When you enter a school as a student teacher it can be very daunting. The teachers will seem to be running on autopilot and might not have time to go through everything with you in as much detail as you need. Here are some helpful tips from an experienced primary school teacher to ensure you are a useful asset to a school team, while also maximising your own opportunities.
Be on time
Although it might hurt when your alarm goes off, there’s nothing more frustrating for your mentor than having to pander to a student who arrives at the same time as the pupils. You want to get there early enough to be able to help with photocopying, trimming or sharpening pencils. But not so early that you’ll get in the way. On your first day, I’d say you want to be in the classroom half an hour before the pupils arrive. That way you can find your bearings and also lend a hand if needed. If it’s a day when you are teaching and being observed, you’ll want to be as early as you are able to (at least an hour) so you print and sort anything you need without competing for the photocopier.
Observing other teachers
Don’t see this as a time to switch off and relax. If you’re observing a class that you will soon be teaching yourself, this is an invaluable opportunity to make a cheat sheet:
- Try to learn names as quickly as you can
- Pick up on the incentives (merits, house points, stickers) that motivate them
- Remember any effective quietening techniques (clapping, hands up or the good old fashioned shush)
- Note down those who are not engaging.
The biggest tip I can give is: Don’t watch the teacher. Observe the pupils. There’s no point watching the kid with their hand up for every answer. They almost certainly wont need your help in the lesson. But you may see someone sitting very quietly trying desperately not to be noticed at every question, who may need a bit of extra help once left to themselves. You can use this to your advantage when teaching yourself. If you know that they are engaging and understanding the lesson, chances are so is everyone else.
Teach don’t cheat
I can remember one of my first experiences of supporting in a classroom was helping in a Year 2 writing lesson. The children were so keen to ask for my help I felt very important. I then felt proud when the teacher was impressed with their work. What I didn’t realise at the time is that I was doing the thinking for them. They’d ask me to spell many different words and I obliged, thinking I was helping. Now, as a teacher, one of the most frustrating things is opening up someone’s book and knowing full well that the work is not their own.
When you’re supporting a group of children, you need to help them get to the end goal, not score it for them. Use any learning aids the classroom has to hand. But make sure you and the teacher are on the same page. Don’t teach using a different technique. This is where the observing comes in so crucially. Even if the pupils get some of the work wrong, at least they are their own mistakes. You can always let the teacher know at the end of the lesson.
Be Proactive
One thing that teachers never have enough of is time. If you can get stuck in without being told what to do every day, you’ll be a welcome addition to any team.
- Look for little things that need doing – sticking, tidying, handing books out.
- When the pupils are working independently, go to those who look disengaged and try to get them back on track.
- Offer to take on small duties such as taking the register or collecting a class from break time.
- Stay after-school to help. Most teachers stay well into the evening marking, tidying up or preparing the next day. Ask what you can do to help with this.
- Get involved in extra curricular activities. This might be shadowing a club, supporting in assemblies or helping out with productions.
What’s the point? Why go above and beyond?
The simple fact is that you don’t want the teachers to see you as another student they have to teach. You are training to be a professional, so you need to be one from the outset. You want to be respected as a teacher from an early stage.
The more respect you earn, the more responsibility you’ll be given which will only show you more about what it’s really like being a teacher. Once you approach the end of your training, you should treat every day as a job interview. Particularly if vacancies become available.
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