Maintaining good classroom management skills is a constant work in progress. In school, teachers learn how to construct lessons, differentiate learning, and follow state standards. Nowhere in school does it teach how to deal with depression, anxiety, or death. In the past month, I have had to deal with all of these issues.

How does one explain to a student that they have to leave a speech tournament because their father passed away in his sleep. Not to mention that I knew that this happened and I could not tell her. To make matters worse it was an hour and a half drive from where we were to her home. That was difficult. I just kept talking about anything that I could think of just to keep her mind occupied.

If that situation wasn’t bad enough, I came back to school on Monday only to find out that another student lost his mother that weekend as well. Teaching is a strange, terrible, wonderful job. There are days when it feels like everything is going to be all well, only to be followed by days that seem as if I am in a waking nightmare.

Why don’t they teach us how to deal with any of this? I realize that the content and lessons are important, but there are things that are important for the sanity and well being of the students and the teachers. I don’t think that many people realize just how emotionally draining this job can be. It is not a physically taxing job, but it can take a toll on you mentally and emotionally.

I get that this blog is supposed to be about literature, but I am finding that I have so much more to say about teaching and life in general. Don’t get me wrong, I loooove my content area, but sometimes I need to talk about other stuff. So if you are not opposed, I may veer off topic now and then or often whatever the case may be. With that in mind, I will continue with this post.

There are some situations in life that we can never be prepared enough for. Whether it is anxiety, depression, or a myriad of other health issues floating around, a school teacher must deal with all of the above. I cannot tell you all enough that maintaining your health while working in a germ factory is virtually impossible. Washing your hands, disinfecting the classroom, getting plenty of sleep, and keeping a distance from those who are sick helps, but it is far from foolproof. I have been fortunate enough not to have ever had lice. I have safely avoided COVID 19. I try to avoid the flu by getting a yearly flu shot. There really isn’t any way to avoid some things. Colds and stomach bugs come and go. In my time as a teacher, I have had pink eye, scarletina, and the kind of flu that isn’t avoidable with a vaccine. Health is a balancing act that sometimes comes crashing down.

I don’t know how other jobs work, but I can tell you that it is much easier to just go to work not feeling well than to make a lesson that any person with a pulse can teach in your absence. It is also one of those instances that moves along even when you are not at your best. Unless my head feels like it might explode or I may need to run to the restroom to avoid throwing up in front of my class, I try to power through.

Remembering back to when I was a student, I rarely ever missed school. I was fortunate not to be a sickly child. I was also blessed with relatively healthy children. When students miss school it is sometimes difficult to get them to make up any missing work. This is where another question hated by teachers everywhere comes into play. “Did I miss anything yesterday?” Can you feel my eyes rolling to the back of my head? It is so annoying.

In a teacher’s absence, students will try to manipulate a substitute into not getting anything done. I do remember that some of my peers were not exactly kind to them. They each came with a nickname and some complaints upon the teacher’s return. I have missed a few days this year and the one time I was gone my second hour class ended up without a substitute in the room. They sat quietly and policed themselves. I was stunned to find this out. I am not surprised that they were good, but they should not have had to function on their own. This just proves my point about missing being far more difficult than coming to school ill.

All this to say that teaching is a calling. Not just anyone can come in and do what is necessary in order to help foster a love for learning. People born to be teachers are a different kind of breed. When asked what I do for a living and I tell them, their response is often ew, why would you ever do that or they may state that they could never put up with the students. I actually enjoy my job. My days are not perfect and there are days that I feel like tearing my hair out, but when you see a student grow and discover something new, it is all worthwhile.

To go back to the beginning of this post, there are many skills that college does not equip a teacher with, but those with the calling know that there is nowhere else they would rather be.

Until next time,

Cat