There is a Time

For everything there is a time, there is a reason and there is a season. I have believed this in my life for a long time but now I am beginning to see that this is true in teaching also.

Over the last term there have been a number of moments that have led me to question how things work, why things work and what I can do to make sure that everything runs as efficiently and as effectively as possible. These moments have ranged from interactions with students to interactions with other staff members to seeds of thought that have been planted in team planning days and have been expanded upon since then.

Interactions with students:
When I think about the students at the school that I teach at I see students who are well catered for and well looked after and told that they are pretty good at most of the things that they do. These children as a consequence of this have started to expect that pretty good is excellent and that they should be recognised for being pretty good. Don't get me wrong, being pretty good at something is an achievement in itself but if pretty good becomes good enough then these students may soon find themselves struggling in a world where they have every opportunity to succeed to an extremely high level if they are not happy with pretty good and continue to push themselves to achieve personal excellence and be the best they can be. Thinking about this led me to reflect on a poem that a friend of mine who teaches Year 8s has recently shared with me. The poem goes like this:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QnkKIwF7d9Y

I am going to share this poem with my students this term during circle time and have them reflect on what they believe is pretty good and whether or not they should settle for pretty good. I know that my expectations of myself and of my students are that excellence will be achieved and am hoping that by showing my students this poem that they will realise that their goals are too for excellence and not for pretty good.

Interactions with colleagues:
During the past term whilst my tutor teacher has been away I have needed to receive the support that she would normally provide me with from a number of different teachers. The interactions with different teachers from around the school have varied so much with some being extremely positive and leaving me feel empowered and as though I am on the right track and with others leaving me questioning what I am doing. My students, being with me 6 hours a day, have observed me during and after each I these interactions and recognise instantly what impact these different interactions have had on me as a teacher. When my students have picked up really positive vibes I notice that all my students become easily excitable and are really engaged in what they are going to be learning. However, when the students don't notice extremely positive vibes they are more likely to play up and make a big deal out of something that is not necessarily a problem at all. Watching how these children pick up on these interactions without me saying anything to them has lead me to question whether or not or to what extent relationships between staff members impact relationships between students. I know that at university it was drummed into me that modelling is one of the most effective ways of teaching and I cannot help but think that these relationships, whether negative or positive and effecting the relationships that we see occurring between our students in the classroom and the playground. Having studied both teaching and health and physical education in depth I am extremely interested in the total wellbeing of our students and am aware that social and emotional well being play directly into a students ability to learn in any given situation. I am doing my Masters next year and would be extremely interested to investigate how the relationships between staff members influence the types of relationships that occur between students and in turn how this affects a students ability to focus, concentrate and learn.

Playing to my strengths:
I am so excited for our afternoon programmes this term as I feel that they really allow me to play to my strengths. The programmes that we are doing are a drama programme, a chemistry programme and an outdoor winter sports programme. I feel like with all of these programmes I will be able to share my depth of knowledge around these areas both with other teachers and with my students. Having a drama degree, a sports degree and having completed year 13 chemistry has left me feeling confident that I will be able to teach all of these areas effectively and efficiently.

There is a time, there is a reason and there is a season for everything. For success and for learning and for helping others and for being helped. I am looking forward to a term that I cannot wait to get back into when I still have a week of holiday left. Woohoo.