Starting out fresh and new in anything can be difficult and most times awkward. My first day at my placement was a little different. After meeting the administrators and fellow teachers, my CT and I got right to work! It left no time to feel awkward or out of place. We spent the morning in the regular teacher meetings, but the afternoon we got time to plan for the upcoming weeks and months with one goal in mind: MAKE THESE 16 WEEKS UNFORGETTABLE.
The fist day with students was a whirlwind. From my experience in big schools, for the most part, there were many things that were different. First, I've been placed in a farming community. The school population tops out around 250 students. We are C-1 in sports. Just from an external view of the student population it was much different. Walking into a school where camouflage is everyone's favorite color and cowboy boots would seem to be the students' shoes of choice. It's a very religious community that love their faith and make it a part of the school community.
From a more internal view of the students it seems that the students are much more polite than my dealings in bigger schools. They have a great respect for authority and each other. Even though the students are very different they all seem to get along and be part of intermixing friend groups. They like to talk to teachers in both academic settings and recreational settings. Also, unsurprisingly, every student has a relative somewhere in the school or in their grade or in each class period.
From a teaching point of view, there is your typical range of students. There are gifted students. There are students needing special assistance. There are students that hate math. There are students that love math. One thing I see is that across the board is that the students love to learn and even though they may hide it, they like to come to school each day.
I am excited to see what else this semester brings. It is already an adventure!
Tyler- It sounds like having a smaller school experience was a good idea for you! I am actually very familiar with Milford and you have the community pegged just about right. I like that you point out that while the community might be different than the larger schools, as a teacher, you will still face challenges like students with different needs and different levels of motivation. It will be interesting to see how the semester unfolds! Good luck!
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