This week I had the honor of attending EdCamp 2021! I had a great time switching up my schedule and being able to have conversations with a variety of educators. I chose to spend my time in the “First Practicum Survival” breakout room, and I learned a lot about how I should prepare myself for my first practicum one day. Even though I am not able to have my first practicum this year because of the pandemic, I am grateful that I got the chance to get some advice to prepare myself for my future practicums. For this weeks reflection, I will be sharing the notes that I took during my experience learning from Sandra McAulay from SD54.
- know the school, know the teacher, know the grade
- have communication with your mentor teacher
- keep an open mind, sometimes your mentor teacher might not have the same teaching style as you, try to adapt and discover the pros and cons of different teaching styles
- work on building relationships with your students, start with something engaging (2 truths and a lie?)
- try to find the balance between having good relationships while being a trusted adult
- you aren’t going to be able to do everything you plan on doing
- make good impressions!!! practicum is a 6-week long job interview
- become a part of the school culture (coach something, volunteer for the play…)
- keep a daybook
- the practicum will be hard work! expect to stay up late nights
- pick a big topic to explore throughout each practicum (classroom management, inclusion…)
- ask to visit other classrooms
- keep a collection of pictures and resources from this experience
- have specific learning intentions
- you are leading the learning, lead it!
- be kind to yourself!!!!!
In all, I had a great time attending EdCamp this year and I hope to attend for years to come!