One of the best things about co-teaching is the ability to leave the room if you need to and know that there will still be a teacher with the class. I am constantly wondering, how will I ever do this alone. As I mentioned yesterday, we've had some kids in our class going through rough times this week, and parents and kids have been needing alot of extra attention from us. The last two mornings I have run the whole first hour of the day while Ms. Jorde has been in the hall and elsewhere dealing with these personal issues. Since there are two of us, we can afford to give these kids the TLC they need while still making sure the rest of the class is attended to. Then, today during math we did an activity that groups were finishing at different times. After the activity was our class's turn for differentiation in the computer lab. With two teachers, one of us could take groups who finished early down to the lab, while the other stayed upstairs to help groups who were still working.
Another benefit of co-teaching, that wasn't really mentioned in our orientation, but which has been very important to me, is that it means there is another adult in the room to support you as a teacher and as an adult. What I mean is, I have a blast not only with the kids but also with Diane. It is so nice having another adult in there to laugh with when the kids say something hilarious, but they don't realize how funny it is. It's also nice on days that are a bit more tedious to have someone else in the room on your side to help you out. As a student teacher, the emotional support of co-teaching might be one of its biggest benefits.
Your post is more about the benefits of two teachers in the room, rather than the benefits of the "official" co-teaching approach. I agree with everything you said about how having 2 adults in the room full time is a tremendous help for meeting students' emotional and educational needs. I've always said that I'd take 40 kids in a class with 2 full time teachers and like it better than 20 kids with one teacher (or, in your case 34 kids--ugh. That's one big class.). And you're right, too, about how having another adult (with whom you really groove) makes the day happier. Teaching can be very isolating, so having someone to talk to, laugh with, exchange an eyeroll is lovely. You are going to miss each other a lot when this semester ends. Don't think about it, though. It's only November 1!
ReplyDeleteIn a future post, think about the objectives of the official co-teaching approach (particularly the 7 strategies you learned about in training) and how you and Diane are exploring the different techniques. Which have you tried and which are you interested in exploring in the next 5 weeks?