They never go away. Each year without fail, the night before school starts is a sleepless one for me. I lay in bed and wonder what my students will be like. I wonder if I will have sweet kids or rotten ones. I run through lessons in my head and ponder whether I am teaching it in the order that I should be so that the greatest number of kids can learn the greatest amount of material. Will I have supportive parents or just nosy busy-bodies?
I wonder if by beefing up my pre-calc class if I have made it too hard. Will I lose them on day one and fight all semester to convince them that they can do hard math?
This year, I am teaching a new course- Math 1. Not just new to me, but new to the whole public high school curriculum in the state of Georgia. It is chop full of discovery activities and performance tasks. Designed to make the students better mathematical reasoners. Not as many standards as the old curriculum, but much deeper. Now I wonder if I will be able to find the balance between tasks and lectures.
I am just about finished with my lesson for tomorrow. (I teach, a lot, on the first day. And I give homework.) My lunch is packed. I have my first day outfit picked out. And now I am going to go lie in bed for too few hours staring at the ceiling and being nervous.
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1 comment:
Those jitters you're talking about tell me one thing - you're an amazing teacher. If you care that much, you're already one of the best teachers the kids will ever have. Good luck tomorrow!!
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