I wasn’t going to blog today. My plan was to run (8.2 miles in the nice, cool morning air. Glorious.), have breakfast and coffee, and then head in to work to start working on my classroom. But J is going in today, too, so we decided to carpool, and he’s taking a long time to get ready. This is a post I started yesterday, and since I was waiting around, I finished it up.
Ten Awesome Things about Being a Teacher
Obviously, the best parts of teaching are watching kids “get it,” getting to know your students and sharing in their successes and failures, being the shoulder to cry on or the palm to high-five when a kid needs either. Those are the reasons people get into teaching in the first place. But once you are a teacher, you discover that there are some other fun little perks that come along with being an educator (and no, they’re not “June, July, and August.” The next shmuck that makes that joke gets punched in the throat). Here are a few:
- The massive paycheck. Ha. Ha. Ha. Just kidding. But since we don’t get a massive paycheck, we do get…
- Discounts. While the media may hate us sometimes, people in the real world like us. And they know that we don’t make much money. Many places give teacher discounts (here’s one list ), and even those that don’t advertise discounts might hook you up if you mention that you teach. J and I have gotten discounts on everything from clothes to gym memberships to travel by mentioning that we’re educators.
- You don’t have to sit at a desk in a cubicle all day. Sitting is killing you. This recent Runner’s World article is one of many that I have read recently that explain how terrible for you all-day sitting is. As a teacher, you’re on your feet, walking around, literally all day. Extra calorie burn, anyone?
- No one judges you for your caffeine addiction. I think it’s actually a prerequisite to drink copious amounts of coffee. I tell my kids that they should probably expect a coffee spill on at least one paper per year.
- Or for reading adolescent lit. This took up a fairly substantial part of my summer. It’s research, right?
- You’re easily excited. Some things that excite you:
- You get to wear a new outfit on the first day of school. I still do this. Every year.
- Someone will always laugh at your incredibly unfunny jokes. It’s probably the kid who really wants an A in your class and hasn’t realized that kissing up doesn’t actually affect her grade, but at least you’re guaranteed a giggle.
(I will forgive the missing commas here because I like what it says.) - You still get to go to prom. Actually, that’s not a perk. It’s kind of gross to watch your kids grind up on each other, and you realize that you’re super old because you’re exhausted before the dance even starts.
- It’s never boring. Every class is different, every kid is different, and every day is different. It’s awesome.
Yep, being a teacher is pretty fantastic. I’m getting excited for the start of a new year!
What are some perks I forgot?
If you’re not a teacher, tell me some little-known perks of your job.
Rural Running Redhead 
I can’t wait to *officially* become a teacher! I met with one of the teachers I will be student teaching with this fall and it got me excited. 🙂 Wonder if I can use the teacher discount early 😉
Some places ask for your school ID, but I’ve forgotten it before and most go ahead and give you the discount. I’d say give it a try!
I actually have used the teacher discount at my gym, and I’m not an official teacher yet……. It is pretty awesome.
How much fun! My coworker just left his job to become a teacher. I admire anyone in the field these days! The school system is tough… especially in California.
I am currently seeking a teacher position and can’t wait to have my own classroom some day! As I am waiting for this dream of mine to happen, I sub. One of the best perks about teaching/subbing is when the kids hug you! I could be having a difficult day and when a student hugs me, it makes me smile! OR when I am requested over and over for a particular classroom and the students are excited to see me! That makes subbing/waiting for my classroom worth it 🙂
Ha, all that sounds awesome! I’m not a teacher, but a lot of my friends are.
There are a TON of perks for my job, but I think that they are pretty organization-specific (I work at Nat Geo). But some of the awesome things we have are a farmer’s market, Green Fridays (every other Friday off in the summer to save on energy costs), and we get to listen to presentations from all sorts of incredible explorers/researchers/adventurers/photographers all the time. Today Dean Karnazes came in to talk to us, which was AWESOME!
I just read your post about Dean…so cool!
Teachers are awesome and deserve so much more respect than they get. I had no idea about the discounts. I must confess that I keep my student ID in my wallet and still try to get discounts ;). Perks of my job – travel to fun places, discounts/comp hotel stays.
This is so fun! My sister is a teacher and I’m jealous about many of the perks you mentioned! 🙂 And I (not a teacher) still love YA Fiction – no need for an excuse. 🙂
This is such a fantastic list! Number 9 made me laugh out loud, because as I walk through the halls of the high school, I don’t feel all that much older than them, but then one of them will do something that just totally disgusts me and I realize I’m that old teacher now. And the standing thing is spot on! You’re a wonderful writer.
Thanks! It definitely doesn’t take long to realize that even though they are bigger and taller than me, high schoolers are still kids.