I can relate to the info shared because I can recall my first year or two of teaching feeling those phases talked about in the New Teacher Center article...and the article is spot on. Feeling excited...to overwhelmed...exhaustion...I think most new teachers go through these phases. Wanting to be prepared and have perfect lessons, wanting to nail all your observations, wanting to make a good impression, etc. These are all normal for new teachers to feel...but this leads to prompt #2....
The support of a good mentor won't fix everything or alleviate all stress/anxiety for a new teacher. What it can provide is knowing that perfection doesn't exist. We can strive for it, but mistakes are OK. Learn from them. Get better as you go. A good mentor can be a cheat code to help navigate some school specific hurdles like who to go to for help with certain things that come up. A good mentor can help a new teacher work through inevitable challenges that will come up whether it be a challenging students, parents, etc.
My strengths as a mentor lie in my diverse experience. I've taught. I've coached. I've done both of these at a private school. I've done them at a charter school. I've done them in the city for public schools. And now I'm at Sweet Home where we have a little bit of everything. My experiences have well prepared me not only to be successful handling most of what I encounter as a teacher, but also in assisting others, especially younger and more inexperienced teachers. Above all, I want them to know if they have a heart for this, it will work out. Nothing will be perfect. But if they have a passion for working with kids, they'll find their style. They'll figure out what works. But the passion for what they do as a career, if they hopefully have that, is what will carry them forward year after year. Also, to always be a learner open to improvement and changing as we go through our career.
