Monthly Calendar of Options for Building Partners
August / September
New teacher emotional phase for August and September: Anticipation and Survival
This can be an overwhelming time of year for any teacher, but add to that being new to a district and/or new to the profession. Some of our colleagues are beginning their first year in teaching – how can we help make this a positive and rewarding experience for them? The key is (like in your own classroom) to get to know each other – build a relationship of trust first by taking an interest in them and being a good listener.
Help introduce your protégé into the school’s culture. Encourage contact and activities with colleagues – consider organizing a fun activity together or with a small group of colleagues if there isn’t one already planned in the next few weeks.
LISTEN to questions and concerns carefully. We all have the need for someone we trust to hear our concerns – remember we are peers, not supervisors. Mentors’ comments should remain non-judgmental. Think aloud some ways of approaching the morechallenging students or parents. Start an idea bank for difficult teaching situations. When this (situation) happens, here are some ideas to consider trying… Remember to provide menus of ideas – no one method works in all situations or with all teaching styles!
Drop him/her a quick note of encouragement (perhaps highlighting a teaching strength you’ve observed), an inspirational poem or quote, or interview one of their students about how they have helped them learn – share that with your mentee. Just like kids, adult learners must learn to recognize their strengths and successes and build upon those. What’s the statistic…it takes 8 positive comments to counteract 1 negative one. Teachers, by nature, tend to have that perfectionist streak, and so we often focus on what’s wrong – let’s help reinforce what’s going well, first and foremost. Have a conversation at the end of that first week that celebrates the successes – i.e. I know all of my students by name!
Here are some other possibilities for supporting new teachers’ needs this month:
- Beginning teacher’s pressing issue
- Building Tour and Discipline Policy
- Teaching materials and equipment
- Rules and procedures of school – consider those unwritten ones too.
- CommunityBuilding Activities
- Homework and absentee policies
- Record keeping systems
- Classroom management
- Open House
- Parent communication system
- Progress reports
- Extracurricular commitments
- Problem-solving conferences
- Building and district assessment schedule