Yesterday was the first meeting of our Leaders Empowering Others group. It's made up of many of our teachers who want to take the next step in our careers; be it administration, counseling, or instructional. It was great to see that there are many of us who want to take that next step. One of the activities that we did was to list the qualities that we see in leaders. Naturally this was a long list, but it got me thinking about the type of leader that I want to be. I've been branded as being a people pleaser, and to be honest, that's probably pretty accurate. I do love to please people, but I know that I can't always do that. I've actually been working on that as Technology Liaison. I can't always make people happy. Sure it's nice when things work out, but there are many times that I have to tell them no.
On another note, today my partner was out, and there was not a sub. I could have split them across the grade level and deal with what they missed at a later date, or I could try to take it all on. Thinking about being a leader, I went ahead and took on the challenge. Honestly, I think it's worked out pretty well. I mean yes there are 37 students in my room, but I have the assistance of paraprofessionals to help me along the way. What I have been able to accomplish today has been phenomenal! I was able to make sure that I had complete understanding in my science and math lessons, and then relate it to the reading and writing! There is something to be said for self-contained teachers. If you are able to integrate, and I know the curriculum departments don't always make easy to do so, you can really reach that deeper level of understanding.
