We’re in it together—Team teaching in early childhood
This post originally appeared in Dr. Rachel A. Larimore’s weekly Samara newsletter on August 27, 2024. If you’re interested in receiving these emails, scroll to the bottom of this page to subscribe.
If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to vent a bit about one of my pet peeves.
When I lead workshops and folks introduce themselves I am disappointed when teachers introduce themselves as “lead,” “assistant,” or “aide.” But I get VERY triggered when teachers give their title with “just” in front of it. Like I’m “just an aide in the toddler classroom.”
My internal thought is always something like: Just?! As an aide, don’t you tend to a child when they need comforting? Don’t you engage in play with the children? Don’t you help children resolve their conflicts? In other words, don’t you do all the things a teacher does?
Now, you may be thinking “But licensing requires us to name who is a lead teacher based on qualifications.” Yes, they do.
But licensing does not require these titles to be used in everyday conversation. Licensing does not require the culture to somehow make people in different positions feel less than the others. Licensing does not require only the lead teacher to make decisions about children’s care.
So what would I prefer? Well, I’d prefer to hear all of the teachers talk as though they feel part of a team. To talk like they feel their ideas, thoughts, and work are valued in the success of the classroom. To present themselves as though they matter. Because they DO!
Every single adult in any classroom matters. They impact the children, the other adults, and interactions with families. Everyone matters.
This summer one of The Grove webinars focused on exactly this topic. The goal was to help classroom leaders implement a more unified team teaching approach.
Well, it was so useful that one of our members said, “Can I buy that as an on-demand webinar to share with my team during orientation?” I hadn’t planned on making it an on-demand webinar, but if it’s useful–sure!
So if you’re interested in learning more about HOW to implement a team teaching approach, check out the Implementing a Team Teaching Approach webinar here. (If you’re a member of The Grove, it’s in the library already!)
This week I hope you’ll reflect on your school and classroom culture and to what extent you operate as a team rather than a hierarchical system. Next time you or your staff introduce themselves, what will be the response?
Keep changing lives,
Rachel
Rachel A. Larimore, Ph.D., Chief Visionary of Samara Learning
