Teaching Taylor

Like seriously. I had a student come up to me and say “You stink, don’t you wear deodorant?” Teaching high school is weird sometimes. Kids say the craziest things to you, you overhear the weirdest phrases in the hallway, but yet I just LOVE IT.

Not all of you may know this, but I started my teaching career as a 4th grade teacher. I went to school for elementary education and I landed my dream job shortly after student teaching. I was so pumped, but also so nervous. You know how you dream of something for so long and when it happens you can’t even believe it’s real? Yeah, that was me when it came to getting my own classroom.

Not only did I have my dream job, I also had my dream team. I scored the best team ever. We were a young team at the time (well we’re all still young) but Miranda, Taylor and I were eager to work together and make school fun for our students. We participated in the dress up days, we were creative with what we taught in our classrooms and we just worked really well together. Then this thing called a pandemic happened…

First year teacher and still navigating through all of the things and forced to say goodbye early to my first ever class. What a way to start your teaching career, huh? Thankfully with the help of my dream team and technology we got through it. It wasn’t ideal, but we did it and we stuck together through it. The second year of teaching was filled with social distancing and wearing a mask and so much more, but nontheless as a team we got through that too.

I have to share a super important part of my teaching journey though, this part of my career really rocked my world, but also shaped me into the educator that I am today. At the end of April, in my second year of teaching, Miranda and I got the dreaded conversation that no teacher ever wants to have. We were being let go. Unfortunately, this happens in education. You don’t ever want to believe it, but it happens. Budget cuts and rearranging can lead to people being let go, but can also lead to you being rehired or moving to new positions. Education is wild sometimes.

When I reflect back on the first two years of teaching, I can’t help but think of how I am not sure if I would’ve made it through that time of teaching if it wasn’t for those two girls on my teaching team. We were constantly each-other’s support system and helped one another through all of the things. They truly became some of my closest and dearest friends who I still communicate with to this day. Life wouldn’t be the same without them. They encouraged me and helped me through so much and that is exactly what I needed when I started my new journey.

This where becoming a Family and Consumer Science teacher comes into play, after being cut and unsure of what to do, I prayed. My husband and I prayed so much during that time. I didn’t know what to do. My dream job was gone, so I thought anyway.

Oddly enough, there was a Family and Consumer Science position opening up at the high school level. This girl was NOT a high school teacher, but God put something on my heart to inquire about it. I love cooking, baking, fashion and so much more that falls into the curriculum that I would need to teach, so it seemed like an opportunity worth looking into.

When I say God was at work, I mean it. GOD WAS AT WORK. I landed the Family and Consumer Science job so easily it seemed and I couldn’t even believe it was real. Only God can make those kind of things happen. He knew exactly what I needed, even when I had not the slightest clue. I was taking classes for my masters degree, but also dove into FACS licensure classes right away. Talk about a busy time. I navigated a lot of online schooling, but God had my back once again and I completed both my masters degree and FACS licensure by the end of my third year of teaching.

Learning the ropes wasn’t easy and some days I felt like I was flying by the seat of my pants. Some days I didn’t feel confident. Some days I questioned why God had this in my plan of life, but I just kept pushing on because I knew my students needed me.

Becoming a FACS teacher was such an unexpected gift to my life. When I started teaching in general, it was such a grind especially because I had to work through the pandemic. If you’re a teacher, you know what I mean when I say it’s a grind. I honestly thought that it would always feel that way. Boy, was I wrong. It gets better and it keeps getting better and better. Don’t get me wrong some days are a grind for sure, but now that I’m getting into the swing of things, even after the abrupt change of career paths, it’s been nothing short of amazing.

Take my blog title for example. Most people probably wouldn’t enjoy hearing the phrase “You stink, don’t you wear deodorant?” But I do. It shows that students are comfortable around me. It shows that I have taken time to build a relationship with them where they are comfortable to tell me the truth, to tell me the real, and to even joke around a bit with me. That phrase turned into the running joke for the entire semester. Thankfully I found out I don’t actually stink and that student just wanted to pick on me just a little bit. Which lead to a semester of laughs and learning for not just this student, but myself and that class as well.

Now don’t get me wrong, not everyday in my classroom is rainbows and butterflies. Not every lesson goes as planned but I’m trying my best to fulfill the work God has placed on my heart. I’m trying to consistently create an environment where students can see the light of Him through me.

Being a teacher isn’t easy (Yes I know we get summers off, but we NEED it and a lot of us are still doing school stuff to prepare for the next year), but it is SO WORTH IT. I have coworkers who go along with my crazy ideas and help me stay positive regardless the storm we weather as educators and for that I’m grateful. If you see a teacher after reading this, thank them or share a memory you have of them. They will appreciate it. I promise you that.