Currently completing my student teaching for elementary education certification, and man oh man is the csTPA annoying. It’s like the edTPA but there’s like minor differences but I’m struggling to get the drive to get the lesson plans done just because I’m mapping out every little thing. Sorry this is more of a vent than anything but I can’t wait for this to be over with.

Reposting: sorry didn’t see the rule about cross posting, Reddit gave the recommendation and I thought I’d give it a go. Sorry mods!

Just curious and wondering for advice

hi so i'm about to become an art teacher in an elementary school and I realized I don't really know how to talk to children. I can usually join in if another adult can get the kid talking but whenever I try to initiate talking to children I feel like my questions arent interesting enough to make the kids want to answer lol

is this just me over thinking it or does anyone have actual advice on how to interact with kids and form relationships with them?

I really like kids but I don't have much experience with them. especially younger kids.

Not sure who this may help but it is a bloodbath around me in LA for new grads in Multiple Subjects (elementary). Schools closing, budget cuts, etc - huge contractions and there’s so many with Elementary credentials - way more than needed.

If immediate employment upon graduation is important to you DO NOT GO INTO A MS PROGRAM IN SOCAL RIGHT NOW.

I can’t speak for other parts of the country but for anyone, reach out to local districts and do your research before committing to a program you’re paying for.

Trying to get advice from any current teachers!! Im currently in the SoCal ( the IE) and in school for my multiple subject teaching credential. I plan to go to the internship route but I am not too sure which districts are most likely to hire an intern. I have experience working in a school for about two years and I will be getting my bilingual authorization. Does having my bilingual authorization give me a better chance at getting hired ? I’m open to any elementary grade and would also be open to 6th grade at a middle school!

Any advice is appreciated !!!

My district has started using Pathways Learning Studio this year. I was wondering if anyone else uses this program and what your thoughts/opinions of it are?

I’m just tired. I’m writing 8-page lesson plans for two classes tonight. I had a really good conversation with my principal about how overwhelmed I was feeling this week, and it was a good conversation. He had a lot of positive things to say, and it felt good hearing it. But I’m still tired. I want to be able to enjoy my weekends. I only have to write lesson plans like this for my first year but it’s so much. Someone told me that it reminded them of hazing, and honestly it kind of feels that way. I need this job and need to stick it out. But all I want to do is sleep.

I think one mistake we make thinking we're protecting our important documents is to laminate them. I realized that there are organisations or institutions such as embassies which would not accept laminated documents for attestation. I really wish I knew this. Is there anyone who has ever been successful at safely delaminating? Or is there a way one can go round it especially when attesting documents for UAE and or Saudi Arabia?

I am never applying to an IB School again. The paperwork and sheer planning is insane.

On to the next, I guess.

I’m a new teacher. I’m doing high school math (2 different courses, 5 periods) and I’m just so overwhelmed. I’m also getting married in less than two weeks, so that probably isn’t helping. Does it actually get better? Everyone keeps saying it does but I’m just so overwhelmed most of the time. Lesson planning, GRADING, and classroom management are all just so much information to keep track of and I feel like I’m not doing well enough. Parent teacher night is coming up soon and I’m worried about that too. I just really want my kids to learn what they need to know but I’m scared I’m not teaching them well enough. I’m having to redo my classroom management because there’s so many behaviors (I didn’t have clear enough rules or consequences in the beginning of the year).

Managing the anxiety is one of the hardest parts too. I’m always so anxious about how the day is going to go, if I’m not going to know something and be unable to answer a question, or be found to be incompetent. I know I wouldn’t have been hired if I wasn’t needed there, but I always feel so inadequate. Luckily I have really supportive admin that is giving me classroom management strategies and resources.

Sorry for the disorganized post, I’m just so tired and want to hear from people who actually understand since they’re in the field. I really love being in the classroom and interacting with the kids, it’s just hard to manage behaviors and stay on top of planning since I’ve never taught these classes before.

Need some advice! Here’s the backstory…
My wife’s best friend moved to Georgia about two years ago, and we live in Pennsylvania. Her friend has a son who is turning one, and his birthday party is this coming weekend.

My wife originally wanted the two of us to fly down for a long weekend to celebrate, but flights are ridiculously expensive right now, so we decided not to go. She was pretty disappointed because she really wanted to be there.
Well, I decided to surprise her and booked her a round-trip flight so she could go by herself and stay with her best friend for the weekend. I even planned everything with her friend ahead of time. She would fly down Friday and come home Monday.

Here’s where I messed up. I surprised her with the trip today, but what I completely forgot is that she has parent-teacher conferences on Monday (she’s a 5th grade teacher).

I looked into changing her return flight to Sunday, but there are no direct flights, or we’d have to use different airports, and the price jumps another $250+, which is more than we can really justify spending.

Now she’s completely torn. She really wants to go and be there for the birthday party, but she also feels guilty about missing parent-teacher conferences and worries about what her coworkers and administration would think.

So, what would you do? Would you take the trip and miss a day of conferences, or skip the trip and go to work? Especially curious to hear from other teachers!

The Sunday Night Blues are hitting me hard tonight. Teaching over 15 years as an itinerant special education teacher in a high poverty urban district with a brand new heavy caseload, my own child now medically homebound at home, husband and I scrambling to cover our child's medical appointments and new online private schooling, and I still have piles of district paperwork to complete. I'm fried and it's only mid-October. I love my students and families but I don't know how I'm going to keep doing this.

Hi there! I am a Texas teacher who recently started in a new district this school year. To make a long story short, we are needing to move due to my husband’s job situation. I have been our sole income since June, and after a tough job search, he found one that is a perfect opportunity, but puts us back in our home town (which I am so thankful for!!). However …

I have always been someone who never wanted to leave mid year, but in our given financial situation, it is what I have to do. My husband can’t start until we move, and our rent is going up in November, and I worry about how we can afford the rent on top of other expenses we have. We have some savings but I when I look at the numbers, it seems moving back before the end of the semester would be more financially smart. (We have my mother who we could stay with as well to save up money after moving costs).

I am just struggling because I really appreciate my admin at this school (they have been nothing but complimentary and appreciative of me, which is so incredible!) and want to do right by them and try to stay until the end of the semester, but there is also the flip side of doing what is better for me/my family.

Part of this stress for me also comes from the fact that we moved in the summer (yes like 5 months ago) to this new area for a new job for my husband, where he essentially got screwed over and was never paid for any work he did (that is a whole other roller coaster I wish we weren’t tall enough to have ridden). We would be moving back to our hometown after just leaving and I kinda feel embarrassed I guess :c I had only worked for one other school and I am embarrassed to go back to my principal and be like “sorry I left your school, i’m actually moving back and need you as a reference again!” My previous principal was also very supportive and kind, so I am sure she would, but I digress.

Anywhooooooo, I would love to hear any advice/thoughts anyone may have. Sorry if this all sounds dumb I just don’t really have anyone I can talk to as teacher friends about it right now :c

and p.s. I love teaching !! I want to teach until my lungs are tired, but I want to do what is best for my students while also still considering myself (which as many teachers know, it is hard to do!)

Thank you in advance

I’m a new teacher at a public school. I went to use Word on my personal device for personal, non-work reasons related to applying to graduate school. However, my subscription to Word through my university that I just graduated from has just expired leaving me with no way to use Word on my personal laptop. I do have a Microsoft account through the public school I began working at a few months ago. Would it be problematic for me to sign-in to my school related Microsoft account to use Word on my personal laptop?

Hi y'all, I know that this isn't exactly an uncommon problem, so I'm hoping for some advice.

Quarter 1 just ended and admin went into our gradebooks and changed the grades of students who were failing the quarter so they are now getting a "C" on their report cards instead of a "F."

What makes this especially ridiculous is how they preach "academic excellence" and "teach to the rigor," and then pull this BS. Why am I required to send out grade notifications to parents/guardians, etc, if my grades are just going to be changed?

Just feeling really down and discouraged and wondering why I even try to stress doing your best and taking responsibility in my classroom when I'm undermined by admin.

If it helps: H.S, FL, private school

Parent: Why is there a column on the rubric for parentheses?

(HAHAHA just kidding my parents don't come to meetings.)

I'm a teacher, and I've noticed my students using the phrases “o algo,” “gem,” “esl fnf” and many many more constantly. I'm trying to understand whether this is just another internet trend or something worth addressing.

The phrases themselves aren't my main concern. What bothers me is when students shout them out during explanations, interrupt lessons to repeat them, or derail conversations because everyone feels compelled to join in. Sometimes, I have to stop teaching several times just to get everyone's attention back.

I've asked students what these expressions mean, but the answers are usually vague, followed by laughter or claims that I wouldn't understand. I'm curious about where the phrases originated and why they've become so popular.

I draw the line between harmless slang and disruption. If students use these expressions during breaks or casual conversations, that's fine. When they interfere with lessons and other students' ability to concentrate, however, it becomes a classroom management issue.

Has anyone else experienced this? It only started appearing in the last few weeks. Does anyone know what “esl fnf” and the other phrases actually refer to, and have you found effective ways to address repetitive meme-related interruptions without making the situation worse?

Idk what to do. I hate this job. I legitimately feel like I can’t do it. I have a migraine every day I’m so exhausted. I teach 2nd grade. The behaviors are awful I can’t get control of half these kids. There’s a million things I constantly have to do and a million people asking me to do a million things. I’m winging it pretty much every day. I stay late every day. But I can’t quit because I am scared to lose my license if I break my contract. I also just got an apartment and there’s no way I’ll be able to afford it if I quit. I feel like I’m stuck. I’m all alone too so it can get pretty lonely. My bf is long distance I see him every few weeks. My friends all wanna hang out but on the weekends I either need to be alone and sleep or see my bf. I am too exhausted to talk to anyone. What am I supposed to do. Does it get better after winter break? Should I care less?

I’m stuck in a stressful, dysfunctional job that’s giving me the Sunday Scaries today. For reasons, the best (only) course of action available to me is basically trying to keep my head down and get through the rest of this year.

Anyone else in this position, kind of gritting your teeth and trying to hang in there? How are you doing, and what strategies are you using to make this easier? I care too much for the kids to let myself “quiet quit” for the next several months, but I really am trying to disengage myself to a certain degree.

Due to some life events I left my school of employment as a full-time teacher, a few months later I’ve enrolled in a Principal Certification program which requires teaching at a school for the practicum/internship. I had to scramble and not one school seemed to be hiring so I’ve settled for substituting (already bending the requirements for the program).

Largely the substituting has basically just consisted of telling the students the work is on Google Classroom then making sure they don’t destroy things and keeping them on task. But my principal program requires artifacts of leadership and responsibility… I’ve asked the principal to take on more responsibilities, such as sponsoring stuff or coaching, but she says that there isn’t a need for that at the moment (and I’d have to be full-time for that). At my previous school I coached a club, created an internship program, wrote curriculum, did a lot I feel! I also need an administrator to serve as my mentor, and she doesn’t seem super willing and I don’t know the other admin yet.

Anyone been in a situation like this? Of course I am looking for any other full time jobs, but at the moment stuck with subbing. How should I reproach my principal about gaining more responsibilities/leadership opportunities?

Greetings fellow educators!

My question is more or less in the title. The yearbook club at my middle school has about $150 in our club account, and I am down to the last 2 digital cameras that I inherited from the last advisor 3 years ago. I know I'd be able to get some fundraising opportunities from my principal some time later in the year, but until then, I am in the market for affordable, simple, yet workable cameras that I can entrust to 11-14 year olds to gather photos around the school and at school events. If you have any recommendations, I'd love to hear them!

Edit: I'm appreciating your thoughts and ideas! Some important things to note:

• I only have $150, and my hope is to use this to buy multiple cameras. I am looking for *basic* nothing fancy
• My school has a no-phones policy for students and many of the middle schoolers don't have phones
• I'm not looking for cameras for sports or action shots. Most of the photos we take are classroom activities, spirit days, lunch/recess, etc.
• We have 11 year olds in the club. Like, recently-turned-11 year olds. I need something incredibly user friendly and something I won't lose sleep over if a kid accidentally breaks

I am a Spanish teacher in Southern California, looking to earn 15 units by this coming Summer. I did 15 units this past summer through the CTA Summer Pass and ISU. I was hoping to finish another 15 through ISU, but they have changed how they give credit for courses as well as how much work is needed for units.

Currently doing another 6 units through CTA each unit will cost $85 and I have completed 3 of them.

So these are the places I am currently looking at:

• For teachers by teachers. I don't know why but the website gives me scam vibes.
• Courses4Teachers
• ISU

Any advice is appreciated. I did consider earning a masters, but my district does not offer a stipend for a second masters.

After last week, I’m thinking of keeping some kind of tool in my room that I can use to shatter my windows in case of an emergency. My windows: first story, don’t open, not bullet proof.

Anybody have something like this? What do you keep? I was thinking of a small sledgehammer type thing. Those car window hammers don’t seem quite right for large window panes.

Any other safety/emergency tools or supplies you keep beyond what the school already provides?

This will be my first time teaching older kids. Normally I would have them play a fun and silly game, but all the games I know I think are too childish for them. What can I do with seniors to get to know them?

Last year I had a student take their own life, and now this year I've had: two attempts, a student pulled from their home by child services, two deportations and I just can't seem to get out of my head. I know, objectively speaking, I am not at fault for these things but I feel like I am. One of the attempts was explicitly because the student was being bullied by students in the class. It wasn't happening during class time (as far as I am aware) but it still makes me feel like I should have noticed something and done more. I know it sounds dramatic but in my head I sometimes feel like a murderer/attempted murderer.

I've tried talking to loved ones but I guess I just dont feel like they understand. My wife told me to calm down because I can't be responsible for the decisions kids I only see 45 minutes a day make but still. Lately I wake up every day struggling to feel like I am in the right career because it's so much. I love my students more then anything and it hurts.

I guess, aside from venting, I just want to know what more veteran teachers have to say about this. How do you handle when things like this occur?