First Day of Student Teaching

Today was my first day of student teaching and it was awesome!  I have been assigned a third grade class and the school is only ten minutes away from my house.  This group of third graders are super sweet, kind of quiet, and very cute.  I am really excited to spend the next eight weeks teaching and learning from these students.

The school has a great community feel with really kind teachers, a principal that is super friendly, and a lot of parent involvement.  I was so impressed at how much the parents volunteer to help with everything from copying to fundraising.  Every week, the school holds an assembly and gives awards to students, teachers, and volunteers.  The whole school community is really supportive of one another.

This week is all observation for me while I get to know the curriculum and the students.  Next week, I will be taking over with math (working on tangrams!) and then progressively taking over subjects each week.  While I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous, I am super excited to be working with these kids and apply the teaching strategies I've been learning about for years.

Any words of wisdom for a student teacher like myself?

Welcome to Teacher in Training

Hello everyone!

My name is Elyse and I will be starting my final semester of student teaching in a few weeks.  I graduated with my Bachelor's degree in December 2012 and began the multiple subject teaching credential in January 2013. I am now in the final semester of the student teaching program and I recently found out I will be working in a third grade classroom.

Last semester, I did student teaching twice a week that focused on intervention and small group instruction.  My placement was at a dual language school in a low socio-economic area.  The program was a 50/50 program where one teacher taught in English for one day and the other teacher taught in Spanish the next day.  It was a wonderful experience.  I learned so much from the kids and my fabulous master teacher.

I started this blog because I want to share my journey in student teaching and in my first few years of teaching.  It's going to be busy and scary and exciting and a total learning experience - so why not share it with the world!

Outside of teaching, I am also really into history and genealogy.  I love cooking and going out to restaurants to try new food.  I'm obsessed with Harry Potter.  Most importantly, I am also planning my wedding for June 2014 and I can't wait to marry my best friend.

Until next time...