class, and having fun on field trips even if they can't chaperone.  But it's not just a photo sharing site!  It has a calendar, so I can skip typing up a separate newsletter.  And it even has a volunteer sign up page that is both easy to set up, and easy to look up afterwards.  I'm so excited to share this next week!

If you're interested in using Shutterfly for your class I posted the parent letter for FREE in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.  I hope you find it useful!






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Missing My Former Fourth Graders

I was having a hard day this week, and walked my class back to class from music.  The quickest route is to cut through the cafeteria.  A handful of my former fourth graders were rushing around the cafe excitedly because they were starting their first ever band practice (I remember those days from when I was in fifth grade!). 

One of them called across the room, "Wow Mrs. Thomas, it looks like you have a really bright group of kids this year!"

Teared right up.

This week was also the first time one of my current students asked me why I moved from fourth to first grade.  I had my answer ready, "Sometimes change is good."  Didn't have to lie, didn't have to admit that I did NOT think this particular change was good, hah.  I figured if anyone would ask me it would be him, too.  I taught his brother just last year.  Both boys were confused when they saw I'd be his teacher; the old one thought the little one was accidentally put into fourth grade.  :) 

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