Third Grade Teacher In A City Public School
Career review from a person working in the job
How I Got The Job
My Education: BS, Elementary Education, Ferris State University (Dowagiac, MI?)
My Prior Experience: I worked as a reading tutor for three years. I have also worked as a substitute teacher.
My Job Profile
My Company: I work for a school district in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina.
Job/Career Overview: I am a third grade teacher with approximately 24 students. I am responsible for maintaining records for each student, planning instruction that follows the states requirements and delivering instruction. I have to coordinate parent conferences and attend staff and grade level meetings. I am also required to be on at least one committee, though I currently serve on two. I am the 3rd-5th grade teacher leader for Language Arts, which means, among other things, that I attend district level meetings after school.
I work with several teachers and specialists to make sure that my students are making progress in third grade. I am held accountable for principal observations, three or four a year, and for EOG data.
More Insights: When applying for college, make sure that the education program is accredited and known by teachers. Don't follow friends to a college; you will make new ones there! Apply for student loans in high school, and if you can, apply for scholarships and grants as well. (This is money you do not have to pay back!)
Love It? Hate It?
I rate this career 8 out of 10.
What I Love or Hate
The best part of my job is working with and getting to know kids. They make it fun to come to work every day because they get excited about learning new things. I like helping kids understand something academic or social that they are having a hard time with. Kids can also be very funny, or say some funny things.
The worst part of my job is all the paperwork. As a teacher, I have to maintain records on grades for reading, writing, math, science, social studies and an elective; behavior; and many more things.
My Career Tips
1. Volunteer in schools to make sure this is really what you want to do.
2. Never stop learning, and even if your grades are not perfect, keep trying. It is your heart that matters.
3. The more you smile, the more kids like you.
4. The best grades in college do not make the best teacher. (But they do get you scholarship money.)
