Job Description and Insights

I am a kindergarten through fifth grade science specialist. I see about six classes
each day at 40 minutes each. I work with each grade level, helping teach the
science curriculum. The students tend to do more hands-on, experiential science
in the lab with me. I help the students use science notebooks and also provide
training to the regular classroom teachers on how to do the science notebook.
I have also worked with grade levels on their science curriculum. I meet with
them and work on how we can fit the science content into the projects that they do
at the end of the quarter. I have also planned science-themed field trips for som e
grades. I help maintain the school nature trail (which the students often use with
me) and organize one or two Saturdays during the year when parents come and

help clean the trail. Along with the nature trail, I work with the second grade on
planting a community vegetable garden.
I also coordinate all the science kits that the regular teachers use in their
classroom to teach science. This means that I order replacement parts and
obtain animals that are needed to teach the kit.
Best and Worst Parts
The best part of the job is working with the students helping them discover the
natural world: helping a kindergarten group, for example, to recognize a cardinal
or a robin by their song.
The worst part of the job is having to track down teachers who have not turned in
information or have not completed a task.
Tips
I would advise anyone going into teaching to spend as much time in a classroom
beforehand as they can. I would even suggest that you become a teacher's
assistant for a year before deciding to go into this field. This will give you a real
glim pse into teaching. I would also suggest sticking it out for at least four years.
After your fourth year of teaching, it gets so much easier. You know how to read
the students better, you have learned to tweak lessons.

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Best and Worst Parts

The best part about being a Physical Education teacher is that you get to "play"

with the kids all day and you get to wear shorts, t-shirts and sweats every day. On

days without students you will find that the other teachers are dressing like you

and making comments about how nice it m ust be to wear comfortable clothes all

day! The most rewar ding part of this job however is that on any given day you

may introduce an activity or game that will give a student a skill, passion or love

that may last a lifetime.

The worst part of becoming a PE teacher is sometimes the lack of respect you

receive from other teachers in the building. Some teachers feel that because the

students WANT to come to your classroom, it is easier in terms of discipline and

everyday operations. Although it is true that the kids LOVE to come to gym, it still

takes a strong teacher with an organized and strict environment to keep the

students safe and focused.

Job Tips

1. The first piece of advice I give to any student teacher is to get as much "real

life" experience as you can. An excellent teacher makes classroom management

look easy and there is only one college course focused on discipline and

classroom management, so before you get out there for yourself and fall hard, get

that classroom, coaching, camp, daycare or any other kind of experience you can

and if you come across some awesome teachers, ask them to mentor you and

train you in their classrooms.

2. The next piece of advice I give to all aspiring teachers is to get your substitute license before you student teach because when you complete your hours and there is still a month of school left, your cooperating teacher may ask you to substitute or you may find another opportunity before the new year even begins. 3. The third piece of advice I would give is to keep a book of all the lesson plans you developed in the course of your college career and always explore the internet and PE websites for additional materials so that you have the information in one place when you land that first job or as you spend your time as a substitute. Additional Information There is no better job in the world; I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND becoming a PE teacher if you have a passion for fitness or sports!

READ MORE - Best and Worst Parts

Job Description and Insights

As an elementary PE teacher, I am responsible for introducing a variety of

activities and games that students can incorporate into a lifetime of physical

fitness and activity.

On a typical day I start with m eetings or planning time until about a half hour

before school when I am responsible for watching the children on the playground

who are dropped off before the bell rings. As my teaching day starts, I will see 5-7

classes in a course of a day for 45 m inutes at a time. This schedule allows the

majority of my day to be spent on essential tasks rather than administrative tasks.

Administrative tasks can include professional development, staff meetings or day

to day operations such as lesson plans, lesson research, making copies or arranging for special events, presentations or speakers. This year I had to incorporate travel time into my schedule as enrollment at our elementary school decreased and enrollment at a nearby middle school increased. This was the first time I had a job share assignment, but it required an extra 30 minutes out of m y eight hour day for travel that took essential teaching time away from the students. One of the downfalls of becoming a PE teacher rather than a classroom teacher is that more and more schools are forced to make hard choices with the budget and often times "specials" such as PE, music and art are the first to go. On the other hand, there is no other job in the building that allows you to play all day and wear what most people get comfortable in after work every day!

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Elementary SchoolPhysical Education (PE)Teacher

Education

BA in Human Performance, Sports and Leisure, Metro State College

MA in Education Administration, Grand Canyon University

Teaching Environment

I work for the Denver Public School District in Colorado which provides a free

education for all residents.

Previous Experience

I started as a substitute teacher in two school districts, then received my first and

current job at the school I completed my student volunteer hours at in college.

READ MORE - Elementary SchoolPhysical Education (PE)Teacher

Best and Worst Parts

I love the children. But the class material is interesting too and I am always

learning something. It keeps me in touch with the Spanish-speaking community

and allows me to maintain my mastery of the language. Parents are great

sources of information and I love learning from them. But the work load is heavy

and, with correcting and planning, the after-school hours are surprisingly long.

Tips

Take a classroom management course. Become certified in English as a second

language. Collaborate with other teachers in the school. Learning from

experienced teachers can help you tremendously. Engage the parents in the

learning process. They love the classroom and will lend their support to your

efforts.

Additional Information

You need to be patient and caring but firm and outspoken in your objectives. A

teacher has to establish clear expectations for her students in order to persuade

them to succeed. They should not be forced to guess what you want from them.

Still, you need to temper your firmness with a generosity of spirit that your kids will

respond to.

READ MORE - Best and Worst Parts

Job Description and Insights

I now teach Spanish to grades 1-8 in a parochial school. I prepare lessons,

administer assessments and teach grammar and culture. I also work on the

diocesan foreign language committee. It is very interesting work: developing a

curriculum and collaborating with other language professionals.

But I have other more mundane duties too. I serve as a recess monitor, do

faculty room upkeep and have to be around for "extra help" sessions at the end of

the day. There are fun projects too, now and then, projects that the teachers

come up with that are meant to benefit the entire school: spelling bees,

geography bees, "It's Academ ic" or the yearbook.

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Spanish Teacher at aParochial School

Education

BA, Spanish/French, Boston College

MA, Spanish Language and Literature, Boston College

Teaching Environment

A combined elementary and middle school (K-8).

Previous Experience

I worked as a language instructor right out of college, first in Massachusetts and

later in Germany with the University of Maryland. I also worked in England as a

teacher's aide in a pre-school for handicapped kids.

READ MORE - Spanish Teacher at aParochial School

Best and Worst Parts

The best part of my job is also the worst part: the children. It is an awesom

responsibility working with sm all children who can be so easily crushed, but not

necessarily so easily motivated. The sum total of their needs is a heavy burden.

Yet when one of them really gets something (the "ah ha!" moment), there is not a

better feeling in the world. It is too bad it comes infrequently. We have more and

more curriculum to teach each year, with little or no assistance; often I feel like it

is me against a big indifferent world. I com pete with quick bursts of high

stimulation (e.g. video games) and must be accountable for the fact that real

learning is not like that!

Tips

1.) Spend as much time in the classroom as possible before you begin your

teaching career. Make sure it appeals to you, choose the age level that seems to

"fit", and be sure you love children and academics.

2.) Do not accept the current philosophy that teaching is an easy job of "only" six

hours a day and 9 months of the year! Do NOT become a teacher for the

summer vacation!

3.) Do NOT give up after your first year. It is a very strenuous and frustrating time

that you just have to get through. It is MUCH better with experience! Try not to

give up ANY year, though many may be difficult. Believe in what you do, and try

to make it better each time.

Additional Information

It is very difficult but rewarding to take the academic content you wish to teach,

filter it down to the age and ability level of each of your students, and then say

and model and show it as many different ways as necessary for the students to

get it. However, we do it constantly, and successfully!

13

READ MORE - Best and Worst Parts

Job Description and Insights

I am the classroom teacher in a second grade inclusion classroom, receiving

assistance from a special needs teacher daily to help with students with

educational plans. I am responsible for teaching all the state standards in all the

subjects for all my students, who are also som etimes assisted by other specialists

like reading teachers, occupational therapists, and the psychologist. A large part

of the job is social training of the children, as I am charged to teach the children to

become successful participating members of society, and much of this is in

character education.

My day runs from tying shoes all the way through assisting the children to deal

with the death of a grandparent or pet, and all the steps in between. I live with my

21 students for 9 months, and understand a great deal of what is important to

them. I must handle each individual and often each incident on a personal as well

as a group level. At various times of each day I must be the coach, the therapist,

the enforcer and one of the most important adults in their lives. I also handle their

academic lives on an individual basis, as each child may have a different learning

style, capacity, and motivation.

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Career Stories: Reports from 25 WorkingElementary School TeachersWhat’s in this chapter:

What’s in this chapter:

25 teachers report on their career experiences

Description of and insights into each teacher's job

Tips for prospective teachers

The best and worst parts of being a teacher

Each teacher's educational preparation

Additional thoughts on being and becoming a teacher

This chapter provides the detailed transcripts from our study,

each in the original words of the 25 school teachers

READ MORE - Career Stories: Reports from 25 WorkingElementary School TeachersWhat’s in this chapter:

Tips on teaching

The teachers‘ suggestions were interesting and varied when

they talked about the ways to m ake the teaching go m ore

fact, I always tell my (non-

smoothly, and ranged from the dewy-eyed to the hard-boiled

–

and occasionally the downright eccentric. Pragm atic

teaching) friends that it's

suggestions included the following:

Use the Internet and make technology your friend.

like planning an eight hour

Create a notebook of ideas that work and don't work.

Be creative with sup

plies because money is always an

birthday party for thirty kids

issue in schools.

Take a classroom management course…. Collaborate with

five days in a row.”

other teachers in the school. Learning from experienced

teachers can help you tremendously.

It is very important to set up a routine and stick to

it! The

students at this age crave structure and knowing what is

next. It is also very important to tell them what you expect

from them and never assume they know not to do

something!

Other suggestions were earnest and memorable but vague.

Teaching is

a hard job, if you do it right. And, if you're not

willing to do it right, kids suffer, wrote a teacher. You teach

students, not subjects!!! insisted another. Still another, run

ragged on the playground at recess but borne along on a swell

of tough l

ove: The arm y is wrong...THIS is the toughest job

you'll ever love. Don't go into it if you are not tough, caring and

have a lot of love and com passion to spare!

A number of teachers insisted that a sense of humor was a

linchpin of classroom success. Teaching isn't for everyone,

one librarian and reading teacher wrote, but if it's for you, it's

one of the noblest professions…. [Still,] patience and a pretty

READ MORE - Tips on teaching