be a better teacher

I ended up getting a bunch of things done on my list and I am still working on completing more of them as I go. I love the list thing and even though I didn’t finish everything I’m happy to have the list for reference.

I am not a person who you would call confident in myself or my abilities in most of the aspects of my life but I have to say that I think that I am a decent teacher. I think that the fact that I can say that is pretty good progress. Already this year a bunch of the teachers from my department have been impressed with all of the work that I do and have been complementing me and thanking me for helping them.

I think that many teachers feel the same as me. We know that we aren’t going to be paid a whole lot but we really need to be reinforced from time to time that we are appreciated and that we do a good job. At this point, I am feeling pretty good!

See my #1 goal on 43things to see the deal with my mini goals

Finish last summer’s curriculum projects

See my #1 goal on 43things to see the deal with my mini goals

Finish my Google Earth Curriculum project

ACCOMPLISHED!!!!!

I’m not sure if I’m happy or upset about my progress on this goal. My current list includes 28 things (9 more than I started with) Here’s what I still have to do:
1. Finish last years program writing
2. Write curriculum for Google Earth (Well on the way)
3. Purchase new organizational items for the classroom—for me and the students
4. Back-up all school files on the computer(Started)
5. Enter answer keys for all handouts into the computer (Started)
6. 1st day of school lesson about the eboard (Need to add blog and key websites)
7. Update eboard (Need to update current events and vocabulary)
8. Make a rotating schedule for US inclusion classes so that there will be more structure for us as teachers and for the students (Started discussion with inclusion teacher)
9. New current events assignments: ex: Which past president is most like President Bush, which founding father would be in the most/least agreement with x today, how should the middle east crisis be solved, which state today upholds the bill of rights most completely, how are the enlightenment ideals mirrored in the UN charter, how is nationalism expressed in today’s world, compare an industrialized nation with a developing nation- what does the developing nation need to do to become industrialized, how has imperialism effected the world we live in today, who are today’s robber barons/captains of industry?
10. Examine year plan for both Global and US and make timing tweaks
11. New labels for handout rack
12. Blog: links- general, global, us, study skills and the like, get a topic of discussion going (Started)
13. Organization for filing cabinet in office
14. Power Points baby!!!
15. Add movie clips into Power Points
16. Rework constitution unit
17. Intersperse Global I vocabulary with Global II vocabulary assignments
18. Intersperse problem words with US vocabulary assignments
19. Type key people guide for Global
20. Create a political cartoon database for global and US by theme
21. Make a new review schedule for both US and Global
22. Great women from history poster

I got a lot done and even more started but I still feel that I should have done more. I hope I can get more done tomorrow and maybe even finish up some more before school gets too crazy. Why do I always set huge goals for myself and then get pissed when I fall short!!!!

I know that this is a lot and I only have like 4 weeks left but I really want to accomplish most of this!!!

1. Finish last years program writing
2. Write curriculum for Google Earth
3. Write curriculum for Social Studies Museum
4. Purchase new organizational items for the classroom— for me and the students
5. Back-up all school files on the computer
6. Enter answer keys for all handouts into the computer
7. Update 1st day of school handout
8. Obituary Lesson
9. Make a rotating schedule for US inclusion classes so that there will be more structure for us as teachers and for the students
10. Examine year plan for both Global and US and make timing tweaks
11. Power Points baby!!!
12. Add movie clips into Power Points
13. Rework constitution unit
14. Intersperse Global I vocabulary with Global II vocabulary assignments
15. Intersperse problem words with US vocabulary assignments
16. Create a vocabulary word of the week plan with display for classroom
17. Type key people guide for Global
18. Make a new review schedule for both US and Global
19. Great women from history poster

What I have done already—-less than a week since school got out:
1. Written 2 curriculum proposals for summer curriculum writing program
2. Began backing up and organizing files from work onto my laptop
3. Created a list of vocabulary that students have difficulty with on the Regents Exam—with definitions

Well, maybe not my whole life but a huge part of it. School just ended last week and at the end of every school year I make a ton of plans and lists about things that I want to do better and work on during the summer. Usually, I never (or rarely ever) follow through on those plans. This summer I am going to actually work to complete my goals.