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Anyone here ever been to RCA? Is it worth it ?
an Elementary School Literature Teacher
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I just retired in Dec after 20 years. Honestly it doesn't get any easier. Which is why I gave up. I really intended to stay until I died in the job. But the demands never ended. I worked 10 hr days 6 days a week and could never meet the demands of admin. I was in sped so I had the added fear of going to jail or being sued for failing to serve the kids and parents. I finally just did what served the kids and parents and the rest be damned. In the last year I did lessons last. Find the priorities that work for you cause you will NEVER serve them and finish it all I know thats tough because you wouldn't be on here if it didn't bother your perfectionist ways.
I disagree with the above. It does get easier, if for no other reason than you have a better idea of what to expect, you will have most likely found out what doesn't work and you'll zero in on what does.
When I was in my first year I came home from school and immediately took a 2 hour nap because it was so exhausting.
Just like anything else in life, if you want the rainbow you're going to have to deal with some rain. Are you tough enough to handle that? Can you deal with faking it until you make it, as all teachers must do? Are you someone who runs away when things get tough or do you have the character to experience these hard times and learn from them.
Nobody, not your mentor, not your mother, no one can help you get through this first year. It's going to suck at times. But other times, when it's right, there's no other profession that can touch the high you get from bonding, connecting with and helping children. It's worth it. But if you are the type to shrink when the going gets tough then yes, you should look for a new job over the summer. Why did you become a teacher? Hang on to that. We need you. Your kids need you. You're tougher than you think you are. Just keep showing up, day after day and gradually, slowly, and with great effort you will be rewarded in ways that non teachers have no understanding. As a 27 year vet I can promise you it's worth it.
Hang in there! It does get easier.
As a 13 year special education teacher, I disagree, it has gotten worse, More paperwork that nobody reads is added every year. Compliance, Compliance, Compliance is all they care about. I quit because it was becoming too stressful for my high blood pressure to handle .
I hope you received some help with this issue. It truly doesn't get easier, but you get stronger when others pull you in and show you how they are staying afloat or "synchronizing" as you said in your post. I've been teaching for 29 years and it is still hard, but iron sharpens iron and I have teachers around me who don't mind me leaning on their strengths, while they lean on mine. I hope you find your "tribe" in that building. People who offer you support and relief. That's what makes it feel easier.
So true. A mentor and/or a great team in this career are as good as gold.
we've all been there. It takes time to create lessons plans, unit plans, knowing what you need to teach and truly what does and doesn't work. Going back to your metaphor of synchronized swimming, it take months of strength training to swim for long period, and after that it takes months of practice to where you and the team can swim as a unit. Some athletes never get used to all of that time, pain and others relish the success that comes from struggling and completing a goal. As the comments above indicate you never get it perfect, just like Olympic athletes there is always a gold, silver, and bronze, but like in sports your try for the gold but your goals need to be your PR or Personal best. For me it was watching the little successes that convinced me that I may never be perfect but I am better each day, more organized, and less scared. Only you can know if it is worth staying in or walking away.
It doesn't get easier, but you get better at it. Hang in there.
This right here!
The first year is so hard, especially this past 5-6 years. Maybe seek assistance from ChatGPT or another AI site for ideas on lesson plans . See if you can work with what AI spits out to you. I’ve done this this year and I’m actually finding it helpful. Play around with it. It might be a good place to start.
Definitely use your mentor and teammates for support. Can you ask a colleague to share their lesson plan? And, remember the first year is a huge learning curve for everyone, give yourself grace and take care of yourself first and foremost.
I don’t know what you teach, but can you take tomorrow and just give your students a day to go over past work or work that is unclear to them ? Give them an article and have them summarize it, something like that? Show a relevant film, or do you need permission from your dept head? Hang in there, there’s not much school left but I get it when you’re struggling, a few months feels like a few dozen years. I’m so sorry this is such a hard year for you. If your anxiety is too high…just call in sick tomorrow.
Try using AI tools to assist with developing your lesson plans. You’re creating the plan by using strategic prompting. If your district uses a particular format ask the Ai tool to structure in that format. It does get easier. Blessings.
Yea I did but admin had their own forms so that meant just retyping everything in the forms. So really didn't help much it did give me some pretty cool ideas but never had the time to use them.
I didn’t think I was going to make it through my first two years of teaching if I’m being honest. It was brutal. You will adapt and feel less like you’re drowning. It just takes time and patience. There are no shortcuts here.
I hung in there for a long time. However, this is my 20th year and I’m retiring. However, within my 20, I left twice to go into corporate to make more money. Everyone here is saying stick with it, your kids need you, etc. Well YOU NEED YOU. I came to realize that my mental health is more important that what this job is expecting from me. I decided that I COME FIRST. Teaching does get easier over time, but parenting is worse today than it was in my 1st year of teaching. I do not see it getting better. Now first year is the toughest year. So if this is your passion, stick it out. But also ask yourself, do you see yourself doing this for the next 29 years? If yes, then stay with it. If not, you have options.