Thinking about live-tweeting my day as a public school teacher who is teaching virtually after reading comments about how teachers are lazy & should be giving parents half our checks, etc. While surely there are some folks who aren’t working hard, I can show what my day is like.

Okay! I’m gonna do it. Today. For reference: I have been teaching for 15 years. This year, I’m teaching 7th grade AVID (a college prep class), 7th grade English intervention, 8th grade English intervention & two sections of 8th grade English. I see three classes per day.

My contract requires me to teach “live” for 15 minutes at the start of each class & then another 15 somewhere in the 90 minute blocks my students have. I am expected to have asynchronous activities for the other 60. *Personally* I don’t give homework for a myriad of reasons.

It’s 7:56. My class does not start until 9 AM (contract time is technically 8:45 AM) but I need to get prepped and ready to go, so I am here & logging in.

This week, we have been learning about ourselves as students. Each made a Google Slide about their style, which they will show to the class. It helps build community & also builds their esteem as they see their own unique gifts. I’m compiling all slides for the presentation.

Real life teaching 8th grade: one student decorated his slide with his YouTube handle that happens to include a lot of “69” — I sent him a message letting him know he needs to make a change or he won’t be permitted to present.

A not-insignificant number of kids in this class period didn’t finish. This is an intervention class so engagement is lower. I will send individual follow-ups to each kid. I allow late work by the end of the quarter, no penalty. I do ask them to tell me why it was late.

Why no late policy? All of us miss deadlines & have discussions. Also GLOBAL PANDEMIC. Internet issues. Life is hard! I don’t get joy from taking points away. I want learning not rigidity ya know? Also I did every assignment late in my MA work because DEPRESSION so It happens.

I have compiled presentations for each of my 3 classes today. Google Classroom also makes it easy for me to email students who did not complete the work so I have sent them all emails encouraging them to submit it before class so they can earn credit for presenting today.

Also: if kids feel like they’ll be in trouble for not doing work, they don’t do it to avoid the discussion. A simple “hey, I still wanna see it!” usually does elicit more work.

On Wednesdays, we have short days with only 15 minute class meetings. I have kids complete this social-emotional wellness check in. I read & respond to kids who are struggling. I’ve already replied to many but some are still trickling in so I like to keep checking responses.

I track kids I respond to so that if I see a pattern, I can refer them out to a counselor or social worker. The highlights are kids from one class period who said this week was rough. I email each of them to see how I can help.

Soooo we are having Zoom issues today! I painstakingly set up recurring meetings for each of my classes which I now have to change & redo. Ughhhh. I have 25 mins to try & get this issue sorted.

Okay, we are kinda ready. I run class the same way each day:

1. A meme or would you rather question or some fun check-in while everyone is getting in to Zoom.

2. Review our daily agenda & objectives

3. Content lesson

4. Check for understanding

5. Next steps

6. Questions

Today’s meme:

Today’s agenda.

Well, my live session for my first class period is done. It was rough due to Zoom issues. That said, we got through it.

I have another live in a bit but here’s what I am trying to start tackling until then:

Much of my day is spent trying to make work accessible for kids who cannot make it to Zoom sessions or who would need to see & hear directions one-on-one. I record EVERY assignment’s directions for students because for some it’s an accommodation but it’s also good teaching.

Okay! So I have completed two of my three “live” Zooms for the day. I also haven’t left my chair or stopped working for three hours. In addition to trying to get things off my to-do list, I’ve replied to 20+ emails! Mostly answering student questions!

I did knock out one HUGE thing, which is recording a walkthrough video of an assignment for next week using Screencastify. My goal is always to set my work up with the mindset that ANYONE could log in & just do work asynchronously if need be. Including parents trying to help!

I get an hour for lunch & off duty time. Today I took 25 mins & ate some leftovers my wife heated up for me. I’m back at it again before my next live Zoom in about an hour.

I truly don’t remember the last time I took a full lunch when it wasn’t summer or break. It just...isn’t possible.

The next thing I am doing is recording some audio directions for a Google Slides presentation kids will need on Monday as they start a diagnostic. Why do this? So ALL kids have access, including struggling readers or families who may understand English but not read it.

Just finished my last Live Zoom. Today was a doozy because we switched authentication & it’s a mess. But I have nine zillion things to do so while I am done with kids, I am nowhere near done.

I just scheduled all my Zoom meetings for next week & got them in Google Classroom. It’s the third time I have had to do this due to security shifts. It also highlights one of the biggest shifts: so much basic management of things is required just to GET kids to class.

To-Do list check-in: I got everything done but grading (and I made a good dent). I am required to give a diagnostic exam next week to 4/5 classes so I will tackle it then.

The remainder of my time today will go to the following:

1. Updating my agendas for next week
2. Scheduling the nuts & bolts (getting attendance forms posted, getting Zoom info posted, polishing lesson plans, etc.)
3. Communicating with families about our diagnostic next week.

I have a hard stop at 2:55 today because I have a 3 PM appointment but that’s unusual: most days I work until 3:30 or later. But I always try to end Friday feeling set up for the week to come. I have loose plans for the next month but they could change.

Here’s my final thoughts: I am not a teacher who thinks we work harder than any other profession. Lots of jobs are stressful! But it is A LOT. Distance learning means less kid-time & more organization. I can’t make copies or vamp or hold discussions forever.

But to parents, I could see that it feels like less time because our “face time” is shorter. And I also know there are teachers treating this like a vacation & others who work every second of the day. I truly believe most of us are working super hard!

This is new! I’m using a different part of my brain for sure. I am always organized & prepped but it’s harder to do now. I also feel strongly that I keep to my contract most of the time. I go to kids’ games or work extra for fun things but try to keep clean breaks.

I’ve been at this long enough to know that teaching can eat your life. I’m also a writer, wife, comic (lolsob I miss comedy) & HUMAN BEING. I take my job seriously & I work my butt off to be good at it. But I no longer give my whole life to teaching.

I see a lot of working parents saying teachers aren’t doing much & I would encourage you to consider how different your job is from home. Fewer meetings, more emails, less commute, etc. I spent a lot of time thinking about how to make this year work for kids & families.

Will I mess up? Yes, duh. But not for lack of trying. Or hard work. Most teachers I know are working hard! I’ve been at it since 8 AM with a 25 minute break & will also work past this. I spent much of my day connecting with at-risk kids & trying to accommodate their needs.

One of the common, hurtful sentiments I’ve seen has been that no one is advocating for at-risk kids. We are. It may not be sexy & flashy & obvious to an untrained eye but many of us are doing it daily in big & small ways.

Anyway, if you enjoyed this or learned or re-thought your feelings on education right now, give this a RT. I have talked to at least one crying teacher every day this week because of insensitive comments about how we aren’t working. I’m not everyone but I think I am average.

Let me add: I am also a human, affected by COVID, life stuff, etc. I am not immune to the things we are all facing these days. Teachers are expected to be superhuman or sacrificial. And like...no. I can’t be. I struggle with anxiety & hard stuff too! And that’s okay!

But to think we can manage it all or somehow don’t have our own concerns? Nope. If you want to uplift your kid’s teacher, send a nice email & cc their principal. Email them a Starbucks card. Or just be kind in communication. Ask questions before getting mad. We are humans.

Well, it’s 7:47 & I just spent an hour answering parent & student emails & finishing some planning so