Latest / New Teacher Talk / Ep 198: Thriving as a Department of One: A STEM Teacher's Survival Guide

Transcript

Ep 198: Thriving as a Department of One: A STEM Teacher's Survival Guide · New Teacher Talk

Hello, my name is Nicole Heaver,
and I am a STEM teacher in a fifth and sixth grade
intermediate school in Ottawa, Illinois.
Today I'm gonna talk about working as a one and only in
your department and coming out on top.
Just for a little background,
nearly 20 years ago I started my teaching career in a
special education classroom.
This was one in which I barely had the credentials to run.
I was the classic case of the right place at the right time
and I landed in a school where I worked very closely with
two other special ed teachers and a handful of teaching
assistants.
I was very rarely the only adult in the room and I had a
constant stream of support from all the teachers who I
worked most closely with.
Life then brought me to the intermediate school where I
teach now and I taught sixth grade with a rock star team.
We lesson planned together weekly and had conversations in
the hallway throughout the day.
We shared the same students,
taught the same material and spoke the same language.
We shared good days and bad over the 12 years in that
hallway.
We spent more time together than the families that grew in
that same time period.
Seven years ago,
I was given the opportunity to leave the hallway and move
to the STEM position in my building.
At the time,
my district was new to building the STEM program and I was
given the opportunity to completely build my position from
the ground up.
In this new position, I not only teach sixth grade STEM,
but I lead our ZSpace lab in which I collaborate with all
the science teachers to teach science utilizing virtual
reality computers.
I quickly found out that this position didn't exist in a
school locally or nationally,
leaving me to figure out things on my own.
This drive to build something from nothing also extended
beyond the classroom when I started a cross country team
from my fifth through eighth graders in my district.
Before this,
cross country was a foreign sport to everyone here and
students didn't have a chance to run until they reached
high school.
I had to work closely with the athletic director to build
the program from the ground up and I still work with them
today to advocate for my runners and ensure that they have
the opportunities that they deserve.
So for the past seven years,
I have realized what it's like to truly be the one and only
in a department.
On paper, I'm classified as a specialist,
but unlike the other specialists in my district,
nobody else does what I do.
Navigating these days can be overwhelming, exciting,
exhausting, and lonely,
but I hope to give you four tips to help you on your
journey if you find yourself in a similar situation or how
to reach out to someone in your building who may be the one
and only.
Tip one, give yourself grace and time and set boundaries.
When I taught sixth grade, I had 24 students.
Now I have the privilege of teaching my entire school,
which is approximately 350 students.
If you are the one and only in your department,
I am guessing that your caseload looks similar.
The sheer volume of names and faces and needs can be
overwhelming if you don't build a fence around your own
wellbeing.
Set a schedule for grading so you don't have to bring it
home.
Set an alarm at the end of the day to force yourself out
the door if you find yourself staying later than your
colleagues.
The work will be there for you tomorrow,
so be sure to allocate your time in a way that regulates
your workload as well as your sanity.
It's easy for you to feel like you have to be on for
everyone all the time because you are the one and only
providing your specific expertise.
But remember, you cannot pour from an empty cup.
Giving yourself permission to step away isn't just a
suggestion, it's really a survival strategy.
By protecting your time,
you ensure that you can show up as your best self for those
students without losing yourself in the process.
Tip two, develop your tribe,
collaborate and never stop growing.
Being a one and only in your department should not mean
that you shut the door and isolate yourself.
When I was teaching sixth grade,
my tribe was initially chosen for me simply by proximity to
classrooms.
Because of this,
I am blessed to have my ride or die teaching friends from
the hallway,
but this new position has gifted me with a new circle of
friends who I rely on for sanity,
from the music teacher to the librarian to the custodian
who cleans my room.
We each function in the chaos of what our job entails,
but the school community brings a shared reminder of why we
are there and an understanding of what we need from each
other from day to day.
As I've been extending my tribe,
I have realized that I have learned more about my
colleagues in the past seven years than the previous 12
when I worked in sixth grade.
My interactions with the whole staff are much more frequent
and intentional.
I have also realized that collaboration still matters and a
growth will happen when you reach beyond your colleagues
and search out professional learning communities.
Social media brings together teachers from across the
country and helps to really legitimize feelings you may be
having and also provides a safe space to share ideas.
Attending conferences and workshops will not only keep your
knowledge fresh,
but will also expand your professional network,
ensuring you continue to learn from those you teach with
and continue growing.
Tip three, stay confident and advocacy is the key.
As you plan and teach,
remind yourself that your students look only to you for the
material that you share with them.
Stay confident in what you bring to the table and know that
it is valuable.
Join committees within your school to advocate for your
department and share what you do within the walls of your
classroom.
I attended a conference many years ago and heard
superintendent and author, Dr. Joe Sanfelippo speak.
He told the audience of teachers to share your story
because if you don't, someone else will.
His words still resonate with me all these years later.
All teachers should be proud of what they do,
but you should be shouting out loud and sharing from your
own corner because only you know the how and why of what
you do with your students.
Never hesitate to share the goods.
Invite people in and please share out.
Tip four, know that it's not always easy.
Being the sole teacher in any subject area means that you
are doing it all.
Gone are my days of sitting around a table with my hallway
colleagues, divvying up the subjects to plan,
reminiscing about ways we have taught content in the past
and sharing the load of creation and modification of
worksheets.
My planning happens in my room with my door closed,
possibly having a conversation with only myself.
I am only hoping I took notes on the successes from the
previous year and knowing that I'm only relying on my
memory and notes when revamping a lesson.
These are the days when the weight of being the everything
person feels heavy.
When a lesson tanked in sixth grade,
I had a team to brainstorm and pivot by lunchtime.
Now the troubleshooting starts and ends with me.
It's a mental marathon to be the curriculum writer,
the data analyst and the classroom teacher all at once
without a built-in sounding board across the hall.
You quickly realize that your internal monologue becomes
your most frequent collaborator and the pressure to get it
all right can feel magnified when there isn't someone else
teaching the exact same thing to compare notes with.
It requires a different kind of stamina to keep the
momentum going when you are the only one holding the map.
So in conclusion,
stepping into the role of a department of one is a
transition that is challenging as it is rewarding.
It has required a shift in everything that was comfortable
for me.
Use the people who surround you now to lift you up on your
hardest days and stay confident as you develop your craft.