So here goes the second of these posts: I am a teacher and I have insecurities in the classroom. This post is aimed at anyone who has insecurities about their teaching, in an attempt to normalise them. See my first post of the series: A bad lesson observation: advice for teachers

‘I am a teacher and…’ is a new series of posts in which I have decided to start. The reason I’ve started this series of posts is to try and humanise teaching again. A lot of the time, we forget that teachers have a whole other life outside of work with stresses, hardships and complications and yet, there’s this expectation that teachers have to leave their home life at the door each day.

These posts will offer tips, suggestions and advice to support you if you are going through any of the same hardships and are struggling for motivation to teach. We are all human and supporting each other is what can make this profession the lovely, life oriented career it once was.

Feeling insecure in the classroom

Then

In my first year of teaching, I HATED teaching Literacy. I didn’t understand how to model a specific genre, I didn’t know what questions to ask during Guided Reading and I didn’t fully understand the different grammar terms taught in the English curriculum. 10 year olds were coming up to me asking if they had included a subordinate clause in their writing. In the end, I had to teach myself prior to any Literacy lesson I taught in order to feel secure.

What I didn’t realise was that I was a Newly Qualified Teacher, who was still learning. I thought I had to be able to teach every subject with confidence, when in actual fact, even the most experienced teachers have insecurities in the classroom. Sometimes there can be a change in curriculum, sometimes the cohort of children aren’t responding to the content, sometimes you aren’t equipped with the necessary resources to support the children. All of these can make you have insecurities in the classroom. Insecurities that can change year in, year out.

What I do to overcome these insecurities

Look for support/advice

I ask for advice, by means of online support or by asking a trusted colleague. In the past two years, I’ve realised how beneficial the likes of Instagram and Facebook are to teachers. I see it as a form of professional development to be honest. I only wish I knew about these accounts when I was a Newly Qualified Teacher, but I’m very grateful for them even now (especially for the likes of special educational needs and teaching Irish). Below I’ll list some accounts that I find very helpful and hopefully they’ll support you with any of your insecurities in the classroom.

Behavior management: @goodmorningmsfoster

English: @LittleMissTeacherBlog

Special Educational Needs (particularly ASD): @ASDCreationStation

Maths: @IrishPrimaryTeacher

Irish: @LittleMsFox & @MuinteoirMeg

Art: @EducationThroughCreation & @Art_with_Mia & @ClassofCreativity

STEM: @Playful_Classroom

Personally, I find it beneficial when accounts like these do Instagram stories/vlogs in a tutorial style. That’s why I have listed these particular accounts. This way, they are pretty much showing you how to conquer any insecurities in the classroom that you might have. It’s been a lifesaver for me to be honest.

We can buy the best quality resources in the world, but if we don’t feel confident in teaching it, they’re useless. Take some time, accept that you’re not confident with it and learn from others who are. Other teachers are your best port of call in my opinion, showing you how to use YOUR skills best. Sometimes all you need is to tweak what you’re already doing to conquer some of your insecurities in the classroom.

Recently, I’ve started to record vlogs on how I teach my Whole Class Guided Reading lesson– if this would interest you, check out my Facebook Page.

Now

I would consider myself an experienced teacher at this point and I still have insecurities in the classroom. They are:

• Teaching Irish.
• STEM
• Teaching Music.

It’s not uncommon to feel uncomfortable teaching certain subjects. Support yourself by reaching out to others, in person or online, whatever you’re more comfortable with.

If you have any GO TO accounts which help you with your daily teaching, mention them in the comments below.

All the best,

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