Reflecting on a False First Day

It was a dark and stormy day on Wednesday, September 15th.  A student teacher by the name of Ms. Kachel trudged through her college campus with backpack and teaching materials in tow.  She had forgotten to create a PPT and was utterly unprepared for the day. She was on her way to teach her first day of school...

As dismal as that sounds, Ms. Kachel's actual experience was much, much different.  The previous night, she had created the presentation she would use in class and had gathered the materials she needed to succeed.  Since the first teaching lab, I felt a lot more prepared for the lab.  I knew what to expect and was ready and excited for the class.  When I walked into class, I set my materials down, pulled out my notebook, and readied myself for the lab.  I volunteered to go second and felt confident and excited to teach the false first day of Aquaponics.  I introduced the class and facilitated a get-to know you activity, introduced myself, the class rules and expectations, the course content and stated objectives for the first day.  

Based on this experience, I can tell that the presentation, group activity, introductions, and class rules and expectations are all things that I want to implement and include on my first day as a teacher.  It helped set the stage for future learning and creates a comfortable classroom environment.  Additionally, I was able to experience what it felt like to teach from a lesson plan and to follow what I had planned.  

Having utilized what I did and taught with the methods that I did, there are some thing this that I thought I did well, could improve upon, and things that I learned from the teaching lab.  Firstly, I thought that I did a relatively good job at engaging the learners and facilitating discussion and familiarity between themselves and between me as the teacher.  I also think that I did a pretty good job of varying the methods that I used to teach and convey the rules and expectations that I needed to.  Secondly,  I think I could have improved upon how much I talked about the course content.  I stated the unit titles, but didn't mention what exactly the students would be learning within the units.  I felt that I also could have given more verbal explanation before moving to the next slide or activity.  Additionally, I was a little under time and realized that I talk a lot faster that I realize.  Overall, I learned how to lead a class from a lesson plan, implement the plan, and aid in creating a positive and welcoming environment on the first day of class.

As an Agriscience teacher, the first day of class is just as important as it is for a math teacher.  Breaking the ice and creating a welcoming environment can encourage greater learning the rest of the year and allow for a safer classroom environment where students feel safe and comfortable bringing issues about their education, life, and pursuit of interests to you.  The first day makes the first impression, and as the saying goes, "You only get one chance to make a first impression."