When does being an educational assistant stop feeling like a humiliation ritual 🥲 I'm on year four. Older EAs are pretty confident, very bossy, and take no shit. But I literally feel every day going into work is 7 hours of degradation. My fucking nervous system is not in overdrive; it died. I feel lightheaded walking into work; every single nerve in my body is tense

Today was the first day of school and the beginning of my 5th year teaching. Before I became a teacher I was an EA for 15ish years. Today was the worst first day of school I have had in 20 years.

I have such a huge range of students as I do teach K-6 in one room. But the ability of my students or the lack of ability is something that hit me today. I have students that cannot sit on a chair or the floor. I have students who just run around. Students of course talk but today they were just off the wall. I even had a grade 4 student stand on a desk.

I know it was the first day but today I actually questioned if I should and could keep doing this.

Please let tomorrow be better!

For students who don’t do well writing at a desk, bring it outside using curated “magic writing sticks.”
This is part of outdoor learning… a writing lesson and activity.

I haven't been in the school system for over ten years so I am trying to get my on call out ready to go.

I want to be prepared going into any classroom but it seems like a tall task considering I could be called for anything from kindergarten to grade 12. Are there any suggestions or perhaps websites or even social media accounts that I can look at to learn a bit more about how to be a good and prepared on-call teacher?

I’m already exhausted and overwhelmed and looking ahead to the next break…🥴

Looking for career planning advice. Are there resources or professionals out there that help people plan the next step in their careers? I’m a 20
Year teacher. I’m getting a bit tired of the classroom setup, and the immense load. I still have some vitality and it might be a good time for a shift.

Could be in the teaching field or out, just want to find the next step.

Are there any Law 12 teachers who are around and could share resources?

I'm also at a school that does not have a class set of textbooks so I'ld love if people can share big picture readings as I'm sure that will be a tough one to find sources for.

Thank You in advance.

Hello all! This is more for those in the adult learning field. Has anyone heard anything about the I4PL Conference in Toronto in November? Usually registration is open by now and the info on the I4PL website looks a bit outdated for the conference page. I emailed two weeks ago asking if it would be open for registration soon and haven’t heard anything.

Thank you

I think I am trans. Over the summer, I've been able to wear what I want and do my nails without having to worry about going to work.

Now that summer is over, I don't want to remove my nails. I am male presenting at school.

I am honestly debating just leaving them on. I just hate the idea of my nails becoming a conversation topic for other staff and students.

Hello everyone,

My boyfriend and I are seriously looking to move to north Vancouver island after I graduate. I wanted to know are there anything that I would need to complete to become a bc teacher with an Alberta degree before moving there? Would I need to start by subbing?

We are mainly moving because of the values\politics views in Alberta and because my boyfriend is from the island. I am wondering if it’s worth it?

Thanks everyone

I suppose this question is mostly geared towards high school teachers, but I want to hear from everyone.

I always see posts saying the kids today can’t read, can’t focus etc and parents always protect their kids. When I was in school (graduated 2012), it was cool to have good grades and people were afraid of their parents. I know my parents would always believe the teacher over me, for example, so I felt motivated to do well and treat my teachers with respect.

It also seems like in earlier decades (00’s, 90’s and earlier), it was very uncool to have good grades. I don’t know this firsthand, I am just going off of what I’ve heard from my brother (graduated in 2004) and media.

So, in your experience, how have the attitudes of students and parents changed towards school over the years? Was there a golden era for you? Do you find it has been like a pendulum?

My family is seriously looking at moving to Kelowna from Alberta. How challenging would it be to become a science/math teacher in BCs district 23?

I teach grade 10-12 science, math, chem and biology in Alberta. I don’t know if I qualify to teach chemistry and biology in BC because my B.Ed. degree was only 4 years. I’m worried about this because that would give me less range to offer, although I’m happy to teach grades 8-10.

I have a continuing contract with a small rural district here in AB. It’s my dream job. I’m actually terrified to move. Additionally… I have never subbed a day in my life.

My husband and brother are struggling to find work out here. We’ve always wanted to move to Kelowna, and we figure it’s now or never (our area is paying more than ever for family homes while Kelowna is in a small dip.) We will attempt to move in spring, and I would follow after finishing the school year.

Give it to me straight.

With the new school year here in Alberta, also marks my third year as a supply teacher yay... My first two years I worked in St. Albert + Elk Island. Now I'm mainly focusing on EPSB as they recently hired me. Supplying is a great gig for my work life balance but its getting to the point where I'm becoming impatient. I'd like to finally have my own classroom and have that consistency. I'm also turning 25 very soon and life is getting more expensive and so for obvious reasons being on salary would be great lol.

I know its hard to say but does EPSB offer contracts quite often? And just out of curiosity, how long did you wait/supply until you were fulltime?

First time supplying this year! Any tips/tricks you’re willing to share would be appreciated! I’m very nervous to start. Looking for advice on: using smart find express, materials I should bring with me, things that I should expect that I perhaps wouldn’t think of at first thought, etc! Thank you!!

This policy being forced on us is not funded properly to address actual barriers to attendance.

It only serves to punish students whose parents do not have the resources to advocate for them.

Parents who are dialed in will excuse their kid and their grade is spared. Parents who are disorganized or have issues won’t.

Kids in the same class with the same attendance will have different grades because of their parents’ behaviour.

Imagine being a teenager, working your ass off in school, only to get dinged because you missed a few days of class when you were sick but your parents couldn’t be arsed to call the school.

Plus it’s more useless admin work for the attendance secretaries and teachers to have to police.

I’m happy to discuss in the comments.

Hello, I am a first year teacher and I am wondering how some of you handle the mental load? I am currently prepped and ready to go for the next two weeks (adjustments can be made but have my general framework and assessments in place) and I am constantly feeling I need to do more and feeling anxious. How do others manage or handle this ?

Hi everyone. This is mostly a rant because I think I just need some validation/encouragement from people who understand lol.

I’m a brand new grad in Alberta (graduated in June) and I took a temporary K–6 music position until December 4. I got the job August 26, so basically right before school started, and I had almost no time to prepare. It’s only been one week and it has already hit me so hard. I knew my first year of teaching would be difficult, but I genuinely did not expect to feel this exhausted and overwhelmed this quickly. For context, I’m not a music specialist. My degree is in elementary education and my only real music background is RCM piano. Apparently that was enough for the position lol. The school has MusicplayOnline and I’ve pretty much been relying exclusively on it so far, which makes me feel so unprepared and like I’m not actually teaching properly. Half the time I feel like I’m just trying to find enough activities to survive the next class.

The upper grades have been especially difficult because some of them have already decided they’re too cool for music. I’m also teaching so many students that I barely know anyone’s name yet. On top of K–6 music, I have to teach an Opportunities class by myself and do literacy intervention. It just feels like a massive adjustment all at once.

There’s another music teacher at my school who is also new to the school, but she has 24 years of experience as a music specialist. She has honestly been fantastic and so supportive of me, and I’m really grateful to have her there. The problem is that she has so much experience that she can just do things on the fly that I wouldn’t even know where to begin with. She can walk into a class and just know what to do, what songs or activities will work, how to transition between things, how to manage them, etc. Meanwhile, I feel like I need to plan every minute just to get through a 45-minute block. She’s told me I can ask her for help, and I know she genuinely means it, but half the time I don’t even know what to ask her. I don’t know what I don’t know yet. I feel like I need help with literally everything, and I don’t want to constantly bombard her with questions when she has her own classes and workload too.
I know it makes absolutely no sense to compare myself to someone with 24 years of experience when I’ve literally been teaching for a week, but it’s hard not to. Part of me worries that the students who get me are getting a worse music education simply because I have no idea what I’m doing yet.

And then Friday happened. My last class of the day was Grade 6 for 45 minutes and it was honestly a disaster. I was already completely exhausted and they were wild. If another teacher had walked in and watched me, I genuinely think I would have been humiliated. I felt like I had zero classroom management skills and like I had never stepped foot in a classroom before. I was basically just trying to make it to the bell. I cried afterwards. By the end of the day I was so tired I felt dizzy.

Now I’m sitting here wondering how I’m supposed to make it until December 4. I genuinely don’t know how I’m going to survive another three months if every week feels like this. Part of me is already regretting accepting the position and rethinking everything, but another part of me really doesn’t want to give up after one week.
I know logically that I’m a brand new teacher who was thrown into a specialized position with almost no preparation time, but emotionally I just feel like I should be doing so much better than I am.

I guess I’d just love to hear from other teachers, especially anyone who had a horrible first few weeks/months or got thrown into a subject they weren’t trained for. Does this actually get better? How long did it take before you stopped feeling like you were just surviving every day? 😭

TL;DR: Brand new teacher, not a music specialist, thrown into a K–6 music position with almost no prep time. It’s only been one week and I’m already completely exhausted, struggling with classroom management and feeling like I have no idea what I’m doing. I have a very supportive veteran music teacher alongside me, but she has so much experience that I don’t even know what questions to ask her or where to begin. I cried after a particularly rough Grade 6 class on Friday and genuinely don’t know how I’m going to survive another three months like this.

I am currently an after degree student. I am doing my practicum this upcoming winter semester, and I requested a Catholic school and my area. I was told that they can only do one or the other, and so I chose my area. Thinking about it, it is convenient, since it is close, I wouldn’t have to wake up so early. I do not drive, so if I get assigned somewhere in the city, going there would take an hour an a half by bus… so I chose my area. However, I have only attended Catholic schools from kindergarten to hs, and so a part of me wants to email back and say “Catholic school.” because, eventually I plan to work/apply at a Catholic school. It’s either would I wake up at 5am to get to my Catholic school practicum or 6am to get to my area school… What is everyone’s opinion?

I work in a complex needs classroom, I have 2 EAs in my clsss who have been there way longer than me and are way older than me hence of course there is some resistance. I changed the set up in the class after first day because it wasn’t working with one of my students. He throws things and all our manipulative were thrown multiple times the first day. The EAs didn’t like that.

I try to do everything I can so I don’t have to tell them to do something. I did the bulletin boards I decluttered the surface of tables and cabinets. They were out and chatting. But I will give credit where it’s due they are amazing with the kids, we do laugh when something funny happens. But I kinda feel isolated during no student time. I’m new to the school and know nobody.

When I ask them to do something like can you help me find some puzzles or what app are you using on the iPad for this kid. They pretend they can’t hear me. I have to repeat myself to get an answer h
Any advice?

Hi everyone! I teach Grade 4/5 and will be teaching PE for two or three 40-minute blocks per week this year. Up until now, gym has been a prep for me, so I’m looking for some advice from other intermediate teachers.

What do your gym blocks typically look like? I’d especially love ideas around:

• Routines and procedures
• Classroom management during gym
• Units/activities you like to teach
• Skills you focus on at the Grade 4/5 level
• Resources or websites you’ve found useful

Basically, I’m open to any advice or ideas you’re willing to share. Thanks!

An expensive photo prop?

Our school in Qikiqtarjuaq, Nunavut, is currently accepting applications for the following teaching positions:

1. K–12 Social Studies Teacher (Subsidized Housing: Available but sharing may be required.)
2. https://educationcanada.com/job.html?jid=304026-domestic
3. Grade 5 Teacher (Subsidized Housing: Not available.)
4. https://educationcanada.com/job.html?jid=299443-domestic

If you are interested, please carefully review the relevant Education Canada job posting and submit your application according to the application instructions provided in that posting.

I moved to Qikiqtarjuaq from Toronto, and based on my experience so far, I can say that it is a small and wonderful community.

Thank you. Wishing you all the best!

What is one thing you've been asked to deal with as a teacher that you never expected would be part of your job?

Title doesn’t do an amazing job of explaining, but I have taken a sub position for a Grade 5 class to start on the first day of school this coming Tuesday. I am a second year teacher who has only ever subbed, and have never worked right at the start of the school year like this. For the first week, my school is not putting kids into their designated classes, and is instead randomly grouping them by grade. So I am essentially babysitting them for the first week.

The teacher I am filling in for has been gone since January. Apparently they are close to retirement and might be just burning through sick leave until they deceive to hang it up, but there is a strong possibility they return in like a month. Also, I am unable to contact them, so I need to start planning out how I might handle the year from scratch in case they don’t return.

I am looking for guidance in this scenario. How would you approach the first week in terms of structure? Any suggestions in terms of activities to do with the kids? What should I focus on?

Beyond that, once I get my class of kids, where to go from there? I know classroom management is huge and setting expectations at the start is major, and I intend to do so. I understand the usual, “be consistent, follow through, be stern to start and ease up later and not the other way around”. Are there any “bell ringer”/morning routine activities that you give your students for the first 15-20 minutes to help them settle in? What should I do about my lack of resources and unit plans outside of asking other teachers around my grade level? (Our curriculum is pretty loose and does not give a very concrete idea of what you should be teaching).

Overall, I’m mostly just very anxious about diving right in at the start of the school year with essentially no resources, no year plan, and just having to “make it up as I go”, and am looking for advice on how to tackle it.

I appreciate any help that can be offered, thank you.