You wake up at 5:00 am. You have your morning coffee and start your
day with a delicious hearty breakfast.
You packed your lunch the night before, and you are ready to go. You are dressed in your favorite teacher outfit. You are wearing comfortable (and cute)
sandals. You arrive at school with an hour to spare. Your classroom is decorated. The floor is
shiny and clean. The chairs are arranged
just how you want them.
The instruments are arranged and sorted appropriately. Your first month’s lesson plans are written
and you know them front to back. You go
to your morning duty and greet all of the smiling faces as they hop off the school bus
or get out of their parent’s car. You
go back to your classroom and listen to the morning announcements. Your principal is overly peppy welcoming
everyone back from summer vacation. This
is going to be the BEST YEAR EVER!
There's five more minutes before your first class. PANIC SETS IN! Will
the music be too loud (or maybe too soft) on my CD player? What if the internet goes out? What if the projector stops working? What if I forget a student’s name? Forget that, how am I going to learn 700
names this week?! What if I mess up the
words to that new song I just learned? What if I play the wrong notes? What if the
students don’t like the lessons I have planned?
What if they get bored and start running around the room? You know how those Pre-K kids are! What if they don’t listen to anything I
say? Oh no! My stomach is starting to
feel queasy. I think I need to take one
more trip to the bathroom. My teacher
bladder is gone thanks to the summer. No
one understands what it is like to be the Music Teacher. No one!
Why did I decide to become a teacher again?
Maybe I should find another career - QUICK! No one will notice if I walk out the side
door and hop in my car right now, will they?
I can be on my way across the country in no time!
Does this sound like you?
Don’t worry! Every teacher goes
through this at some point in his or her career! It will be okay. You will survive!
Here are a few tips to make it through the first
week of school.
First, make sure your
home life is organized. Prepare
ahead of time for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Maybe that means making lists of what you want to eat each day for each
meal. Maybe you want to prepare the
meals ahead of time. Decide what works
best for you. Choose your outfits for
the first week of school and organize them in your closet so you don’t have to
take time in the morning to try on five different outfits and shoes. Don’t forget your sweater - your classroom
might get chilly even in the August heat!
Make a calendar with after school activities listed so you don’t forget
something. Post the list of meals and your
calendar on your refrigerator door or somewhere convenient so you can look at
it throughout the week.
Second, give yourself
plenty of time to get ready in the mornings. Wake up earlier than you normally would and
get to school 30 minutes to an hour earlier than normal. This will give you a chance to be relaxed and
prepared for the unknown that may (or hopefully may not) happen.
Now, about those
lesson plans. There are many
different ways and styles to prepare your first week’s lessons. You could review rules and procedures, play name games, make seating
arrangements, play review games, do some movement activities, sing or talk about the
summer adventures, give pre-assessments (GASP!), and the list goes on and on.
However, I’m going to tell you to relax and take it easy. Your
students are going through so many different emotions that first week. Anxiousness, sadness, homesick, elated,
tired, happy, angry, hungry, and hyperactive to name a few! The most important thing is to make sure your
students are engaged with fun and musical activities. Learning something new is not the most
important thing that first week. Seating
arrangements are not necessary either as you will have students come and go
those first few weeks. Take roll, and
know who is there. Get to know those
students. Find ways to learn about them
and what they enjoy about music and about school. Get them moving and keep them busy. SING,
DANCE, AND LAUGH. Have so much fun
they don’t want to leave your class, and they will beg to come back again and again!
BREATHE! RELAX! SMILE! ENJOY!
BREATHE! RELAX! SMILE! ENJOY!
The first day of school only happens once a year. Make the most of it!
