The First Week of Year #3

I actually do not have much to write. I am quite satisfied with the first week of school. I guess I am starting to feel like I know how to handle the opening of a new school year. I completed all of my photocopies for the first two weeks of school during August. At the end of last month, I put all of the copies in boxes and placed the boxes in the closet of my classroom. This year, I am going to demand that students use three-ring binders to help organization, so the copies are even hole-punched for them.

I also know exactly what I want to to do for the first several days of class. I have complete lesson plans for the first two and a half weeks of school. Things may change, but I can use these as a template to guide where I want to go.

I have also decided to make my objectives a point of emphasis this year. Every day, students will have a written objective for the class period. At the end of the day, they can evaluate whether or not we reached the objective or need to revisit it during the next class period. This will also help keep my class on task. The fact that I started doing it the first week of school is a wonderful addition to my class. The students will get in the habit of writing out objectives and I will have a new and valuable class routine. I want my class to have focused procedures so that I can spend more time on lessons and higher order thinking and less time on classroom management. They should know what to expect every day and I believe that will truly improve the overall flow of the class.

I feel very positive as I begin this new year of teaching (an important one, year number three), and I believe that many of my improvements will come to the fore as I continue writing for my portfolio.

Written: 9/8/07