Reality 101: CEC's blog for new teachers

Jennifer: Relaxed Learning

With the chaos of the year behind me and the start of summer school complete, a surprising wave of relaxation has taken over. In preparation for summer school I had been nervously gathering materials and planning through my days, anxious about a new group of students whose skills and interests were foreign to me.

It has been a complete week, and so far it seems that all of my frantic bracing for the unknown was all for nothing. Summer school is such a breeze! I say that enthusiastically because up until this point summer school has always been difficult from the first day to the very last.

Last year I ran summer school much like I did my classroom. We had our daily schedule which we adhered to as much as possible, we had lots of academic tasks that needed to be finished in almost the same order that I had been completing them during the year, and because last year I actually did have the students I had during the school year, I was simply continuing on from where we left off.

Bloggers wanted!

It’s time to bid a fond farewell to Katie, Kathy, Jennifer and Ellen, so Reality 101 is going to need some new bloggers!  If you’re a special education classroom teacher with three or fewer years of experience who loves to write, why not apply to blog about your teaching experiences during the coming school year?  Share your stories on Reality 101 and readers will offer advice, cheer you on, and share their own stories.  Click here for eligibility requirements and an application. Deadline is Aug. 13, 2010.