First year teacher and I feel like I am not doing a good job

[Anonymous]

Teacher to teacher, you need to borrow curriculum. It is much easier to tweak than it is to create. Do this for now until you get your feet really wet and your classroom management in order. After you get your "groove" then work more on the creative side of your craft. It takes time and IF you stick it out, you will see it becomes much easier with experience.

[Anonymous]

I left teaching when I had my child. Elementary private school and for the amount of money I'd have after childcare, it wasn't worth that that kind of stressful life. Also, many of the parents who I admired while I was their child's teacher had a parent stay at home - and I wanted to be able to do that for my children.

Now I have an incredibly flexible job, still within the education sphere, doing something similar but not with my own classroom. Part-time, I set my own hours, and get paid very well. I make more now as PT than I did FT in a classroom and the best part is that I get to be home with my children when they get home from school and don't have to deal with any of the bureaucratic or clerical parts of being in the classroom! Oh, and summers still off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I left teaching when I had my child. Elementary private school and for the amount of money I'd have after childcare, it wasn't worth that that kind of stressful life. Also, many of the parents who I admired while I was their child's teacher had a parent stay at home - and I wanted to be able to do that for my children.

Now I have an incredibly flexible job, still within the education sphere, doing something similar but not with my own classroom. Part-time, I set my own hours, and get paid very well. I make more now as PT than I did FT in a classroom and the best part is that I get to be home with my children when they get home from school and don't have to deal with any of the bureaucratic or clerical parts of being in the classroom! Oh, and summers still off.

Please share where you work and what you do. I'm a teacher on child care leave and dreading going back to the classroom for all the reasons you said.

[Anonymous]

I was one of the former teacher PP's --

I left when I had my first child. I wanted to stay home with him.

I now work from home and doubt I'll go back to teaching.

(I'm a freelance writer and marketing consultant, and it pays a LOT more than teaching did! But, I love and admire teachers and think it's one of the most important professions in the world).