WEEK SIX- Weekly Journal

It's been over a month since I began my placement at St. Andrew's and I love working there! I look forward to going there everyday because I never know what to expect. I am getting into a routine and am very comfortable in my surroundings. I am also getting very familiar with the duties that I have to take care of. I know exactly how Mme. Mercer likes things to be done so I am confident that I am able to accomplish this. I also know how I should interact and treat certain students. I have learned a lot about each student and know how to adapt each of my teaching techniques for them. I cannot give answers but some students need more help and guidance than others. I love to help the kids and teach them new things. I really feel like a part of the teaching team because all the teachers have accpeted me and made me feel comfortable. Feeling comfortable is a major part of a good job performance because then there is no pressure. All the teachers feel comfortable and confident in my abilities, especially Mme. Mercer, so they are not afraid to ask me to do things for them. I am more then welcome to do this for them. In addition to this, all the teachers are extrememly nice and encouraging which also helps me get through tasks.
The part of the job that I like best is actually working with the kids, because when I teach them I feel a sense of reward and become even more motivated to do my job well. I like explaining things to them because they respond well to help and seem anxious to get it. The kids also make things more exciting because they're unpredictable and always end up making me laugh. I also like to plan lessons and make up tests and activities. I like doing this because I have to make these activities based on what they have learned and what I have helped them with. When I end up marking tests and quizzes I see how well they did, and feel an immense sense of reward. I would like to be able to actually teach the classes a lesson when Mme. Mercer feels the time is right, because I want to teach them something new. This would give me a taste of what teaching is really like. I want to be able to have the confidence to stand in front of a class and make them understand what I'm saying.
A challenge that created a bump in the road this week was when I took a group of students to the library and one of them was very rude to me. He was talking back to me and made me feel really bad. Even though he hurt my feelings, I did not let him know this and was very stern. I threatened to send him back to class if he said one more thing, and this seemed to quiet him. I coped with stress when I had to keep order in a larger group because when there are more kids, they begin talking and fooling around more often. This makes it harder for me to keep them on task. Eventually I was able to maintain order and I had to take a deep breath and calm down to do this. I received a compliment this week when I finished typing up the charts. Mme. Mercer said that I would most likely finish this job by June, and I finished two months in advance. Mme. Mercer was very pleased and said so to me. This made me feel really good and motivated me to keep going. Asking questions on the job is very important because I have to be sure about what I have to do so that I do not contradict Mme. Mercer or confuse the students. I am not afraid to ask questions and do so a lot. It makes me more confident in my own abilities.