what to do...

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what to do...
By chris

1) go to this web site & read this article about the cycle of first year teachers. It is very true; read it so you'll understand that you're not alone. www.newteachercenter.org/article3.html

2) contact your new school
& find out about their mentor/mentee program or their induction program. If they don't have one, ask them to hook you up with an experienced 1st grade teacher who will be able to help you through the day to day process of being a teacher, plus the other stuff you'll encounter.
3) get in touch with other first grade teachers in your building and get acquainted. Find out as much as you

can about the nitty-gritty working world in your school, and ask them all your questions. You will become overwhelmed, but you'll get through it.

4) find out about curriculum that you'll be teaching, get a copy of it & start going through it so it will be familiar. Jot down ideas to make the lessons more fun or intersting; start thinking lesson plans. This is where a good mentor is worth her/his weight in gold. They can help you wade through all that stuff & tell what you need to teach & what you don't.

Meet your fellow teaching grade team members and become friends with them. They will be of the most help to you next year.

Good Luck and remember that the first year is always the hardest. College classes don't really prepare you for the real teaching world. Your first year is really on the job training.