OTTUMWA —
When parents left after dropping off children on the first day of school, the work started for their teachers.
The first day of school, said second-grade teacher Jenna Wilkins, was mostly about setting some guidelines, explaining procedures and sharing what her expectations would be for the school year.
She’s one of 18 new teachers in the Ottumwa school district who had their first day of class Wednesday — and one of two who recently shared their hopes and concerns about their first full-time teaching jobs.
“I couldn’t sleep last night I was so excited,” Wilkins said at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. “I was also making sure everything was prepared.”
She accomplished a lot Wednesday but “now I’m exhausted!” she said with a laugh.
Like all certified Iowa teachers, Wilkins did plenty of student teaching.
“When I was student teaching, I had the support of another teacher in the room. Today, I was by myself,” she said.
When asked how it went, she answered, “Wonderful, just wonderful.”
When special education teacher Melinda Rockett spoke with the Courier last week, she was thinking about how shuttling between two school buildings could impact relationship-building with her students. Now that she’s done it, she’s not worried.
“My schedule works out pretty nice,” she said. “I felt between both buildings, [students] were looking to get back into it. All the kids were ready to get right to work.”
Her students at one point even asked for another assignment, enthusiasm that Rockett said will make working with them even better.
So, any surprises?
“Well ...” said Wilkins.
It seems that at Agassiz, second-graders go to a “special” in the mornings. On the first day of school, their special was art. She showed the kids how they would take attendance, then where they would line up. After all, she had prepared every last detail of her first day.
“When [they] lined up, I thought, ‘I don’t know where the art room is!’ It was just that one detail I hadn’t thought of,” she said, “locating the art room.”
She was proud to have been saved, she said, buy her second-grade class.
“The kids knew where to go.”
All in all, it was a great first day, Wilkins said.
“I’m excited for tomorrow.”
Rockett said Wednesday after school would be spent making preparations for next week. But like Wilkins, she said, the first day was all about the children.
“I was just happy to be here, and they were excited to be here, too,” Rockett said.
Local News
August 23, 2012
Courier follows up on two new teachers after first day
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