My teaching professional growth plan

I think the first part of my growth plan is to take a step back and reflect on the last two years. I'd like to then take that reflection and decide what it is that I really want to do now. What kind of teaching do I want to do and what student population would I really love to work with. I know I don't have a choice in all of these matters right away, but I think it will be important for my future goals.

The following goals I will hope to achieve within my first year of teaching:

1) Maintain my blog. I've really enjoyed having a blog. I find it a great tool to use for reflecting on what I've done and I think that I would love to have a blog for each year of school to use as a communication tool for students and parents. I also love looking at and reading other blogs as a way of getting new ideas and I would someday love to share my own ideas.

2) I really want to explore some of the technologies that I've learned about this year but have not yet had the chance to tinker with. On the Spark podcast that I listened to yesterday, they spoke of the idea of tinkering with technology or anything to learn how to use it. They said the art of tinkering is being set aside, but I disagree with that because I know that's how my kids learn how to use and do things. I want to incorporate tinkering into my life and learn about these technologies so I can use them if they fit with what I'm teaching.

3) When I do get a job at a school, I would like to find a mentor in the school. I would really love to have a mentor that is using inquiry in the classroom so I can team up with them and learn and share ideas with them. I would love to be a part of a collaboration and create meaningful work for my students to do. I think a team approach to inquiry is a great way to make quality projects.

4) I want to actively seek out PD sessions or conferences to go to that will keep me current with new trends in teaching, technology and inquiry. I would like to be always using current research to support my teaching and challenging me to be the best teacher I can be.

5) One thing that I'd really like to learn more about is outdoor ed. One of my peers gave her exit presentation yesterday and she has a lot of experience in this area, she reminded me of how valuable it is to students. It is something that I think I do with my own children and I think would be a good fit for me as a teacher.

I'm definitely looking forward to the new challenges that I will be facing in the next several years and to the change in career for me. I hope that I can make a difference for the children that I will be teaching as I know they will make a difference in my life.