Before joining the RePublic team three years ago, Jonathan Brocco was a graduate student at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a coordinator of an educational non-profit, College Knowledge. Now, Mr. Brocco is an eighth grade history teacher and grade level team lead at Nashville Prep. Jonathan sat down with me to share what a typical school day looks like for him.
5:30 a.m.
“I get ready for the day as any normal person would – make coffee, pack lunch, and catch a little ESPN before leaving. To get ready for the day of instruction, I reflect on the previous day’s data mastery scores to solidify action steps for the upcoming day as I am eating breakfast in my kitchen.”
7:15 a.m.
“I am at school in my classroom by this time. To make my morning run smoothly, my lesson materials were distributed the night before. I drop my lunch off in the staff fridge, set my homeroom up for the day, and head to staff huddle. During our morning huddle, all teachers and staff analyze together the academic and cultural data from the day before. We do this to make sure we as teachers and leaders are doing what’s best for and meeting the needs of our scholars.”
8:00 a.m.
“The first scholars are entering the building for the day. During the morning, I help run hallway transitions for our upper middle school restrooms. This allows me to ensure things are running smoothly for scholars, and I check-in with kids who may need an extra touchpoint to ensure they are okay and ready to take on the day.”
8:20 a.m.
“Now it’s time for my favorite part of the day! This is when I get to lead my guided reading group during our school’s Intervention time. Intervention is a time where our scholars get extra targeted support to help them grow in reading. My lessons were prepared the week before, so I read over my plan before the day, and execute it with fidelity. This moment is so critical because I have eight scholars who are within reach of being on or above their grade reading level by the end of the year, and I want to make sure they meet their goals.”
11:30 a.m.
“By 11:30, I have already taught both guided reading and one section of history. In addition, I have handled tasks like calling parents, submitting copy requests to our school operations team, and creating lessons and materials for the following week during my planning period.”
3:00 p.m.
“Nearing the end of the school day, I’ve taught two additional sections of history, monitored recess, and met with various members of our leadership team, including Hannah Sacco, who is my Assistant Principal and content coach. When I meet with Ms. Sacco, we take a close look at the writing my scholars are producing in history class, its correlation to mastery of Tennessee history standards, and make plans to increase both writing proficiency and quality of discussion for my upcoming lessons.”
5:00 p.m.
“Depending on the time of year, I would be coaching football or leading a student government session for Nashville Prep. When I don’t have these events happening, I am usually at the gym exercising. Currently I go to the Sylvan Park Rec Center. It’s a great spot for the West Nashville community.”
7:00 p.m.
“By 7 p.m., I have finished or am in the process of grading exit tickets from the day and creating a data talk for my scholars’ next history lesson. I’m usually done by 8 or 9 p.m. at the latest, and like to hang with my girlfriend and watch Netflix or football, go Titans!”
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