Two Weeks Ahead: A Reflection

Published: 2023-12-20 2:02 PM

Category: Teaching | Tags: planning, organization, productivity, reflection, goals

Back in November, I wrote about steps I was taking to improve my lesson planning habits. Six weeks later, I'm reflecting back on how I improved and what I still need to get better at.

1. I was able (for the most part) to stay two weeks ahead in my planning. My materials were ready and I wasn't running to the copy room. I lost track a little around the Thanksgiving holiday, but I was still more organized than I'd been leading up to that break.
2. I have a binder with the last four units' notes, worksheets, and assessments put together. I made it a goal to catalog everything as I made it or used it with students so I have a spot to flip through next year as I prep materials. At the end of each unit, I went through with sticky notes and left reflective notes on things like how to lead into an assignment, other materials to have ready for that activity, or typos to fix for the next time.
3. My brain is starting to think differently. This week, I'm getting everything ready for our return in January. Copies are turned in and I'm prepping my slides so we can come back on the 8th with little to no stress about what we're doing.

My two goals for further improvement:

1. I find myself wanting to tweak papers leading up to the assignment. I have to set a "free date" for myself so I know when to stop tweaking and to just use what is ready this time around.
2. Don't re-create so much. A particular paper or handout might not fit my preference, but sometimes, you just need to use what's available and not put so much energy into essentially tweaking layout without making usability or helpfulness to students any better.

This has been a great semester. I'm tired, but very satisfied with the work we've done in class. I've seen a lot of growth in my students and they're seeing their successes as we spend time at a high-level looking over the scope of work for the final exam.