Issue: 7:45

November 5, 2013

First Year Teachers

Have you checked in on the new teachers on your campus much? We are weeks into school and they need encouragement. Being a new teacher is one of the most exhilarating and exhausting experiences in the world. Internships and university/college programs teach theory, but nothing prepares teachers for the first year on the job like jumping in. I'll never forget being handed my first set of keys for my classroom, opening the door and being consumed by the vastness of the responsibility. The students didn't do everything I asked and some of them didn't even like me. Right about this time of the year is when first year teachers go from "fantasy" (as Harry Wong puts it) to survival. Let's make a special effort to check in on our first year teachers. This "tuesdays" is dedicated to the first year teacher in us all.

A creative website

My pick for the creative website of the week is Discovery Education's FREE educational resources. (Think I'm a fan!) When our first year teachers are in the survival mode looking for ways to engage the students, this site if full of resources and encouragement. The all time favorite part of this site has always been Puzzlemaker. With just a few entries and clicks of the mouse, Puzzlemaker makes vocabulary fun. I had not visited the site in a while and was intrigued by the New Teacher Survival Center. It includes Technology 101 tips, Homework Central, Best of the Web tools and a great video section on avoiding burnout. There is even a first year teacher contest every week with an amazing Grand Prize. If you are the one who refers the new teacher there is even a prize for you. Check out the details in the New Teacher Survival section.

An encouragement

How does your school cover your first year teachers? Are they assigned a mentor or buddy to help them with the inevitable bumps in the road? I would like to encourage you to buddy up with another veteran teacher and take turns "looking in" on the first year teachers on your campus. Bring them supplies. They probably don't even know what to ask. Help them with discipline systems, bellringers and dignity in getting the students' attention. When you have a partner in this initiative, they will become your accountability partner and there will be a much greater chance that the first year teacher will receive assistance on an ongoing basis. I love the freshness, passion and vision of the first year teacher. Let's do our best to help them not to lose those qualities.

How do you do that?

How do you help those first year teachers on your campus? Maybe we could take one of their classes for a period and let them see other teachers in action or perhaps we could invite them over for a home cooked meal. The first year is typically the time they catch the most colds and germs from the students until they build up immunity. Why not bring lunch in for them one day? Consider taking that certain student into your class for one period just to give them a break. There are even times when combining classes can be very effective for the students and the first year teacher as they observe how you can teach two groups of students. Try to swing through their room for no good reason and drop off a note of encouragement. We need our new teachers, whether they are young or old to bring a fresh look and source of excitement to our schools, but we need to make a concerted effort to help them be successful for the sake of our students. Love a first year teacher today!

What is "tuesdays with Karen"?

"tuesdays with Karen" is a weekly newsletter/blog designed to encourage, equip and empower teachers to be creative with educational technology. Please add your technology comments to my

"tuesdays with Karen" blog.

As always, I am
Ubiquitously yours,
Karen

Karen C. Seddon
www.ecubedcreative.com
tuesdayswithkaren.blogspot.com
tuesdayswithkaren@gmail.com
http://the16-9movement.blogspot.com/
www.one16pray.com
seddonk - Skype

In This Issue

A creative website

An encouragment

How do you do that?

A proverb

"I touch the future. I teach."

Christa McAuliffe

An image to share

Loving on a first year teacher.

Favorite websites ...

New Teacher Central
Conchita Espinosa
SOS - Spotlight on Stragegies
Visuwords
Blendspace
Symbaloo
The Teaching Channel
Discovery Education
Yummy Math
Schoology
Project RED
QR Code Treasure Hunt
Blooms Taxonomy
Pay It Forward Foundation
Pecha Kucha
Remind101
Bammy Awards
File Pigeon
Haiku Deck
Power2Teach
Answer Garden
Fair Use Evaluator
CBL
Reach Out & Read
Digital Learning Day
Kathy Schrock
PhotoPeach
Google's Cultural Institute
Screen O'Matic
Rock Our Word
KenKen
Media Literacy Clearinghouse
Read, Write, Think
Tech4Learning
Student Voice
iAppinar
Paper blogging
John Kyrk's Biology
Multiple Intelligence Test
CA Media Festival
US Census map
Skype in the Classroom
Talk to Me

IZZIT

Splashtop
Rock-It speakers
Scale of the Universe
iPad Livebinder
Bibme

Boom Writer

Edmodo
Search-Cube
Not On the Test

The King Center
FIZZ

Calculation Nation

The Open University

Common Craft - QR codes 7 Billion