Last few weeks of school

I can't believe this semester is almost over. I have one more short unit to cover and then it is semester test time. I hope my student do well on their end of course exams. I think they will do okay, but I guess we will see. I don't know about everyone else, but I am ready for Christmas. I feel much more prepared for next semester now that I know what to expect. I just dread the first few weeks of school and trying to get the new group into a routine.

Hard to go back

Although I do like teaching so far, I have to admit that the thought of going back to work tomorrow does not appeal to me. I feel like I could use a little more time to recuperate. This break was nice, and I am looking forward to Christmas coming up. My biggest concern right now is getting my students ready for the their end of course exam. I hope they are as concerned as I am. I do not think that many of my students realize how important mathematics is to their future, despite the fact that I remind them constantly. Unfortunately, I think it will take some of them failing the first time to understand.

Thanksgiving break

I don't know about all the other teachers in the world, but I am so happy to be off for five days! Knowing you will be off on the holidays is a great feeling. In my past jobs I have either had to work through the holidays or at least the day before and after. I am so wore out, and I need this break. I plan to come back completely restored and possibly five pounds heavier. Ha ha :)

Teaching so far.

I have had a great semester so far. I am happy with the school I am at, and I am grateful for the wonderful people I work with. It is nice to know that any time I have a question or need some help their is someone willing to be there for me. My first obsevation went really well. I got almost all 3's. There are still plenty of things I can work on though. Teaching is a very stressfull and demanding job, but so far I really enjoy it.

The first nine weeks

Wow! This first nine weeks has flown by. I feel much more confident with my lesson plans, and I like the way my lessons are flowing. The biggest problem I have is getting the students motivated. Most of them have no idea what they are capable of, because they do not try hard enough. Some of them act like they don't care, but I know for most of them this isn't true. I often speek to them about college and what they need to do to prepare for that step in their lives. Maybe at least one of them with listen.

Parent Teacher Conference

I had my first parent teacher conference, and it went very well. I had 27 parents show up, and many of them I already knew. I had a chance to let parents know all the good and bad that their children have been doing.

My biggest problem is getting students to do their homework. I am probably going to start making my students come in during lunch and eat in my classroom if they do not finish their homework. They really enjoy their social time, so maybe if I start taking that away they will start taking their homework seriously.

Getting them involved

This past week went pretty well, but I need to work on getting my students involved. I have good classroom management so far, but I have to try very hard to keep them interested. I think this next week I am going to try some different question and answer techniques and see how that works out.