50 Things I Learned As A Student Teacher

I got this idea from my friend, Heather, who wrote 75 things she learned from student teaching. My list isn't as extensive, but this is a lot of what I had learned these past 2 years.

1. Buy toilet paper not Kleenex for your classroom
2. If you want a 9-5 job don’t go into teaching
3. Students love when you show up to their extracurricular activities
4. Respect is better than being a friend
5. Come in every day as if it is a brand new day
6. Don’t hold grudges against students
7. No matter how much you clean your classroom it’ll always be messy
8. PROCEDURES PROCEDURES PROCEDURES
9. Society hates teachers
10. Students will always find a way to complain
11. Girls are worse than boys
12. Just because you give a consequence doesn’t mean the student will hate you forever
13. If you had a piercing on your face students will notice
14. Dressing cute builds rapport with female students
15. Don’t lend out pens or they’ll go missing
16. Build good contacts with home
17. Not every teacher will love their job
18. The first year of teaching will be nonstop
19. Give feedback as soon as possible
20. Show excitement and energy no matter how you feel about a subject
21. Learning about students’ lives is fascinating
22. Dress down days, days before long breaks, and pep rally days are the worst
23. Uniforms are miracle workers
24. Make jokes and laugh
25. A teacher’s boyfriend will be the most fascinating person to students
26. Community in the classroom is essential
27. Students will not always appreciate nice things done for them
28. If coffee is ever vital it is for field trip days (buy something from your favorite coffee place)
29. School days screw up your eating patterns
30. Learn every students name as soon as possible
31. Don’t accept late work without an excused absence
32. A teacher’s life is much worse if there is no support from administration
33. Positive reinforcement is key
34. Students love credit slips that can be exchanged for chips, etc.
35. Buy a huge container of sanitizer for the classroom
36. Always have a warm up
37. Always have an extra lesson ready if technology crashes or something comes up
38. Don’t make copies at the beginning of the day – make them days before you need them
39. Students love artsy lessons
40. Don’t bribe students
41. You will know more about students than you plan for
42. Don’t yell
43. Don’t give out students names to other students
44. Don’t talk when someone else is talking
45. Students will remember you love Cleveland :)
46. Life is more fun when you have teachers you get along with
47. Stay organized
48. Set aside time for yourself throughout the week
49. Hang up student art work in your classroom
50. Focus on small victories