Learning to teach

I am finding that I have my great and confident days and days which I feel not so confident. If I get time to think about what we are doing in the classroom ahead of actual class time, the probability of me doing ok is good. If I have to think on the fly, it is very much hit and miss. If I am not given the opportunity to think ahead about even little things like the best way to hand out a test and answer questions on the pre-test, the class tends to have a lot of questions and is easily confused. It is good experience to both be prepared as well as not so much (due to lack of information, rather than a personal choice).. it is interesting to see how easily kids don't listen and less so if things don't go smoothly. It is also very important to stay calm, cool and collected even when you feel quite the opposite. A few quarters ago we talked about traits that a teacher needs. I think I said thick skin, yes, still true, but even more so, we need to laugh more. We need to have a sense of humor. I find myself feeling too serious when things don't go my way. The same outcome or perhaps even a better one will be achieved with a little levity which I have but need to work on maintaining. Levity should not be based on everything going your way but is there for you when things are not your way. Last, confidence comes with doing, doing and doing... This is what I've learned this week.