My 1st day of Student Teaching

I began my first day of student teaching at B.T.Washington Elementary with the students returning from a 5 day weekend, which meant that the students would be additionally rambunctious. I had been nervous because I didn't know what to expect, but excited because it would be a "real" teaching experience with all sorts of real problems known of a public school. All I have experienced prior to this new experience has been idealized experiences under the control of the University, teaching at day camps to students interested in art, and Art a la Cart to classrooms with the primary teacher still in it. B.T.Washington Elementary is a bilingual Spanish school with a high percentage of free/reduced meal plans (~85%), meaning there are a lot of students from poor families. I had selected this school primarily because of the teacher. Mrs. Carey had received national recognition for her services within the school; plus, I had had a course with her when I first began graduate school. I respected how she thought about her students, and believe that working under her guidance would be a benefit to my future as an art teacher.
Through the course of this first day I learned of the routine we would be having. We get 1/3 of each grade level each day, so once you've taught one lesson the next two day's is Groundhog Day. This week will primarily be observation, plus some team teaching.