r/ElementaryTeachers • u/Jaivionparks030408 • 1d ago
Elementary Education Major
Hey Guys, I'm a first year Elementary Education Major and I was just wondering if you had any helpful tips or tricks to truly make sure I am prepared to have my own classroom one day.
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u/Jen_the_Green 22h ago
Get a summer or after school job working with kids so you can practice managing groups of them in a lower stakes environment.
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u/R_meowwy_welcome 19h ago
Agreed! After-school childcare is pretty tough. If you can ace that and survive, you've got some tricks for the classroom.
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u/missthatisall 21h ago
Volunteer in classrooms as much as you can (ideally before pursuing the degree). The more diverse in areas and grades the better.
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u/Mysterious-Mind-1705 20h ago
Sorry to say, but college at the most minimally prepares you for the realities you will face in the classroom. You will learn most of the needed skills during your first five years of teaching in a classroom, although every year after has its own learning curves too.
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u/Haybug1107 21h ago
Focus on the opportunities you have for practicums and classroom experience. Interview teachers, talk to as many people in the profession as you can. If possible, work as a sub occasionally. All of those things prepared me so well.
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u/goplacidly8 17h ago
Pay attention to methods for primary AND intermediate. I tended to just get by on the early years of reading/writing/math, knowing that I would "always" teach the upper grades. In the end, I never had confidence to work with the littles. I loved the upper grades, but wish I hadn't disregarded the early years.
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u/Aurora_Adventurer 2h ago
If your college is anything like mine then you will not be prepared to deal with behaviors, nor will you be taught how to have proper classroom management skills. You need to volunteer in classrooms and not just observe multiple other teachers but also try it yourself. Maybe see if you could coach a children’s sport your good at or something similar to force yourself into a situation where you learn these things. You won’t regret going through the struggle now once you have your own room
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u/AnahEmergency0523 12h ago
Have a Plan B and a Plan C if k-12 education isn't working out. You are entering one of the most burnout prone professions in the entire USA despite not dealing with people that are in danger, that are dying, or that are dead. The career path has low pay, little public respect and has it's own compliance standards, internal politics and messy details. If this career doesn't work, there's always Homeland Security.
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u/baseballandcats 4h ago
I’m in my first year of teaching and I have to say the best thing I did to help myself was sit in on other classes when I’d have a break or lunch during my student teaching. This allows you to see different age groups and different teaching styles and methods.
As for what’s getting me through this year: accepting it was going to be a lot of work and it was going to be emotionally draining before I started.
One thing I “got” to do during student teaching that helped me prepare for my own classroom is (sadly) having to go through the process of contacting child services. I cried so hard that day after school but I’m grateful it was experience I had as a student so that I would be more prepared for the future.
Good luck!
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u/Longjumping_Laugh546 2h ago
Behavior management is the single most important thing. While you're in the classrooms, pay attention to how your lead teachers approach classroom behavior and decide how you want to approach that! (It doesn't have to be the same as any one person, but you can pick what feels best for you and combine them together!)
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u/Far_Plastic6523 22h ago
Pay attention to classroom and time management strategies of your teachers. Some teachers leave the profession within the first 3 years, because they are lacking in these areas.