Lori Goodson, Editor
Mary Hammel, Technical Editor
Category: December 2016
Is something missing from your desk drawer?
We asked some of your Curriculum and Instruction professors what five items new teachers need the most in their desk drawer. Here is their growing list of responses. (Feel free to email us your own go-to items in your desk drawer!)Cyndi Kuhn (Technology) –
- Flash drive
- Power cords for technology (go buy a second set and keep a set at home)
- Advil
- Kleenex
- Your favorite motivational quote, so every time you open that drawer, you are inspired.
Dr. Brad Burenheide (Secondary Social Studies) –
- Gum
- Notecards
- A great pen
- Flash drive
- A picture of your spouse or significant other to look at when times are rough
Dr. Sherri Martinie (Secondary Math) –
- Crackers for hungry kids.
Kaylee Myers (Elementary Education) –
- Safety pins
- Colorful writing pens
- Chapstick (talking lots=dry lips)
Dr. Tom Vontz (Elementary Social Studies) –
- Coffee cup
- Kleenex
- Laptop
- Grading folder
- Parent contact info
Dr. Tonnie Martinez (Secondary Language Arts)
- Mints for the face-to-face conferences (for you and the students)!
- Hand-sanitizing lotion that smells good
- Vending machine change
- Granola Bars
- Tylenol
Dr. Vicki Sherbert (Secondary English/Language Arts, Speech/Theatre, Journalism) –
- Band-aids
- An extra flash drive
- Colorful pens
- Encouraging notes you’ve received from students and parents
- Tic Tacs
Dr. Phillip Payne (Music Education) –
- White-out
- Calculator
- Pencils
- Pens
- Audio recorder
Purple options over break
During your winter break, don’t forget to enjoy a few K-State events!
The campus may get pretty quiet during break, but there is still plenty going on! Here are some purple items to add to your calendar:
- Football, Advocare V100 Texas Bowl, Texas A&M vs. K-State, 8 p.m. Dec. 28 at NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
- Women’s basketball at Baylor, 7 p.m. Dec. 29 at Ferrell Center
- Women’s basketball vs. West Virginia,1 p.m. Jan. 1 at Bramlage
- Men’s basketball vs. Texas, 7 p.m. Dec. 30 at Bramlage
In the Classroom: Kacie Fredrickson
Kacie teaches a variety of Family and Consumer Science (FCS) classes. They include Independent Living, Career and Life Planning, Nutrition and Meal Planning, as well as Wellness and Nutrition for grades 9-12.
“My Independent Living and Career and Life Planning classes focus on career readiness, as well as many skills that will help successfully develop students into independently living adults in their post high school and college lives,” Kacie said. “Nutrition and Meal planning, as well as Wellness and Nutrition, focus on nutrition and how to prepare nutritionally balanced meals. My Wellness and Nutrition course is co-taught between myself and the P.E. teacher. In that class, students spend part of the week learning exercises that they can do independently, then come to my class for the second part of the week where they learn to make nutritionally balanced snacks.”
As a first-year teacher, Kacie is finding her content connects with her students.
“I think the thing that I enjoy most about teaching FCS is the age group that I am with and how FCS content is directly relates to their lives,” she said. “I enjoy preparing lessons that students are able to take away something helpful and relevant to their lives right then or in the near future. Recently, my students have been working on interview skills and resumes, and one of my students came to me and said that he was able to use his resume to get a job over Thanksgiving break! It’s just really exciting to see so many young adults take classes that will teach them to be more self-sufficient in their adult lives.”
She’s also surprised at the various opportunities she has had to grow as an educator.
“I felt really confident coming from my student teaching experience and have learned so many new things just within this first semester of teaching,” Kacie said. “Each day is completely different than the next, and with each new day, there is a new set of challenges to overcome. Those challenges are what keep me coming back each day ready to see what the day has in store for me.
“I’ve also been really surprised by the relationships that I’ve built with my students. I knew that I would really enjoy spending time with them in class, but there are some students who just drop by before or after school to talk or to ask advice about things going on in their lives.”
While she’s feeling some success, she knows there’s much more to learn.
“As a new teacher, I am always trying to get to know my content better,” she said. “The summer after graduation, I spent a lot of time going to conferences and workshops held by teachers who had been in the profession a lot longer. I am always trying to improve lessons by offering different strategies for each student to learn the material.”
For her fellow new teachers, she encourages them–and reminds herself–“to just take each day as it comes.
“Do your best and don’t compare yourself to other teachers,” she said. “Don’t stress out if you don’t have everything all figured out right at the beginning. Likely, you will change things as you go anyway! As a new teacher, I find myself comparing my classroom to other teachers who have been teaching for a lot longer than myself. Its really easy to start thinking that you’re not doing a good job when you’re new, but no two teachers teach the same way and something that may be working for them may not be a perfect fit for you.”
And she credits the KSU College of Education with helping her move into her new career.
“During my time in the College of Education, I found that the class ‘Middle Level Education’ truly prepared me for working with students in middle school. I had a blast working with the younger students during student teaching, and I felt that this class helped me make difficult material more relatable and understandable to them. I also felt like K-State’s College of Education prepared me for collaboration between different class contents. I have had many opportunities to work with other teachers in different departments in the past few months at Buhler High, and I felt that a great deal of that preparation came from working with students in various classes who were teaching a different subject than I was.”
As part of that collaboration, she said she and her department partner are working on a proposal to the school’s Board of Education to have college credit offered to students for taking their classes.
“We are hoping to offer more opportunities for college credit or more opportunities to earn certifications that will benefit students’ lives during and after their high school career.”
You’re not alone: Visit #WeAreEdCats
Have you checked this out yet? Join the fun today!
Dr. Tonnie Martinez and others are leading an effort to help beginning teachers like you thrive as you begin your career! We spent our summer planning ways to help you, so be ready to hear lots of good things about #WeAreEdCats in the future! Check out the website at coe.k-state.edu/edcats!
Have You Emailed Us Yet? We’re Waiting!
Do you have a question about classroom procedures? Or a suggestion for a topic we should address in Before the Bell? Want to add your name to our mailing list? Or provide a different email for our mailing list? Or, if you’re in your first year of teaching, send us a photo of you at work in your classroom!
Other early-career teachers, feel free to jump in and offer suggestions to those who are following your career choice!
We’d love to hear from you, so please email us at lagoodson@k-state.edu.
Go, COE Cats!
Before you go….
Before you walk out your classroom door for a well-deserved winter break, spend a few extra minutes preparing for the new semester that will be here sooner than you think. By taking care of some of these before break, it’ll be a much more welcoming room when you return.
- After the students are gone from the building, tidy your room. (I know – I sound like a parent, don’t I?) Collect stray papers and materials. Get your students’ texts and other resources neatly stacked under their desks on on a book shelf or wherever is appropriate.
- Now clean up your desk. File any extra papers. Make your work area as uncluttered as possible.
- Now – pull out a few resources you’ll need to start the next semester (textbooks, handouts, etc.).
- Make a list of tasks to do once you return from break – no matter how minute they may seem, so you’ll be more prepared when you return.
- Want to try a different room arrangement? Need to streamline the students’ path to some materials? Now is a good time to experiment.
- Take a few minutes to write a brief note or two or verbally thank some people for their support during your first semester. A librarian who signed you up for the computer lab when you forgot? A custodian who cleaned up that spilled coffee for you without even grumbling? An office person who chose not to scold you when you messed up your third purchase order form? (OK–that one is based on personal experience…I’m not sure I EVER filled out a purchase order correctly during my entire teaching career.) Be sure to let them know you appreciate their help.
- Before you close that classroom door and lock up for several days, take one more glance around your room. You’ve made it through the semester! Congrats!
- Now…walk out that door, lock it, and enjoy a rejuvenating break taking care of yourself, spending time with family and friends, and (hopefully!) not grading a single assignment!
Coming up next issue
If school were a football game, you’d be at halftime! Be sure to check out our January issue when we offer ways to prepare for your second semester. Look for the following newsy items to keep you on track:
- Winter School Issues
- Snow Days!
- Books to Inspire You