Today is my first day back to school. It’s been a mad dash to the finish line but lesson plans in hand, I’m as ready as I think I could ever be.
As most of you know by now, I’m teaching a new class this semester. It’s exhilarating and completely intimidating all at the same time. The thought of walking into a room with 34 pairs of eyes on me is enough to send me running in the other direction. But, I spent the last three weeks practicing excellence and preparing to teach, to demonstrate, to guide, to share what I know and what I’ve learned. Yes, I wrote this entire course in three weeks. Some may have sketched out the first few class periods and left the rest to office hours and Friday afternoons. I wanted to see the whole semester. And by “whole semester,” I mean:
- 4 textbooks spanning almost 500 years
- 78 pages of notes
- a 4-page outline for the first class
- 52 pieces of media (30 recordings, 22 YouTube videos)
- 77 slides of images
- 2 paper assignments
- a 5-page syllabus
- 7 group project assignments
- 10 essay topics
- 14 research paper topics
- 15 quizzes
I wanted to walk in on the first day with the big picture in mind. I want to teach every day with a goal, a purpose, an objective. . . .This is where we’re going to start and this is where we’re going. Ready or not, let’s do this.
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Tags: adjunct, college teaching, course writing, music history, teaching
Whew! Wow! Mercy sakes! You are a whirl wind of ideas, concepts and major organization!! Amazing Ashley…