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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:00:36 GMT
Fourth year teacher at present school, 9 years total full time.
Wondering how you deal with full time parent and employee expectations without burnout.
My current schedule is: 5:oo up and getting ready, making breakfast when possible 6:10 on way to work 6:40-7:20 prep 7:30-7:50 staff meeting
8-3 teach (1 hour prep/lunch, 40 minute special depending on day) 4:15 home
430-500 work out 5-6 dinner 6-8 plan/ prep
845-sleeping/relaxing
weekend: prep/plan/ professional development
Just wondering if this is just how it is and suck it up or what you'd do differently to feel less exhausted.
I know meal prep on weekends, but sometimes I just need to work out or chill.
I love my class. The kids are awesome. Just don't feel like I can keep it up 15 more years.
We're not a huge take out family for a couple reasons. Money and taste. I like to cook. We do pizza or go out once a week, max.
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 0:23:00 GMT
I'll reply more in depth, but you have a staff meeting EVERY MORNING?
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 0:25:21 GMT
It looks like you are doing about 4 hours of plan/prep a day.
That is waaaaay too much. You will burn out quickly doing that. Why do you need that much time? Is there a way to cut that down?
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 0:28:53 GMT
My day- 720 leave for work At work contract 7:30-3:30. I almost always stay until 4. 86 minute plan period plus 30 minute lunch Home before 430
I only work at home if I need to grade papers. I will stay until 5 before I bring work home most time.
Now, I teach hs and I have 3 full and one co-taught prep, so I teach one of my classes 3 times.
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:32:05 GMT
I don't physically plan for 4 hours.
I get to school at 6:40, turn computer on, bring up pdf's/Smart Exchange, etc. Run any last minute copies, talk to colleagues.
Recess I usually use the restroom, prep activities, etc. Lunch I either have a duty or decompress. During my prep I run copies, email parents, get supplies ready, etc.
Prep at home might be uploading things to Google Drive, grading, entering grades, emailing...finding resources.
I've gotten better at making time for me, but I still find the 10 hour at work day a lot.
I am not a show up at the last minute person. I need to be prepared.
I
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:33:20 GMT
I have 6 preps.
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:34:03 GMT
Should amend that, I prep for 6 separate subjects.
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 0:37:13 GMT
Should amend that, I prep for 6 separate subjects. we call that 6 peeps
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craftymom101
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,776
Jul 31, 2014 5:23:25 GMT
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Post by craftymom101 on Jan 10, 2020 0:37:21 GMT
Definitely cut down on your prep/grading time. Four hours per day is way, way too many. I usually hide out in my classroom during planning (sometimes I even turn out the lights!😂) so I don’t have random teachers walk into my classroom to chat when I need to use that time to grade papers, prep lessons, or work on administrative tasks.
Do you have other teachers you can collaborate with? My co-subject teachers and I share plans, which is a huge time savor. I also refuse to lesson plan at home 5 nights per week. I will lesson plan usually one night for two hours, then cut myself off. I’m efficient! I utilize Teachers Pay Teachers if I’m stuck. For a few dollars I can sometimes find a pre-made lesson that covers 1-3 class periods. For me, the cost vs. time saved is a no brainer.
Good luck! Teaching is a huge undertaking.
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Post by nlwilkins on Jan 10, 2020 0:40:48 GMT
You will get better at prep as you teach the same things each year. My first year teaching was about like that - staying every day until 5 and then doing work at home. Though eventually, I had it under control and never had to bring work home. Then on the family side, the children grew up and did not need me so much. They also were able to help out more in the home. Those first few years of teaching though, were rough.
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:46:16 GMT
I teach: writing, literature, math, science, history, grammar, religion. Lit/writing/grammar are incorporated into a block, but I have to plan for all 6 (7) daily with one special in which to plan at school if I don't use lunch or stay late.
I'm better having done it 4 years, but we get new texts, etc, so I can't (nor would I want to ) do the same thing year to year.
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 0:46:55 GMT
We're a one grade school, close to splitting grades.
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 0:48:51 GMT
We're a one grade school, close to splitting grades. ? Do you mean there is one class of each grade level? How many kids in the class? What part of planning takes you the longest?
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Post by teach4u on Jan 10, 2020 1:16:32 GMT
19-20. Writing required weekly plans all subjects, making sure I have supplemental Ppt PDFs when needed.
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TankTop
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1,871
Posts: 4,831
Location: On the couch...
Jun 28, 2014 1:52:46 GMT
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Post by TankTop on Jan 10, 2020 1:23:04 GMT
I arrive at 7:45... kids at 8:30. I use this to plan each day.
Prep is 40 minutes per day, 25 minute lunch. I work through both of these with my door shut to grade and do other tasks.
Contract time is over at 4:10. I am out the door by 4:15.
I refuse to do more than 30 minutes of work at home per night.
I make sure that I use every spare second. Literally, I always have a stack of papers in my hand when monitoring bathrooms, walking to specials pick-up, etc...
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Post by Skellinton on Jan 10, 2020 1:26:27 GMT
I cannot believe you have a staff meeting every morning, that is just ludicrous. What in the world do you talk about? Other then that I never worked 2 hours at home when I was a classroom teacher, especially when you do almost 2 hours at school. Plus you do more on the weekends? That is simply not sustainable. You need to figure out why the planning and prep is taking so long. Can you have parent volunteers help with prep work?
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 10, 2020 1:30:48 GMT
19-20. Writing required weekly plans all subjects, making sure I have supplemental Ppt PDFs when needed. are these detailed plans or just outlines. For instance, if I wrote a full detailed plan it could be pages long. If I just write in my plan book, it fits in the square. It sounds like you are inventing the wheel all the time. Reusing plans isn't a bad thing. It allows you to tweak and fix and expand and engage.
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Post by fuji on Jan 10, 2020 1:39:25 GMT
I'm a hs teacher with a schedule similar to yours. I correct papers/prep/write letters of recommendation/enter grades/etc. at least two hours per night (Mon.-Thurs) and 4-6 hours almost every Sunday.
I've been teaching 28 years and have been teaching AP Literature for 20 of those years. It's paper after paper after paper. There's no way to cut back. Trust me. I've tried. I'm jealous of teachers who don't have to take home work.
Sorry. My experience isn't very encouraging.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 19:15:00 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2020 2:18:27 GMT
Dh's schedule is:
Wake up 5:30am, get to work by 7:20am
Work is 7:30am to 2:50am (6 periods of teaching, 1 prep period)
3pm/3:30pm till 5:30/6pm meetings (he is department chair and is a demo teacher as well as on some community group thing that is part of dept chair duties)
Meetings are typically M, T, W, and Thr. None on Friday.
He has a longer work year due to added district position so he works 1 month more.
He is an honors advanced teacher who dies a flip classroom so he has to make videos. He is up grading and planning every night.
It is what it is. He is an awesome teacher and puts in a lot for his students.
It just sucks for us and the kids. People don't realize how much beyond class time teachers work.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 19:15:00 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2020 2:19:37 GMT
Dh has a staff meeting 2x a week sometimes.
Monday is late start day and then sometimes wed
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Post by PEAcan pie on Jan 10, 2020 2:28:05 GMT
What about parent volunteers? I used to volunteer weekly for years and I did copying, grading, etc. I know they usually have a parent every day helping out.
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Post by birdy on Jan 10, 2020 2:30:49 GMT
I ended up quitting. I couldn't take the pressure anymore. My work day was 8:45-3:50 but I was usually at work 7:15-5. I taught 3rd grade, which is a high stakes state testing grade. Our principal required 45 minutes at the end of the day to be intervention every day. We were required to write individual plans for all of our students (I had 25-28 each year) for the interventions. Even if several needed intervention on the same thing, they each had to have a separate plan to put in their portfolios. That took a lot of time. I worked through my lunch (kids recess) and ate at my desk and then had to supervise their lunch. I also got a 40 minute planning time daily. I taught in an area of the district that had a lot of tough family life situations... parents in prison, drug rehab, domestic violence, kids living in cars, kids coming in hungry, etc. The principal asked us what we were going to do to guarantee these kids passed the test? We told her we were doing everything we could (including 2 of us offering before school tutoring/intervention groups and the other 2 of us offering after school ones). Of course the kids that really needed it never showed up. We said that it was beyond our control if a child came in tired because they had mice running across their bed or couldn't sleep because their parents were beating each other up the night before, or came in hungry and couldn't concentrate (I did keep b'fast stuff in my room for these kids). . . She said she didn't want to hear it, we were not allowed to place any of the responsibility on the parents and that if the kids didn't pass, she was holding us personally responsible. I went home that night and told my husband that for my mental health, I had to quit. We had a 2 year old who was in daycare more than he was home. When we got home, I made dinner, we ate. Dh played with him for a bit while I cleaned up, I gave him a bath, read a story and he was in bed. I was with him at the most, 2 hours a night. Then, I went back to working on school stuff or housework. It was no way to live. Our family life and my health was being affected. I finished out the year, put in my notice and never looked back.
Now I sub. i do it on MY terms. When it works in my schedule. I teach what the teachers leave for me without the pressure of testing, parents, principals. It works for me.
I can totally feel for you OP and all the others who are in education.
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kelly8875
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,407
Location: Lost in my supplies...
Oct 26, 2014 17:02:56 GMT
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Post by kelly8875 on Jan 10, 2020 2:38:50 GMT
Since you’re also saying “any full time employee” my schedule for 11 years was:
Wake up 5:15, shower. Wake kids 5:30 Out the door at 6 Daycare drop off 6:30 Work 7:00-3:30 (accounting) Pick up kids 4:00 Home 4:30
Add in evening dance practices 3 x week for several hours 30 minutes from home. This is when I did grocery shopping, working out, errands or classes. Many of these nights home at 9 or later.
So happy my kids are now out of school...
Dinner was a lot of crock pot meals, planned leftover meals from planning. Pasta is always quick. Easy dinners can be cooked in 15-30 minutes.
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,798
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Jan 10, 2020 2:40:19 GMT
I’m an 8th grade math/science teacher. I prep for math and teach it twice and science and teach it twice. I also prep for a STEAM elective that I teach 4 days a week.
Get up at 5:45, out the door by 7 with my 8 year old who goes to the school I work at. Get to school at 7:35 (If I have morning duty, I leave at 6:45 and get there around 7:20) Kids show up at my door at 7:45. Teach my first group of 8th graders math and science. Recess 9:50-10:10. Teach my second group of 8th graders math and science. Lunch 12-12:40 (Wednesday lunch ends at 12:30). Prep 12:40-1:35 (Wednesday prep is 12:30-1:20). Teach STEAM to 6-8th graders all days but Wednesday. Dismissal is at 2:20 Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. We get out at 1:20 on Wednesday and have all meetings that day. Staff meeting is the first Wednesday, teacher driven (data examination, meeting with teachers at other sites) is 2nd and 4th Wednesday, site PLC is the 3rd wednesday. On Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday I teach an extra hour for homework help to just 8th graders. That goes 2:20-3:30.
I generally stay until 4 or 4:30 except for Monday’s (kiddo #1 has gymnastics) and Tuesdays (acupuncture at 4:30) and Fridays (acupuncture at 3). When I’m done with acupuncture in a few weeks, I’ll be leaving by 4:30 pretty much all days but Monday.
I don’t GRADE everything for correctness. I stamp homework for completion in Math. We are currently piloting new science curriculum so I’m working on how to grade that. Most is credit for completion. I correct every couple of science assignments for correctness.
I refuse to take anything home. That way students can’t accuse me of losing their work. I take nothing out of my classroom. I will stay a few extra minutes to not have anything brought home with me. I draw the line at staying past 4:30. Grading can wait until the next day or day after.
When I get home, I am usually wiped out but I do homework with #1 while DH makes dinner. Then it’s dinner, bath, teeth brushed, bed for the kids by 8. I am usually passing out between 9 and 9:30. No time/desire to work out.
I craft on the weekends.
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,798
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Jan 10, 2020 2:41:13 GMT
What about parent volunteers? I used to volunteer weekly for years and I did copying, grading, etc. I know they usually have a parent every day helping out. In my district parents aren’t supposed to grade work. It’s “confidential”. 🙄
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CeeScraps
Pearl Clutcher
~~occupied entertaining my brain~~
Posts: 3,894
Jun 26, 2014 12:56:40 GMT
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Post by CeeScraps on Jan 10, 2020 3:02:17 GMT
Your struggle is real. It’s darn hard. Teachers don’t leave their work at school. I’d also question why all the meetings. We got so we voiced as a team that all the meetings didn’t seem to be necessary.
I didn’t read all of the responses. I can tell you what I did was moved my workouts to the mornings. That gave me all the time I needed after school.
Yes, by working out in the morning I also had more energy to get through the day and I was consistent at doing it.
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Post by magenta on Jan 10, 2020 3:07:37 GMT
Thank you, teachers, for all your hard work and dedication to our kids.
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Post by littlemama on Jan 10, 2020 3:42:29 GMT
Not a teacher, but Im up at 6, out the door before 7, work 730-430, usually without a lunch. Home shortly after 5, cook dinner, eat. when ds was in school, check homework or help study, watch a little tv, crash and start again the next day
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Post by 950nancy on Jan 10, 2020 3:51:32 GMT
When I was teaching, there was just a lot of extra time grading. My plans for most subjects were on sticky notes that I could print from my computer. Staying in one grade level for many years helped. We did seem to get a new curriculum every year, but we only had to write new plans for one subject each year. That was doable. I also worked on my curriculum during the summer and had everything printed during the spring, so my planning was not what yours is. I refused to bring a bag home on Fridays for the last 8 years or so. I needed the weekend to be mine and spend time with my family rather than worrying about that bag of grading that taunted me.
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Post by Merge on Jan 10, 2020 4:47:43 GMT
Up at 5:00. Drink coffee, make breakfast and pack lunch, run dogs around outside and feed them. Shower and dress and out the door by 6:45.
45 minute commute
Work day is 7:30-4:00. Monday and Friday I teach 7 classes and have no prep, only lunch. Tuesday and Wednesday I have 5 classes, plus an hour staff meeting Wednesday afternoon. Thursday I teach 6 classes. It’s typical at my school for elementary teachers to have 2-4 preps daily plus lunch, so my schedule is considered heavy. But in public school I taught 7 classes a day every day with no real prep, so it doesn’t seem too terrible.
I get home by 5:00 and let the dogs out and start dinner. Usually either take the dogs for a long walk after dinner or go to the gym.
I watch an hour or so of TV most evenings, and read before bed. Usually asleep by 10 or 11.
I don’t plan at home. Here in year 13, my plans can be jotted on a sticky note. I don’t teach the same things every year, but once I decide what concept I’m teaching it’s just a matter of lining up which songs/activities I want to use.
Honestly, I’m incredibly bored. I can do this job in my sleep. The actual teaching can be exhausting, but there’s little intellectual challenge any more.
For me, the sweet spot was around years 6-8. I didn’t have to work so hard at planning, but there was still a challenge.
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