If you are student teaching in the upcoming semester you might be starting to feel a few positive emotions but you most likely are experiencing some negative emotions as well. This is 100% normal, don’t worry. It is perfectly okay to be super excited about something but also be scared or nervous at the same time. To dial back your fears and anxiety you should start preparing for your experience as soon as possible. Do not wait to prepare yourself for student teaching until the day before your first day or even the weekend before your first day – start asap.
One good way to start preparing for your student teaching experience is to buy a Teacher Planner. These planners are not exactly like a normal planner because they break down the day into different periods and it also has room for notes. Another part of these planners that I like is the section for grading. Erin Condren sells a lot of fashionable Teacher Planners – check them out!
Another way to prepare for student teaching is to look into the school district that you will be teaching in. Learn about the community that your students are surrounded by. Learn the school district’s motto and figure out what is important to the staff, students and community. By learning these things you are putting yourself into the community which will allow you to see your students on a different level.
Reach out to your co-op to learn about curriculum, schedule and expectations of you. Figure out the room number, what time they want you to be in the room, etc. Make sure your clearances are ready – take them to the school before your first day. By taking your clearances early you are also giving yourself an opportunity to learn the commute to your school. Also, make sure that you are never late to school and that you are as professional as possible while you are there – try to treat every single day like a job interview.
After you start your first day of student teaching make sure to learn your students’ names as quickly as you possibly can – it helps create a relationship between you and the students. Also, take every opportunity that your co-op gives you – if he/she asks you to do hall monitoring, do it. Take every opportunity as a learning experience and do not waste it. Most importantly, do not be afraid to make mistakes – this is your learning experience and you are not supposed to be an expert right away. Allow your students to see that you are human. When you know that you made a mistake though be sure to fix it and try to not let the mistake happen again.
Student teaching is a roller coaster of emotions and so you really need to take care of yourself. When you start feeling too overwhelmed you need to back off and focus on some personal self-care routines. Be sure to get plenty of sleep, eat appropriately and go for walks – these all help you emotionally and physically. If you find that coping skills and self-care routines are not enough for the negative emotions that you are feeling then you need to reach out to the Counseling Center at MU – they have specific hours for student teachers so that you do not have to miss school in order to go to them.
Take care of yourselves and try to stay positive. Student teaching will be amazing if you allow it to be!
Good luck future Student Teachers!
*Images courtesy of Pinterest