Teaching is hard. Anyone who has ever said otherwise is fooling themselves. In college, they tell you, “Education is the greatest gift you will ever give to another person” and they’re right, but that doesn’t stop teaching from being one of the (if not THE) most difficult jobs in the world or from burning you out at both ends. I’ve been there. I know the struggle of being up late at night getting a presentation together, or of stressing about all the details of tomorrow’s field trip. I know the worry that we have when we know a student is going back to a broken home or is struggling with suicidal thoughts or whose parents are going through divorce. I know the frustration that comes after a lesson that we’ve been planning weeks for, falls apart because of an unscheduled fire drill or because someone puked or the kids just. didn’t. get. it.
But, oh the joy. I know the joy of teaching well too. That’s why we subject ourselves to students who yell at us, call us names, unload heaps of anger and pain and frustration on us, and who claim they hate our class. We do it because that same kid who told us to, “Go F^%# yourself” at the beginning of the year emailed us over last summer telling us about the great book they read that they think we would like.
We do it because that 7th grader asked to talk to us after class and admitted they were having “dark thoughts and need help.” We do it for the hugs we can give to a child on their birthday or the high fives we can give when they pull their grade up from a D to a C during a help session. We do it because we DEEPLY love our content; the way numbers magically form into other numbers, the sound of a group of kids singing together, or the excitement of a kid reading their first complete sentence. We do what we do because we love something and love sharing it with little (or big) minds.
My blog exists to help both of us. It exists to help you find resources that are fun, interesting, or thought-provoking. It will give you inspiration, tips & tricks, a place to ask for advice or celebrate with other teacher, but it also helps me. It helps me channel my love for writing in a way helps teachers whom I love SO much, but it also helps give my daily life purpose during this season where I’m not at school and caring for my health. It keeps both of us in a headspace that’s bright in a time (especially in this unusual season) where it’s so easy to see the world as a dark and unwelcoming place.
Here are five things I hope this blog will do:
1. Be a trustworthy voice
There are so many people/things/concerns out there vying for your attention. We have no shortage of stressful and important things to attend to in our daily lives, but I hope to help you sift through some of the nonsense by researching ideas, compiling answers to questions, and by being someone who is real with you. Period.
Being trustworthy means being honest. And sometimes, that means I will be honest with you about things I don’t know, haven’t tried, or can’t speak to. I will be honest with you, just as I am in my daily life. I’m a pretty open book emotionally (I guess that comes from being a singer for most of my life) so you can bet on this place being something with heart and realness.
2. Provide Easy Answers to Hard Questions
We are asked, “why” by students every single day. “Why do we have to do this assignment?” “Why doesn’t this equation work?” “Why do I have to get a tissue instead of just picking my nose?” We also have a fair amount of questions in our teaching lives too.
- What type of seating chart is the best for ESL students?
- What kinds of software should a new choir teacher buy?
- What is a good resource for teaching John Denver to a music appreciation class?
My goal in this blog is to uncover some answers both from my experience and the experience of those I look up to and those I trust.
3. Provide resources to help your stressed-out teacher soul
I was around 24 years old when I first heard the words, “mindfulness” or “self-care” creep into my vocabulary. It’s not that I didn’t know the importance of taking care of my mental health, I just didn’t put the priority and effort into my life that I should have.
I’ve suffered from depression and dealt with anxiety my entire life. It’s a crushing condition, but I’ve since gotten help from therapists, counselors, and my faith to help walk with me through all of it. When I can’t be in my therapist’s office on her blue couch, I can still do things to help calm me and care for my overworked mind. I’m an avid meditator and have lots of things I can speak to in this capacity.
4. Give you access to a mix of ready made resources & tips to design your own
One of the greatest days of my life was when I discovered Teachers Pay Teachers (after my wedding proposal story, my graduation days, or my wedding of course). Sometimes there are just days that we just need someone to help us with a powerpoint or a worksheet or to teach us a new get-to-know-you game. As teachers we LOVE collaboration because we know there’s great ideas out there we could never come up with. I’ll share with you some items I’ve made for my students in my Teachers Pay Teachers or Etsy stores, and I’ll also make sure to keep you well supplied with freebies from myself and others along the way.
One of my other very favorite things to do is to design resources. Whether that’s coming up with a new worksheet, designing a virtual “escape room”, or creating my own game, I’ll share with you some of my secrets for making resources and will even walk you through some design and template builds.
5. Give you access to a community
Teaching is hard. No ifs ands or buts about it. But it also is chock full of people who share your struggles and celebrate your triumphs. How many times have you met someone at a birthday party or at church or at the dollar store (love that place) when you find out they’re a teacher you suddenly have heaps to talk about? Teaching is beautiful like that. We are all so different but we also are VERY similar. We struggle with the same types of kids, we hate that one virtual classroom platform, we LOVE free cupcakes on kids’ birthdays (that is NOT just me), and we have great ideas for how to distribute papers, grade essays, or welcome kids to class.
In this website, I hope to help you find more of “your” people. Teachers who teach your content (heyo music people!) AND plenty of teachers who, like you, just want to learn from others who are walking down the very same road.
Conclusion
More than anything, I want this place to be a place to celebrate the joys of learning, the frustration of education, and the triumphs of teaching humans. The news and the media would have you believe we live in a dark world. But that, my friends, couldn’t be further from the truth. Even in this crazy world that feels so divided, we can be united here.
