Advice on Treading Water

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Advice on Treading Water
By Michelle

Every first year teacher feels that they are drowning - I promise. The trick to treading water is to make priorities and to take good care of yourself. I just finished my first year of teaching, and something that helped
me out was making lists. That way, I had a visual of everything that I had to do, and it feels great to cross something off the list! Also, that way you can prioritize so that you get the most important things done first. Also, don't try to do everything and be the "perfect" teacher. You are new at a job, and no matter what the profession, the beginning is always the toughest and you

will always feel like you don't know what you are doing. This is true even if you were just working at McDonald flipping burgers! Teaching just takes a little longer because there is SO much stuff to get used to. What you need to do is to focus on the kids. Things will come to you with time. I spent this past summer prepping for the coming year because I knew there were areas that I needed to work on. I am now going into my second year feeling much more confident and prepared. You will still feel like you are only treading water way into the second marking period. Then, by the end of the third, you will have it all under control, and by the end of the fourth, you might actually be able to swim somewhere! Hope this makes you smile and feel like you aren't the only one in this situation! Good luck and come here for support!