I am Jen.
I am a wife.
I am a mother.
I am a daughter.
I am a sister.
I am a teacher.
I have been a teacher for over 30 years.
Most days I still truly enjoy my job!
I have begun to realise that this is not common. There is a huge burn out rate for teachers. Retaining newly graduated teachers in our profession is a serious challenge. While there are many reasons for this, it concerns me to think that some people are leaving simply because they haven’t been able to find a mentor to support them. They are feeling overwhelmed and don’t see a way out.
I have been there. In my late twenties, after I had been teaching for about 7 or 8 years, I reached a point where I was falling apart. I hated getting out of bed and going to work. I had a very challenging group of kids. The thought of walking into my classroom to spend my day with them made me feel like bursting into tears. I am so grateful to the people who supported me through that season. Without them I know I would have quit.
I wanted to start this site so that anyone could log in and feel encouraged.
This job is not easy. Pressure from government departments can be overwhelming. Our students can be rude and difficult. Parents can be irrational, angry and argumentative. And then there is the pressure we put on one another. But what I have found most damaging for many people, myself included, is the pressure we put on ourselves. The standard some of us set for ourselves can be impossibly high.
This blog is a collection of ideas that can be incorporated into your classroom, teaching style and general work life. They are all things that have helped me be a happier teacher. They are the things I remind myself of when I am struggling. Some of them I have developed myself. Most of them were shared with me along the way by incredible mentors – older teachers who had been there before me, and knew a thing or two.
I hope they help you too.
