Friday, April 26, 2013

The Mentor Experience with a Teacher Cadet- Mark Twain Elementary



Working with my teacher cadet this semester has been a wonderful experience.  My cadet has been basically reliable, very enthusiastic and confident.  She jumps in whenever asked, never balking at last minute requests or changes in responsibilities.   She is willing to do just about whatever I need, although I have worked hard to make sure that she is primarily working with students and not spending time at the copier.  Hands on experience with 1st graders is the most valuable thing that I can provide.

My class has bonded with her completely.  They ask me about her whereabouts when she isn’t able to come in and choose to work with her whenever given the opportunity.  In fact, I am just a little concerned about how much they are going to miss her when she completes her assignment with us at the end of this week!  She has promised to keep in touch with us as her schedule allows and plans to attend our end of the year field trip to the zoo with us in May.  Gladly, we just can’t quite seem to say a final good-bye. 

The work required at my end has been mostly centered on making sure to give her opportunities to experience as many different facets of teaching as I possibly can.  She has taught, observed, tested, graded, attended a parent conference (with permission of course), copied (a little), done recess duty with supervision and  put up a bulletin board!  I hope that I have given her an honest window into the job that teaching is, the joys and the frustrations both.    It has been a wonderful experience for all involved and I look forward to working with this teacher cadet in an official professional capacity in the future.  She will be a wonderful addition to the teaching profession. 

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