My first year of teaching high school is officially over. I can't believe how fast the year has flown by. Over the course of this year, I've learned a few things about teaching and about myself. Here's a list of things that I've learned and maybe you'll get a kick out of them or learn something yourself.
1.
Teacher make mistakes. And lots of them! I had no idea that my teachers were real people in high school. I pretty much thought they were robots that dumped all of their information on us. Nope... They probably made more mistakes than I realized. I especially made mistakes on Fridays and I joked with them every time a made a mistake that it was my first one ever, and only a couple students actually really noticed most of them.
2.
I am hilarious. I think I told a total of about 5 jokes to each of my math classes. But somehow, all of my end of year notes said something like, "Mrs. Abel, I will always remember you for your silly math jokes. Thanks for making math funny." I had no idea I was so funny until now.. maybe I should have been a comedian.
3.
Cheating is ridiculous. I know this may sound obvious, but the extent to which my students would go to cheat was extremely ridiculous. If the spent as much time studying as they did writing their entire months notes on a note card and taking a picture with their phone (only to get caught), they would have done so much better than a 0! I'm sure they many students got away with cheating that I didn't catch, but really?
4.
End of term sucks. My students don't ever care about their grades before it's the LAST day of the term. They'll be grounded, they'll lose their scholarship, they will DIE! (Yes, I've even heard that one). Well, you should have thought about that when you got a F on your test and didn't retake it. Next year I think I'll use all my sick days on the last week of each term.
5.
No one likes math teachers. Of course I had a few lovely students who adored me, but in general people hate math teachers. We give homework every day, there aren't that many math videos out there, and I'm just not as cool as the hip photo teacher who gives fun assignments! (that they still probably don't do) Worst of all is parent teacher conference. I sit at the very front (Abel) and hear the parents say, "Well, I only really want to talk to your math teacher." So, the math teachers get the long lines and the angry parents.
6.
I love my job. I know I complain, but I have the best job in the world! It makes it all worth it when a students comes and asks you for non-math advice, or tells you how much they understand math now, or when your whole class does super well on a hard test. It's so rewarding, and I teach much more than just mathematics concepts. Even though some students disliked me, the fact that some of them were really influenced by me makes my heart smile. Teaching is SO hard, but it's worth it!
There you have it. I can't wait for next year! Well, maybe I can... I am excited to rest for a couple months. I think it will take me all summer to recover. And Matt and I are now in Boise, ID ready for an adventure.
