What I Do Right...
My grade level and I collaborate ALL THE TIME. We work together so well, and our strengths complement each other. We plan together, and offer ideas for high quality lessons that we can give our students. We also understand that we are all different. So, if an idea is presented, we realize that each teacher may put her own "spin" on it.
Here we all are {the second grade teachers} on Weather Day with Andy Wood, the weather man from Fox 21 News. We all collaborated to bring 5 different, exciting, and interactive lessons that each class rotated through to end our unit on weather.
What I Do Wrong...
When reading the chapter, I realized that my nonverbal listening skills need to be improved. Many times I find that my mind wanders because I am thinking about what I want to {or need to} do rather than soaking in the information from my colleagues. I also find that my collaboration with teachers OUTSIDE of my grade level is severely lacking. It is just so hard to find that time during the school day to meet together...possibly because other teachers typically have different planning periods than I do.
How I'm Going to Fix It...
I really like the forms that the book provides for note taking during collaborative meetings. I think that if I had a form with me, and I conscientiously made an effort to take notes of the ideas, then maybe I could keep my mind on the person who is speaking...rather than the fifty million other things I have to do. I also think that the school should set a day aside in the afternoons once a month for collaboration across grade levels. This would force teachers to pause, look at data from students we are concerned about, and discuss how interventions may or may not be working.
I think it is great that you and the other 2nd grade teachers collaborate and plan together. I am the only 4K teacher at both of my schools and I miss being able to "compare notes" with other teachers. When I did my student teaching in 2nd grade, those teachers planned together and even divided up preparing lesson plans. I thought they worked great together. I hope to be apart of a team like that one day.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with you about the listening skills. I am guilty of letting my mind wander when other people are talking. Shame on me! :)
P.S. I think you have done this "blog thing" before. Your page looks great. Where did you find the template?
Thank you, Michelle! I honestly have never blogged before, but I have always wanted to. I have really enjoyed working on it...and have kinda become slightly obsessed with the blogging world. There are so many ideas...and it just seems like a great way to get inspiration and ideas for my classroom. I found the template and banner for FREE at Cutest Blog on the Block. There are also tutorials on that page, too, that teach you how to do a lot of stuff.
DeleteI love your blog! Very impressive. Having a supportive and understanding team makes teaching so much more effective and fun. Working with a grade level that supports and evolves together allows teachers to try new strategies in the classroom. It also builds confidence, trust, and personal relationships. It is very hard to build relationships outside of your own grade level, especially at a large school. This is one reason my principal created vertical teams at our school. At first, many people resisted this, but most people have come around and look forward to hearing and learning about the perspectives (accomplishments and struggles) of our fellow teachers.
ReplyDeleteI think it is great that you have the opportunity to share ideas and plan with your fellow grade level teachers! It is so important to be able to do that, especially when you are teaching the same concepts! I have to say that I can definitely relate to your desire to improve your nonverbal listening skills. I too find my thoughts wandering during conversations and meetings! I think your idea to help you improve these skills by taking notes is a great idea to help your mind to really focus on what is being said!
ReplyDeleteYour relationship with your team sounds like mine! I love my third grade team so much and we work together on everything. I think that kind of meaningful collaboration helps your second grade students succeed with exchanging learning strategies and activities. Time does seem to be the biggest challenge for every teacher. There are so many wonderful people in our buildings, we just have to seek them out to help us better teach our students.
ReplyDeleteGrethen,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great blog!It is wonderful to see your photos and see how much you use collaboration. I can imagine as a 2nd grade teacher that collaboration among various teachers is a key to success. I think your relationship with your team is a lot like mine with my English ladies. We work really hard to make sure that everyone is comfortable and sharing their stellar ideas. Keep up the good work.
I love your blog! In the eight years I have been at Midway, I can honestly say every year gets better and better with my team. We work (and play!) together. No matter how much we know or how much experience we have, we can always learn more and become better teachers when we collaborate! No matter what the issue, I know that I have six others on my team that are there for just the asking. Not only do we teach together, plan our lessons together, bounce ideas off each other constantly, but we also make time to socialize together year-round (we paint, go out to eat, celebrate birthdays, etc.) I love what I do, and it helps that I love the people I teach with!
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