Teacher Insights on the First Few Days of School

I think as a teacher I am just as nervous as the students who enter my class on the first day. The students are anxious to see who their classmates and teacher will be. I'm anxious to see the 33 faces of my students, whom I'll spend about six hours a day with for approximately 180 days of fifth grade.

There are always a variety of feelings that run through me in the first few days. I don't know if I can fully explain them but they go something like this.

I see that I have some students who were frequent visitors to the principal's office in past years. I worry how I will "handle them" and react to any poor choices they may make. I remind myself that just because they have a "reputation" as a "behavior problem" does not mean that this will be the case in MY classroom. Perhaps if I treat them differently or start off the school year in a new way for them, they will be inspired to make better choices.  So for these kids, I'm thinking of ways to approach them to build a positive relationship that does NOT scream, "I know who you are and I don't want to deal with it." I want to be THAT teacher that makes a difference in EACH child's life.

I see that I have some students who struggle immensely in academics. I know that fifth grade is going to be so very HARD for them...the math, the science content, the deep comprehension work, taking notes, staying organized, coming to school when it is just overwhelming. I worry how I will motivate them, meet each of their needs, work with their parents to support them at home in their academic work, and how I will make the learning of very difficult material FUN for them so it engages them.

I see that I have students who school is NOT "their thing."  I can tell which ones they are easily. They are watching the clock constantly, staring into space, getting up often to switch books from the classroom library, lacking a focus that school requires of them. I worry about how I will draw them in, inspire them to become lifelong learners, stay on task, not distract the other students.  I wonder how I will make a connection with each of them, have patience when I need them to be a learner and they want to be anywhere but in class.

I see that I have students who LOVE school.  They look at some of the other kids who love to talk and get off task and think, "Why are YOU in my class again this year?" They are ready to soak it all up, they cheer when I tell them homework begins on Tuesday. They rearrange their school supplies and notebooks and can hardly contain their excitement for learning. I worry that I will be so consumed with all the other types of students, that these students won't get enough of me and my best efforts.

I see that I have students who have bigger issues than learning fifth grade standards.  I worry about the new student to our school who shared his father died in March and he wants him to "come back" to him. I worry about the girl who comes from a family of six kids in a one bedroom apartment and she can't find her "quiet place" to work. I worry about the girl who told me her parents may get a divorce.  I worry about the boy who can only do 7 multiplication facts out of a possible 50 in three minutes.

I see that I have a class as diverse as any classroom in California. I have smart kids, struggling learners, behavior problems, serious learners, unfocused students, and worried students. I see that once again, I have my work cut out for me in the next ten months.

There is much to worry about, to plan for, to think about, to communicate with colleagues and parents about. But there is one thing I know for sure. And that is that I have a passion for teaching and for children. I want every child to feel successful in my class. Sometimes that means a struggling student can answer a simple question correctly or handle a classroom job well. Sometimes it is pushing a deep thinker even deeper in his thinking. Sometimes it is finally finding the right book to make a reluctant reader want to read more.

Teaching isn't a 8:00 to 3:00 job. It's not a five day a week job. It's a 24/7 job because if you do it right, it's not a JOB at all. It's a passion, a calling, a way to make the difference for a child. So I'll keep worrying, and trying to see what's inside each student and identify their needs. And I'll pray for strength, patience, and guidance every day before I walk out to welcome my students. Because teaching is not easy but it is worth the effort, each and every day.