First Day Reflections

Well, it is later in the evening on my first day in a school. What a day! I have already written about the death of one of most popular teachers at CLP this morning. That was a very unsettling event. Brings home the idea that one minute you are and the next minute, you aren't. Makes me want to savor each PP moment, if I can.

I got to CLP at 7:45 a.m. Guy Jewett, my coordinating teacher, usually arrives fashionably late and with style, so I spent the first 45 minutes or so meeting teachers, listening in on conversations and getting a quick tour. Jay and I both received the short trip to our rooms, guided by the new CLP principal, Brian Williams, who was very accomodating and welcoming. I met Cheryl and Eric, Jay's co-op teachers, as well as Megan, a Project Promise 13 graduate. I was made to feel very welcome, which I appreciated.

At 8:15 a.m., Brian brought out the breakfast burritos and fruit and juice for all. I had already eaten. Brian then started the video of the new Superintendent. We listened to that (sort of.)

We then had an introductory staff meeting and began to cover some agenda and theme issues for the coming year. We discussed the new study hall, implemented each day for 1/2 hour at the end of the school day. Also talked about bullying, grades and attendance. Consistency of implementation of policy was a common theme.

We reviewed the "6 traits," ongoing writing goals to be addressed in each class. We also talked about Discovery and AVID. These appear to be behavior management techniques, but I am not too sure about these yet.

We wrapped up talking about some scheduling issues.

Guy arrived at 8:30 a.m., to the catcalls of other teachers. He is, apparently, well-liked and is used to taking and giving out grief. Guy is a Computer teacher, but used to be a Social Studies and History teacher. He appears to be one of the "go-to" guys regarding "Gradebook," the computerized grade and attendance tracker that each teacher uses to track the progress of their students. He was giving a little inservice to the me and the other new teachers about the program when we received the announcement regarding Mr. Bird's death.

That shocked and stunned everyone and the staff quickly lost their focus and determination to get on with the school year. Guy sent me off to have lunch while he collected his feelings and thoughts. I ate lunch in Cheryl's room with Cheryl and Jay. It was great having someone welcome us in during such an unsettling time.

After lunch, I met again with Guy in the North Fork Computer Lab, our classroom. We went over his class schedule and some of the courses that we will be teaching. I got to see some of the work from last year's students and the presentations were excellent! Powerpoint presentations with music, animation, video, etc. all done by 7th graders! CLP is one of the flagship schools in Poudre School District with respect to Technology. They were, in fact, the pilot school for the implementation of the Gradebook program, now used in all schools.

Guy has a great approach to his subject and seems to thrive on encouraging students to try and to experiment and to learn on their own. He provides the tools and some instruction, the kids take it from there. I think that it will be a *very* exciting experience for me.

Guy also appears very willing to let me teach or participate however I wish. I am sure he would let me start teaching right away, if I wanted. I would like to do some observation and help out a little before I dive in, but I am not as worried about teaching his classes as I might have been otherwise.

One other thing about Guy is that he is the Football, track and wrestling coach. He has alot of respect from the students, particularly athletes. Add that the fact that he teaches elective classes and I do not foresee classroom management as being much of a problem.

He indicated that there was a "Personal Economics" class taught at CLP and that he would be willing to try to hook me up with that teacher, so that I can get some "business teaching" experiences in, as well.

We wrapped up the day by setting me up on the computer with a staff login and password. We also got me a key. Makes me feel like I belong there.

Guy was off to conduct football practice at 2:00 p.m. I offered to help in any way that I could, but he declined. I don't think he wants a "student coach."

Wow! What a first day. We start again tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m.

I hope that the PP cohort members without student teaching assignments got some today. This is cool stuff and I hope that everyone is getting a chance to be a part of this like I am.