Life of a teacher

Before taking over for three days, I had already started with substitution due to teachers that fell ill. The substitution was classes from grade 1 to grade 3. During my substitution I had valuable support. I did not feel like I was thrown into the deep end. As grade 2 teacher plan their day together, I was provided with the days schedule for each day was on substitution. The schedule helped me guide me on what to teach for the day.

By the time I had an opportunity to take over for the first day; I was very comfortable and managed the class with ease. Completing the three day take over was manageable. Having substituted early on in my teaching experience ensured that I was better equipped for my take over. As each teacher has an extra mural to do, on the days I substituted, I had also had to take over the extra mural activity.

Having a class to all on my won for the very first time can be intimidating and challenging. As prepared as I was I found myself still in doubt and questioning whether my teaching approach was effective? Each grade has maths book that they work from and they have to complete at least one to pages a day.

On the days the learners are expected to only complete a page, I needed to ensure that I gave them an activity that still consolidated the work they were doing. In the instance where only one page was completed, I would gather the learners on the carpet and work on sums on their white board. Having done the survey I alternated between two factors; a teacher needed to be distinguished and proficient. As a student teacher, I believe there is still room for improvement. My biggest challenge throughout my teaching experience has been classroom management. I believe I was marked fairly on the exit level outcomes.

I believe that I experience teaching in varying degrees and there was no time to really get comfortable as I would be required to take over a class at short notice.