I can’t believe that the two-week practicum has come to an end. The time is flying by and for some reason that’s something I can never seem to understand. I’ve grown so attached to my class and my SA that it is going to be really strange to not show up at 7:40am each morning and prepare for the day. As cliché as this sounds, I really think I’ve grown this week. I believe I’ve grown as a student, as a learner, and most importantly as a teacher. I know I will be forever learning and forever growing, however this week I feel confident in my abilities to lead a class and confident in my connection with my class. At the beginning of these two weeks, I had a huge fear about being just another person in the classroom. I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to earn the respect of my students and my SA and I was worried about conveying that teacher position and presence within the classroom. However, I am ecstatic to say that the students  see me as a teacher, they see me as Miss Ramsey. My SA made it super easy to feel like an equal part of the classroom because from the start she introduced me and allowed me to take part in all lessons and activities the class was doing. Not only did I take part in their daily routines, I instructed some of them and also developed my own routines that we as a class adapted to.

My SA and I decided that during the two weeks I would instruct a lesson, sometimes a few a day to establish a teacher presence in the classroom. That responsibility gave me a lot of confidence with teaching and with the whole practicum because I knew I would be apart of the classroom dynamic everyday. I can’t even express in words how much I’ve learned this week. Finally being submerged in a classroom has made all the assignments, all the long classes and all the learned materials come to life! It’s made it all worth it.

So now, after the two weeks, I’m taking it all in and really reflecting. Everyday, I made an effort to write a mini reflection at the end of each day. I did these reflections to keep my mind fresh and write down significant events that occurred that day. Now, as I sit here, I am reading all the little reflections and I am so happy and so proud of how well the class adapted to a new teacher in the classroom. They’ve welcomed me with open arms and made my transition from being a student, to being the teacher a lot easier than I initially anticipated it being.

So now what? Now I hope to maintain my relationships with my students and my SA by using my Thursday visits to continue teaching lessons and getting to know my student’s work habits and their daily routines. I also want to establish a routine in the classroom. I will do this by teaching a lesson every Thursday and continuing doing Journal writes with the class. This continuum will allow me to maintain a teacher presence and still be connected to the class. I know that my SA and I will maintain a great relationship and I am so happy that I can ask her advice on everything. She has taught me so much and I look forward to my Thursday visits and my ten-week practicum because I know I will continue to learn. The feeling that I received after my first lesson, I will never forget and I am so happy to say that, that feeling has continued throughout the two weeks.

My goals are to find balance between being me and focusing on my life and the lives of my students. So far I’ve let their life stories consume my time away from the classroom and I want to try to find a balance, for my own sanity and my own personal health. I look forward to challenging my thinking and working on my headspace both in the classroom with my students, in the classrooms at UBC and at home when I’m reflecting.

“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When life gives you students, learn from them”.

This week I was observed for the first time as a Teacher Candidate and I am so happy to say it went well. Not only on paper but my relationship with the class and the students has grown drastically in the past five days compared to the beginning of the week. For example, one of the students in my class who battles with authority has helped me quiet down the class and even cheered me on at the end of my observed lesson! That moment was my favorite moment of the entire week. Hearing “You got this Miss Ramsey!” after my lesson was complete and I was being observed, not only made me feel great but it made me feel proud of the students.

This week I feel confident that the school I am at is where I am supposed to be this year. My FA can back me up on this; I’ve had an extremely emotional week with my student’s home-life situations. Each day I learn something new and each day I go home and think about how I can provide them with strategies and tools to succeed not only at school but at home as well. One thing I’ve incorporated into our classroom is the Mood Traffic Light that allows students to self-check and self-report on their headspace for that particular day. Students are allowed to move their names on the traffic light throughout the day. It has been quite successful so far!

I’ve learned a lot about myself in these past five days and I think the most important thing I’ve learned is how to really listen. I seem to be this magnetic for students to open up and tell me things about their lives at home or about their past. I haven’t asked them to tell me those things; they just seem to want me to get to know them. On one hand, it is great because I know they feel comfortable with me and I know they want me to know about certain events that have now made them who they are. However, on the other hand, I still feel so new at this that I feel a little overwhelmed right now. I don’t exactly know how to explain in words how rewarding and challenging this week has been. I am really excited about gaining knowledge and learning from my classroom and developing my understanding of my student’s emotions and unique home situations. I feel extremely grateful and honored to be Miss Ramsey in their classroom.