If you were unaware, I am part of an on going virtual community with the group of people (mentor teachers, college staff and peers) that I completed my Masters program with.  This coming Monday we will be partaking in a professional conference to describe some of the experiences we, as new teachers, have encountered over our first year plus of teaching.  One of the things that we will be partaking in will be a stress relief session.  No suggestions have been offered but I was wondering what people do to help relieve stress in their lives, teacher or any other profession.  I, as a practicing Catholic, find some relief when I attend weekly mass.  I also find a lot of relief by just spending time with our pet dog; whether taking him for a walk or just spending some time on the couch, it is nice to have someone that cares for you no matter your short comings.  Another obvious one is to just hang out with friends and blow off steam in that kind of manner (although you have to be careful because no one likes a complainer!).  So, what are your solutions to relieve stress?

Where do you get your resources from?  I’ve use many that have been forwarded on to me and have found some by just exploring the internet but does anyone know a place where there could be access to curriculum or worksheets or other explanations of certain material?  Is there a place where people share their resources?  I am at a relatively small school so within our science department there aren’t many faculty to share between.  Just curious what everyone may use.

Some of the resources that I find helpful and that I use within my class are:

http://www.bozemanscience.com/

http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/new

https://www.khanacademy.org/

These are probably some of the best that I have used and continue you to use.  Open to all new suggestions however!

What happens when you have an unexpected absence?  In my classroom I have emergency plans set aside for times like these.  I teach chemistry and physics and my emergency plans typically consist of conversions or triangle trigonometry; two very useful skills for each of these classes. It turns out to just be busy work for them but keeps their skill set fresh.  I wish I could have some emergency plan in which students could continue their learning in an uninterrupted way.  Of course you could always just have them read from their book and answer questions or watch a movie but how productive is that?  Has anyone every found a set of emergency plans that were effective?  What kinds of things do you leave for you students when you have an unexpected absence?

At this point, we’re into week 4 of school with week 5 coming right around the corner.  I have 3 classes I’m teaching: Chemistry, Physics and Sci-Tech.  Sci-Tech is a computer based science course where students work through modules completing tests/quizzes on the computer; however, there are also hands on activities throughout the module students must complete.  This class is a minimal prep if any at all.  Then I have Chemistry which I’ve taught the last 2 years, that prep is easy.  Lastly I find myself spending all my prep time on Physics.  I have never taught Physics before, but I excelled when I took it in both high school and college, it’s just been a while, like a long time.  I sometimes feel I’m a little stressed about the Physics that I may be losing a little bit from the chemistry.  Has anyone ever felt that before?  You put all your energy into one thing that you neglect other things?  I’m working hard to get the physics foundation this year so in future years all I need to do is tweak, it is just hard laying the foundation sometimes.  Thoughts of how to deal?

This year, I have transitioned from one school to another.  I have moved back to the area where I was born and raised and was hired at my alma mater, Ware Junior/Senior High School.  Many of my friends, family and coworkers have all been asking me if it is weird that I am now working side by side with the teachers that taught me.  Is it?  In my opinion, no, I actually find it quite comforting.  I left my high school on good terms with everyone that was a part of the faculty and though some faces have changed, much of the school as a whole hasn’t.  In every sense of the phase, “its like coming home.”  As I sit here typing this blog, I wonder if anyone else is in or has been in a situation like mine?  Has anyone else ever returned to teach at a school in the community where they grew up?

So my fiance and I made the decision to relocate back home (Western Massachusetts); she got a job that she couldn’t refuse.  So just 10 months after we had packed our lives up and moved to Charlotte, NC, we were packing our lives up again and moving back, all 840 miles.  Anyways, after I graduated I was stressing about finding a job for a couple months and was finally offered the position where I worked this past year at Hopewell High School, what a relief!  Now, a few months ago, I found myself again in the exact same situation: stressing out and looking for another job.  After scouring the internet and schoolspring.com for months and submitting applications and resumes on top of applications and resumes I finally found a new school that I believe will be a perfect fit for me.

As my school year came quickly to an end, I have much to reflect on this summer as I look for a job and enter into my second year of teaching. First off, I will be leaving North Carolina and returning home to Massachusetts in pursuit of a teaching position closer to home; so if anyone knows of anything in the Western Massachusetts area please let me know!

Anyways, as I wrap up the year there are a few things that I’d like to share and a few bits of advice that may be helpful.  First off, the year comes to a close a lot quicker than you think.  Going into the year in August, June looks very far away, however, looking back it was all just a blur.  Make sure you take advantage of the time that you have because time lost is time that is wasted and in education you really can’t waste any time.  Secondly, stay in contact with parents of students who may be in danger.  I feel I could have done a better job of this as school came to a close but I know now going into next year that this will be a main focus of mine.  Lastly, and this is more for science teachers, when you close up your room, make sure it is as neat and organized as possible.  As a science teacher you are always under scrutiny because of all of the labs, demos and chemicals that you must keep in order.  It is a good idea to have some sort of system in which you can keep track of all chemicals.  I asked an experienced teacher what they do and this was the response:

“Before leaving for the summer, I make sure all chemicals are labeled appropriately and sealed carefully. All equipment is clean and put away. The most time consuming task is doing a complete room inventory. Having an electronic version of this would be helpful..”

Hope this is helpful!

I think differentiating instruction is one of the more challenging tasks that a teacher in any year in there career faces.  I struggle with it and am constantly searching for a formula that will solve the topic; needless to say it doesn’t exist.  The reason why it doesn’t exist is because from year to year and class to class your students abilities will always differ: no one class will ever be the same.  I think this is why i finding it challenging.  I will always have those powerpoints and documents I’ve created, but there is no way to always prepare for the students entering into your class.  So the advice that I think I would like to give here would be to never give up, dig deep and persevere through the situation you face.  We always tell students to keep at it, I think this is one of those situations where we need to keep at it.  When I was doing my student teaching, my mentor gave me praise for an after school session that I had completed in which she said I differentiated very well.  That day, in a span of about an hour, I had 2 students complete 2 different labs, I helped 3 different students with 3 different topics within chemistry and administered 1 test.  Needless to say I was running around like a crazy person and was exhausted by the end of the day, it wasn’t even a Friday, but I saw 6 students leave pretty satisfied and that made me feel pretty good about doing my job.  No one ever said this profession was going to be easy.  I never thought it would be easy, but I didn’t think I would face the challenges I do on a daily basis.  Teaching is a demanding profession and not many others face this idea of differentiating instruction.  So, if you take something away from this blog, then it is to stick with it, work hard and the results will follow.

When I was completing my Masters program I read an interesting article that had a short story within it about a female teacher who always went to school all dressed up.  She was an elementary school teacher, and when asked by one of her students why she always was all dressed up when coming to school to teach them, she responded with “because everyday I come to work with the most important people everyday.”  This really got me thinking about how I present myself when I come to school.  Now, if you’ve ever met me, I wear some pretty outrageous outfits to school: bright pants, pastels and bow ties just to cover a couple things.  Needless to say my students love it.  Now, everyone loves attention, but that is far from why I do it.  I do it for the kids.  Everyday I get some comment from someone who isn’t my student.  Some of these kids come by my room just to see what I am wearing that day.  The way I feel about it is if I can get kids excited about what I am wearing, then getting excited about school can’t be far behind.  I see some faculty members that are dressed similarly to students, and how can you garner respect like that?  You are suppose to be setting an example and being a mentor to them.  If they see how professionally you take your job, then in my opinion, there is a better chance of respect from the student.

Are there any thoughts on dress attire?  I think it makes a difference, and when you teach chemistry, it doesn’t hurt to dress a little more on the wild side!

So, I was assigned a freshman homeroom this year and in my freshman home room were a couple of boys who should actually be sophomores.  They are very frustrating to everyone in the school, always in ISS and such.  After a couple months of school I decided to just start making contact with them.  Not going out of my way but as we pass in the hall just saying hi.  It progressed to how are you and such.  Now I don’t actually have the students in my classes but they are in classrooms in my hall way.  I see them actually making their way to class now which is an accomplishment in its self.  I try and check in occasionally and see how their doing.  The other day one of them was contemplating doing a project that would bump them from a D to a C in their class.  I had a short conversation with him about why wouldn’t you do it to improve your grade; after our conversation he quickly got to work.  I like to think I have had a tiny bit of influence in their lives thus far and have helped them just think about changing.  Its the little things you should be taking pride in, this is one of them for me.