Thing Wave

What is a day in the life of an Elementary School Teacher like?

A few months ago I made a career change and decided to become a teacher. I currently teach an after school program. The thing is, this position isn't really letting me know what it's like to be an elementary school teacher in the school board. I have many questions: 1. Besides teaching your specific grade, are you also required to do extracurricular activities with children after school? Such as drama club, etc.? 2. Are you required to do fundraising for your school? 3. Are you required to put on events like school plays, etc.? 4. Must part of your day be in the school library or cafeteria for a school period? 5. Are there enough free periods to grade papers and lesson plan while students are at other class periods like gym, art, computers, etc.? What I really want to know is, besides your actual classes, what else happens or is expected of you as a teacher throughout the day or year? Answers from teachers in the school board and who teach elementary will be most helpful.

Public Comments

1. This is practically impossible question to answer since each school works differently. Private schools in general will also have more requirements than public schools, but once again that will vary great from school to school. These are the answers for my public elementary school in one of the poorest places in the country. 1) Not at my school. But some of us do. There are "interventions" that are offered after school and at lunch to children needing help. Teachers get paid extra for teaching them. 2) Each year the school theoretically does some fund raising, It is under the jurisdiction of the PTA which means that what gets done varies from year to year depending on which parents are involved. Since most of our parents are illiterate, don't speak English, couldn't care less, in jail, or hold down multiple jobs, not a lot usually gets done. 3) We used to do plays, but sadly not any longer. According to the NCLB laws it is a waste of valuable educational time. 4) Since state and federal budget cuts have removed librarians from our school district, if I want my students to use the library I must accompany them there and spend my own time after school cleaning it and putting it back in order. Because of this, sadly it is not mandatory that students have time in the library. At the school that I am at presently, we need to walk our children down to the cafeteria and wait in line with them. Once they go through the line, we are allowed to leave. In the last school I worked at, we dismissed them to the playground and each class was called in on their own. 5) There are no prep periods during the day since we have no specialized teachers. Classroom teachers teach gym and computers. Art, music, and so on are not allowed since they are considered a "loss of valuable education time" by the NCLB laws. We do need to be at school 20 minutes before the bell rings in the morning and 15 after it rings in the afternoon. Needless to say that is not enough to sharpen pencils and make copies, let alone grade papers, set up activities and write lesson plans. So most teachers go in early, stay late, take work home with them, or go in on the weekends.
2. From my experiences, 1. Not required for clubs after school. "Extras" may be bus duty, ballgame duty, Open House, teacher meetings and professional development for example. In a smaller school the division of labor might cause one to put in more time than that of a larger school. 2. Fundraising is discouraged. 3. A classroom teacher will be required to help their homeroom class participate in schoolwide events that may include plays, assemblies, etc. 4. Teachers I know are given free lunch period, but someone needs to monitor lunch so you may be asked to take a turn if other arrangements are not made. 5. "Free" periods do not exist, you might be given a planning period but they are like closets and storage space: never enough.
3. 1. We are not required to do extracurricular activities, but it certainly provides a sense of fulfillment (and looks good to administration). 2. Teachers are required to allow their students' families to participate in PTO fundraising events. We're generally required to attend fundraising events (like fall festivals) unless we've got a good excuse. 3. We're not required to put on events, but again, it looks good to administration and provides the community a chance to see what's going on in school. 4. That depends on the school. At my school, we're not required to sign our students up for scheduled library time, but a good teacher makes sure students have the opportunity to access library books on a regular basis. I have to take my students to lunch and stay with them during the lunch period. It's only considered a break in that I can eat lunch with other teachers. 5. I have 45 minutes of planning each day. It's never enough. I rarely, if ever, actually plan during this time. It's basically my time to pee, check school email, clean up from the morning, and get ready for the afternoon. SOMETIMES I get a chance to grade papers. This is also the time that various required meetings are scheduled. My actual planning is usually done on Sunday evenings. I plan for the week and make adjustments throughout the week as needed. I share an assistant with 4 other teachers. I use her during my Reading class. Depending on what grade you teach and where you teach, your assistant situation will differ. The younger grades (K-2) usually have their own assistants or only share with one other teacher. Sometimes the upper grades (5,6) will have to share an assistant, which makes it virtually impossible for them to use the assistant with students. They often just use assistants for clerical work. Most schools require each teacher to have some sort of duty- monitoring students in the morning before they go to class, assisting with buses in the morning and afternoon, or helping with car riders. At my school we only have this duty once a week, and it generally lasts for 10-15 minutes. We're also all on some sort of committee that usually meets once a month after school. It's not difficult, and it's not too time-consuming, but a lot of times it feels like a waste of time. The part of my job that I dislike the most would have to be paperwork. It's hard to remember all of the little (but somehow important) things I have to turn in to someone. Being organized is not my strong suit, so without a calendar and constant access to my school email, I'd be screwed. Overall though, it's really not that bad. If you like working with kids and you like teaching (and in the process learning yourself), then elementary teaching is a great career.
4. Each school works differently and depends on the union in that system. We have a really good union, so they can't reall force us to do things outside of our teaching duties. We can volunteer to do extra things, and some things are paid. I always do track each year which is not paid, but I don't have to do it. We are not required to do any fund-raising. We just collect the money and turn it in. Unless you are the music teacher, you don't have to put on any programs. At my school I don't have cafeteria duty, but at some schools, you might. Or you might have bus duty where you are supervising the children getting on the bus. I have to walk my kids to the buses and then I am done. The upper grades just have to release their students. We have 1 50 minute prep each day. I prefer not to waste my prep on grading. I have a ton of other things to do during my prep. But, you could grade during your prep if you wanted to. Sometimes the principal might ask you to join a particular committee, but you are not required to. In our system their are buildings that are site-based and run by the teachers. in this particular case, you are required to join two committees, but you don't have to go to these particular schools.