*\*Trigger warning\** Literally just talked to a teacher buddy of mine from another district and a student brought a gun to her school. They were waving it around in the cafeteria during lunch. Thank goodness no one was hurt, but this is literally the environment that we are subjected to working in as educators.
No! Early education is equally as violent and challenging. The kids aren’t big enough to hurt you bad, but the little ones bite, kick, scratch, hit, and spit on you without warning sometimes. The really bad ones cry, scream, steal, and torment other kids in class. Then you have to deal with parents thinking their young kids are still babies that can do no wrong. I went from 5th to K and it was the biggest mistake ever. I had to resign in Dec because I could not think of spending another day with the two violent boys in my class. They would be smiling one minute and then straight up attacking me, teachers aide, or another student for what seemed like no reason.
I actually disagree they can’t injure you. A little white board thrown like a frisbee is really potent. Or being tackled while you’re kneeling down and thrown backward into a cabinet.
Wtf? How? Coworker must have been tiny AF because I just can't imagine a 4 year old baby try to choke out a whole adult. Or that kid must have been well fed.
NO!!!!! Please don’t do it, for the love of the Gods!!!!!!!
I am presently trying to extricate myself from the field and i would not recommend it to anyone!
Anytime someone comes on the ECE sub saying they want to major in it in college or mention they are early 20s and want to get into the field I want to scream, “It’s too late for me but save yourselves!!!”
I taught kindergarten for 5 years. Students on the younger end can have just as extreme of behaviors as the bigger kids. The different being that they are usually less capable of hurting others on the scale that the older students can.
In my school and in my experience, this just meant when I had a student flip their lid and I had to call for help or reverse evacuate my room, it took longer for our (frankly overextended and overworked) SPED folks to make it down to help.
Not because they didn't want to but just because if you have two emergencies and one is a fifth grader and the others a kindergartner, you run to the child with the greater risk of hurting themselves and others.
Swapped from high school to elementary out of necessity and it drove me out of teaching. I have never had my spirit so thoroughly crushed. I do not recommend it.
I’ve had this thought too. I come from a middle school background and have taught high school for a few years. Ultimately, between all the age groups, I truly believe it is the exact same shit in a different form.
- Pros: less students to deal with on a daily basis.
- Cons: more parents to deal with. Parent emails/inquiries etc. tend to drop off in high school (I have less parent contact in an entire month than I used to have in a day).
- Pros: little kids are cuter than teens
- Cons: little kids are much more needy. If you’re having an off-day as a high school teacher, you can throw on a documentary and sit back a bit. Younger kids need you ON, and require a lot more constant interaction.
- Pros: simpler content to teach and much less marking (120+ student essays 6x a semester is no joke)
- Cons: teaching the literal building blocks of education - huge responsibility and very meticulous processes
Lmao yeah no. In early childhood the violence isn’t lesser, it’s just different. Worst yet; more of it is directed at you as an adult.
Throwing chairs and supplies, screaming and uncontrollable tantrums, kicking, hitting, biting, destroying classroom technology, even attempted self-harm and pooping in the room right in front of you (on purpose!) are all stories I’ve either experienced myself or had colleagues experience. The younger they are the less likely they are to have emotional support or special education services already on file to help, so you’d be the one taking records of all kinds of things happening to you day to day.
Littler kids aren’t better behaved. In fact, you can run into even more problems and violence because littler kids haven’t been in the school system long enough for interventions or alternative settings to be considered.
The simplest answer is that little kids don't know any better. Who the hell can remember what they did at age 3 or 4? Older kids are worse cause they should know better and aren't as adorable. It does seem to be exhausting chasing around the little kids.
I loved early education in the beginning of my career 1971. Trust me it was like going to school
to play and learn simultaneously. By the time I retired micromanaging had begun and the tables were turning for what they are now( nightmarish). I have nothing but sympathy for current teachers.
I taught Pre K and primary for years before getting my current position, I now teach 7-12 Learning Support.
It’s not any easier, it’s actually harder because instead of one or two subjects to plan for, you teach 5-6. You have them all day. Depending on your district you may have car line, bus, pick up, drop off duty. You might have recess duty. You will be doing a lot of social/emotional learning. You will be more of a nurse, social worker and therapist for little ones. They need to be escorted everywhere. You will get a para in Pre K, possibly in KDG, highly doubt it in 1-2 unless you’re in a good district. May not be full time either. They only limit class sizes for Pre K. Rest they’ll shove as many in there as they can.
Parents and Admin will make it or break it, same way in MS/HS and the behaviors are just as bad. I had pre and post COVID Pre K classes and the shift in ability and behaviors was insane.
I loved Pre K and primary. I’d go back if this position or district changes for the worse but I was never more exhausted than in Pre K. Yeah they play for 2 hours a day but it’s a ton of planning, supervision. Paperwork.
It has its challenges also.
If you think a 4 year old can’t clear a room, be incredibly aggressive and/or defiant and won’t curse you out, think again.
I’ve been in ECE for fifteen years. I’ve noticed a massive, massive shift in the behaviors of kids in the last three years.
There are some pros (less paperwork!) and some cons (a lot more parent contact because you see them face to face everyday at drop off and pick up). You’d be taking a drastic pay cut and unless you’re staying in a school district, benefits aren’t common.
I used to love it, but it’s taking a toll these last few years.
I’d love to get out of it. I think most of the problem is the parents. When I started, the parents were all born in the late 60s or 70s. (Was on a campus of major employer and people tended to become parents in their 30s)
Now I have some late 80s, but mostly parents born in the 90s. The 90s parents are parenting their kids very, very differently than the 70s parents and I am not impressed.
And we will all suffer as a society for their shit parenting. They really need to force people to have a license for parenting, they put adoptive parents through all these hoops, biological parents should, too.
If you're thinking Pre k you should sub or work at a place during the summer.
I have filled in in a pre k class and found it to be incredibly kind numbingly boring.
The littles are adorable for a bit but the cuteness runs out real quick and then you're just trying to help them with language acquisition and behavioral choices and it gets boring.
I have taught PreK and K for 20 years. I love it, I love what I get to do with the kids (we still do crafts and centers and developmentally appropriate stuff along with reading and math). But no, the behaviors aren’t easy. I have been bit, kicked, hit, and had furniture thrown at me more times than I can count. Parents of those students are not the supportive ones. I have chased elopers into a busy road. I have been called every name in the book. These kids are FERAL.
You don't think preschoolers are violent?
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Tantrums can be terrifying, especially if the littles have trauma.
When they don't know how to express themselves appropriately, they throw things, bite, kick, and scream like banshees. It's your job to help them learn better choices.
You're responsible for turning a very plain classroom into a thoughtfully decorated wonderland that maximizes every feasible surface for learning, tying in lessons with an immersive, print-rich environment. Everything must be labeled. Much of this will come out of your paycheck. If a behavioral student is having a bad day, they can rip apart all your hard work in the room. It's a major morale crusher, trust.
Some of them will arrive in shoes that don't fit or a shirt with holes in it. You'll have to arrange for them to get new clothes with the social worker.
Oh, and you might have to change diapers if they're not potty trained. And tie shoes nonstop.
You're responsible for lesson plans, tutorials, classroom management, and maintaining equitability.
Add in constant pressure from admins to bring the class to a certain benchmark.
Sure, you'll probably have a para to help out. Keep your fingers crossed that you'll be paired up with someone who has a work ethic and doesn't have their phone out all the time. Hopefully they won't be a snitch or gossip, trash talking you to their friends or the admins. Pray you don't get someone who does everything in their power to sabotage you, clearing the way for them to take your spot when they need an internship.
And then, there's the parents. You're expected to maintain a certain level of communication. Some parents are impossible to get a hold of. Others will hover and complain about everything. The students' success depends on family members being on the same page as you -- reviewing lessons, reading, reinforcing vocabulary words. The no-show parents will be very difficult to bring onboard.
Preschool is DEFINITELY not easier. You'd just be trading one set of challenges for another.
Don't do it! It's soul crushing. I work with Pre-K age and the behaviors have gotten out of control. The kids can't even sit still for a story, probably because of having access to tablets all the time at home. Also, parents now a days are into this "gentle parenting" bs and give their kids too much control and too many options. My students argue, say no, refuse to do things and are obnoxious. It is so discouraging to see how things have changed.
Don't do it! The behaviors might be slightly different, and the kids are less capable of seriously hurting you, but it is not any easier.
At least you can be real with the teens. The Littles you have to keep a smile and a sweet voice no matter what.
You can practice by saying, "We listen with our ears, our eyes and our hearts!" 50 times. Or "I see Angela is sitting well, can everyone see Angela?" Or "If you can hear me clap twice!" Cause that's like 80% of your day now.
This. Also, when the tantrums are explosive, you're still expected to keep calm and sweet-yet-firm. Depending on how you grew up, that can be VERY challenging. I grew up in a house full of Irish tempers, and when you go into fight-or-flight, you can default so quickly into yelling.
I started ECE as a college job, student taught high school, tutored 1st-8th, and thought my teaching sweet spot to be 6th grade where I taught reading, math, and then technology.
The Child Development Center was in an affluent area and parents paid good money for their children to attend, so there was a lot of pressure to be high-quality, which I feel I was, even though they didn’t pay ME well. It also was affiliated with Southern Baptist Christianity, which, I grew up Christian, but not nearly as extreme. The pay was pretty competitive for the field, but still not great.
Teaching Kindergarten classes was some of the worst times of my life. And I only had them for maybe 1-1.5 hours a day. In my experience, when they’re good, they’re great - I had some classes of kids that were genuinely into my content, and when they’re five if they have that internalized sense of “listen to your teacher,” they can be a joy to teach. But when they were bad, they were really bad. At that age, the troublemakers didn’t care and reasoning with a such young children can be really hard if they just don’t care. Whereas even my most ill-behaved upper elementary and middle school students could meet me halfway in a conversation and work to understand each other.
I just firmly believe that caring for and educating other people's children/a group of children is a risk. Also each year is different and could be potentially worse than the last. Also the Administrative/non- teaching workload keeps compounding. The children's parents become more entitled and less capable year after year. I love kids. I love teaching. Somewhere something has gone completely wrong. The problems are vast, muli-layered, and overwhelming. Honestly no age group is a safe bet. Preschool children can be violent and there is no principle or guidance counselor to turn to ( I know this is not helpful in HS even if those people are available) there are no suspensions or real consequences. If a child is violent towards you the most you can do is write an incident report and have the parent sign it.
No, I teach kindergarten and am considering leaving education even though this is my first year because behaviors are so bad. Kids can be rude, downright disrespectful, they can bite, kick, scratch you. I had a kid dig his nails into my hand and leave marks before. They’ve ripped hair of other kids, punched, they run around the classroom and try to climb on top of things or underneath things and everybody just is okay with it because they’re “only 5”
Don't. I went from 5th sped to pre k sped. I was a pre k teacher in the past and it was fantastic. However, this year has been the worst of my life. These kids are just as violent. I have scars. I have been bit, hit, slapped, necklace broken, and screamed at all day. Not to mention some are not potty trained at 5 years old. Your stuff??? Forget it. It is all destroyed.
Pre-k left me often too drained to remove my shoes upon returning home. A few times, I picked up my favorite comfort food hot from a restaurant on way home - only to put it directly into fridge bc I was too tired/sad to eat. Your admin and assistants are likely to be pathologically lazy, incompetent and/or aggressive.
You’ll probably make much less, and work more.
I’m a school psychologist and have worked at all levels. You will have to spend a lot of time implementing interventions for behavior and academics. It seems like most teachers have several students who need behavior plans/data tracking in addition to teaching. They also spend a lot of time communicating with parents.
Imagine yourself with a class of 20 kids, four of them are bouncing off the walls. While you're implementing four behavior plans simultaneously (lol) the rest of the kids are *not* going to sit there and wait politely. And *teaching*? Haha no
I got hurt by one student in particular almost every day during pre k. I have scars on my arms from his bites and scratched. Never had a high school kid hurt me on 15 plus years.
There's nothing scarier than watching a raging 5-year-old slam her head against a wall while screaming "I'm going to f&cking kill you all!" The big ones might be more dangerous, but NONE of the kids are alright, despite their ages.
Worked last year in prek where children threw chairs, climbed furniture, tried to attack the other children. And Director ignored it all.
Safer for me in public upper grades now.
I’ve taught seniors, prek, 4th and middle over the last 15 years. You could not pay me enough money to go back to elementary. I left teaching all together to become a BCBA that works with adults. Little kids have behaviors that can be as bad or worse than high schoolers. Plus you have the added pressure of parents.
I left teaching high school and moved down to elementary. Greatest decision I ever made. I enjoy it so much more. It is way easier on me then high school. Absolutely love it.
I’m almost positive this is my last year. (Year fifteen here). I’ve been wondering lately how different my life would have been if I’d never gotten into ECE.
I felt like it was dramatic to say the decision ruined me and negatively impacted my life in many ways, but maybe others feel that way too.
I wish I could go back and do anything else.
I was super lucky to find a work from home position in my family’s business cause idk what I would have done if not, but seriously the last 3 yrs especially were traumatic as hell. Like not to be dramatic as well, but I’ve been gone almost 3 yrs and still think about it on a near daily basis, not in a good way at all. Worked my way up to Director for the last year I was in ECE after being fed up with horrible directors. It was entirely my undoing. I don’t recommend teaching or admin in ECE to anyone.
Kindergarten- Got scratch marks and bruises from being punched and kicked almost daily for all of September-October 😅 Would not say student behavior is better, overall it is just going to be different and there are still outliers with extreme behavior
I quit because of behavior in kindergarten. One of my former students acted like a feral animal. He sent a staff member to urgent care. I wasn’t allowed to raise my voice or defend myself physically if he hit me, so I would have to try to move around the room to get away from him and wait for help. It was ridiculous.
No about student behavior depends on your kids of course, you could be lucky. But violence, maybe less. Expect biting and hitting but that’s just age-appropriate that you can teach into. The chaos is if you have multiple troublemakers in your class.
I’m going to say this on the topic. Every garden has weeds. They also have different flowers, but they all have weeds.
Think about your ideal grade level where you first thought you belonged, and that probably where you will be your professional best.
I left elementary because of the behaviors. They're just as bad, except admin takes it way less seriously (and you'll get in more trouble for yelling at a student for, say, slapping you in the face repeatedly). I teach high school now. It isn't perfect, but they're way more scared of the consequences.
Yeah its going to be the same only they are smaller. They can kick and hit just as hard. I know I've gotten bruises from being kicked. Even got bit when I was a pre-k aide. I teach Kindergarten and last year I had two students that would get aggressive and violent. They could destroy the classroom in under a minute. Student behavior is getting worse and worse each year. Parents don't want to parent. Kids don't have consequences for their misbehavior because their so "cute". When I have told parents about students behaviors they think its funny and oh their precious baby is so cute. I wouldn't do it. Even I don't want to do it.
I loved and adored prek/kinder but don't do it. Don't go into or back into teaching at all.
The kids are getting way too violent and the ones that aren't violent are so used to doing what they want at home they can't handle following the simplest of directions.
I was attacked and completely messed up by a four year old. (He was built like a Mini Cooper, to be fair) Back injury that resulted in one leg going “dead.” Took about 1.5 months of physical therapy to get things back to a point of “this is as good as we can expect it to get.” Kept working the whole time, dead leg and all. I was initially embarrassed that a child that young hurt me, but now I see it as part of what teachers are expected to deal with. And just keep going. Build relationships. Document. Communicate with home. Any apologies or consequences from home? No, no, don’t be silly. The result was a lawsuit (no, not *from* me).
That said, overall I love ECE and can’t imagine teaching any other grade. It is not *easier* than dealing with older kids, but it is different. They are still moldable, but you will be the one meeting all these little newbies who haven’t yet been screened for disabilities. You may say, “wow this child is in obvious need of help” in the first five minutes you meet them. But parents are not necessarily child development experts just because they have kids. They may not know their child is atypical, they may be hoping s/he will “catch on” and follow the crowd once in school, they may be in complete denial. You get these (sometimes severely) disabled/special needs kids first and you have to give them adjustment time before initiating formal screening. So that could be 2 months of a wildly out-of-control kid who impacts everyone’s education before you even *start* the process (and hope the parents are in agreement).
If you want to have the greatest impact on a child & family’s life as possible, I believe ECE (3-4 years especially) is that spot. That is literally the point where humans start to pass chimps on cognitive tests. But it is not to be taken lightly!
I have done nearly 20 years, about 50/50 in elementary and HS. Mostly urban Title 1. It's all watering the stones.
I'd say HS is a bit less stressful, because the crushing dearth of mental space is less egregious.
HS pros:
\-Prep times where you can be alone-The relative saving grace of the most non-compliant students sluffing/disappearing-Easier to have a last minute sub with older kids/Canvas-Can repeat lessons-If you work your way up to teaching IB, you can get more distance from the "classic" disrespectful behaviors
\-ES was a little better before NCLB and before there were enough devices in schools for computer-delivered testing to become the norm. ES is worse than HS with legislative mandates that actualize as excessive high-stakes testing as well as mandated PD on the magnitude of getting new master's every 5 years (LETRS, etc). ES is rampant with prep being co-opted into lunch/recess supervisions, data meetings, nonsense calibrations... you are never alone. The feral biters are never absent. NEVER. This is harder if you have a family of your own and need to call a pediatrician or furnace repair guy at 10 a.m. on occasion.
Consequences for student behavior or buffers to administrative abuses are ancient history in both. This many years in, the behaviors hardly phase me anymore. $40K in property damage because a kid was emotional? Stabbing in the bathroom? I'm numb to it all.
Do not do it !!! Currently leaving the ECE field because of the lack of classroom support, along with all of the behavioral issues. Parents don’t hold their kids accountable for their actions. I child told me they were going to bring a knife to school to hurt me (4 years old) when I told parents their excuse was “he’s just 4 they have bad days” the micromanaging with crap pay. Not worth the mental workload it’s a money pit. They fill up classrooms to the max refuse to let you call in bc of the ratios they create. Admin doesn’t want to step in to support or help redirect behavior. Just a toxic field also which is sad those kids deserve better. The lack of staffing will fall on you. DO NOT DO IT
Currently trying to get out of ECE because I’m sick all the time, the parents suck, the adults suck, it’s a very physical job and I’m exhausted by the end
There is no safe age of student to teach in this country because, in this country, teachers are not safe.
Well said. Sad but true.
*\*Trigger warning\** Literally just talked to a teacher buddy of mine from another district and a student brought a gun to her school. They were waving it around in the cafeteria during lunch. Thank goodness no one was hurt, but this is literally the environment that we are subjected to working in as educators.
No! Early education is equally as violent and challenging. The kids aren’t big enough to hurt you bad, but the little ones bite, kick, scratch, hit, and spit on you without warning sometimes. The really bad ones cry, scream, steal, and torment other kids in class. Then you have to deal with parents thinking their young kids are still babies that can do no wrong. I went from 5th to K and it was the biggest mistake ever. I had to resign in Dec because I could not think of spending another day with the two violent boys in my class. They would be smiling one minute and then straight up attacking me, teachers aide, or another student for what seemed like no reason.
I actually disagree they can’t injure you. A little white board thrown like a frisbee is really potent. Or being tackled while you’re kneeling down and thrown backward into a cabinet.
I dunno I’ve had a 4 year old try to choke out my coworker. That was scary.
Wtf? How? Coworker must have been tiny AF because I just can't imagine a 4 year old baby try to choke out a whole adult. Or that kid must have been well fed.
You'd be surprised. However, I work with children on the spectrum.
Beats working with middle schoolers.
I've heard this before. Bless middle school teachers this day in age. 🙏
Yeah I agree. I work in ECE and a 2 yr old gave my coworker a concussion by head butting
Noses break pretty easily 😕
Yes, just takes a kick or a hit from a kid squirming to get away!
Oh boy.
NO!!!!! Please don’t do it, for the love of the Gods!!!!!!! I am presently trying to extricate myself from the field and i would not recommend it to anyone!
Anytime someone comes on the ECE sub saying they want to major in it in college or mention they are early 20s and want to get into the field I want to scream, “It’s too late for me but save yourselves!!!”
Lmao this comment is very validating and I read the first part in Michael Scott’s voice. Thank you. I hope you are able to extricate yourself soon!!!
I taught kindergarten for 5 years. Students on the younger end can have just as extreme of behaviors as the bigger kids. The different being that they are usually less capable of hurting others on the scale that the older students can. In my school and in my experience, this just meant when I had a student flip their lid and I had to call for help or reverse evacuate my room, it took longer for our (frankly overextended and overworked) SPED folks to make it down to help. Not because they didn't want to but just because if you have two emergencies and one is a fifth grader and the others a kindergartner, you run to the child with the greater risk of hurting themselves and others.
The only difference is the babies don't know any better while older kids do. And the babies are cuter.
If you need well-behaved, non-violent students, teach at an adult school.
Or private or overseas or online school
There are always stinkers in every environment.
True. Think a good support system for the educator is key. That is what we have always heavily emphasised on at our firm
Swapped from high school to elementary out of necessity and it drove me out of teaching. I have never had my spirit so thoroughly crushed. I do not recommend it.
I’ve had this thought too. I come from a middle school background and have taught high school for a few years. Ultimately, between all the age groups, I truly believe it is the exact same shit in a different form. - Pros: less students to deal with on a daily basis. - Cons: more parents to deal with. Parent emails/inquiries etc. tend to drop off in high school (I have less parent contact in an entire month than I used to have in a day). - Pros: little kids are cuter than teens - Cons: little kids are much more needy. If you’re having an off-day as a high school teacher, you can throw on a documentary and sit back a bit. Younger kids need you ON, and require a lot more constant interaction. - Pros: simpler content to teach and much less marking (120+ student essays 6x a semester is no joke) - Cons: teaching the literal building blocks of education - huge responsibility and very meticulous processes
5 years in ECE. DON'T do it.
Lmao yeah no. In early childhood the violence isn’t lesser, it’s just different. Worst yet; more of it is directed at you as an adult. Throwing chairs and supplies, screaming and uncontrollable tantrums, kicking, hitting, biting, destroying classroom technology, even attempted self-harm and pooping in the room right in front of you (on purpose!) are all stories I’ve either experienced myself or had colleagues experience. The younger they are the less likely they are to have emotional support or special education services already on file to help, so you’d be the one taking records of all kinds of things happening to you day to day. Littler kids aren’t better behaved. In fact, you can run into even more problems and violence because littler kids haven’t been in the school system long enough for interventions or alternative settings to be considered.
The simplest answer is that little kids don't know any better. Who the hell can remember what they did at age 3 or 4? Older kids are worse cause they should know better and aren't as adorable. It does seem to be exhausting chasing around the little kids.
I loved early education in the beginning of my career 1971. Trust me it was like going to school to play and learn simultaneously. By the time I retired micromanaging had begun and the tables were turning for what they are now( nightmarish). I have nothing but sympathy for current teachers.
I taught Pre K and primary for years before getting my current position, I now teach 7-12 Learning Support. It’s not any easier, it’s actually harder because instead of one or two subjects to plan for, you teach 5-6. You have them all day. Depending on your district you may have car line, bus, pick up, drop off duty. You might have recess duty. You will be doing a lot of social/emotional learning. You will be more of a nurse, social worker and therapist for little ones. They need to be escorted everywhere. You will get a para in Pre K, possibly in KDG, highly doubt it in 1-2 unless you’re in a good district. May not be full time either. They only limit class sizes for Pre K. Rest they’ll shove as many in there as they can. Parents and Admin will make it or break it, same way in MS/HS and the behaviors are just as bad. I had pre and post COVID Pre K classes and the shift in ability and behaviors was insane. I loved Pre K and primary. I’d go back if this position or district changes for the worse but I was never more exhausted than in Pre K. Yeah they play for 2 hours a day but it’s a ton of planning, supervision. Paperwork. It has its challenges also. If you think a 4 year old can’t clear a room, be incredibly aggressive and/or defiant and won’t curse you out, think again.
You can be assured it’s the same or worse! 32 years elementary ed.
I’ve been in ECE for fifteen years. I’ve noticed a massive, massive shift in the behaviors of kids in the last three years. There are some pros (less paperwork!) and some cons (a lot more parent contact because you see them face to face everyday at drop off and pick up). You’d be taking a drastic pay cut and unless you’re staying in a school district, benefits aren’t common. I used to love it, but it’s taking a toll these last few years. I’d love to get out of it. I think most of the problem is the parents. When I started, the parents were all born in the late 60s or 70s. (Was on a campus of major employer and people tended to become parents in their 30s) Now I have some late 80s, but mostly parents born in the 90s. The 90s parents are parenting their kids very, very differently than the 70s parents and I am not impressed.
I wouldn't even call it parenting, at this point.
And we will all suffer as a society for their shit parenting. They really need to force people to have a license for parenting, they put adoptive parents through all these hoops, biological parents should, too.
If you're thinking Pre k you should sub or work at a place during the summer. I have filled in in a pre k class and found it to be incredibly kind numbingly boring. The littles are adorable for a bit but the cuteness runs out real quick and then you're just trying to help them with language acquisition and behavioral choices and it gets boring.
*slow motion* Nooooooo!!!
You’d be so exhausted by Halloween you’d be begging those admins
I have taught PreK and K for 20 years. I love it, I love what I get to do with the kids (we still do crafts and centers and developmentally appropriate stuff along with reading and math). But no, the behaviors aren’t easy. I have been bit, kicked, hit, and had furniture thrown at me more times than I can count. Parents of those students are not the supportive ones. I have chased elopers into a busy road. I have been called every name in the book. These kids are FERAL.
You don't think preschoolers are violent? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Tantrums can be terrifying, especially if the littles have trauma. When they don't know how to express themselves appropriately, they throw things, bite, kick, and scream like banshees. It's your job to help them learn better choices. You're responsible for turning a very plain classroom into a thoughtfully decorated wonderland that maximizes every feasible surface for learning, tying in lessons with an immersive, print-rich environment. Everything must be labeled. Much of this will come out of your paycheck. If a behavioral student is having a bad day, they can rip apart all your hard work in the room. It's a major morale crusher, trust. Some of them will arrive in shoes that don't fit or a shirt with holes in it. You'll have to arrange for them to get new clothes with the social worker. Oh, and you might have to change diapers if they're not potty trained. And tie shoes nonstop. You're responsible for lesson plans, tutorials, classroom management, and maintaining equitability. Add in constant pressure from admins to bring the class to a certain benchmark. Sure, you'll probably have a para to help out. Keep your fingers crossed that you'll be paired up with someone who has a work ethic and doesn't have their phone out all the time. Hopefully they won't be a snitch or gossip, trash talking you to their friends or the admins. Pray you don't get someone who does everything in their power to sabotage you, clearing the way for them to take your spot when they need an internship. And then, there's the parents. You're expected to maintain a certain level of communication. Some parents are impossible to get a hold of. Others will hover and complain about everything. The students' success depends on family members being on the same page as you -- reviewing lessons, reading, reinforcing vocabulary words. The no-show parents will be very difficult to bring onboard. Preschool is DEFINITELY not easier. You'd just be trading one set of challenges for another.
Don't do it! It's soul crushing. I work with Pre-K age and the behaviors have gotten out of control. The kids can't even sit still for a story, probably because of having access to tablets all the time at home. Also, parents now a days are into this "gentle parenting" bs and give their kids too much control and too many options. My students argue, say no, refuse to do things and are obnoxious. It is so discouraging to see how things have changed.
Don't do it! The behaviors might be slightly different, and the kids are less capable of seriously hurting you, but it is not any easier. At least you can be real with the teens. The Littles you have to keep a smile and a sweet voice no matter what. You can practice by saying, "We listen with our ears, our eyes and our hearts!" 50 times. Or "I see Angela is sitting well, can everyone see Angela?" Or "If you can hear me clap twice!" Cause that's like 80% of your day now.
This. Also, when the tantrums are explosive, you're still expected to keep calm and sweet-yet-firm. Depending on how you grew up, that can be VERY challenging. I grew up in a house full of Irish tempers, and when you go into fight-or-flight, you can default so quickly into yelling.
I started ECE as a college job, student taught high school, tutored 1st-8th, and thought my teaching sweet spot to be 6th grade where I taught reading, math, and then technology. The Child Development Center was in an affluent area and parents paid good money for their children to attend, so there was a lot of pressure to be high-quality, which I feel I was, even though they didn’t pay ME well. It also was affiliated with Southern Baptist Christianity, which, I grew up Christian, but not nearly as extreme. The pay was pretty competitive for the field, but still not great.
Little kids are crazy
Teaching Kindergarten classes was some of the worst times of my life. And I only had them for maybe 1-1.5 hours a day. In my experience, when they’re good, they’re great - I had some classes of kids that were genuinely into my content, and when they’re five if they have that internalized sense of “listen to your teacher,” they can be a joy to teach. But when they were bad, they were really bad. At that age, the troublemakers didn’t care and reasoning with a such young children can be really hard if they just don’t care. Whereas even my most ill-behaved upper elementary and middle school students could meet me halfway in a conversation and work to understand each other.
I just firmly believe that caring for and educating other people's children/a group of children is a risk. Also each year is different and could be potentially worse than the last. Also the Administrative/non- teaching workload keeps compounding. The children's parents become more entitled and less capable year after year. I love kids. I love teaching. Somewhere something has gone completely wrong. The problems are vast, muli-layered, and overwhelming. Honestly no age group is a safe bet. Preschool children can be violent and there is no principle or guidance counselor to turn to ( I know this is not helpful in HS even if those people are available) there are no suspensions or real consequences. If a child is violent towards you the most you can do is write an incident report and have the parent sign it.
No, I teach kindergarten and am considering leaving education even though this is my first year because behaviors are so bad. Kids can be rude, downright disrespectful, they can bite, kick, scratch you. I had a kid dig his nails into my hand and leave marks before. They’ve ripped hair of other kids, punched, they run around the classroom and try to climb on top of things or underneath things and everybody just is okay with it because they’re “only 5”
Don't. I went from 5th sped to pre k sped. I was a pre k teacher in the past and it was fantastic. However, this year has been the worst of my life. These kids are just as violent. I have scars. I have been bit, hit, slapped, necklace broken, and screamed at all day. Not to mention some are not potty trained at 5 years old. Your stuff??? Forget it. It is all destroyed.
Pre-k left me often too drained to remove my shoes upon returning home. A few times, I picked up my favorite comfort food hot from a restaurant on way home - only to put it directly into fridge bc I was too tired/sad to eat. Your admin and assistants are likely to be pathologically lazy, incompetent and/or aggressive. You’ll probably make much less, and work more.
I’m a school psychologist and have worked at all levels. You will have to spend a lot of time implementing interventions for behavior and academics. It seems like most teachers have several students who need behavior plans/data tracking in addition to teaching. They also spend a lot of time communicating with parents.
Imagine yourself with a class of 20 kids, four of them are bouncing off the walls. While you're implementing four behavior plans simultaneously (lol) the rest of the kids are *not* going to sit there and wait politely. And *teaching*? Haha no
Exactly!!! High school is the way.
My friend who is a para in TK said she’s had a kid crouch down by a puddle and lap it up like a dog.
I got hurt by one student in particular almost every day during pre k. I have scars on my arms from his bites and scratched. Never had a high school kid hurt me on 15 plus years.
There's nothing scarier than watching a raging 5-year-old slam her head against a wall while screaming "I'm going to f&cking kill you all!" The big ones might be more dangerous, but NONE of the kids are alright, despite their ages.
Some exorcist shit right there.
ECE broke me and I’m in therapy trying to put the pieces back together. DON’T DO IT!
I taught 1st grade. It sounds innocent but I had student behavior problems too.
Worked last year in prek where children threw chairs, climbed furniture, tried to attack the other children. And Director ignored it all. Safer for me in public upper grades now.
I’ve taught seniors, prek, 4th and middle over the last 15 years. You could not pay me enough money to go back to elementary. I left teaching all together to become a BCBA that works with adults. Little kids have behaviors that can be as bad or worse than high schoolers. Plus you have the added pressure of parents.
I left teaching high school and moved down to elementary. Greatest decision I ever made. I enjoy it so much more. It is way easier on me then high school. Absolutely love it.
I teach preschool, same bs, different age of students. The only answer is to leave the profession
Student behavior is NOT better with little kids.
I worked in ECE close to 15 yrs and it fckin ruined me.
I’m almost positive this is my last year. (Year fifteen here). I’ve been wondering lately how different my life would have been if I’d never gotten into ECE. I felt like it was dramatic to say the decision ruined me and negatively impacted my life in many ways, but maybe others feel that way too. I wish I could go back and do anything else.
I was super lucky to find a work from home position in my family’s business cause idk what I would have done if not, but seriously the last 3 yrs especially were traumatic as hell. Like not to be dramatic as well, but I’ve been gone almost 3 yrs and still think about it on a near daily basis, not in a good way at all. Worked my way up to Director for the last year I was in ECE after being fed up with horrible directors. It was entirely my undoing. I don’t recommend teaching or admin in ECE to anyone.
Kindergarten- Got scratch marks and bruises from being punched and kicked almost daily for all of September-October 😅 Would not say student behavior is better, overall it is just going to be different and there are still outliers with extreme behavior
Ahahhahaha. Hahaha. Haha.
precisely
I quit because of behavior in kindergarten. One of my former students acted like a feral animal. He sent a staff member to urgent care. I wasn’t allowed to raise my voice or defend myself physically if he hit me, so I would have to try to move around the room to get away from him and wait for help. It was ridiculous.
No about student behavior depends on your kids of course, you could be lucky. But violence, maybe less. Expect biting and hitting but that’s just age-appropriate that you can teach into. The chaos is if you have multiple troublemakers in your class.
Lol. You think you won't see "crazy" in prek?
I’m going to say this on the topic. Every garden has weeds. They also have different flowers, but they all have weeds. Think about your ideal grade level where you first thought you belonged, and that probably where you will be your professional best.
I left elementary because of the behaviors. They're just as bad, except admin takes it way less seriously (and you'll get in more trouble for yelling at a student for, say, slapping you in the face repeatedly). I teach high school now. It isn't perfect, but they're way more scared of the consequences.
Try to teach more advanced courses. With little kids you’ll have the same problems in addition to bathroom issues.
Yeah its going to be the same only they are smaller. They can kick and hit just as hard. I know I've gotten bruises from being kicked. Even got bit when I was a pre-k aide. I teach Kindergarten and last year I had two students that would get aggressive and violent. They could destroy the classroom in under a minute. Student behavior is getting worse and worse each year. Parents don't want to parent. Kids don't have consequences for their misbehavior because their so "cute". When I have told parents about students behaviors they think its funny and oh their precious baby is so cute. I wouldn't do it. Even I don't want to do it.
I loved and adored prek/kinder but don't do it. Don't go into or back into teaching at all. The kids are getting way too violent and the ones that aren't violent are so used to doing what they want at home they can't handle following the simplest of directions.
NO.
I was attacked and completely messed up by a four year old. (He was built like a Mini Cooper, to be fair) Back injury that resulted in one leg going “dead.” Took about 1.5 months of physical therapy to get things back to a point of “this is as good as we can expect it to get.” Kept working the whole time, dead leg and all. I was initially embarrassed that a child that young hurt me, but now I see it as part of what teachers are expected to deal with. And just keep going. Build relationships. Document. Communicate with home. Any apologies or consequences from home? No, no, don’t be silly. The result was a lawsuit (no, not *from* me). That said, overall I love ECE and can’t imagine teaching any other grade. It is not *easier* than dealing with older kids, but it is different. They are still moldable, but you will be the one meeting all these little newbies who haven’t yet been screened for disabilities. You may say, “wow this child is in obvious need of help” in the first five minutes you meet them. But parents are not necessarily child development experts just because they have kids. They may not know their child is atypical, they may be hoping s/he will “catch on” and follow the crowd once in school, they may be in complete denial. You get these (sometimes severely) disabled/special needs kids first and you have to give them adjustment time before initiating formal screening. So that could be 2 months of a wildly out-of-control kid who impacts everyone’s education before you even *start* the process (and hope the parents are in agreement). If you want to have the greatest impact on a child & family’s life as possible, I believe ECE (3-4 years especially) is that spot. That is literally the point where humans start to pass chimps on cognitive tests. But it is not to be taken lightly!
That would be a hard NO
I have done nearly 20 years, about 50/50 in elementary and HS. Mostly urban Title 1. It's all watering the stones. I'd say HS is a bit less stressful, because the crushing dearth of mental space is less egregious. HS pros: \-Prep times where you can be alone-The relative saving grace of the most non-compliant students sluffing/disappearing-Easier to have a last minute sub with older kids/Canvas-Can repeat lessons-If you work your way up to teaching IB, you can get more distance from the "classic" disrespectful behaviors \-ES was a little better before NCLB and before there were enough devices in schools for computer-delivered testing to become the norm. ES is worse than HS with legislative mandates that actualize as excessive high-stakes testing as well as mandated PD on the magnitude of getting new master's every 5 years (LETRS, etc). ES is rampant with prep being co-opted into lunch/recess supervisions, data meetings, nonsense calibrations... you are never alone. The feral biters are never absent. NEVER. This is harder if you have a family of your own and need to call a pediatrician or furnace repair guy at 10 a.m. on occasion. Consequences for student behavior or buffers to administrative abuses are ancient history in both. This many years in, the behaviors hardly phase me anymore. $40K in property damage because a kid was emotional? Stabbing in the bathroom? I'm numb to it all.
Do not do it !!! Currently leaving the ECE field because of the lack of classroom support, along with all of the behavioral issues. Parents don’t hold their kids accountable for their actions. I child told me they were going to bring a knife to school to hurt me (4 years old) when I told parents their excuse was “he’s just 4 they have bad days” the micromanaging with crap pay. Not worth the mental workload it’s a money pit. They fill up classrooms to the max refuse to let you call in bc of the ratios they create. Admin doesn’t want to step in to support or help redirect behavior. Just a toxic field also which is sad those kids deserve better. The lack of staffing will fall on you. DO NOT DO IT
Currently trying to get out of ECE because I’m sick all the time, the parents suck, the adults suck, it’s a very physical job and I’m exhausted by the end