Educating Esmé (17 page)

Finally, whatever your area of study, be sure to get some special education and bilingual education experience, coursework, or training under your belt.
Every
public school teacher is a bilingual and special educator at some juncture. Prepare for those situations.

8. Find a mentor.
In the course of teacher training, hopefully, you will encounter professionals who will take you under their wing, serving as advisers and allies. Their guidance and support is worth its weight in platinum.
When you begin your first year of teaching, ideally you will be formally paired with a mentor in the building, however, if this is not the case, seek one independently. As a new teacher, you will have a lot of energy, optimism, and new information to bring to the table, but even the best student of education has a lot to learn on the job. The demands of the day will put you at risk for becoming overwhelmed and isolated. Besides having a handle on subject-area content and management techniques, mentors are invaluable for reminding us not to reinvent the wheel, to take time for ourselves. They can be wellsprings of information on how to be more efficient, how to handle sticky political situations, and who in the building has a long-reach stapler. Most seasoned teachers are delighted to “pay it forward” and give you the benefit of their time, advice, and expertise. You can reciprocate by sharing new ideas and offering respect and appreciation for their insights, even when you don't agree with their approaches. If for some reason you are having difficulty finding a mentor in your school building, you can visit the well-established Mentor Center at Teachers.net and connect with a community of experienced teachers online. You don't have to take every suggestion your mentor prescribes. Independent trials and outcomes are vital to your own professional growth, so a good mentor will not try to bully you into a “right” way but lead you to it organically. My own mentor, Ismene, asked
with a glint in her eye after observing me struggle through a particularly hard day, “Well? Did I give you enough rope to hang yourself?”

Another more remote but equally inspiring mentor can be a personal hero, maybe someone from history, a friend or family member, maybe somebody you have never met before but who embodies some characteristic you would like to emulate. Put up a picture or symbol of this person to remind you to aspire to that attribute. I had a glossy photo of the movie star Ann Miller in my cloakroom because she had an infectious smile and the press never caught her without it. Looking at the picture when I came in every morning reminded me to smile when I greeted the children. Another one of my heroes is Johnny Appleseed, because he planted a small seed every day and by doing so, he changed the landscape of the nation. I keep a decorative apple blossom sprig on my desk, and whenever I see it, I am reminded to read aloud, because I know it's the one seed I can plant every day that will change the landscape of the nation. These famous figures regularly impacted the way I taught. Mentors, heroes, and various angels are all around us. Strive to receive them in your teaching life.

9. Protect the children's health.
School is a petri dish, and it does take some time for new teachers to build resistance to the myriad of diseases that float around the building.
Plan at least three days of general lesson plans and gather a box of extra materials in case you are absent (a fun storybook, a video, some review lessons, learning games, worksheets), as well as a seating chart, general rules, and an attendance book, clearly marked and easy to locate for the substitute teacher. In the event of illness, you won't have to drag yourself in to deal with “housekeeping.”

A marked difference in the frequency of illness you experience can be made simply by washing hands regularly and insisting that children wash their hands before eating lunch and after they use the washroom. Vigilance here really does pay off. Use an antibacterial gel wash if necessary; be aware that most contain alcohol, but they're better than nothing. Don't hesitate to send a child home when he or she show signs of illness, especially a runny nose, pinkeye, or sore throat, even if the child claims to feel well; regardless of the inconvenience to parents, children do not have the right to infect you or others. Give doorknobs and keyboards an occasional swipe with an antibacterial cleansing wipe. Some teachers get on a regimen of zinc tablets, Airborne, or a gentle herbal resistance booster when they hear a child cough or sneeze. Others invest in a watercooler for the classroom, which tends to be more sanitary than a widely used school water fountain. If you express this need at an open house, maybe some generous, germ-phobic parent will ante up.

The responsibilities of a teacher to protect student health go far beyond preventing the common cold. Make sure you know how to handle an EpiPen (for severe allergic shock) and that you can recognize and help a child having an epileptic seizure or asthma attack, identify head lice and ringworm, perform an age-appropriate Heimlich maneuver, and perform age-appropriate CPR. Have a first-aid kit handy and use plastic gloves when helping a child who is bleeding or exuding other bodily fluids. Hopefully, you'll be instructed on emergency responses before the start of school, though health classes in formal teacher training programs and YMCA workshops offer this information too. Don't assume there is always a school nurse on call. Make sure you are aware of any conditions and allergies of your students, preferably even before the first day of school. Ask for this confidential information; sometimes it is not offered up.

10. Call parents with an encouraging thought or observation about their child at the start of the year.
A phone call home the first week of school is one of the most valuable ways to create a bridge between home and school. Many teachers send home a letter, and while this is fine, it doesn't compare to the friendliness and accessibility of a direct conversation. You don't have to make all of the calls in one evening; spread them out over a few days.

Some parents immediately become defensive or worried about receiving a call from the teacher, which is exactly why it is imperative to make these calls. You want that first contact you make to be positive and to open lines of communication. Be quick to explain that the reason for your call is just to say hello and to introduce yourself, to say how much you are looking forward to teaching the child. Ask if there are any questions about the class or if there is any information the parent would like you to know about the child that wouldn't be in the records. Let them know about the dates and times of upcoming events (open house, assemblies, field trips, report card pickup) that they are welcome and encouraged to attend, when they should expect communication, and that if any concerns arise at any time within the school year, they should not hesitate to make an appointment with you directly. If records indicate that English is not spoken in the home, enlist a bilingual teacher's help in making the call.

Another nice by-product of phoning home is that students will likely find out that you called, which means you've got their number and aren't afraid to use it. The call suggests you're on the same team as Mama, so straighten up and fly right, but it also suggests that you are on the child's side, because you didn't call to tattle. Touch base throughout the year to celebrate a child's classroom successes, and families will more likely feel you have the
child's best interests at heart and join you in a united front when necessary.

11. Start and end each day with a good word.
Greet the children at the door warmly (“Good morning,” “We're going to have a great day,” “Glad you're back, it's not the same without you,” a handshake or salute), and take them all the way to the door when they exit (“Proud of you,” “Be safe going home,” “You made my day fun today,” slap five). This bookends the day with courtesy and goodwill.

Other kind words assure children that even if you don't like their choices, you like
them
. Remember that questions, not directives, inspire critical thinking. Try “Can you make a different choice?” instead of “Stop that.” Try “How will I know this is yours?” instead of “Put your name on your paper.” Try “How can we help the kids who are still trying to work?” instead of “Be quiet in the hallway.” Be cognizant of the directives you keep repeating, and see if you can communicate them in a way that gives the child power and understanding over his or her behavior. Oops, I mean, can you rephrase your commands into questions and requests that require the child to take personal responsibility for actions?

12. Change your bulletin boards.
You may have been in classrooms where outside the window crocuses are blooming,
but inside there are still snowmen and turkeys displayed. You may have seen boards where the letters are fading, or there are shadows where old work was hung and blocked the sun, or boards that are nothing more than a messy pile of papers and announcements stapled to the wall. This is all more shabby than chic. Some folks may say, “I'm not creative, I'm not artsy,” but attractive displays are very important to the mood and morale of a classroom. It makes a big difference to feel that your environment is dynamic, changing, and cheerful. If you do not believe that you are creative, you can still make sure you have seasonal store-bought bulletin board borders and accents, clean backgrounds, straight lettering, and student work on display. You can also shine transparency images onto the wall using an overhead projector and trace, enlist students to plan bulletin boards, or create a display (birthday, star student, calendar, classroom jobs, favorite book of the month) that can be changed and updated with minimal effort.

You can buy fadeless paper and ready-cut letters through teacher supply stores, though many schools have die-cut machines for cutting letters (smaller versions are also available at craft stores). You don't have to cut letters out of construction paper only; they can be cut from gift-wrapping paper, starched fabric, or newspaper. You can add dimension to your bulletin board displays by hanging
items from the ceiling with fishing line or thread. You can have interactive bulletin boards in which kids lift flaps or move items from pocket to pocket on the board. Bulletin boards should always display current student work or be germane to an area currently being studied. When someone walks into your room, he or she should be able to see what your class is studying, whether or not it's “open house.”

You can also “make pretty” by cleaning your blackboards daily, with a sponge and clean water and a pail (or erase your whiteboard) as part of your routine at the start or end of the day. This is the equivalent of making your bed at home. Dusty, messy blackboards are an eyesore and confuse some kids.

13. Keep moving around the classroom.
Remember that your desk is for holding files and supplies, not for holding you; don't teach from behind it. You should be in constant locomotion, using your physical proximity to help guide children toward good behavioral choices, and also so that you can see who is on target and who needs help. Your back should never be to the students; and even when you're writing on the board, turn sideways frequently. Within the profession, these kind of habits are informally called “withitness,” which means you have a sense of what's going on in all corners of the classroom at all times.

14. Use authentic assessments.
Children's standardized test scores are not the only way to determine prior knowledge. A simple sampling at the start and end of skill-building units may prove a far more immediate and telling indicator. It will allow you to know which children have achieved your objectives even before you have begun so you can individualize instruction for children who are ready for more advanced work or recognize and offer help to those who still have deficits. You can use these samples to compare with later work to determine growth. For example, if you're going to teach long division, give the child an assignment with long division problems, without any prior instruction from you. Save and date the assignment in the student's file. At the end of several weeks of instruction and practice, present the exact same problems, and see if the child can do them. Date and save. Has the child transferred the knowledge over time? Give a similar problem again several weeks later, in a general context. Has the algorithm for long division been retained, or is more practice needed? Date and save. Another example: If you are teaching essay writing, give the child a theme on which to write without any prior instruction. After several weeks, assign the
exact same topic
, and determine whether the child has incorporated new skills. Does the child indent? Does each paragraph have a clear main idea that supports a thesis? Is there a lead sentence, a conclusion? Does
the child use more thoughtful vocabulary?
What does the child know now that he or she didn't know then?
The definition of learning may be considered a change in behavior or attitude, and real changes have longevity. Bona fide learning has occurred if the child can transfer skills, that is, retain them over time to use in other appropriate situations. If a child can only perform for a single assignment or a test, the skills were not truly learned, so look for and collect evidence over a period of time.

Taking dated samples and comparing them to later work is genuinely exciting and motivating for you, the child, and the child's family to see; it's like pedagogical notches on a door frame. These kind of growth-based assessments are also helpful to show to administration if your teaching abilities are ever called into question. It's such a simple step toward accountability that so many teachers forget in the throes of all the instruction that is being delivered and amid the stresses of high-stakes testing. Take a deep breath, and add sample-gathering to the start and end of any unit.

15. Grade selectively and effectively.
You don't have to put a letter or number grade on every paper. Keep a grip on what the objectives are for every assignment you give; if you end up assigning a lot of busywork, surprise, you'll have a lot of busywork, too. That's karma! Keep in mind
that if you give too many practice problems without checking the work, children end up practicing the wrong way to do something. It's really important that you return papers within a few days, whether graded and commented upon or simply marked with a smile, stamp, or check mark, so the feedback is timely and meaningful. And remember, pens come in other colors besides red, and it doesn't cost anything to put a smiley face or an encouraging exclamation on a paper, though you will want to avoid exclusively telegraphing vague remarks like “good,” because they aren't detailed enough to tell the child how to repeat what is “good.” If you have a remark, make it is as specific as possible (“I could really see the character because you took the time to describe him,” “You remembered to observe that step,” “You showed your work”). Writing assignments and journaling take the longest to grade, so stagger them in a way that preserves your sanity. Establish simple rubrics, or checklists, of what you are looking for in big assignments and projects, and share them with students so they know what to include; a point system based on items on the rubric keeps grading simple for you and fair for them. Veteran teachers may be very helpful in making suggestions that streamline your organizational and time-management skills so you can finish grading and still have room for some semblance of a personal life.