Middle School Life
Welcome to Middle School Life, where innovation meets education! Join us as we explore the latest trends, share inspiring ideas, and discuss strategies to create an enriching middle school experience for all.
In each episode, your hosts, Assistant Principal Victoria Hammond and middle school teacher Dr. Jennifer Erdmann, will bring their wealth of knowledge and passion for education to the forefront.
Middle School Life
The New Teacher Experience: Navigating Challenges, Embracing Self-Care, and Cultivating Classroom Joy
Ever wondered what it's like to walk a mile in a new teacher's shoes? Miss Samantha Ballman, with her refreshing honesty and second-year teaching wisdom, joins us to unravel the real deal behind the classroom door. From juggling the demands of time management to fostering a nurturing learning environment, we dissect the trials and triumphs that shape the early years of an educator's career. Samantha's revelations about the lifelines thrown by seasoned teachers and mentors shine a light on the communal spirit that buoys the fledgling pedagogues.
Submerge into our conversation about infusing classrooms with levity and carving out moments for 'brain breaks.' These strategic pauses are more than just a breather—they're a golden thread weaving together trust, rapport, and joy within the educational tapestry. Find out how these purposeful interludes can charge up a classroom's battery, align with resilience standards, and fortify the scaffolding of effective classroom management. We also peel back the curtain on the intricate dance of teaching strategies and the paramount importance of the teacher-student dynamic for scholastic success.
Round off your listening experience with a heartfelt dialogue on the often-neglected aspect of the teaching vocation: the art of self-preservation. We lay bare the taboo surrounding self-care in education, challenging the myth that putting oneself first is selfish. With personal experiences as our guide, we advocate for mental health days and the boldness to draw boundaries—all in pursuit of a balanced life that empowers educators to be their best selves for their students. Join us in this candid exploration of the passion and dedication that fuel the teaching profession, a journey punctuated with gratitude and a rallying cry for community support.
Good afternoon listeners, or good morning or good night, depending on where you're tuning in from. Welcome to episode seven of Middle School Life, the podcast. Today we are diving into the new year and gaining fresh perspectives from a newer teacher. Welcome, miss Samantha Balman, joining us today in her second year of teaching, and she is here today in the new year to talk about some of her perspectives and talk about how teaching has been to her so far, what it's like being a new teacher and how she thinks we can help the next generation of new teachers stay and how can we maintain those teachers long term in the field of education so that our students can get the best. Welcome.
Speaker 2:Thank you, happy to be here.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm glad you're here and I think that this is a. We've spent the first six episodes or so, I guess, talking about things that are important to us in the school, but now is a really good time, as we start the new year, to to kind of reframe and refocus ourselves on the importance of listening to all voices, and you know we really haven't talked about the new teacher voice yet too much.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, and I just wanted to say to our listeners I know we said we were gonna talk about new goals and student goal setting and that is still up on the docket, but we really wanted to take advantage of our school break and we had a wonderful opportunity to have Miss Balman join us today. So thank you guys so much and stay tuned next week where we do talk about student goal setting. So real quick, I just have a question. Miss Balman, what do you think has been the greatest challenge as a new teacher coming into education?
Speaker 2:I would say the biggest challenge is just getting into the swing of things like setting good routines and good time management skills. I guess is like my biggest struggle.
Speaker 3:I think that's a struggle for anybody. I know, even when I started out I had time management down kind of, but it was for me that was the, the management of the actual lesson too. Yes, you know that was. You know I still would struggle with that. You know the timing of lessons. In addition to you know the classroom management piece or the time management piece, yeah, so what tools have you used that are helpful for that or that you've used or found helpful?
Speaker 2:It's almost just come with experience, like as I've gone through lessons and trial and error, like now coming into this is like the second full year I'm coming into and now that I kind of have my bearings on like the pacing of the curriculum and the mandates that they throw in, just kind of timing around that kind of stuff. It's just gotten easier with time. But also asking others like hey, when this happens, what do you do? How, like just the support of other teachers?
Speaker 3:And I think that's important, that you are open. I've seen other newer teachers that aren't so receptive to that and I think that's a great downfall. Yeah, and you know, especially if they're just stuck in their rooms all the time and don't come out to get like even just saying, hey, how's your day going and how'd that class go? And. But some of the newer teachers I don't know if it's intimidation or they just don't feel comfortable seeking that guidance from teachers with more experience.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like that need to feel like, oh, I've got this, I don't need help. Like that strong need for independence is. Everybody has it, everybody wants to be 100% competent right out the gate, but realizing like, oh my gosh, how about I use all of these people around me to grow and learn more? Because there's no way I would be where I'm at in my career without every single teacher who helped me along the way. Because, no, no one person knows it all. No principle, no assistant principle, no superintendent. Nobody has all the answers.
Speaker 1:It truly takes collaboration, teamwork and learning and growing from one another to create true, lasting change. So another thing I was just curious about and I'm super excited you're joining us today is how do you feel you could be better supported right out the gate? Like what are some of the things you're like, man, I wish somebody would have told me this, or I wish I would have had this. Like that would have been really helpful starting out now that you have a little bit of experience. Like if I would have known this, it would have made my first year even more smooth.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, when I started I just kind of was thrown into the classroom. Like I think I got one day to be shown around the school and then the next day I was just in the classroom, which, like I do have slight experience. I do come from a preschool background, so I kind of had an idea of what to do. But it really was just I was just like thrown into it and but then last year a new teacher started and she actually got to shadow me for like a week and I think that is like ideal to for someone to be able to actually see what happens in the classroom and get, even if it's just a week, just to see how things flow, how behaviors are handled. It kind of also gave her a chance to get to know another teacher at school that could help her out To, whereas at first I did feel kind of isolated.
Speaker 2:The PLC I was in was good, but I was also started in a portable, so I was like in an island at first and I was a little nervous to reach out and talk to the other teachers at first. But I'm just, I was super lucky the math and the science teacher that were like across the way would check in and not on me all the time. You would check in on me, stuff like that. So I think I got lucky. I think if I ended up somewhere else where people weren't as welcoming, I probably wouldn't have stayed teaching yeah.
Speaker 1:So how much that that peer and having somebody at work that you can trust and go to is invaluable and making sure we make people who are new on our campuses feel welcome, and how important it is to not just, you know, stick with. Oh, I know these two people, so I'm only going to talk to these new people. It's really helpful. Thank you for sharing that. That's very helpful and I can imagine just like I think especially now with the place education is going, especially in middle school and secondary, where you have teachers who are coming from out of field and they don't have that internship experience like how absolutely powerful it is to give new teachers who are new to education time to watch other teachers in practice.
Speaker 2:Yeah, because I don't have a degree in education, my degrees in political science. Just so happened that I used to work at a daycare and kind of knew, because, honestly, some of these middle school behaviors are very much like three year olds.
Speaker 3:It comes in handy daycare. It's school, preschool. Yes, I mean it's. They're very similar.
Speaker 2:Scarely similar. They're just bigger and smell worse.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah, when I started. I don't have an education background either. My undergrad is political science as well, but when I started I had the best. I mean, the social studies department was just so supportive and that is what made all the difference. And I was also an affordable and but I never. And I did feel isolated.
Speaker 3:But the math teacher who was my team leader at the time, she was also an affordable and I was constantly going down my stairs, up her stairs, you know. It was constant back and forth and she had the patience of a saint truly. And because I had no idea, no idea what I was doing, I was older when I started teaching, so I had just the experience of being older and I was already a mom and my kids were about that age, about middle school age, and so that's pretty much the only thing I'd go in for me at that time, without an education background. My internship, if you will, for lack of a better word, was three days. You know I did. I did do that in another title one, school, so I wasn't too shocked by title one.
Speaker 2:Oh and that shock was, yeah, a lot, because I came from upper middle class, right high school area and that just the difference was like. Not only is it like a generational difference, because it's been a long time since I was in middle school, but also just the area that I'm in is a whole new world, it is different. It is different for sure.
Speaker 1:It's very different. It's like two completely different worlds and I do think there's give and take, like the grass isn't always greener on the other side. But you truly have to have a special heart, you truly have to be a patient human being and be. The patience you guys have in the ability to build relationships with those kids is key. But think about how vast your impact is on those student lives, because when you're going to another school like they, most of those kids have a positive adult role models. But thinking of the fact that 10 years from now you're going to have students that you reach, you're going to make an impact with kids who didn't have many other positive adult role models and sometimes that comes out in some very unloving ways. But like what a difference like you get to make in the world.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean there's kids that drive me insane.
Speaker 2:And then I'll talk to just one particular person and I'll be like, oh well, you know XYZ happened and you're like, oh, and it's just like a moment of clarity of that's why they're acting this way, and it just makes things more clear and it breaks your heart because I want the best for them, like I want them to learn everything they need to know, to act in a way that's just going to help them and make their future better and everything like that.
Speaker 2:And I mean, I know there's like that kind of like meme where it's like did you build a relationship with the student? But it's so true, though, because there's students that, for whatever reason I, they vibe with me, like we get along, but then I'll hear other teachers talk about that student and they're like a completely different person, and vice versa. There's some kids that like we just don't get along, but they get along with other people. So it's. It really is just that like relationship building piece of it, and they do. The ones you have a better relationship with, obviously they do behave better. Like it's not going to solve all the problems, like they're still going to act a fool in the cafeteria sometimes, but at least there's still be, you know, a lot of that's just being kids.
Speaker 3:Yes, exactly.
Speaker 2:You know, they're just kids Like sometimes I forget that I'll get into, just I'll be so focused on the lesson and like the data and all this other stuff, and then I'm like getting on getting on to them because they're not able to answer what happened at the constitutional convention, even though we've been talking about it for two weeks. I about lost it. And then I was like you know what? It's almost winter break, they're tired, I'm tired. Your children, like you're 12 and it just hits me sometimes that I'm like oh okay, we just need to take a couple steps back here and that's good that you can remember, that.
Speaker 3:You can take that time for yourself to remember that too, because that is hard to do. Yeah, especially, we think of our content is like it is important. They still need to know this, but to them it's not necessarily no, all the time.
Speaker 2:Miss? Why do I have to learn this, miss? This doesn't matter. I'm like, yes, it does. And it's not even just the content, it's also the skills. Like I'm a social studies teacher. It's the reading skills, like of being able to read informational text and pull information from it. And even if you don't remember what the constitutional convention was, but maybe if someone puts a paper in front of you, you can read it and you can know like you can get the core details out of it Right. So it's not just the content, it's also the skills, and it's they have a hard time grasping that reasoning, but I just keep repeating it to them every time because it's just they need to know their why.
Speaker 2:Another like thing that is so annoying to hear, but like when you think of it out of that context, remember your why. Like that is annoying, but like when you do think about it in a more serious way, it is like it gives a purpose to things.
Speaker 3:And I think that's the bigger key is is the purpose.
Speaker 1:I have another question, if you don't mind me asking what do you think has been your greatest moment teaching middle schoolers? Like I know, there's so many probably off the wall bizarre days and weird things that have happened in your classroom, but what has been like a great takeaway or some reason where you're like you know what? Like even on my worst day, like that happened and so I'm really glad I chose this crazy up and down career because this really is worth it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm. I would say again, it comes back to the relationships with them. I had a student recently who just something was going on in a different classroom and she didn't feel comfortable going to anyone but me and I'm not happy that something upsetting is happening to her. But it did make me feel like, oh, I'm actually doing something good here because she was comfortable coming and talking to me and trusted me. And I don't know, it's just. I know I can have a hard time opening up to people and to know that someone else sees me as someone to open up to, that was like that felt really good in the weird, just again like I'm not happy that something was happening to her.
Speaker 2:But it just it was like a good, like affirmation of oh I'm, I am making that impact, like you guys have talked about, like in the title one school, like I am that person she can come to and feel confident sharing things with and stuff like that it just, yeah, and sometimes like something funny will happen and like we'll all laugh together in the classroom and like that makes it worth it, even if the period before was a nightmare and they were talking over me, throwing things, whatever. But if the next class comes in and they can actually sit down, do the work and then we have time to do like a brain breaker, whatever, and we can play silence be ball or we can have a laugh or whatever. Like just when we can get the learning done and have fun doing it, that's like the best part of it.
Speaker 3:I think we've taken a lot of the fun out of education and I think Tori and I were talking and I said I love school. I loved school when I was a kid and it was because it was fun.
Speaker 3:We learned a lot. I would go home dragging tired I mean just so tired. A lot of our kids go home and they're fresh as daisies running out to the bus and because I don't think that learning has been fun for them and we can do both. Like you said, there's room for both, and I wish others higher than we are.
Speaker 1:We understand that, I think for sure, and I really like what you were just talking about when you were talking about brain breaks.
Speaker 1:A lot of the times if you look at the research, it says that middle school schoolers average attention span is no more than 10 minutes. I believe that. So could you talk to us a little bit more about like the way you use brain breaks and maybe like an example of a brain break you use in class that you think really gets the kids like it allows them to get some of their energy out and then kind of refocus? Because I know for a fact that when I was your social studies coach, when I was over at your school, like I did see you doing those with kids, like even in your first semester teaching, and you could see the kids kind of be like yes, we got a break, and then I saw them go back into the learning. So I saw you do that very effectively from very early point in your career and I'm sure over time that you've crafted the practice to be even more impactful. So could you share a little bit more about that with us?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, I just explain it to them like, hey, as long as we can do this and then focus back up, we can continue to do this. And it's like you have to come to an agreement with them and set expectations of how it's going to work, Otherwise it will turn into a free for all and, like I do have classes where they don't get the. They, I guess, violate the agreement, like they don't focus, refocus and stuff like that, and then they just lose those privileges and but that's still teaching them.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's appropriate behavior, absolutely. You know that's still teaching them that if they don't live up to their end of the bargain, then there's going to be those consequences, and you know. But I think, even as adults, 50 minutes of nothing but trying to concentrate for a few, I can't do it. I can't do it. I need a break. Why should students be any different? You know, yeah. So I just think that that's good that you've done that.
Speaker 1:So I definitely feel like there's. It depends on the situation and how it's structured. So I would say, as an administrator, there are pieces of the learning environment and when you're looking at how well the classroom is managed and how the kids kind of they know they come in, they know the expectations, they know what to do. So I feel very strongly that if you're in there and you're observing a class for an entire 50 minutes and you have a strategic brain break in there for the kids and I have seen that more as a coach than I have as an administrator but when I go in and see that for me I feel like it's going to score higher with the learning environment and with that relationship piece building with the kids. Because, yes, it's not 100% focused on a standard like a core subject standard, but we also have in our district right now we have these resiliency standards and if you really think about it, that would be a great place to add in. Hey, like, yes, the learning goal was posted, the standard was posted, the kids could tell me what they were learning, they could reflect on their prior knowledge and they were able to have a 60-second brain break and then refocus, which showed that the teacher was working to make sure that they could do what they needed to do for the kids to get the best education possible. So I very much feel like that.
Speaker 1:I also feel like there is this preconceived notion, and I've seen this many times when I go into observations, especially with new teachers. I know for a fact that when I was an ed, when I was a student in middle school, I had a teacher, one of my favorite teachers ever, but at that time the big buzz around the district was when you ask a question, every student in the classroom should raise their hand. So that teacher would tell me hey, if an administrator comes in here and he had the relationship, so we all listen to him if a teacher comes in here or admin comes in here and I ask a question, if you know the answer, raise your right hand. If you don't know the answer, raise your left hand and I promise you you guys can have some free time tomorrow. And that's just how he did it. And so we all would do it and they would come in and you could hear them in the back room. Oh, wow, like every kid raised their hand and he knew to pick a kid that had their right hand raised, but they're also.
Speaker 1:I remember when I was in middle school, when observations came in, you, as the student, were not to speak, you weren't to whisper too loud, you weren't to creak your chair too loud, because when they came in to do observations when I was in middle school, the teacher should be doing all the teaching, the students should be doing all the learning, and there was not a large push for collaboration or for a lot of student voice. They wanted to hear that you could answer the question, but it really was just, you know, rote memorization.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I was gonna say back then the learning was not what it looks like now.
Speaker 1:Right. But now we're moving in a different direction and one of the huge things you'll hear and I don't know how relevant this is in other education systems, but there's this big push for a core action three and what that means is is the students are doing the heavy lifting, they're doing the heavy talking, and it's not just one student raising their hand, it's having every group of students talk about a question, debate it, then say it out loud, then talk to the other tables oh, why did you choose this question? Why did you choose this question? And having that true collaboration, and so, as an administrator now going into the classroom, or if I'm part of district and I'm going into the classroom, if you did a brain break and you still had those students in that core action three, you're going to score extremely high on an observation because you're still doing the good work. It doesn't have to just be the teacher talking at the front of the classroom and the teacher having all of that knowledge All of us have passed middle school. It's how are we going to take what we know and pass it on to that next generation in a meaningful way?
Speaker 1:So I do think that there could be administrators out there who would be wigged out by that. I think they would think it was a little bit chaotic or they want to know really where to go next with that. But if you are actually looking at today's observation, for you guys in the classroom that would be a very high mark but it's still. It's nerve-wracking I can see. Just thinking back to when I was a teacher like, depending on what class period somebody came in on, am I willing to take the risk to do the brain break and have so and so start hanging from the ceiling, or do I just play it safe and just have them collaborate on this question, because it's a safer space and the thing is, at the end of the day, kids are unpredictable and we have no control over them.
Speaker 1:But I will also say, from an administrative perspective, it's okay if we go into a classroom and a kid misbehaves. We know that happens. Kids are kids. It's kind of watching okay. Well, how is the teacher going to handle that? Are they going to go use proximity? Are they going to come over and be like hey or like what? Is the teacher move after that? It's okay. I know it doesn't feel okay because I remember being in the classroom and having to do that in my head. I'm like, oh my gosh, I cannot believe you're doing this right now. But it's more of like how is the teacher going to respond?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Well, like the other day, my admin came in and I was like my class went silent and I was like I wish you would misbehave, because then I could at least show off my behavior management skills. But like no, you're just going to sit there and stare at me and stare at each other and do nothing. It was embarrassing. Like when the admin walked in, I was like, oh, this is going to be amazing. Like I already did this, I think it was like fourth hour, so like I had gone through this lesson a couple of times, so I was like confident with it and yeah, then the kids just clenched up Absolutely nothing, no misbehavior, no nothing. They just sat there and I was like, do something, do something. It was, oh my God, it was awful.
Speaker 1:Like you're asking them to hey collaborate and talk to your shoulder partner about this and they're all just blinking, yeah.
Speaker 2:And then I was like, okay, well, if you're not going to talk to each other, I'll ask you questions directly. And they just stared at me. I was like, oh, no, it was so awful.
Speaker 3:I was like, oh, my God, no, it was just so. That happens sometimes too. But again, if the admin's been in there, they know that's obviously probably not the first time they were in there. So they know your teaching style, they know you, they know they've been in the building, they know these kids are quite capable of answering a question or two, and they were just.
Speaker 2:I do not know what happened that day. It was so. I was just like oh.
Speaker 1:And then the next day I'd go up and be like, hey, could you come back tomorrow because I don't know what they did. Or can I secretly record this?
Speaker 2:I know, so you can see what they're actually capable of because you made them a little bit nervous. Yeah, and I don't even think they were nervous, I don't know, because the rest of the week that class period was like that. They were just silent and I was like what's wrong?
Speaker 3:with your class.
Speaker 2:No, oh my God no.
Speaker 3:They're crazy.
Speaker 2:They're so. They talk about anything and everything and they never stop. They're like we know this after like 10 minutes of like reading or whatever. They're like, oh, we're good and we're going to talk about something else now and I'm like no, no, no, no, no, we're going to do more. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:So one of the questions I had and we've talked about this in a couple other episodes is how do you manage stress? Like you personally, how do you manage the stress We've talked about making sure that we're Teachers are focusing on themselves a lot of the times, which I don't think we're very good at as a whole in general no, Some are great at it, Others not so much. But how do you manage your own personal stress of just even the day-to-day job and making sure you're not necessarily taking all of that heaviness home or whatever?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So background I was working at an insurance company and I like worked myself to bits, like it was not a good experience and that's why I actually had a career change. So coming into this and starting a new career, I was like, okay, I can't do a repeat of what happened last time. So I'm I try to be very self-aware of like how I'm feeling. If I need a day, I will take a day. Taking that day versus going into school and losing it is not worth it to me because then if I'm not in a good place, then I'm going to drag the kids down with me and that's not okay. So every once in a while I will take a mental health day, like if there's been a day where the kids are just like off the chain, I'm going to be so grumpy with them. I just I'd rather take a breather and just take a day off. Um, and then also just a lot of like self-care.
Speaker 2:I keep a good sleep routine. I find time to like do crafting and stuff like that therapy. I just try to be as self-aware as possible because there's days where I notice that I'm getting upset and I'm like this is so not worth it and it's not just affecting me, like it's affecting the students and then also my other teachers, cause, like we, we eat lunch together every day and like some days I realized I'm like, oh, I'm being a Debbie downer, like I should not, like, not that it's not okay to vent and stuff like that, but when you're only coming with negativity it doesn't feel good for them, it doesn't feel good for you. So I just try to like keep a balance. Yes, I do need to vent. I'm not always going to be a ray of sunshine, but I also try to be the positive person. Like when other people are venting, I do try to put that spin on it when I can, because it makes me feel better to help others as well. So I just try to like the balance.
Speaker 3:I guess I think that's an amazing response and I'm sitting here thinking I'm like speechless.
Speaker 1:Well, same.
Speaker 3:And I'm thinking, you know, I'm like so much older than you, but I'm thinking if I would have had that mindset at your age. I mean, cause I barely have that mindset of mine and I'm still working on that mindset of of, of trying to, to find that awareness, just the awareness that it because that's not how my generation reacts to stuff like that, yeah, to adversity or anything you know. We're very take it on the chin type generation and you just go with it and you suppress. Yeah, exactly yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean for myself. Personally, I used to be a like just push through it, go, go, go, go, go, go go, even though towards others I'd be like, oh yeah, take a day off, well, well, whatever. But I wasn't going to do that. But then I hit a breaking point where I was like this is not sustainable and I came to the realization like I should practice what I preach. I've been saying like mental health is a priority, stuff like that, but I've never applied it to myself. And then when I started doing that, everything's like changed for the better, like I have a more positive outlook. I definitely enjoy going to work every day now. I mean, there's certain days where I'm, oh, I got to do do this or do that, this or whatever, but on the whole, I feel much happier in the situation I'm in with this new mindset of not me first, but, in a way, me first.
Speaker 3:And that's okay and that's where we need to be. It's okay to have me first. I don't think it's selfish to put yourself first because it's so, it's cliche, but you can't take care of others to take care of yourself first.
Speaker 1:I think that's such a powerful message because you have so many people and it sounded like where you were starting was like there's this in between, between the extreme people where it's like me, me, me, and it seems uh arrogant or it seems selfish. And then you have the people who are people pleasers, people pleasers, people pleasers. And oh yeah, I want you to put yourself first and I want you to practice self care, but that doesn't apply to me, because I have to be there for everybody else.
Speaker 1:And I feel like there's a healthy balance where you can have both. And if you are taking care of yourself, oh, now I can help other people even more. And that positive outlook, the power of positive thinking, the power of resetting your mind, resetting your life, taking that day to get you back in your center, and when you can look at life with a positive outlook and you can say, okay, look, I just spilled five Starbucks coffees in my car front seat, but I'm here at work today and I have shoes on my feet and I have a job and I have kids in there who are counting on me to be here. So you know what? Life's not that bad. We can clean it up and if it leaves a little bit of a stain, you know what, that's okay, because there's other things we can do and it's on how we frame our minds.
Speaker 1:But it is so hard to be positive or have that positive mindset If you do not reset yourself and if you do not focus on you being in a good place and the fact that you're already like that aware and you're taking that and you're like you know what I'm going to put that on me.
Speaker 1:How much of a difference is that going to have on not only your happiness but also the success of your students. Because let me tell you what it all starts up top, but it rolls in, and when you have teachers who are feeling good and feeling positive and in the right vibe if you do the vibe check middle school lingo you're going to have students who are then more successful. And so it's not all about the numbers. There's such an impact on the student outcomes when you focus on that positivity and that relationship building and that taking care of you first, and so, as much as it's cliche and I think we say self-care, all that all too much there's certainly an impact to be had if you can take that time for yourself and find a way to stop being like oh well, I don't take a day off at work, I don't. I've never missed a day of working 75 years. That's cool, but how many days have you came to work absolutely fuming at these kids, when really it's you?
Speaker 2:Yeah, and when you're upset you're not as productive. You're obviously like the kids know. Oh yeah, because like there was a day where I couldn't I had to come in. There was no way I was taking off. I think I didn't have some plans whatever. I had to come in but I was not feeling good and the kids they read that vibe and they were so well behaved that day because it's so amazing how some of the things they do is so apathetic and they seem like they don't care about anything. But then there's sometimes where like that little bit of humanity shows through and it's just really crazy how they can go zero to 100 in back.
Speaker 2:Some of them are really good at picking up on those feelings too, and then you realize, okay, you are a little human being, yeah and I feel like that's what's really special about middle school is like they are becoming their own people. They're not just little babies anymore, doing baby stuff, like they're doing baby stuff, and now they have opinions and feelings and thoughts and stuff like that. And that's why. Because when I chose middle school, my family was like what? Because we have a preschool background and then both of my cousins are in elementary school education and they were like middle school and I was like, yeah, because I don't want. Like I worked in daycare. That obviously wasn't something I wanted to do forever and I don't want the babies, so I didn't want to do elementary school and then high school kids, they're too big, they're too big. And so I just middle school is like the happy medium and yeah, they're crazy, but it's also fun in a way it's the most fun.
Speaker 3:I don't have experience with elementary or high school. And when I got into teaching, like I said earlier, my kids were this age. So I knew this age, but I never looked back. There's been a couple of times I've considered going to the high school or whatever, but when I really stop and think about it I'm like I don't know if I could leave this age, because every day is so different. Since you're so self-aware, are you good with setting your boundaries?
Speaker 2:I try really, really hard to set good boundaries, but I still, I think, put more responsibility on myself than is necessary. I'm always the first one to like if they need a volunteer and if no one immediately will step up, I'll do it Like I'm always, like I'm never gonna. I need to be better at saying no to things, Cause I took on a lot this year and it's only my second year, like second full year. So, yeah, I need to get better at saying no, and that's something I'm aware of and something I need to be aware of, even being self-aware of that.
Speaker 2:To step in the right direction.
Speaker 1:And sometimes being aware and knowing what your issue is can be helpful. But there is still, I feel like a part of human beings I may or may not also struggle with saying the word no where I just feel so strongly that, okay, well, if nobody else is gonna do it, like it has to be done, like it's what's best for kids, or it's what's best for my school and I love my school and I love my kids, so like somebody has to do it. And I also feel there does come some power when you do say no a few times and everything is okay and somebody else does step up and you see it working out. I'm still terrible at it, I'm not gonna lie to anybody. But when you do say no a few times, when it's not something that's like detrimental, and you go, oh wait, look, when I said no so-and-so, picked it up and now they're doing it and now everybody's happier because my plate isn't overloaded.
Speaker 1:But I feel like that setting boundaries. There's something I think just born inside some people where it is extremely hard, and whether that comes over time, because we're both younger, or whether that comes with that being born with this sense of responsibility and that sense of like well, somebody has to do it. It might as well be me. Like, I can do it, I'm capable of doing it, but making sure at the same time that doesn't cause burnout.
Speaker 2:Yeah, definitely, cause I've gotten close a couple of times where I'm like, oh, it's too much, too much. And then, thankfully, I do have people that I can go to and say like, hey, can you help me with this thing? And I will get support. But yeah, I do need to just start learning to just say no in the first place and let someone else handle it, cause I am a new teacher and yet I'm balancing all these other things along with it and it's just-.
Speaker 3:Yeah, sometimes just being a new teacher is enough to deal with. You know rather than add stuff onto your plate. But I think we've all been guilty of that as newer teachers and taking on a lot Like I'm gonna set the world on fire, yeah.
Speaker 1:Miss Bauman, we cannot thank you enough for giving up your time today to come and join us. I have to say that Jen and I record a lot of episodes, but when we have guests, I feel like it just brings like a new light and like a really fun feeling to our podcast, but also like it really helps us learn and grow, like I'm sitting here going wow, like that was a really like great perspective, and so we cannot thank you enough for joining us. We hope that our listeners enjoyed listening today and we will be back in two weeks with new goals and how important goal setting can be to students and teachers, don't forget, we're doing that too.
Speaker 1:And teachers cause we're doing that too.
Speaker 3:Yes, to add to what Tori was saying. Miss Bauman, thank you so much for joining us. This was extra special for us and again, thank you for giving up your time Then and, like Tori said, it was a good learning experience for us too, and we appreciate that. That's why we like doing these, so we appreciate your time.
Speaker 2:Thank you very much for having me. It was a great conversation and I'll come back anytime you guys want me here.
Speaker 3:That'd be awesome, cause we've got lots more to talk about.
Speaker 1:I cannot thank our listeners enough for continuing to share this journey with us. Please, please, please. Share with your friends, share with parents, share with your grandma, who doesn't have anything better to do than listen to our podcast. Maybe it'll brighten her day too. We really truly want to be transparent with our listeners, and our goal for the year of 2024 is to have 1,000 followers on Facebook, and we're trying to get that up. So please share our posts, share our podcast with others, and make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram and check out our website.
