PLCs: as Important as ABCs

I have been teaching for seven years now. The first two years of my career, my Professional Learning Community consisted of two important people. My cooperating teacher/mentor/dept. head/Spanish teaching colleague and the math teacher that I carpooled to work with. Don't get me wrong, these women are two of the best teachers on the planet. They both have a wealth of knowledge and skills that they are willing to share and they offered some of the best advice I have ever been given.

My third year of teaching, however, I became part of a Freshmen Team at my school given that I taught four sections of Spanish I every year. Talking about insight! Being part of this team gave me the opportunity to look at student data with people that shared the same students!! Together we have a more well-rounded view of student performance and are able to come up with more comprehensive intervention plans. The success we have seen in the last five years is quite incredible and deserves a post all of its own.

My newest PLC is one that took a little convincing to join. Don't get me wrong, I like the internet. But, for a while, I wasn't sure that Facebook, Twitter, Edmodo and Pinterest were really for me. It took a required course in Technology and Education to get me signed up. A few weeks later, I was hooked. As someone that LOVES school, these sites get me really fired up! Facebook and Pinterest are my two favorites. I love Facebook because of its "Spanish Teachers in the US" group full of Spanish Teachers from all over the US gracious enough to share their craft with others. It truly warms my heart to see teachers asking and RECEIVING support from total strangers. I consistently find myself inspired by the other teachers on this site and strongly encourage other teachers to join. While you are at it, check out Pinterest! It takes a little while to get used to, but, after a while, you get a little rush out of the hunt for true Pinterest treasures! I assure you, it is full of them! If you are ever in the need to spice up a lesson, these are the places to check out!