Elementary Intervention from a Secondary Background
After 14 years teaching middle and high school math in White Bear Lake I decided to take a leave. Staying home with our children was the best thing for my family—we had one child and another on the way. While I’ve been home with my children for almost 7 years now, and it’s been a wonderful opportunity, I really miss being in the classroom, but I didn’t realize that until recently.
I’ve tried to find ways to keep a foot in the door, but nothing has stuck. I tried leading professional development for a few years thinking perhaps moving into administrative professional development would be a good next step. The work was rewarding and helped me grow professionally, but I felt pulled to be home more. Traveling around the country even a few times a year was not a good way to work for my family when I am the primary parent in our home. Leading PD with teachers, while exciting and rewarding, also made me realize I’d rather be teaching a class of middle schoolers.
Two years ago, I stumbled upon an opportunity to work directly with kids again. A friend of mine was on the PTO at a Minneapolis K-8 school. He mentioned that the principal had a vision to develop a math intervention program for 3rd through 8th graders and connected us to chat. Working there, I pulled small groups of kids from class to do 20 minute sessions. I had a chance to try out Number Talks and use Desmos–things I had been reading about but hadn’t had the chance to explore since leaving the classroom.
I’d also never taught elementary aged students–I was both intimidated and excited to teach these kids. After doing this work for two years, getting chewed up and spit out by 10 year olds, I’ve realized a couple things: 1) I really miss being in the classroom and 2) the best thing I’ve done professionally is to work with elementary students.
I look forward to getting back to teaching middle school in the near future and taking this experience with me. Working with elementary students deepened my understanding of what my middle school students bring with them–I have a better idea about how and what they were taught. I hope this experience informs my teaching by helping me better understand where my students are coming from so I can create better experiences for all learners.