Planning

I’m a BT (or should I now say PCT!), and I understand that to become fully registered I have to” prove my worth”, that I’ve morphed from a new graduate with lots of academic thoughts to a somewhat experienced practitioner. One of my current concerns is whether I’ll have enough evidence of planning to prove this transformation.

As we plan as a habitat for the week and then we each have individual responsibilities I’m concerned about my “lack” of visible planning. However trying to be adaptive and responsive to the children’s needs means that a plan isn’t always followed anyway….so the plans I did for a writing group might not be used as a learning opportunity might have appeared, and likewise I might not use a plan devised by someone else for a number of reasons.

Working in such an open, collaborative environment means that learning conversations between mentors don’t just happen at staff meetings or in the staff room over morning tea. I’ve found that the ability to ask for advice “on the fly” from another mentor has been invaluable. A 2 minute conversation has sparked a change in a planned lesson to the benefit of the students. These quick chats before, or during, a lesson aren’t something that could have happened in a single cell classroom but at SPS we’re able to adapt our lessons to the needs of the students. As a BT this is great, to have 3 other mentors experience right there, but it is also means that I have to step outside of my comfort zone at times and put down the plan. I’m begin to realise that the plan is more like a road map and you can take a detour and still end up in the same place with added valuable experiences, and that this is OK!

Another concern is that I’m not confident or experienced enough to be able to adapt on the fly to ensure I’m meeting children’s needs. I don’t have a kete of learning activities or experiences so I want to plan more to ensure I don’t have an occasion with nothing to do (unlikely….but you never know!). Because of this I’m still slightly obsessed with the when and what “things” are happening but I’m also beginning to incorporate more of the why and find that the 2 minute chats with others can sometimes shed light on something that leads to an ah-ha moment.