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Hello, EduMagicians! Welcome to the EduMagic podcast, your go-to resource for pre-service teachers. I’m excited to share a few tips and strategies that will help student teachers. This episode is brought to you by the Student Teacher Planner, which you can find on the EduMagic website and Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) in the EduMagic New Teacher Store. This planner is filled with tools to help you stay organized during your student teaching journey.
Congratulations, Student Teachers!
You've completed your coursework, passed the tests, and did the project fieldwork, candidacy, and observations. Now, you're ready for student teaching! Remember that you bring valuable insights from both your experiences as a student and as a future teacher. As a student teacher, you’ll learn from your cooperating teacher, students, fellow teachers, specialists, and administrators. Remember, no one expects you to be perfect. Keep showing up for yourself and for your students.
Professionalism and Preparation
As a teacher, it's so important to dress the part - as a professional. If you need resources for professional attire, don’t hesitate to seek them out - there may be resources on your campus to help. As a student teacher, your responsibilities will include planning, preparing, designing, engaging, assessing, and aligning with standards to create a wonderful learning experience. You will also need to manage the classroom environment to make sure it is a quality learning environment. Dedicate time to practice your lessons, hand motions, and vocabulary. Quality preparation is crucial.
Mindset and Self-Care
Shift your mindset from “I have to teach this” to “I get to teach this.” This positive outlook can be empowering for both you and your students. Self-care is vital—eat healthy foods, get enough sleep, and establish boundaries around your time. Ensure you balance work with quality time for friends and family.
Building Your Resume
Keep a digital document or note to jot down experiences that you can later add to your resume. This will help you remember specific details about your student teaching that can make your resume stand out. For example, you can go beyond the old stand-by, "I planned lessons aligned to XYZ curriculum." Keep the list going and edit later - you may surprise yourself with how much you did during student teaching.
Social Media Tips
Minimize distractions during the classroom experience by keeping your phone on mute and stored away during teaching hours. Make your personal social media accounts private, and consider creating separate professional accounts to showcase your work. This practice can help cultivate a positive digital footprint.
In this episode, we discussed student teacher perspectives, the importance of quality over quantity in preparation, mindset shifts, self-care strategies, resume building, and social media tips. Have a fantastic student teaching experience!
If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and share it with your friends. For more information, follow Dr. Sam on Instagram at @SFecich. Until next time, keep shining, EduMagicians!
