So Much To Learn: A Teacher’s Journey Shadowing a Student

James is a senior here at Naperville Central High School that I have known from when he as a soccer player on the freshman team that I coached. I recently had the opportunity to shadow James to see what it feels like to be a student at this school. He graciously allowed me to follow him around for an entire day of classes, even lunch and P.E., and I had a blast. What a great day!

The question that students asked me over and over all day was WHY?  Why are you shadowing a student?  My quick answer was, "I want to know what a high school student goes through every day."   It was an eye-opening experience and I’m so grateful to our administration for encouraging me to do this.

My Big Takeaways
1.  I sat in my seat for five 50-minute periods without moving.  STUDENTS NEED TO MOVE IN CLASS.

2.  I went with a group of friends to Dunkin' Donuts for lunch. We all brought our lunches in and some of the guys ordered donuts for dessert.  I had never before realized the positives of going out to lunch.  The change of pace that occurs from taking a break in the middle of the day was amazing.    CHOICE and FREEDOM ARE LIFE GIVING.

3.  I met Harold in Anatomy and Physiology class.  We became very close in a short amount of time.  You see, we were dissecting Harold the rabbit.  That was a complete thrill.  LEARNING BY DOING was one of my favorite things of the day.

4.  I got called out for having the wrong shirt in PE class.  Thankfully my dad did not receive a call from school.   KNOW THE RULES.

5.  Students are basically working from 7:45 to 3:15 at school—a 7.5 hour workday.  And that doesn’t include the hours of homework. It is exhausting.   WE TEACHERS GIVE TOO MUCH HOMEWORK. I'm glad I didn't have to do all the homework James had to do that night.  I vow to lower my homework demands.

6.  James was an amazing host.  He answered so many of my questions.  In every class there were respectful interactions.  The students at Naperville Central High School are terrific.  WE HAVE GREAT PEOPLE AT OUR SCHOOL

7.  By “walking a mile in someone else’s shoes” I feel more in tune with my students' needs. Every teacher should shadow a student for a day!  WE NEED MORE COMPASSION

EVERY ADMINISTRATOR, COUNSELOR, PARENT, and TEACHER should Shadow a Student for a day.  Here is the hashtag I used on twitter #shadowastudent  Click here to check out the tweets that day...

This is my third time shadowing a student.  Here are links to the other blog posts about shadowing a student.  The first was in 2012 when I shadowed Neal a freshman.  The second time was in in 2014 when I shadowed Kyle a junior.

Shadowing a Student for a Day

I was a student in high school again today.  Wow, what an experience.  Shadowing a student  has helped me to know better how to teach my current students.  I can know a little bit better what is going on in their world.  Here was the schedule for the day:  Algebra 2, Chemistry, Digital Art, US History, PE ( swing dancing), Lunch, Study Hall, and English.  

Here are some things that I got out of the day.

1.  I'm exhausted.
This was mentally and physically taxing today.  I was wiped out by 7th period.  I had one more period to go.  Our students really put in a lot of energy into the school day.  And most have some type of extra curricular activity after school.
How I might modify my teaching:  Empathize and adjust the outside of class workload.

2.  I sat in a chair a lot today.  I being a math teacher calculated how much time in minutes I was in my chair.  303 minutes in my chair.  Almost all of the chairs were swivel chairs which helped.  However, that is a lot of time just sitting.
How I might modify my teaching:  Create more activities that encourage movement.  Give more choices for students to be able to move around during class.

3.  Our students are learning a lot in one day.  I took notes in every class.  My notes turned out to be 7 pages long.  It was a ton of information.  It was engaging material.  I really loved learning these new things. I also wanted to create something instead of just learning about something.  
How I might modify my teaching:  Be efficient.  Be concise.  Don't  give busy work.  Have a purpose with everything I give my students. Have students CREATE more.

4. We have excellent students and staff at our school.  I really wish I could be back in school.  The teachers were engaging and passionate about what they do.  The students were respectful and were very cooperative.
How I might modify my teaching:  Tell my students how much I appreciate them.  Enjoy the moment and the journey.  I have a wonderful job.  Show how much I enjoy teaching.

5.  I got to know the teacher very well in one class period.  What it made me ponder was "do my students know if I know them?"
How I might modify my teaching:  I need to know my students.  I need to show them individual time.  Students deserve individual attention.


Kyle, You were the perfect host.  I can't thank you enough for letting me into your world.  It was eye opening.  I appreciate what you go through a lot better now that I was in your shoes for a day.  Thank you!

Random Thoughts

• We did a Brain Break in the middle of one of the lessons.  That was FUN!
• I'm pretty sure I was the only one in the cafeteria who had a hard boiled egg in their lunch.
• Jessica helped me out in PE swing dancing.  Thank you for being very patient with my 2 left feet.  I really was nervous
  about this part of the day. 
• MY EYES ARE BAD.  I realized right away that I couldn't see the board as clearly as I thought I could.  (must have something to do with being 50! haha)
• THANK YOU for inventing Swivel Chairs.  
• The lunch table talk was blunt but enlightening.  
• I almost made Kyle late because I had to use the bathroom between classes.  It made me a lot more sensitive to allowing students to go to the bathroom during class. 
• My mind wondered a lot.  There is a lot of dead time in the day to be able to do this.  I tried to stay focused but was a little tired.  
• I really liked math class.  I guess it is a good thing I'm a math teacher.  
• I never had an interest in the Great Gatsby until the class today.  Now I'm very intrigued. 
• Hacky sack is a tough game.  To get someone else out you need to juggle at least 4 times.  I only did 2.  I was out pretty quick.  
• I'm really humbled to be a teacher.  It is quite a responsibility.  I don't want to ever take for granted the charge I have.  
• I took 7 pages of notes today.  An organization system is a must for students.  

Here is my journey on Twitter Storyify Journey 

Now, I challenge you to Shadow a Student for a Day!  Ask your principal today and DO IT.  You will be pushed out of your comfort zone, but you will never regret it.  Let me know how your journey goes.
My Very Best,
Dave

Partner/Group Work: The Student Engagement Wheel and Energizing Teaching Tools

This is one of the "spokes" of the Student Engagement Wheel.  The Student Engagement Wheel is show below.  Use the Student Engagement Wheel to help you measure the student engagement in your class.  

The page above is out of the book called "Engaging Teaching Tools"  More information is located at the  the blog post How to Measure Student Engagement?