These past two weeks have been hectic. The first quarter was coming to a close and, of course, students had been coming up to ask what they can do to bring up their grade. This time I feel is more stressful for the teacher than the student. I need to have everything from the first quarter graded, grades finalized in the grading system, complete other teacher obligations in the building, and still plan meaningful, effective lessons for three different subjects. I find the close of the quarter to be my busy time.

Being in my third year, I should have this down pat on how to deal with the different stressors teaching has to throw at me, but this one never seems to have an effective solution. In talking to my colleagues in what they do to cope with the stress, I have learned some good tips I want to try next quarter when grades close. One of my colleagues had suggested just not taking work that is more than 2 weeks past due. This is a rule across the board for most teacher and I have it in my syllabus, but culture in the building makes it hard to stand behind this rule when so many kids are failing at once. I think by standing more firm on my rules and expectations, I can eliminate the pressures I feel in grading more than I already have to.

On top of being the end of the marking period, I also had multiple observations. I had a formal observation by my assistant principal, two informal observations by the principal and the department chair, and one by my teacher mentor. When my teacher mentor came, I made sure to plan a lesson that would not be too outside the box and relaxed. I wanted her to see that my classroom operates in a smooth manor with everyone on the same page. I did not let the stress of having an observation get to me and I made sure that everything was as organic as possible. I think the key to having a stress-less observation is to just roll with it. Just do what you normally do, and everything will fall into place. I made sure that day one I set the tone and created a good rapport with all my students, and I think that also helps when it comes to teaching them and making sure they are gaining the knowledge they need to succeed.