And so it begins...

Hello, old friend. I recently finished my Nursing Informatics class, which I loved....Now I am beginning Teaching Methodologies. I am excited about this. For the next five weeks I will be blogging about the first classes I... yes I... will be planning, implementing and teaching! I hardly know what to expect. One thing I have learned, is that when a professor teaches a class, and you learn, and it's interesting, a lot of hard work went into it! So, to say that I am not nervous and a little overwhelmed, at this point, would be a falsehood.

This week I have begun by finding my preceptor. I am so happy that I started instructing clinical students with a local technical college this past fall, in addition to my job at the clinic. I have met some wonderful masters and PhD prepared instructors who are very agreeable to helping me. Thankfully, God is always one step ahead of me. Don't you love it when we say things like this? How small we often think. Of course God is one step ahead of me; He is, after all, the beginning and the end! When I began teaching, I viewed  this only as a way to make much needed extra income! Shortsighted, I know.

At this point, I have spoken with my preceptor and we have discussed some ideas as to how we will accomplish the teaching required for this five weeks. All total I need 22.5 hours in clinical teaching and 22.5 hours in classroom teaching. This weekend I will try and work on a plan and all my objectives. I believe we are going to come up with some material to reinforce some of her teaching and to hit areas they may not otherwise have time to cover. In short, this is going to be a crazy busy weekend. Hopefully, though, it will be very productive. I am a big planner, so once I get this all set up I'll feel much better.

Often I like to use historical nursing photos for project blogs but I couldn't resist this picture of "Dorrie as a nurse." I too am just beginning my life as a nurse educator, however, I am not near as cute! The photographer is Paul Schultz and I found this photo on Flickr. It has an attribution license which allows users to re-post if they credit the author. For budding bloggers remember to check the license of the photo you wish to post. If it is copyrighted you will need permission from the author. This is one reason I like to go to Flickr and check the creative commons gallery.