It’s May 14th
and in approximately one month, THE SCHOOL YEAR WILL BE OVER!
It’ll be my 17th
year completed teaching the same grade (five) at the same school in the same
room.
So, yeah. I need
some change.
But not too much
because I don’t really like change.
Here’s the plan.
Stay in the same grade at the same school in the same room, but change up the
schedule, the subjects taught, and the room configuration. For all of the 17
years I’ve been teaching, the two fifth grades in my school have always
switched classes to get students ready for switching classes at the middle
school and to play upon our own teaching strengths. I’ve taught Math and
Writing for most of my time at this school with a side order of Social Studies.
Next year, I’ll
teach ALL the subjects and keep my own homeroom all day. This has many
advantages. I can have longer periods for each of the subjects because
transition time doesn’t have to be factored in. If I want to extend a period to
do a more in-depth study of a topic, I can because I’ll always have the same
set of students. If I want to teach a topic across disciplines, I can. If I
want to take a thematic approach, no problem. Project-based learning? You
betcha. Time to address the emotional-social needs of students (which seem to
grow in frequency and magnitude each year) will now be available because I will
have a better understanding of my core students instead of trying (often
unsuccessfully) to get to know twice as many students.
I’m hoping for a
better connection to my class. I want to really immerse them in learning. The
kind of learning where they don’t even realize that the end of the day has
arrived. I feel as if this year’s students did a great deal of “clock-watching.”
Honestly? So did
I.
Whether that was my fault or theirs, I'm not sure, but I don’t want that
to happen next year. I’m looking for the type of teaching and learning that
brings things into the 21st century and really ignites a passion for
knowledge and discovery. I’m also hoping to arrange my classroom in a more
comfortable, casual learning space. Something that promotes collaboration and
innovation. I already plan to swap out my individual desks for larger tables in
hopes to create a more laboratory, this-is-where-we-figure-stuff-out-cooperatively setting.
And I’m obviously
psyched to be teaching Reading again. The opportunity to talk about books with
students as both readers AND writers excites me! I’ll also get to dive into Science,
which will be great because I’m head of our school’s Roots & Shoots Team
and really would love to get more outdoor learning into the mix. And the Science Fair? Ugh. It needs a facelift in the worst way. We've already made it digital, but the students really need opportunities to think more about real-world problems they can solve or inventions they can make. Something more than which flavor of gum lasts the longest. Bleck.
With all the
plans I have for next year, one hundred eighty days probably won’t be enough
time to do it all, but I’ll channel the energy into making those days the best
my new fifth graders ever had. I have all summer to strategize (while I’m not
writing), and we’ll see how things go.
When does the school
end where you live?
Toodles,
Chris
The Maple Leaf
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