The Bailey Times
September 9, 2019
What does self-awareness really mean to me as a teacher?
Self-awareness is the key to emotional intelligence which impacts your success as a teacher! Without self-awareness, your effectiveness as a teacher is hampered.
The following article really helps to start our discussion about self-awareness. It is tough to take a really good look at ourselves and how we deal with situations and students in our classrooms. But, if we don't take this critical step first, then teaching social-emotional skills to our students will not be as impactful as it needs to be! Children see you every day and they really know you because they watch you when you talk to other children, when you talk to other teachers, what you do when you get frustrated, what you do when you are angry and if you are not self-aware of your own emotions then you can't model what good emotional skills should look like. Modeling is the key word! Kids need to see us do what we are asking them to do!
Teachers have tough jobs – and don’t let anyone tell you differently. You are the steward of the attention and emotions of 40 young people at any given time and yet you have to keep your own emotions in check constantly.
According to Pieter van Jaarsveld, the author of The Heart of a Winner, self-awareness is the key to emotional intelligence which is important to one’s success in your workplace. Without self-awareness, your effectiveness, also at school, is hampered.
As a teacher, it is important to understand your own emotions as it will help you gain a better understanding of other people – and the 30 plus faces staring at you for six hours a day. Self-awareness is an important building block of emotional intelligence. If you constantly find yourself having angry outbursts and shouting in the classroom, you might need to improve your self-awareness. We all live in a stream of emotional messages and impulses. We need to understand the nature of the information which these impulses are sending, control them, and then direct them in a constructive manner. Try the following steps to improve your self-awareness and learn how to respond correctly to others and to the events in our lives:
Examine your appraisals of a person or situation
Your feelings, actions, and reactions are affected by your thoughts and self-talk. You may, for example, have your head of department observing a lesson which you hope goes really well. At the same time, you are concerned that you may be a complete failure. If you are able to recognize that you have a negative belief about a situation, you can turn that around into something positive.
Consider the effect of your perceptions
We often make assumptions based on what we perceive about another person’s behavior. One child’s frown may mean he is deep in concentration, while another’s might mean she is truly unhappy. You should learn to distinguish between what you believe you are sensing, and how you actually appraise a person or situation.
Stay in touch with your feelings
You may have had a tough day at school and when you arrive home, you snap at your family. Stop for a moment and examine your real feelings – you should then realize that the frustration you experienced at school is actually responsible for your outburst.
Be aware of hidden agendas and intentions
We all have certain intentions at times to do something, without being aware that there is actually a hidden agenda behind them. Try to identify why you are acting in a certain way towards the learners in your class or a particular topic you are presenting.
Consider the effect of your actions
Your actions may portray a very different image to others than you are aware of. It might be a good idea to get somebody close to you, or a good team mentor, to provide you with feedback in order to help you become more aware of your actions and how others may perceive them.
Source: The Heart of a Winner, by Pieter van Jaarsveld.
SCOOPS Ice Cream will be delivering all teachers a treat during your lunchtime on Sept. 26th. This is from corporate YCARE for our reward status! Mark your calendar!
Smoothie King of Collierville reached out and would like to bring the teachers/staff smoothies! We have set a date for Sept. 19th!
Great Article on Self-Reflection and strategies of ways to do this in the classroom.
Check out some of the articles I read this past week! Hopefully you will find something that interest you!
Professional Development/Coffee Chats Calendar
a ** by a change as a reminder. I know that some of you do work before school and try to plan accordingly with the calendar given, but I cannot guarantee that there will not be changes so you will need to be flexible with that.
Calendar for September 2019
Mon 9/9 - Thurs 9/12
The Great Race - Go Jim Go
Tues 9/10
Demo Day All Day with C. Moore
Wed 9/11
PLC 5th, 3rd, and 4th
Thur. 9/12
I will be out of the building but back after lunch.
Parent Conferences 4:00 - 7:00
Tues 9/17
BBB Info Goes Home
Run Club Registration/Mtg 4:45 Cafe
Wed 9/18
PLC 2nd, K, and 1st
Thurs 9/19
Bear Fair 5:00 - 7:00
Smoothie King of Collierville is coming out with smoothies for all teachers/staff.
Fri 9/20
3rd-grade Thesaurus gifts in the cafeteria starting at 9:15.
Wed 9/25
PLC 4th, 5th, 3rd
Thurs 9/26
**Faculty Meeting and PD 7:30 in the library
SCOOPS Ice cream will be giving teachers a treat during your lunchtime on this day. This is a "happy" from corporate YCARE offices for our reward status.
Tues 10/1
PTA Meeting 6:00
Thurs 10/3
Faculty Meeting and PD 7:30
Fri 10/4
Student Council Induction Ceremony @ 9:30 Cafe
Wed. 10/9
Principal's Meeting (I will be out of the building)
2nd grade fire safety program 2:45
Fri 10/11
BBB Event
October 14 - 18th
Fall Break
October 21 -25
Red Ribbon Week (Mon: Wear Red, Tues: Wear Camo, Wed: Wear PJ's, Thurs: Wear a hat, Fri: Wear Crazy Socks
Thurs 10/24
Faculty Meeting at 7:30 in the library
Mon 10/28 - 10/30
One for Books
Thurs 10/31
Leadership Meeting at 8:00 in Library