Teaching multiple classes in one day

amother

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 6:57 am

Asking teachers who teach departmentalized:

I've always taught one class (group of students, not one subject) per day . Next year I will be teaching multiple classes per day.

1) I'm looking for tips on how to compartmentalize.
Let's say class 1 was a little extra noisy and stressful, how to walk into class 2 with as clear a mind as possible. They don't deserve a frazzled teacher just because class 1 was frazzling.

How do you do it?
Do you have a breather or a break in between? (There is a possibility that I can have scheduled broken up a bit, maybe giving me a 10 min break between each class.)

2) if you teach the same subject multiple times (chumash to Chumash to class 1, chumash to class 2, and then chumash to class 3- all the same grade and chumash, not divided by student ability)-

How do you keep track of what you've taught (how far you've gotten) per class?
You mark it down at the end of the day?

3) any other things I should be considering?

Thank you!!

Oh, and any parents whose kids had successful departmental teachers, or former students as such, and you have a tip, I am very happy to hear it!

NEW QUESTION:

4) I WILL BE TEACHING THE SAME MATERIAL AND GO FROM CLASSROOM TO CLASSROOM IN THE SAME SCHOOL.

ANY TIPS TO MAKE THAT WORK SMOOTHLY?
I'D RATHER HAVE ALL WORKSHEETS ETC ON ME THAN HAVING SEPARATE PILES IN EACH ROOM.

WHAT DO YOU RECOMMEND? A CART?

sorry for the all caps, I wanted it to be obvious that this is the new question

amother

Coffee

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 7:22 am

1) I take a breath, a drink, a snack if it was really bad, and then focus on saying hello to the kids who are walking in (focusing on my favorites, but don't tell them that)

2) I try to get everyone to the same place every day for my sanity, but if not I just ask the kids the next day. You could use 3 different color post it flags if you want

3) have a few filler activities and things you're ok skipping built into each unit for when that third period class is canceled 5 times in a month for different special activities

groisamomma

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 7:42 am

The years I have classes consecutively are really hard. Try to take a small break. I keep track of what I taught each class on sticky notes.
As a mother and a tutor, sometimes I'll have a situation where the teacher uses the same test for all her classes (understandably) and one class didn't finish all of it. In that case she tells the girls they aren't responsible for that material on the test, but please make sure to indicate one the test which questions they can skip. It gets confusing, especially on a midterm or final when someone else is proctoring.

Good luck!

amother

Celeste

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 8:43 am

I took a deep breath, went to the door, and smiled at each entering student. Honestly, even if one class was hard it didn’t usually effect the next class because the atmosphere in the room changed with each group of students. The only time I had a hard time with this was if a class affected me physically, like gave me a headache. A deep breath doesn’t help that.
In terms of teaching, I just asked someone to tell me where we left off.

PractclyPerfect

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 8:44 am

I usually ended up finishing at around the same place. If I'm ever too far apart, I spend more time on discussing things slightly off topic for a bit longer in the class that's ahead, and speed up in the other. I try to go get a cup of water in between classes. But it's really amazing how the same lesson comes out different in every class, so it feels exciting to go into the next class even though you just finished this.

amother

Calendula

Thu, Jun 22 2023, 6:19 pm

I teach multiple classes per day, including multiple grades and multiple classes per grade. For me, a planner is essential. I plan my week in advance and it helps me keep track of where in the curriculum I am up to for each class, and what prep needs to be done in advance.

amother

Coffee

Sun, Aug 13 2023, 4:27 am

amother OP wrote:

Bumping for new question in OP
(Any other answers for previous questions is helpful too.).
Thank you to all moros and teachers for responding!

One year I did use a cart. Otherwise I just have a big pile of papers to carry. Or distribute sheets to each room you need in the morning

amother

Moccasin

Sun, Aug 13 2023, 6:09 am

This past year I taught 3 9th grades biology.
My notes were in sheet protectors, so when I remembered I marked with dry erase marker where I was up to with each class- usually I ended up asking them.
A suggestion I got if one class is ahead of the others is to have an article related to what your teaching to use.