When I enrolled in classes again after taking two years off from school, PDS seemed so far away, and I thought it would never get here. But before I knew it, I was finishing up my last summer class ever and getting ready to start student teaching. I was filled with so many different emotions from excitement to nervousness to stress. It was all very overwhelming to say the least. I don’t think there is anything that could have truly prepared me for the experiences that I’ve had thus far in PDS I with my campus rotations and methods classes. The most important thing that I have learned from my experiences up until now is this… I know that this is where I want to be, and teaching children is what I want to do.
I will be honest… I cried the night before fall orientation because I had no idea what to expect, and I’ve probably cried a number of times since the semester has started. The first day on my first campus rotation was the teachers’ last day of professional development, and I got to spend the day meeting my mentor teachers at this school and helping to set up some of their classrooms. I got to experience the chaos of the first day of school. At the end of the day, my mentor teacher asked me if I had any questions, and I think that I had so many that I didn’t know where to begin.
The next couple of weeks at my first campus went by extremely fast, and I got to experience almost every grade level and also the EXPO classroom. I wasn’t sure about the rotating aspect of PDS 1 when I had been told that most of the cadres had 1 school and 2 teachers. However, I can say that I really do enjoy how we get the opportunity to see different grade levels in PDS I, which helps us decide what grades we’d like to student teach in during PDS 2. When people would ask what grade I wanted to teach (before going into PDS I). I always responded with, “3rd, 4th or 5th.” My first campus rotation confirmed that I do enjoy the older grades and that kindergarten and 1st grade weren’t really up my alley.
When I got to my 2nd campus rotation, my grade preference did change a bit. I have really enjoyed my time in the 1st grade classroom and could definitely see myself teaching 1st grade. My mentor teachers at both school rotations have been extremely helpful and have given me so many different resources and guidance for getting through PDS I and 2. I didn’t really have very many opportunities to jump in and teach lessons at my 1st rotation, but I have had a couple of opportunities so far to teach at my 2nd rotation. I have taught part of a science investigation on erosion, done my writing lesson over sentence structure with 3rd graders, and also done a social studies lesson about being a good citizen with 1st graders. It has been a rewarding experience to actually get to teach an entire class of children and see the things that I need to work on and see areas where I am strong.
To add to the stress of actually being in an elementary classroom and taking opportunities to teach, I have also had to dedicate time to my methods courses and making sure that I do the very best that I can to do well in these classes. The demands of my methods courses have been overwhelming and have kept me up at night and had me up very early in the mornings. I have had to restructure my home life a little bit to add for more homework time as these classes are not like other classes that I have taken in the past. Upon hearing all of the different assignments that we would complete this semester, I had moments where I doubted my ability to make it through PDS I and thought I’d be one of the ones that didn’t get to move on with the rest of my cadre. I have had a couple of breakdowns and have wanted to throw in the towel, but I’m a fighter and don’t like to give up on any challenge that I take on.
After turning in a few assignments and receiving my grades on them, my self-confidence level has increased significantly. I know that I can do this and I know that I can make it to PDS 2. I have done well in my methods classes so far this semester and have had so many positive experiences at both of my campus rotations. I am looking forward to finishing the semester and joining the rest of my cadre in PDS 2 as we dive head first into student teaching.
I will be honest… I cried the night before fall orientation because I had no idea what to expect, and I’ve probably cried a number of times since the semester has started. The first day on my first campus rotation was the teachers’ last day of professional development, and I got to spend the day meeting my mentor teachers at this school and helping to set up some of their classrooms. I got to experience the chaos of the first day of school. At the end of the day, my mentor teacher asked me if I had any questions, and I think that I had so many that I didn’t know where to begin.
The next couple of weeks at my first campus went by extremely fast, and I got to experience almost every grade level and also the EXPO classroom. I wasn’t sure about the rotating aspect of PDS 1 when I had been told that most of the cadres had 1 school and 2 teachers. However, I can say that I really do enjoy how we get the opportunity to see different grade levels in PDS I, which helps us decide what grades we’d like to student teach in during PDS 2. When people would ask what grade I wanted to teach (before going into PDS I). I always responded with, “3rd, 4th or 5th.” My first campus rotation confirmed that I do enjoy the older grades and that kindergarten and 1st grade weren’t really up my alley.
When I got to my 2nd campus rotation, my grade preference did change a bit. I have really enjoyed my time in the 1st grade classroom and could definitely see myself teaching 1st grade. My mentor teachers at both school rotations have been extremely helpful and have given me so many different resources and guidance for getting through PDS I and 2. I didn’t really have very many opportunities to jump in and teach lessons at my 1st rotation, but I have had a couple of opportunities so far to teach at my 2nd rotation. I have taught part of a science investigation on erosion, done my writing lesson over sentence structure with 3rd graders, and also done a social studies lesson about being a good citizen with 1st graders. It has been a rewarding experience to actually get to teach an entire class of children and see the things that I need to work on and see areas where I am strong.
To add to the stress of actually being in an elementary classroom and taking opportunities to teach, I have also had to dedicate time to my methods courses and making sure that I do the very best that I can to do well in these classes. The demands of my methods courses have been overwhelming and have kept me up at night and had me up very early in the mornings. I have had to restructure my home life a little bit to add for more homework time as these classes are not like other classes that I have taken in the past. Upon hearing all of the different assignments that we would complete this semester, I had moments where I doubted my ability to make it through PDS I and thought I’d be one of the ones that didn’t get to move on with the rest of my cadre. I have had a couple of breakdowns and have wanted to throw in the towel, but I’m a fighter and don’t like to give up on any challenge that I take on.
After turning in a few assignments and receiving my grades on them, my self-confidence level has increased significantly. I know that I can do this and I know that I can make it to PDS 2. I have done well in my methods classes so far this semester and have had so many positive experiences at both of my campus rotations. I am looking forward to finishing the semester and joining the rest of my cadre in PDS 2 as we dive head first into student teaching.