first week at hawlemont school...

i have been living and working in a rural western massachusetts town for almost 2 months now. boy has it been busy! i have had so much training and so many small projects...all while trying to get acquainted to a new home, new people, and new responsibilities. i keep a journal with my day-to-day reflections, but i thought it would be nice to have a place to collect my thoughts about teaching environmental education to elementary students ranging from kindergartners tripping all over themselves to sixth graders starting to gain their independence.

i am teaching at hawlemont regional school where students from the towns of hawley and charlemont gather together to learn in a very safe and supportive atmosphere. the school uses the responsive classroom technique, which i am trying to learn and incorporate into my personal teaching style. i'll write more about it as i learn!

my teaching partner, caleb, was a drama major in school, so i'm excited to see him tell stories with the kids and share his love for creative expression. he admits that he needs to spend some time getting used to interacting with kids, so it will be fun to watch him grow.

this week we spent three half-days observing the classrooms looking for various aspects: management styles, child behavior, and the non-human aspects of the classroom to name a few. i ended the week with lots of scattered notes and the start of a teaching schedule. our contact at the school, a 1st grade teacher, is really excited for us to be there and is enthusiastic about getting us actively participating at the school.

it was a lot to take in. every morning felt a lot longer than it actually was. after our half-days at the school, we still had more education training to finish. i enjoyed this afternoon's training since our contact came in to talk a bit more about the responsive classroom method. it was good to see her in a teaching capacity with folks older than 5 or 6 : )

from my observations this week, i think it should be a great teaching experience. definitely a time for learning. planning lessons, communication, teaching effectively and working with a teaching partner that i may or may not have much in common with are just the start of my learning objectives.

...to the start of a great adventure!