Standard 8

Educators contribute to the profession.

As a teacher candidate, I haven’t had much of an opportunity to educate others in the profession… yet, although I am grateful for the chance to collaborate with my coaching teacher at Peden Hill Elementary during my three-week practicum. We were able to bounce ideas off of each other in terms of what would work/wouldn’t work depending on the needs of our students and their capabilities. I also had the wonderful opportunity to chat with a few of the other primary teachers in the school on resources they used and bulletin boards they created. Everyone was very inviting and more than happy to share their knowledge and ideas with me. I especially enjoyed sitting in on a Kindergarten class “calendar routine” during one my prep times.  Watching an experienced teacher run through a very lengthy and multi-faceted morning routine was extremely beneficial as I hope to take on K during one my upcoming practicums.  I found that Peden Hill was really open and willing to share and invite me into their classrooms at any point, displaying a feeling of collegiality at its best.

Again, on the receiving end of mentoring, I felt like I had the wonderful opportunity to listen to a local educator in our district, who I found highly knowledgeable and relatable when it comes to supporting literacy in our profession. On April 7^th, our EY cohort welcomed Nick Hadfield, the Literacy Support teacher for Indigenous Education of School District #57 to our classroom. I felt so grateful to have such an experienced educator come in and talk to us about applicable topics we will come across during our teaching career.  All of his resources, tips, tricks and activities he had us participate in really resonated with me and will be something I remember as I navigate being a new teacher in the next few years. I feel that this profession is one that requires collaboration and partnerships in order to succeed well. It is not enough to think that you have all the answers and close yourself off to help, ideas and advice.  Nick really emphasized that as a new teacher, it is more important than ever to foster those relationships with colleagues and fellow teachers in the district so that you can be more effective and efficient at your job. I am thankful that there are teachers, like Nick Hadfield and Jennifer Dionne that are willing to share their experiences and knowledge with us newbies, making this profession feel a little less scary and intimidating. A few of the best nuggets that I took away from Nick’s presentation were:

1. Never close your door to your classroom. It implies you can do this job all on your own, which we all know is impossible, no matter how many years you have behind you.
2. Make a long-term plan and search for your weaknesses- Seek out help with those around you or within the district that you think excel at these areas. Ask them questions, find out what they are doing, then mimic that. Imprint and copy. Over time you will feel your way through and adapt their lessons to something that feels right for you.
3. Remember we need to emphasize a LEARNING FOCUS, not a WORK FOCUS. We do NOT need to produce a ton of physical work in order to have learning take place.
4. Follow this mantra- I DO IT, WE DO IT, YOU DO IT when it comes to teaching our students.