So my colleagues across the pond are almost ready to start wrapping up the academic year, and I have been getting excited feeling the end of year vibes on social media already! But then I have to bring myself back to reality, as here in the UK we still have about 3 months to go... :) But this got me thinking about the common myths and misconceptions surrounding teachers and our summer break.
You know the ones, things like:
"It must be nice not working all summer..." or
"You only work 9 months out of a year..." or
"I bet it must be so easy being a teacher with those long holidays..."
You know the ones, things like:
"It must be nice not working all summer..." or
"You only work 9 months out of a year..." or
"I bet it must be so easy being a teacher with those long holidays..."
If you're a teacher, you know how much will power it takes to bite your tongue and unclench your fists when you hear those kind of comments! Well, I came across this website recently from Alamo City Moms Blog and it is titled "Teachers: You're not Fooling Me" and it got me quite stirred up! I suggest you stop here and have a read of it first if you haven't come across it already.
With all the teacher hate out there on the internet, reading the title of that post initially made me think the worst. But my oh my, what a wonderful blog post it turned out to be, and it restored my faith in humanity knowing that there really are people out there who understand, appreciate and respect how hard teachers really do work for their children - yes, even during their long summers "off"! I hope you got warm fuzzies reading that post too!
I personally prefer to describe it as "we fit one year's work in 9 months", but most teachers I know do still even work during the holidays, whether it is at home researching and developing lesson plans, or in their classrooms setting up and making the environment a fun and exciting learning experience. In my 10 year career, I have come to peace with the notion that a teacher's work is never done, but we still don't let that stop us from trying!
I personally prefer to describe it as "we fit one year's work in 9 months", but most teachers I know do still even work during the holidays, whether it is at home researching and developing lesson plans, or in their classrooms setting up and making the environment a fun and exciting learning experience. In my 10 year career, I have come to peace with the notion that a teacher's work is never done, but we still don't let that stop us from trying!
As summer approaches for many of us, I would like to raise a glass to my fellow colleagues who have worked their tail end off this year for their students. I know you will most likely be doing some kind of work this summer, but don't feel guilty for taking time to yourself to relax and unwind for a little bit - we deserve it, no matter what some people may say in their ignorance! If they're not a teacher, they won't ever fully understand what we do but that's OK, we don't do it for them - we do it for the kids and the future generations of this world.
If you're wrapping up the school year soon, I have created some fun, stress free lesson plans to get you through the last few weeks that you should check out! I hope you have a wonderful end to the year and an even more wonderful summer break! To those of us who still have a way to go, stay strong and keep your head up - I'll be here with you!
If you're wrapping up the school year soon, I have created some fun, stress free lesson plans to get you through the last few weeks that you should check out! I hope you have a wonderful end to the year and an even more wonderful summer break! To those of us who still have a way to go, stay strong and keep your head up - I'll be here with you!
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