Blog one

Well, I've never blogged before - but, I think now is the best time to start. My husband is tired of hearing all my "teacher stories" good and bad. In order to keep my sanity and remain on good terms with my husband, I needed to start a blog.

Teachers? Why did you become a teacher? Do you like teaching? I bet you like having the summers off and all those extra vacation days? That is the question that always bothers me. Especially the word "like" in the question. How about adding the word "need". We need the break! In my case, I teach 45 children at a private school. I feel like I need to start this off with the positive - I thoroughly love my job and all 45 children for different reasons. Since I've returned to teaching, there has not been a day that I woke up and said, "Ugh..I really don't want to go to work today." I have thought, "I can't believe I am going to try to teach the concept of bilateral and rotational symmetry today when I just started my period and have absolutely no patients, didn't sleep well and all I want to eat is the largest pastry in the pastry shelf at my local coffee shop." Just the other day I woke my husband up laughing as I got out of bed after Spring Break saying, "You can't imagine what my day is going to be like today." But, never have I said, "I don't want to go to work."

So, here I sit wondering if I should go to Target tomorrow for extra goodies since my students are going to take their tests in two weeks time. Do I continue to spend my hard earned, under paid, salary to continue to foster a not so good habit - prizes. Granted prizes certainly make my job easier, but is it a good idea? My reasoning for prizes is to get the children in a habit, give them immediate feedback and positive reinforcement, then back off of the prizes. But, what about the fact that we don't make that much in the first place? I love spoiling my students, but at the cost of where I have to tutor to earn that extra money??

My next question...sleeping? Do any other teachers out there require a lot more sleep than their friends or family? Do you find yourself past out on the couch well before what should be the normal time for bed? Well, I do and it drives me crazy! Monday through Wednesday, I am typically okay, but come Thursday and Friday night - forget about any extra activities after work, much less a proper conversation with someone. I feel like I am speaking in elementary school language, giving the teacher look (you all know what that looks like), asking my poor husband "Are you sure you made a good choice? Do you want to rethink that? Or, you need to be really clear on that decision before acting on it." Then, Saturdays I typically like to hang out and do whatever, but then once Sunday morning arrives after exercising, I am already thinking in my head about planning for the week ahead and what grades need to be recorded. Which leads to three hours of lesson planning and one hour of grade recording.

Well, that just about covers what I am thinking at the moment, but tomorrow I need to figure out how to take the short video clips off of this cool little flip video camera my hubby purchased for our trip, which conveniently ended up in my school bag Friday to record my students giving their book reports. So...how do I put the pictures on my computer so I can email it to their parents? I guess that will just be another hour or two added to my list of school to-do's for tomorrow.

That is what a teacher really wants to say....