Getting Hired: 5 Tips to Being the Candidate of Choice

The article, "Getting Hired. 5 Tips to Being the Candidate of Choice," shared 5 quick tips to becoming the candidate of choice leading to the teacher you have so much passion to be. The tips within this article included: Be crisp, be confident, have vision, find separation, and leave it on the table. Out of these 5 qualities, I would consider my strength to be 'having vision.' I am 34 years old and it has taken me many years to get where I am at today, education wise. I have worked with a diverse age range of children in diverse settings, gaining much experience along the way. I believe exhibiting my passion and my vision when it comes to education is a strength of mine. I am always willing to learn and will always be learning. That is life, in and outside of a classroom. My heart and mind truly enjoy implementing what I do know and learning and meeting the needs of others' as we grow and learn together. 

Finding separation is the area/tip I feel I struggle with the most. We (the candidates) all have very similar educational backgrounds, academic scores, and similar work history. I wonder, how I can find separation from the other potential candidates. If there are 30 of us candidates, per se, seeking the same position, all graduating from the same college, all having similar grades, what can I do to make myself stand out? Ha, ha, I am the oldest out of the candidates around me. However, I am not sure that has a positive or negative influence. Well, at least I may stick out more! On a more serious note, I found the video in the article very impressive! The article stated that portfolios, transcripts, lesson plans, pictures, etc. 'do nothing for me,' according to the author. I need to bring a "WOW" factor to the table. I am not a technology savvy individual, but I am creative. Finding separation will take some thought and some work. I got this! This is the area I will need to do some reflection on and a little soul searching (and googling) to figure out my "WOW" to make myself shine like a diamond! Or a ruby! Or anything really that causes me to demonstrate separation and have others' thinking, wow she would be a great asset to our team! 

If I were to add one thing to the list, it would be professional etiquette. Yes, it has taken many steps to get to that interview and being crisp upon arrival is a thumbs up from me. However, before you walk in that room and shake hands with everyone, dress appropriately, be on-time (early), make eye-contact, and SMILE! Smiles are contagious and all it takes is one person, so why not let that person be YOU!

Is TEACHING What You Thought It Would Be?

I totally enjoyed reading Ms. Oertli's blog post titled, "On Repetition and Unglamourous." It made me laugh and reflect on my teaching moments. Teaching is and yet is not what I thought it would be. Like Ms. Oertli, I was super pumped (and still am) about teaching! I went in knowing I would give my students everything I had in me. I was ready! Being a mom of three children, I was like; eh…I can wear the many hats it takes to be a teacher. I can be their teacher, communicator, disciplinarian, counselor, evaluator, role model, classroom manager, etc. Oh, I was ready! I mean teaching first grade content to a room full of first grade students, well, I got this! Then it became REALITY!

The recess duty, PTO meetings, garden club, student dances, staff meetings after school, lesson planning after school, grading papers, ARD meetings, parent conferences, data meetings, in-services, and the list goes on and on! It is definitely time consuming.

Oh, and the first graders. I never imagined some of the things I see and hear. You have those moments when you are teaching. You may have that special friend who you may find licking snot from a tissue, or that friend who always seems to find anything but a pencil to put in their hands. First graders who curse? I could not believe it. First graders who talk about crushed and marrying other kids. Only if they knew the time and commitment that takes! For now, let’s commit to school work and being a community helper! My favorite moment most recently involved a make-up assignment. I had several friends with me. As I continue to read the questions, I pause and check on my friends.

“Friend, are you ready for number 9?”

“Number 9?”

“Yes, number 9?”

“Yes.”

We proceed to number 10. While monitoring I note that numbers 5–10 have not been answered. Oh, Lord!

“We are on number 10. You just told me you answered number 8.”

“My pencil broke.”

At that moment I think, wait what? Like 5 questions ago? Didn’t he just state he answered number 8 and was ready? I did ask him clearly, right?

“Do you need a pencil?”

Blank stare.

“Yes, a pencil.”

Oh, why, oh why, did you not ask for a pencil earlier?!?!

Another example:

“How do we know this story is fiction?” As I point to the anchor chart. One student responds, “it is not real.” Each student in my small group is asked the same question and responds, “not real.” The students look at their paper. Number 1. How do you know this story is fiction? Me: Friends we just talked about this. Think about what makes a story fiction? How do we know? What did we just talk about? Remember the anchor charts are our friends, these are good resources.” Some students write: “Tom dribbled the ball.” I think to myself, am I that bad of a teacher?

Teaching is demanding, consumes one's personal time often, not the most rewarding compensation, and at times I question my ability (see above). Teaching is not all butterflies and rainbows, just like most careers. However, it is one of the most meaningful and fulfilling aspects of my life. It is impossible to NOT feel the love of these students with the amount of hugs I receive daily. I have so many artists in my room who LOVE to create artwork, especially during indoor recess (that is a whole other blog topic), to share their love towards me. You have those students who come up to you and tell you they love you and say that you are their favorite teacher! Learning about my students has been so rewarding! I recently implemented a reward incentive, which involves me eating lunch every Monday with a student and their selected friend. I want the students to know that I truly care about them and their million stories about Fortnight. Ok, ok, you got me. I do not truly care about Fortnight, but if they do, then I will try my best because it is important to them! Teaching is not just teaching. It is not just the many hats we wear. It is SO much more! Even at the end of those chaotic days where every student has found a way to push a button, I would not change it for the world! These small children will one day be adults who make up our society. They are the future and I LOVE that I get to lead and be a part of their journey and they get to be a part of mine!