What is a day in the life of a primary teacher like? Are there days when you have longer/different days?

Question

Are there many training days or events to go to? What are the usual working hours?

Answer 1

Well... I have had a bit of a shock when I found how varied it can be. I find in a "typical" day I arrive at school at around 8am. I may have a meeting before school. I then do some work for the day -  gathering resourses, replannign stuff, photocopying etc. I will generally then do roll etc, then let the kids get on with some work I have set them. I let my kids (they are 11 and 12 years old) choose thier own timetables, where I give them tasks to do, and they do them when the choose, so long as they are done by Friday. I tend to take maths and reading groups throughout the day, and meet with individual children to discuss how their work is going, and do some extra, one on one extension or catch up teaching. I find I try to have a timetable, but it often falls to pieces. Twice a week I have lunchtime duty for half the lunch time, and other times I use lunch to blob or work. In the afternoon we tend to do some of the less 'heady/ academic' work, for example PE and inquiry. After school I usually do work for an hour or two (usually 1 1/2 hours ish). I also get some time off during the week to do paperwork, but that depends on your country and how long you have been teaching for.

There is probably an 'out of school hours' event every three or four weeks. This week it is parent teacher interviews, last week was camp, sometimes we meet with another school and have training and dinner. It depends on the school. I also have some training in school, and my kids go to an extension subject then.

It is hard to say because it is so varied.  I can be sea kayaking one week, and doing really academic assessments the next. Over all it can be very stressful, but can be a heap of fun. Totally worth it :)

Answer 2

My school day is pretty similar day to day.  Our scheduled school day is from 9:00am to 3:45pm.

I usually arrive around 7:45am, which gives me plenty of time to focus and get set for the day.  I like arriving early, because most teachers don't arrive until 8:15 or 8:30, so it gives me a good chunk of work time before the socializing starts (sometimes I'm as bad as the kids!)

Often my morning before kids is putting up the daily agenda and their welcome work.  Then I catch up on any paper checking that I have to do, and often read their notebooks to check in with them.  I do any last minute copying that needs to be done.

Here is a typical agenda for our day:

9:00 - 9:15 - Welcome Work (this is an independent activity they do while I complete attendance, lunch count, and get my head on for the day - observing what "baggage the kids are brining with them that day)

9:15 - 9:30 - Morning Meeting - we meet as a class by the calendar (I can still do this with 3rd graders) and go over calendar activities, the agenda, the poem of the week, and usually a friendship quote.

9:30 - 9:45 - we check homework and welcome work (if it needed correcting)  I find that by checking the work as a class, it gives the kids instant notice of how they did.  It also allows me as a teacher to answer any questions right away, and clear up confusions.  I also love that I rarely have homework papers to grade later on!

9:45 - 10:30 - subject 1 - which is usually reading or math - depending on the day.  Sometimes too, we go until 10:45 or 11:00, it all depends on what the kids need that day

10:30 - 10:45 - snack and story.  I always do a read aloud, even if we only end up reading one or two pages.  Our read alouds are chapter books that tie into the curriculum.  If it is nice, usually in the spring and fall, we'll go outside for a few minutes so they can blow off some steam.

10:45 - 11:45 - second subject - most often math, sometimes writing

11:45 - 11:50 - clean up, check in, prep for lunch (by check in, I mean see what we accomplished in the morning, see where we need to might adjust for the afternoon)

11:50 - 12:20 - lunch!  The kids eat lunch, and usually, so do I!

12:20 - 1:20 - Third subject - usually writing (sometimes I split it into 2 chunks and do handwriting and social studies or something like that)

1:20 - 1:25 - recess prep, catch up, check in (this is technically teacher lunch time - except once a month when I have recess duty)

1:25 - 2:00 - Recess and DLR - DLR is a daily language review packed they do independently.  They do one day, per day (Monday on Monday, Tuesday on Tuesday, etc)

2:00 - 2:05 - Check DLR - we check it together as a class

HERE IS THE VARIANCE - in the afternoons, after recess, my class often has "specials" such as art, music, pe, or spanish.  Many times, one, or both of the next two time chunks are taken with these specials, and I use the time to plan for the rest of the week or do other classroom work that needs doing.

2:05 - 2:45 - subject - usually science or social studies

2:45 - 3:30 - the flip subject - science or social studies, or sometimes catch up from the morning

3:30 - 3:35 - we go over homework, answer any questions

3:35 - 3:40 - get their mail and things, do classroom jobs, and straighten the room.

3:40 - 3:45 - dismissal

A teacher's day is never the same twice, and I've planned a day in the morning that has been completely different by mid morning, and even more different than plan b by lunch!  It all depends on the kids!

Answer 3

The day in the life of a teacher huh?  Well you are a mom (or dad), a disciplinarian, nurse, comforter, protector, and safety net among many other things everyday.    I have been a teacher for 17 years and can tell you with all certainty that every day is a different day.  There are days that seem to fly by and of course those long long days that requre evening parent conferences, grading, planning to name a few. But overall I have found that the degree to which I love what I do is directly related to the amount of effort and love I put toward every one of my children that I come in contact with each day.  There are some training (in service days) that are required that vary from one school district to another.  They can be tedious and rather boring if you allow them to be.  But a necessary evil in our business.  I find that as I gain experience and knowledge that days get somewhat shorter because I am aware of shortcuts or other ways to do things that allow me to better utilize my time.  I have lesson plans that I am able to carry over from one year to the next (the good ones) and "steal" many others from my colleagues.  I have found that collaberation and support to and from others makes my job much easier.