So what are my favorite things about each grade that I've taught? Here you go:
PRE-K:
I started my teaching career as a Pre-K teacher. I can always tell when someone is an educator (or the parent of a preschooler) by how they respond to this information -- if you say "aw, so cute!" then you're not a teacher. If you say, "woah, you must have endless patience," then you get it. 😁
Everything is new for preschoolers! This means that anything can be educational and exciting... and exhausting. I've taken field trips to the grocery story and the post office with Pre-Kers (activities that we grown-ups find tedious and mundane) and watched their little eyes light up with wonder... and endless questions. It doesn't take much to be a four-year-old's "favorite teacher" (this is great for ego building!) Despite the tears and tantrums (and accidents) that inevitably come with teaching Pre-K, there are days when I really miss the easy hugs and simple joys of playing in the water table.
FIRST GRADE:I think 1st grade is where some of the most significant learning happens, maybe in all of elementary school. They come in just putting sounds together, and skipping the number 13 when they count, and a few months later they are reading picture books and subtracting back from 20. First graders are just starting to learn what learning feels like -- for some, it's the first time they realize they are "learning" anything at all. And all that learning is not easy. Every kiddo needs every lesson at least 15 times, with manipulatives and visual cues and physical movements and sing-song steps. And lots and lots, and lots, of encouragement. As frustrating and tiring as all that can be, there is nothing like the first time a kiddo reads, like really reads. I don't think being part of that moment could ever get old.
FOURTH GRADE:
Moving to fourth grade was an unexpected and challenging jump for me, and I wasn't sure what to expect. When your kiddos start to approach your height and have their own opinions, it can be intimidating. Ten-year-olds don't love just anybody or anything, some of them are already a little jaded about school, and some just want to pretend they're tough, so getting them interested and engaged isn't always easy. It takes a lot of energy to show you care about them and the subject matter. But once you're in, it matters that much more. As foundational as early childhood and lower elementary are, this is the age when kiddos develop the beliefs and passions that will truly shape their lives. They learn that girls can do math and boys can love history. They learn those skills -- like multiplication, essay writing, nonfiction note-taking -- that they really will use when they grown up. No pressure, right? I don't actually know what I will be teaching next year, and that uncertainty has me a little frantic. How will I sufficiently reflect and plan and prep? Now that I think about it, though, maybe it's not so much about what grade I will be teaching, or even what students I will be teaching, maybe it's really about what I will be teaching. In every grade, there is the opportunity to make something as mundane as the grocery store, or as foundational as reading, or as inspiring as the American Revolution into something that kids really care about, something that will shape the course of their life. I just need to find the patience, energy, and enthusiasm to teach it to them. No pressure -- I've got all summer.
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