The Teacher Walked Into the Classroom. It Was the First Period...

Before I walked into the classroom for the first time, my head was filled with questions. The night before I worried about what to wear, when to wake up, when to leave, and what my first day would entail. I was so excited to start my journey as a social studies teacher but had no idea how the day would go. As I walked into the classroom, I saw rows of desks perfectly lined up, facing a white board and a smart board. I scanned the walls and saw posters relating to government and psychology and even a wall displaying Virginia Tech images. I sat down and waited for my cooperating teacher to walk in ten minutes before first period was to start. I read over the bell schedule, checking to see how many classes I would have. When my cooperating teacher walked into the classroom, she greeted me warmly and made me feel more comfortable and confident to begin the day. The students began to fill the room and immediately a young man came up and asked “who are you?” I found throughout the day that the students were very interested as to why I was in their classroom. My cooperating teacher let me introduce myself in every class and the students were respectful and seemed interested. One of the most interesting parts of the day was seeing the different dynamics between classes. Although the same material is taught in each class, there were differences in the way each class responded and behaved. I had not previously thought about this and was glad that I got to see different behaviors in each class. Classes consisted of taking attendance, going over the homework, and working on a new worksheet or activity. I observed how my cooperating teacher dealt with excessive talking or misbehavior and how she taught the material. I feel that I will approach the material differently, but respect her experience and see how it works in her classroom. During the planning period I was able to ask various questions about teaching and my cooperating teacher answered each inquiry in depth. She assured me that she started teaching at the same age as me and that although it will be one of my hardest endeavors, it will get easier and be well worth it. Although I was nervous the night before and the morning of my first day, I quickly eased up and felt comfortable being in the classroom. The experience reassured me that this is the profession for me, and that although I have so much to learn, I am excited to begin to tackle the art of teaching.