Looking back at your body of work so far, I can assess that you absolutely love creating lessons that include fun and exciting activities to keep the students on their feet. I remember those gleaming smiles they had when they deciphered nouns, verbs, and adjectives from that annoyingly contagious 'Happy' song by Pharrell Williams. I also recall how elated you were as you watched them engage in your lesson. That's such a valuable quality to have in a new student teacher, and you have to do whatever it takes to keep that enthusiasm going. Before you get too trigger happy with the warm fuzzies of fun classroom activities, make sure you use the unit's theme and essential questions to help navigate your daily lessons. Though you have good intentions for making your lessons entertaining for the students, the class activities can very easily lead into mindless fun without a clear, intentional purpose.
Take advantage of those pacing guides you'll get from your future cooperating teacher. These documents are amazing, because they'll help align your lessons with state standards while offering some suggestions for text and novel studies. You don't have to follow those pacing guides verbatim, but they will alleviate the stress of coming up with an entire, purposeful unit completely on your own. That'll require a few buckets of fried chicken and a wee bit of alcohol to accomplish. Trust me. So check out those pacing guides, put some further thought into what you want your students to learn overall, and keep that charismatic zeal running at full force. Your students will see the passion and sleep-deprived nights you'll put into those lessons and they'll appreciate all your efforts.
Please listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you next. During the Fall 2014 semester, you'll get to choose one class specifically to work with for about fourteen weeks. DO NOT PICK 4TH HOUR HONORS LANGUAGE ARTS! As a new and innocent pre-student teacher, you'll be tempted to work with these prestigious group of kids. Fight that urge dude! They work so diligently and quietly compared to the chaotic messes you've seen in the past year of observations, but this type of learning environment will not prepare you enough for the war zone you'll be entering for that final semester. They are already intrinsically motivated to achieve all of their academic endeavors. In doing so, you won't gain much experience as a student teacher when you work with them. There will be groups of students who'll talk all hour without any regard to what you'll ask them to do. You'll receive defiant students who've been expelled from other schools for various reasons. Some students will have no problem cursing you out, and for your information-this happens to you on your first day.
How are you going to handle all of this pandemonium if you choose to play on the beginner's level of teaching? My best advice for you is to choose a more difficult class to work with during that pre-student teaching phase. It doesn't have to be the most chaotic class, but one that has a few road bumps to cross. You'll gain insight on how to maintain full engagement with your class while management behavior issues with ease. You know this is your biggest weakness and you cannot run from it. So just embrace adversity from the start and educate yourself on how to handle it with finesse.
Appreciate the education program at WSU and everything it has to offer you. Though a lot of the information you'll be taking in seems to be repetitive textbook jargon, it's provided for a reason. You need to have a professional and knowledgeable disposition to be noticed by influential figures such as administration, colleagues, and your very own university supervisors. Establish a well-developed understanding of the classroom from the textual resources and you'll be better prepared when you'll be standing in front of twenty-two of those demonic adolescents. The more well-informed you are, the more confident you'll feel when it comes time for you to take action.
Keep in mind that the education program goes far beyond endless pages of ethical principles and teaching strategies. You'll see in time that speaking to real professionals in the field will be one of the best ways for you to further develop into the educator you want to be. You'll have seminars and discussion groups that will advise you on how to turn your dream of teaching into a reality when you are forced out into the real world. You'll have university supervisors who are more than willing to support you in every facet of your student teaching year; don't be afraid to seek their advice. Mrs. Roberts and Dr. Cramer are always radiating optimism and you'll need that good juju to keep your spirits high. Oh, spoiler alert: Dr. Mason gets married to this dude named Cramer. It's pretty cute stuff. Back to the point, know that you'll always have assistance and that you're enrolled in a program that wants you to succeed. Seek out answers and you'll be in good hands.
Just be fully aware that the first day of that final semester will be oh so brutal. You'll be both stunned and slightly discouraged with what you'll see from those six rambunctious groups. You'll feel defeated and you may even rethink what you're doing in the education program. Believe it or not, you'll grow to really care for those little jerks and you'll find it nearly impossible to picture yourself in any other field of work. There will be a point where everything will make sense. You'll have this amazing sense of fulfillment you've been yearning for and you'll feel so accomplished upon seeing those kids learn from you. This is the reality of the situation and you'll make a difference in your very own spastic way.
I'm not going to tell you "good luck", because I know how much you hate the pun associated with it. How do I know this? BECAUSE I'M YOU FROM THE FUTURE! AND YOU'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO GRADUATE! I SWEAR DUDE, I PUT IT ON YOUR MOM AND EVERYTHING THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE DONE WITH IT ALL!
