2024 – Year 1, Term 1
Maroochydore State High School’s Industrial Design and Technology Department will be my home for the next few years as I learn how to teach.
We started with two days of professional development (student-free) to kick off 2024, Term 1.
The two days were intensive. I was new to the school so I had to absorb the mass of information and navigate my way around the school, workshops, department staff and procedures.
As any new teacher would attest, it is quite a daunting experience, with more questions than answers being the norm at the start of a new venture.
This post will cover my early days of establishment, starting with the school’s planner—a very handy resource for the year—my classrooms/ workshops and, finally, my workstation.
School Planner/ Diary
MSHS Planner 
MSHS Planner/ Diary 
Secondary Planner 
Secondary Planner 
Secondary Planner
I did purchase a separate planner called the ‘Professional Practice & Wellbeing Series, Secondary Professional Weekly Planner.’ That’s quite a mouthful, but it’s a great weekly planner with APST prompts and well-being tips.
APST’S
Using a school planner/diary can potentially be seen
as supporting aspects of several APST/s categories:
1. Professional Knowledge: I plan to keep my planner well organised to reflect my understanding of curriculum requirements, deadlines and student needs.
3. Planning for and implementing effective teaching and learning: I intend to use it to schedule lessons, track student progress, and manage resources to demonstrate effective planning skills.
4.2 Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning sequences: The planner will be used to map out the flow of lessons and ensure they build upon each other effectively.
5.1 Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning: Notes in the planner will track student performance and inform future lesson planning or interventions.
5.2 Interpret student data to inform teaching: Data from assessments or observations will be recorded and analysed in the planner to inform adjustments in teaching strategies.
7.1 Reflect on professional practice: The planner is a tool for self-reflection, allowing me to review my practice, identify improvement areas and set professional development goals.
My Classrooms/ Workshops/ Staff Room
The classes I am involved with span YR9, YR11 & YR12 Furnishing Pathways (FUR), YR12 Engineering Skills (ENG) and YR12 Design (DES).
W01 Workshop is used for YR9 FUR,
W05 for YR11 & 12 FUR,
L01 & L02 for YR12 ENG and
X03 is used for YR12 DES.
CO8 (Computer Lab), J01 J03 are used for theory for the furnishing and engineering classes.
My Workstation
I was keen to establish an organised workstation for my time at school. It was placed RHS of my supervisor so frequent discussions and reflection can occur organically.
APST’S
An organised desk space can indirectly
support several APST/s categories:
4.1 Create and implement engaging learning experiences: I believe a well-organised workspace can contribute to efficient lesson planning and resource management, ultimately leading to smoother and more engaging student learning experiences.
4.2 Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning sequences: Organising lesson plans, materials, and student work can facilitate effective teaching sequence planning and implementation.
5.1 Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning: Easy access to student work and assessment materials can streamline the process of providing feedback and reporting on student learning.
6.1 Demonstrate ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) proficiency: An organised desk space encourages efficient use of technology for lesson planning, record keeping, and communication, showcasing basic ICT proficiency.
6.4 Develop professional relationships with colleagues, parents/carers and the community: My workstation is adjacent to my supervisor, which has already helped build professional relationships with my supervisor and the other seven staff members in our office.
While organising a desk space isn’t an APST/s category, it can be a helpful tool to demonstrate my ability to plan effectively, manage resources efficiently, collaborate with and ultimately create a positive learning environment for students.
Tags in this post
