New Job

I wanted to take a minute and blog about my new job for this year. I've been meaning to write about it all summer and just never did.

Last school year, I was a reading specialist in Salem on a "one year only" contract. It was a great job with lots of great opportunities for perfecting my skills as a reading specialist. With budget cuts and things, I would have had to go back to the classroom and teach to stay on in Salem.

Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the three years I spent teaching in the classroom. My students made gains. I had fun every day, loved my colleagues, and was really comfortable. But the thing about classroom teachers is that they work their butts off!! Between planning, paperwork, parents, meetings, grading, etc....it is easy to go early and stay late every single day and still not get it all done. Which was all fine and dandy....

Until I had kids. Now, I want a job where I can work my scheduled hours, not bring anything home at night or weekends, and still make a difference.

Being a reading specialist gives me that exactly. I work 7:30 - 2:30 and occasionally will have to stay over and I never bring work home! Which means more time for my family!

Soooooooo, instead of going back into the classroom, I took another "one year only" reading specialist position with Botetourt. I'm hoping that budgets will improve and they can stop giving out just the one year contracts.

I'm very excited about this job and think that I will like it even more than last year. It is 50% as a reading coach, which is basically coaching the teachers on improving their reading instruction and 50% working with struggling readers. Everything has been really organized and we have been told exactly what is expected of us (something I didn't get at Salem). I even have to give some professional development classes county-wide in the coming months! Yikes! That part makes me nervous. Me and public speaking do not go well together...LOL, but I'm sure I will survive.

There are two other girls who got the same position at other schools and we have gotten really close! They are going to be my life line this year.

I'll try to post pics of my new classroom as soon as I can. Wish me luck!