Staying afloat in your training year

Monday. Apart from the cliché of it being a day spawned by satan, actually, I am usually most productive on a Monday, (and then sparked out by 6pm, admittedly). Today was a lot to comprehend for my bleary eyed little Monday disposition. I found out that one of the ITT students I am mentoring was no longer going to be on placement with us and we had 4 primary PGCE students in for the day for 'experience'.

It always interests me meeting people who have no experience of those with 'Special Needs' and just how astounded they are by the complexity of the pupils we teach. It's as if knowing if the children are autistic, have ADHD or a learning delay somehow helps them process the 'type' of personality or learner they are. These terms just don't do that. I do enjoy talking to visitors though, they almost always say something along the lines of 'I didn't realise special needs was like this' (in a positive way). It reminded me of something I wrote last year featured on +TES Connect 

The Do’s and Don’ts for staying sane and ‘being good’ during you PGCE

 DO!

1. Use other peoples ideas – its ok, you will still be original/dynamic and creative one day, I’m sure. BUT, it is the best way to find out how to do things best ‘your way’…one day.

2.

2. Collect resources from you placement schools.

3.

3. Take theory seriously, it WILL make you a better teacher if you understand it and can apply it to what you do.

4.

4. Take notice of how other staff work in your placement school…this is what pupils are used to and emulating this to some degree will help you ‘fit in’.  

5.

5. Do something you think you like least, i.e. get experience working with SEN pupils/be part of a sports club, etc. You will almost definitely be able to draw on that experience in the future.

6.

6. Do what you say you are going to do (regards staff and pupils alike)

7.

7. Go out and drink or at least go out with other people who do drink…sometime in the 10 months.

8.

8. Create resources that will be useful beyond the ONE lesson.

DON’T

1.

1. Take things personally.

2.

2. Stay up all night making resources.

3.

3. Concentrate more on the essay (Med) side of things…that’s not what will get you though a teaching practice.

4.

4. Try to fit too much into a lesson…although you might not know what ‘too much’ is at this stage – I didn’t!

5.

5. Expect lessons to go ‘as planned’ and be disappointed when they don’t (why didn’t it go as planned? Is that even bad?)

6.

6. Go out drinking on a Sunday, or a Saturday for that matter – you WILL regret it, honestly.

7.

7. Make a powerpoint for the sake of a powerpoint.

8.

8. Undervalue the importance of telling pupils what they’re learning and how they will know they’ve learnt. Learning Objectives and Success Criteria are essential and not just for OFSTED.

These still ring totally true as my advice and extend into experience in a special school, despite my NQT involving NO special needs contact at all!

I have recently read 'The Perfect Ofsted Lesson' - prime fodder for critique, but I found it horribly (embarrassingly?!) compelling. One of our 4 whole school targets this year is SMSC, and I'm hooked right in. Watch this space..

One more thing. My 'did I just hear that right moment' today, one pupil said to another that his cat ate his homework (presumably as a joke?!) to which the others admirably informative reply was,

"No, it's not cats who eat homework, it's only dogs who do that, silly"

Image source

Boy, aged 13.