Monday, February 22, 2010

The Life of a Traveling Teacher...

I am a traveling teacher - a FLOATER if you will.  Though I prefer to be called an educator who covers ground.

Not only is it my first year but i am lucky enough to be a floater.  To catch you up quickly let me explain, I have:
  • No classroom of my own - I use others during their free periods
  • No desk of my own - I use two cardboard boxes in the back of another room
  • No filing cabinet or storage of my own - Though one teacher I share a room with shares her cabinets if I really need it and would most likely do it more often, but I feel bad taking her space.
  • No computer to call my own 
Having no classroom is not too big of a deal for me.  Honestly, as a first year teacher it's bittersweet.  I enjoyed not having to figure out how to set up the room but, at the same time, I wish I could set the room up how I want it.  The hardest part is having the student's folders with me for grading and for them to use in class.  At the beginning of the school year I had a very hard time with this but worked it out by October.  Two small filing bins from Staples... one in each room I teach in for those students' folders.  So I have learned organizational skills this year. The combination of no classroom, desk, or filing cabinet has also taught me how to be organized.  I have no space to stuff away papers or work.  It's been difficult to keep students information together and organized without having some sort of organization storage. 

Overall, I do think being a traveling teacher in my first year is making this year even more tough I do appreciate the things that I have learned from it.  I have learned a bit about how different teachers organize their own rooms, how they deal with behavior issues, and how to keep my own files and information organized. 

MORE TO COME!

No comments:

Post a Comment