There is nothing like the first week of school- the anticipation and anxiety held by both children and school staff is one of my favorite experiences. The last time I experienced a first week of school was the 2006-2007 school year, my last year of teaching. This time I was entering three new campuses where I was the new kid, joining dozens of other new kids in learning the culture of a new school and finding my place.
It was a good, but slow week. While I don't have any children assigned to me yet, I found as many ways to be useful as I could, from assisting at registration to translating for parents to going through files. I am getting to know the people I will work closely with, and am meeting others who will become close allies. I have some meetings and activities planned for next week and see how my workload will slowly pick up. Mostly, I just want to be useful and important to my campuses. Also, I made my first visit to the mental health clinic I am assigned to, and so far enjoy the site and the people who work there. As school gets underway I will begin picking up new clients there as well.
It is hard sometimes being the new person, slowing building rapport and waiting to have children and teachers to work with. It is a good time to take advantage of so that I can get to know people and learn about the environments, even if it is not in my personality to sit around and wait. Soon, though, things will change, and I will no longer be the new kid but the busy psychology intern wondering what happened to the calmness of August.
1 comment:
What an exciting time. With any new relationship - friendship, romance, or work relationship - I am becoming increasingly aware of the "dating" phase. It's a joyful time of exploration, of new beginnings, of learning things for the first time. It's a time of anxiety for me, but over time I've chosen to see it as a cool opportunity, too. I know you're better at that than I am, and it's cool to watch you go through the journey. Kudos on trying to be helpful everywhere, to build rapport, and to basically become a positive and indispensible member of all your groups.
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