So what exactly DO teachers do in the summer?
I think people understand that teachers work hard and that the school year is very intense. Many people also understand that teachers reflect on the school year during the summer, but there is a general misconception that teachers don't really WORK at teaching during the summer. So - for those of you curious about what happens during the summer.......
I took about two weeks to clear my head of schedules, lesson plans, and weekly updates on Race to the Top, Home Base & Power School, summer reading assignments, webpage maintenance and all else school related. It's kind of like going from cruising at 80 on the interstate to 35 on a winding mountain road. The reverse will happen as I gear up for the next school year in August. The transition is important because it allows me to meander through what I have learned from my students. It's a funny thing - the last few weeks of school. Somehow everyone becomes more relaxed (once testing is over) - communication becomes clearer - students talk more openly. Why can't it always be like that?!
So the next phase - the meander through lessons learned - becomes the planning which I never have enough time to do properly during the school year. This year in particular I have so much to sort out from my first year of teaching physics (oh - and I must have my curriculum outlined, explained and submitted by July 15th). I've lost track of the hours spent on professional development: reading resources from other physics teachers, searching the web for activities & ideas, watching online lectures from an MIT physics professor, looking at information from a math teacher at my school so I can coordinate my expectations with his syllabus..... you get the picture. I love learning and this is what I want to take with me back into the classroom next year. It is so easy to become negative, but the summer allows me to rediscover how INCREDIBLE the world around me is! Sometimes as a teacher I feel sucked dry - summer is when I become re-filled.
For those who do not think that is enough of a reason to be out of the classroom during the summer - there are a vast array of "work" type things I could list.....summer reading assignments, webpage maintenance, meetings, curriculum updates.... but I think that really misses the point.
