Stefanie's blog
Major: English with Secondary Education Certification

In just seven short days, I’ve gone from sitting in an empty, chilly (though thankfully air-conditioned) room on the verge of tears wondering what on earth I was doing there to standing in that same room, still chilly but filled with my favorite memorabilia, addressing five classes with a smile on my face and as much confidence as I could muster.

What a difference a week makes…

After a month of thinking about my new job, the time to begin it had finally arrived. My apartment was in order, I’d even hung art on the walls; it was time to focus my limited interior design skills on what would be my home away from home for the next year: my classroom.

Full of good intentions, I decided to pop into the classroom a day before my orientation began, a decision that, half of a Kleenex box later, I was upset that I had made. Suddenly, all of the doubts, all of the questions, all of the worries I had ever had about the year ahead picked at my brain like vultures. I called a good friend, a former teacher of mine, in tears. “They’re getting ready for college…what if I ruin their lives?” I sobbed. She laughed supportively and told met that things would be all right. I did my best to nod and muster a weak “I hope so.”

The next morning, however, affirmed my friend’s optimism. New teacher orientation introduced me to all of the staff I’d been wishing I’d known the day before. I also met four other teachers and two staff members who were new to the school this year. I remain, however, the only “new NEW teacher”; fresh out of college and younger than some of my colleagues’ children, there are days when I feel, as I’ve told my friends, like a little kid. Nevertheless, those feelings are of my own making; no one on staff has treated me as less than an equal. I really could not ask for a better group of people to work and learn with each day.

By Friday, an in-school workday for the staff, I should have felt more stressed than ever; my to-do list only grew as the week had continued. However, as I met students who were readying their lockers or giving freshmen tours of the building, my breathing slowed, my smile emerged, and I started to feel calm. I heard a voice in my head saying, “You will be here on Monday, they will be here on Monday, and the year will begin. You will be their teacher.” I shared my feelings with another staff member who replied, saying, “You’re here for them, so if they’re making you feel calm, you know you’re in the right place.

Monday arrived. My first class filed into the room as I repeated to myself my little introduction speech. I handed out books, we reviewed the syllabus, and then they were gone! I walked through the halls with a huge smile on my face; my students were listening! They were my students! I was on cloud nine, and so pleased to receive so many smiles in the hallway from students and staff members. Since August 27, 2007, many of the small details from my first day of teaching have, sadly, become a blur. I won’t forget, however, the excitement and nervousness of those few minutes after the first bell rang; “These students are mine,” I thought. “And we will learn together.”