2. Getting creative with your teaching priorities

Summary: In the last episode, I shared a process for planning your educational priorities, even when you're not sure what your classroom will be like, so you can easily plan the specifics once the time comes. Today I'll be sharing my own process as a 5th grade teacher looking at an unknown back-to-school season amidst a pandemic. This can apply any year though, because so often we don't know what school we'll be at, or which grade level we'll be teaching. Focusing on your priorities and brainstorming some creative ways to incorporate them can ensure you keep your core teaching values at the center of every pedagogical decision you make. Key Points: I've decided to focus on 3 priorities: Student relationships - building trust with me and with each other Student confidence - providing tools to help students feel confident in sharing ideas with their peers or the world Learning for life - I want my students to think of learning as a lifelong journey, and understand their learning as it fits into the grand scheme of their lives and the world around them Identify 3 drastically different classroom settings What challenges are there in reaching your priorities or your vision for starting the year off strongly in each of these settings? Also, what advantages are there to each of the models? Approaching different situations as opportunities to see new ways of doing things instead of something you HAVE to do, opens you up to stretching your creativity in your teaching. If you've narrowed down your main educational priorities - what you want EVERY SINGLE ONE of your students to walk away from your class knowing or feeling or being, when you get down to actually planning activities and lessons, this lens will help guide your decisions and narrow your focus. Keep these foundations in mind as you plan your year, and I bet you'll be surprised at how much more creative and quick-thinking you'll be! Links and resources: Join our conversations in the Apple Blossom Teachers Facebook group Follow me on Instagram: @appleblossomteachers For more about me and what I do, check out my website. Make sure you hit SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss an episode! And, if you're enjoying the show, please leave me a rating and a review. Thanks!