Student Teacher Resume and Letter of Introduction Workshop

1. Student Teacher Resume and Letter of Introduction Workshop

2. Workshop Goals • Identify specific content that should appear in your student teacher resume and letter of introduction. • Proofread and edit student teacher resume and letter of introduction. • Review similarities in the student teacher resume and letter of introduction, and the job search resume and cover letter you will prepare before searching for your first job. Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

3. Student Teaching Resume

4. Points to Keep in Mind When Proofreading Resume • An objective is not needed on this resume • Use action verbs and don’t use personal pronouns • Look for readability and flow • Highlight areas that need editing and write in comments. Use sticky notes if more comment space is needed. • Look for any spelling/grammatical errors • Tend to use too many capital letters for content areas • I enjoyed my Third Grade and Kindergarten practica and I really want to be an Early Childhood teacher. Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

5. Homophone Traps to Avoid • To-too • Weakly-weekly • Here-hear • Then-than • Threw-through • english-English • Their-there • Physiology-Philosophy Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

6. Points to Keep in Mind When Proofreading • Make sure “ST-1R Resume Template” is not showing at the top of the resume or that the SR1 template is not showing at the bottom of the page • Emphasis successes, skills, leadership • State all information positively • Relate skills and background to job you are seeking • Use capital letters, bold print or italics to highlight parts of the resume • Do not use graphics or bright colored paper Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

7. Points to Keep In Mind When Proofreading • No negative comments in resume or letter of introduction • Make sure all school system names are spelled correctly, check application as well • Do not go into graphic detail with units/lessons taught • Hit the highlights, what you did and what you learned as a teacher • If you do not have anything to add under a heading, delete out the heading Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

8. Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

9. Name and Contact Information • Both local and permanent address • Email address • OK to add cell phone number Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

10. Graduate Education • IMPORTANT! If you have to have a graduate degree to teach, you need to include your graduate work here! You can insert an anticipated graduation date • ART, MUSIC & Early Childhood BS do not have to add Graduate Education • University-James Madison University • Degree: • Master of Education: Mathematics • Master of Arts in Teaching: • Major: • Elementary Education, Middle School Education, Secondary Education, Exceptional Education, Physical and Health Education • Completion date • Overall GPA (cumulative) Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

11. Undergraduate Education • University: James Madison University • Degree: • Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Fine Arts, • Major: • Interdisciplinary Liberal Studies, Biology, Chemistry, Geology, English, Modern Foreign Languages, Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, Math, Physics, Music Education, Kinesiology, Art Education • Completion Date • Cumulative GPA • If earned a degree from another institution add it below this section Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

12. Teacher Licensure • Examples: • Early Childhood Education PK-3 • Elementary Education PK-6 Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

13. Education Coursework • List education courses • Be sure to list all courses for your program even if you have not taken them to date • Subject area, catalog number, course title, grade • Example: EDUC 360, Foundations of American Education, A Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

14. University Activities and Honors • List fraternities or sororities • Clubs/memberships • Projects • Examples: Southern Early Childhood Association, 2003-Present Virginia Association for Early Childhood Education, 2004-Present JMU-Association for the Education of Young People, 2004-Present CHOICES, 2003-2004 Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

15. Employment • Reverse chronological order • List: Title, employer, location, dates of employment, bullets about job duties • Example: Reading Center Assistant, Early Childhood Reading Center, Harrisonburg, VA, 8/04-12/04 • Planned and conducted biweekly story hour for 20-25 first through third graders • Processed, ordered and shelved books Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

16. Other Relevant Activities • Volunteer work • Church activities • Anything you have done involving children • Use same format as employment • Title, site, address, dates • Example: Volunteer, Pembrook Elementary, Virginia Beach, VA, 2003-2004 • Assisted with Christmas fund raiser • Supervised youth in designing yearbook layout Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

17. Computer Technology Skills • List all computer and technology skills • Microsoft Office • Digital Camera • E-Mail • SmartBoard • Web Design Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

18. Special Skills or Abilities • List UNIQUE skills you may have • Verbal/written foreign language proficiency • Reading extensively • Writing children’s stories • Artistic ability Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

19. Hobbies or Other Interests • List things you like to do • Play musical instrument, dance, home improvement projects, hiking, scuba diving, etc. Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

20. Travel • List and national or international places you have visited Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

21. Letter of Introduction

22. Letter of Introduction • Use standard formal business letter format • Equal margins, centered on page top and bottom, block format very popular • Address it to “Whom It May Concern:” • Include your address, the date and a closing with your signature • Single spaced with double spaces between paragraphs • 12 point font Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

23. Letter of Introduction • Introduce yourself • Don’t begin with “My name is…” • Explain the events and circumstances that have influenced your decision to become a teacher • Don’t let this part get too personal • Describe your educational experiences with children and what you have learned from the experiences • Don’t be vague, but tell about what you got out of your experience specifically! • Include what you’ve learned from observations and practicum experiences • Include any job or extra-curricular activities that are relevant Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

24. Letter of Introduction • Use your “word smiting” ability to keep it succinct • Rule of thumb, if what is said with 10 word can be said with 5, use 5 every time! • Do not name specific school divisions, schools or people in this letter Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University

25. What’s Next? • Make corrections to your student teacher resume and letter of introduction • Return corrected packet to Education Support Center before the March 17 deadline • 7 edited final copies • First draft which shows your work • Keep in mind no one else will be looking over your packet at this point! (different from past) • Presentation will be posted at www.jmu.edu/cap/education Career and Academic Planning, James Madison University