marigolds Search Results

Find Your Marigold: The One Essential Rule for New Teachers

…you’re with them: Are you calmer, more hopeful? Excited to get started on a teaching task? Comfortable asking questions, even the stupid ones? If you feel good around this person, chances are they have some marigold qualities. Once you’ve identified your marigolds, make an effort to spend time with them. Having a hard day? Go to your marigolds. Not understanding how to operate the grade reporting system? Go to your marigolds. Confused by something the principal said at the faculty meeting? Marigolds. They may be on the other side of the building, out of your grade or subject area, or…

Find Your Marigold: The One Essential Rule for New Teachers

…when you’re with them: Are you calmer, more hopeful? Excited to get started on a teaching task? Comfortable asking questions, even the stupid ones? If you feel good around this person, chances are they have some marigold qualities. Once you’ve identified your marigolds, make an effort to spend time with them. Having a hard day? Go to your marigolds. Not understanding how to operate the grade reporting system? Go to your marigolds. Confused by something the principal said at the faculty meeting? Marigolds. They may be on the other side of the building, out of your grade or subject area,…

What Advice Would You Give a Student Teacher?

…going to remember all the ideas you come up with this semester, all the lessons you learn, all the things you want to do differently next time around. I’m here to tell you that you won’t remember half of them if you don’t write them down. 9. Find Your Marigold If you’ve never read my article about teachers and marigolds, go read it now. I’ll wait. Okay, that applies to student teachers too. To really have a wonderful student teaching experience, you need to find one person in the building who embodies everything you want to be in a teacher,…

Contact/FAQs

…comes up from time to time in response to posts like this one on pronunciation (8th paragraph), this one on marigolds, or even the title of this one on PD. Years of feedback have taught me that one reason people come back to my site is that my posts are written by a real person, and not a faceless representative of an institution or corporation. I try to make things simple, clear, and entertaining to read; teachers don’t have much time to dig into academic research or books on methodology, so I see it as my job to process as…

The Gut-Level Teacher Reflection

…with your colleagues have a huge impact on how you feel about coming to work every day. Are there Marigolds and Walnut Trees in your midst that you’ve never identified? Are there some strong, positive teachers in the building whom you feel intimidated by, but should probably get to know better? Is it time to fix a relationship that has been damaged? After going through the faculty and staff, choose a few people with whom you need to change your relationship, whether by repairing it, limiting it, or nurturing it. 5. Look at the following professional practice “buzzwords.” As you…

The Ultimate Guide to Starting a Teaching Job Mid-Year

…know your colleagues as well. Start by finding one or two positive, supportive teachers who seem to really love their jobs (around here, we call these people Marigolds), and spend most of your time with them. Other key staff members to get friendly with are the school secretary, the librarian, the cafeteria staff, the technology coordinator, the guidance counselors, and the custodial staff. You’re going to have lots of questions for all of these people, so be sure to get off on the right foot by introducing yourself before problems arise. Meanwhile, be friendly with everyone else. Your new position…

Teaching as a Second Career: Getting the Job

…13 means I have seen many things work and fail. Being a bit older and having doubts means that I (and my other mature aged students) are always on the lookout. It’s why I’m here and have been since before I started my course. (Jen – the marigolds article went down a huge treat at my last prac. Was presented with some marigolds and walnuts by a couple of staff at the end). Will I be totally ready to teach in 11 months and 15 days? I’m willing now, but even after my course is finished I will still have…

Rewrite the Story You Tell Yourself About Teaching

…changed from “My students are lazy,” to “My students aren’t engaged in their reading and writing. Here’s what I can do. I can come to school every day, loving them, smiling, having a sense of humor, and continuing to hold high expectations with highly engaging lessons.” These are the things you can control that you can feel good about as you finish up the year. Seeking support from some marigolds (see our blog Find Your Marigold: One Essential Rule for New Teachers) and checking out the instructional blogs on our site may inspire some new ideas for increasing student engagement….

Goal-Setting for Teachers: 8 Paths to Self-Improvement

…path of growth as an educator and a colleague! (It all started with the “Marigolds” !) This article is perfect professional development! Thanks!! Donna Jennifer Gonzalez Thanks, Donna! Are you going to try one of these this summer? Joanne Marks This is amazing! I feel as if this was written just for me, and I love how you’ve provide a link to all of the resources you recommend. Jennifer Gonzalez Thanks, Joanne! I’m really glad you found it helpful. Carlyn Grossaint would love to get updates… I’m working on doing interactive notebooks for my biology kids next year. I’m excited…