Connecting with Colleagues (Occasional Teachers' Column)

Working as a daily occasional teacher is exciting, rewarding, challenging, and stressful all at the same time. You may feel isolated, even though you are working in environments  filled with people and bustling with activity.  Each day may take you to  a new assignment, leaving little time or opportunity to make professional connections. You will seldom receive any feedback  about your work with students. Taking  steps to reduce your isolation will help make your role as occasional teacher more satisfying. Reducing isolation Making connections  in your daily work environment  is important. You can reduce the isolation by

• speaking with colleagues, even if you have to speak first
• eating lunch with staff, if possible
• leaving a note for the absent teacher
• making contact with the administrator and/or school secretary at the end of the day, thanking them for the work, and indicating that you are  available for more assignments.

Initiating conversations At  times, you may need to start the ball rolling. Greet other staff in  the hallways. A polite “good morning”  sends the message  you are friendly and approachable.  At lunchtime, ask to join a table. It can be very isolating to eat  your lunch in a room full of people who are engaged in socializing with each  other but who neglect to include you. By taking the first step, you may not  only enjoy a pleasant lunch hour, you will also show you are one of the staff. School activities You are a teacher interested in  education and interested in  what is  happening in the school. If  you have the time and the opportunity, enjoy the school’s extracurricular  activities.  Watch games in  the  gym; comment  on hallway and bulletin board artwork. Greeting parents who come into  the school shows an interest in the life of the school community. The note to the teacher While this  note is  meant to  inform the  absent teacher about what took place during the day, it also gives you an opportunity to take stock of the good things you experienced with the class. Take the time to share these. Leaving a note or having a discussion after school allows you to connect as one professional to another and reinforces your position as  an  important part of  the  teaching staff.  It allows the classroom  teacher to  follow up on the events  of the day. Keep the note brief and to the point. Include

• an explanation of any changes  made in lesson plans
• a description of how the lessons went
• the location of any collected  work assignments
• attendance reports, if not already sent to the office.

The classroom teacher will appreciate information about students who were struggling and those who were learning well, as well as concerns about behaviour. Be  sure to  also  note  students who were helpful and worked  well. Finally, leave a  thank-you note,  if  appropriate. For example: “Thank you for leaving such a well planned day.  It  made my day easier.” These simple steps will reduce your isolation and  leave the  impression that  you  are  a  concerned and competent professional  colleague.   _{Adapted from I Am the Teacher: Effective Classroom Management for Occasional Teachers,  published by ETFO and available from shopETFO.}