Anonymous wrote:Considering doing this. I know it's a lot of work outside of school hours (evenings and weekends), maybe especially the first couple years. I'm considering this.
OP when I got my masters' and teaching license, I was told that it would take five years of experience before I could call myself a "master teacher." They were right. Expect the long hours (could be 60 hrs/week during the school year) to last for at least the first 2-3 years.
Teaching is draining in a way that other jobs are not draining. It is not necessarily more difficult than any other job, but it is repetitive, calls for you to be super creative, yet willing to do lots of rote/drudgery work. Lots of people can do the job, but not too many people excel at it. Classroom management doesn't come naturally to most people; it has to be practiced. A truly talented and hard-working teacher can get through the work of the first few years.
What will be your motivation to get you through that period? What makes you special enough to stick it out, and become the teacher parents hope their children get assigned to?
Of course think about having summers off, but when your child gets sick suddenly, it's DH who will need to take off work for that emergency doctor appointment. The work year is short, but not flexible.