The newest chapter and exciting opportunities for growth

Well, after a false start with one district (long story I won't get into here), this fall I will be teaching at a charter school for gifted and talented children. I'm pretty excited about it. On the technological front, my classroom will be equipped with a laptop (for me), a SMART board, document camera, and 1:1 laptops for my students. I'll be teaching 3rd and 4th grade, with one 6th and 7th grade English class.

Aside from substitute teaching, I've never worked in an elementary school setting, so I'm really looking forward to the opportunity for growth that my new job is offering. I've been told that my 6th and 7th graders read at an average of at least a high school to college level, which opens up some really unique opportunities for me as well.

The school where I'm working bases much of its philosophy on the work of Joseph Renzulli and his "Three Ring Conception of Giftedness," which I think represents a unique view of the gifted/talented spectrum that goes beyond merely how a student performs on a test or series of tests. While I've worked with gifted/talented students before and I do extremely well with them, I've never worked exclusively with G/T students before, so this also represents more growth.

It's been a while since I've been presented with so many multiple opportunities for personal and professional growth at one time... in some ways, I feel like a brand new teacher again, which is not a bad thing at all... the Beginner's Mind indeed!