I was able to see how significant my own role and responsibilities are, seeing others in my position. I saw what it means to be the lead.
Today was my first day being the lead for my official classroom, Young Twos. The lead teacher, my marvelous coworker, is getting married tomorrow, and I made sure to tell the children how exciting this is, and how our lead would not be with us next week (honeymoon for you, vacation for the kids).
I came to the school the earliest I’ve been to any school in years and set the mood with some autumn jazz music. Very few children showed up this early, and everyone else came right at the same time. I set alarms on my phone (no watch + clock is broken) to keep us on schedule and felt good about how the day would go.
Oh my, I truly did underestimate how change (no matter how small or large) affects small children. First off, hindsight is 20/20 and with hindsight knowledge and wisdom (an hour’s worth) I see that I should’ve allowed more time to get ready for our regularly scheduled activities. The kids were SUPER excited and I should’ve accounted for that.
Second off, I can’t be too hard on myself because I really put my foot down and didn’t know I could do that. I didn’t consider myself to be soft or easy-going but I really am, and kids pick up on that. At this age especially, they can’t help but test the waters and push boundaries. Getting chased and carried to the potty is fun! Miss Jasmine trying to be serious is hilarious (apparently) !!!
Even with all this stress I still love children, but boy oh boy can they be a handful, or two, or several…
As the assistant teacher, I don’t have to think about the logistics of things as much. I can focus on behavior and emotional regulation, and keep the kids busy and focused. My daydreams would pop in and I could keep things chill. As the lead, I had to get their papers ready, keep us on schedule, and consistently think about what to do next when some kids were a bit too excited.
As the assistant teacher I only direct myself and the children, but as the lead I had to direct everyone and everything. I was 100% present and wide awake all day. It was challenging, and fun, and I didn’t realize how hard my lead has it. I understand now, ahh!!!
It was strange too, because the kids were confused, expecting me to do what I usually do, when I couldn’t do that. I can’t stop to help them manage every disagreement, because I need to record their day. Today, I had to do both because again kids don’t handle change well. Next week will be better, since I can’t stop thinking about how to handle situations differently and what to tell parents.
I’ve been finding little ways to contribute to the classroom, but now I have a much clearer understanding of how I can help our flow (classroom organization), make things easier for us teachers, and get things back on track.
Wish me luck!!!
