Hi. I am beginning my third year teaching. I am a new ESE teacher for 6th grade self-contained. I didn't teach at all last school year and have only 2 years experience prior to that. I do, however, have four children of my own.

Here are my two biggest concerns at the moment:

1) Nervousness! I am confident I am a great teacher but I sometimes have issues with being the center of attention. I don't necessarily like it.

2) I am going to be teaching students with a wide range of exceptionalities. I do not know exactly what I am up against for this year. I am wondering if there are any instances where power teaching wouldn't work for certain kids??

3) I want to prepare lessons in advance but I am afraid I will be wasting my time essentially because I don't know exactly what books will be used in the classroom. I want to be prepared because I know that is the key to success (along with classroom management). I am afraid I may be putting the horse before the wagon though.

Also, I am open to suggestions for curing a bad case of nerves before parents and students come to my classroom!

Thanks all for your help. Any other ESE teachers, please email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it !

Anita Willis

Congratulations on your new job! Here are a few suggestions:
First, RELAX!!!!! You & these kids will be fine. Nothing you're planning to do will damage them in any way.
Second, plan some lessons that aren't dependent on knowing which books/curriculum/etc you'll be using. Use your imagination! A deck of cards could be a godsend (working on fine-motor skills!), some coloring activities, Pass the Pigs, getting-to-know-you stuff. Do these kids know their way around your campus? If not, there's a few lessons there--how to find the library, who to see if you've been absent, that sort of thing. If they know their way around, they could take YOU to all the places. Your first few days will also be good for finding out their current levels of performance with whatever assessments your district uses. Be sure and do academic stuff on day one, but teach your procedures first.
Third, start off with Class/Yes and Teach/OK right away. Your class rules might be substantially different, depending on your student's situations, but they need to know from the first minute what those rules are. Teach 'em with Teach/Ok.
Fourth, take good care of yourself. Teaching in tiring, teaching SpEd is more tiring, teaching self-contained can really zap your energy.
Good luck!
Pearl

Thank you for the advice. I actually do use a lot of "other than the book" classroom lessons, however, I was told that I needed to use the books. I know that probably does not mean "always" using the books. I do like doing lessons that don't require the books. The kids will get tired soon enough of the books.


Thanks again.