7: Week of October 3

This week I have bee thinking a lot about organization and how much this helps teachers. My mentor teacher is super organized, and this makes the day run so much smoother. First of all, it eliminates wasted transition time. She knows exactly what she is going to do next as she is finishing up one activity and can direct students on what to do. All the materials are laid out prior to beginning the activity so no time is wasted searching for things. She keeps the aid very informed about what she needs which eliminates a lot of miscommunication and keeps things running smoothly. Her lesson plans list everything out in a very easy to read format so they can be followed by anyone. Another thing I like that I have seen in different classrooms is having a place to put the materials for the week. For example, in my class there are hanging file folders for Monday Math and Monday Reading where you can find all the materials. In another class they use drawers. I like this idea because you can easily see if you have what you need. I have also been in very unorganized classrooms that encountered lots of problems because of this. Time was wasted, materials were not easy to find, and things did not get done. Especially for me, being a beginning teacher, I need to make sure I am organized to help make up for other problems I will encounter.