Future Student Teachers

Dear Incoming Core ¾ Students:

            You will make it.  When I was in Core 2 looking at Core 3 and 4, I didn’t believe for one minute that I’d make it through the year and the KPTP and the licensure tests and the student teaching and there was definitely no way that I was going to be ready for my own classroom. When I asked current Core ¾ students how they felt they all said the same thing, “By the time you get to this point, you will be so ready for your own classroom,” and they didn’t lie. Right now, I am so excited to be teaching next year that I’d almost like to fast-forward to August. I am a completely different person and teacher than I was when I walked into Core 3 and you will be too.

            A couple of things to keep in mind as you move forward:

-        Be as organized as possible. Especially in Core 3 and in your student teaching. If you’re not organized, spend all summer getting there because a lot of my struggles came from the fact that in Core 3 I couldn’t keep assignments straight and, in my student teaching, I was very last minute in everything.

-        The odds of you having the same teaching/classroom management style as your Mentor Teacher is slim to none. And yes, you will have a teaching/classroom management style even if you don’t believe it now. Try and find the balance between your teaching style and hers/his; it’ll make you a better teacher in the long run.

-        Walk into the classroom on the very 1^st day as the adult in the room. Fake it til’ you make it essentially. Confidence in your teaching is hard to come by naturally and it just takes you mentally telling yourself ‘I’m in charge’ 17 times an hour.

-        IT IS OK IF YOU HATE YOUR STUDENT TEACHING EXPERIENCE. Or strongly dislike it. Or consider dropping out. Don’t drop out though. I’ve had a serious love/hate relationship with my student teaching experience and I can tell you that there is light at the end of the tunnel. You’ll fall in love with the kids and the days when they’re totally digging what you’re teaching them and that’ll keep you coming back.

-        Ask for help. Subpar teaching is not o.k. at any level. If you’re struggling with your own course load, email professors. I’ve had all of them and they incredibly understanding and willing to help. Utilize that to your full advantage.

-        ‘They’ (the man) will tell you that the KPTP is not a weekend project. They are mostly correct in that the KPTP is a buttload of work, but it can be accomplished in a weekend if that’s what it comes down too. It took me a week to get my completed and I stayed up until midnight every night getting through it. Keep that it mind. 

         You will use your textbooks more than you think when you start planning full time; mark them up and read them carefully, it will make the planning go so much smoother. When you walk into your placement, ask your MT what the big ‘movements’ are in education and then read up on it. Become very knowledgeable in the areas that are a topic of conversation between teachers at your school because the odds are that you will be asked about those topics at a job interview. My MT was very invested in trauma-based learning and I learned so much listening to her talk about; my first job interview I ever went on, I was asked about trauma-based learning and I was more prepared for the answer than the interviewers were expecting. 

        And most importantly, don’t take on more than you can handle. Say ‘no’ if you need to, take a sick day if you need to, don’t feel guilty for taking care of yourself through this process. 

            You are so close to being done and this will be the fastest and the longest year of your life. You’re almost a teacher and when you are finished with the program, you will be more than prepared to run your own classroom.

Best of Luck,

Bailey Yaussi