26 Things That I Wish I Knew When I Was a First Year Teacher
[Image Description: The image shows a circular convex fisheye mirror used for wide-angle visibility mounted onto a corner of a ceiling with purple walls below it in a classroom. The mirror shows my reflection and I am wearing a gray shirt, blue smock, black Bermuda shorts, pink sneakers, and a blue and white headband with my shoulder length, curly, dark brown hair down. I am smiling and standing on red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple patchwork foam mat. I holding up my phone in front of me to take a mirror selfie. The room shows a bookcase filled with several books, faded artwork, diaper changing table with a changing mat, sink, paper towel holder, and wooden stool, cabinets, wooden floors, blue and green patchwork animal themed rug, 5 low wooden shelving units filled with bins and toys, 2 small tables with blue chairs, a counter area with a sink, and storage bins.]
TRIGGER WARNING: If you are affected by workplace bullying, this blog post may be triggering. If you need support right now, please seek help from a therapist or other mental health professional. You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text "HOME" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 if you live in the USA or text "CONNECT" to the Crisis Text Line at 686868 if you live in Canada. You can also visit my hotline resources page by clicking on this hyperlink: Hotline Resources.
I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher since my own early childhood. I was one of those children who played school with their stuffed animals in their bedroom. I started my first year of teaching in an 18–24-month-old classroom in the 2018-2019 school year when I was 20 years old. This year in my eighth year of teaching I was a first-year Special Education teacher in 4th-6th grade Autism Support. While teaching is so rewarding, there is also so much that I wish I would have known. So, here are 26 things I wish I knew as a first-year teacher that I hope can help other first year teachers.
1. To say, "It is my first year of teaching and first job. I have never taught in a classroom prior to this year. So, I am doing my best and I would appreciate if you showed me compassion."
I really wished I would have said this during my first year of teaching ever since I was a second-year teacher and harped on it until my eighth year. I wished that I would have said this to stand up for myself when being nitpicked for not knowing certain stuff. First time employees and first year teachers may take longer to understand things since it is their first time. This may even be longer than a week or months. That is why they are called "first year" teachers and why schools usually provide them with a mentor for the whole school year.
2. To know if it is a safe space or not to say the above
There were some difficult people that I was required to work closely with that were hard on me right away in my first week as a Special Education teacher. So, I decided to tell them that I was a first-year Special Education teacher who was just hired a few days ago with eleven years of volunteer experience and one year as a paraprofessional with hopes that they would show some more compassion, patience, and empathy; however, I immediately regretted admitting this. This honest truth was instantly followed by giggles, harsh biased assumptions, impatience, gossip, hostility, setting too high expectations to set me up for failure, and workplace bullying about my abilities and insubordination from people who felt overly entitled that continued the whole school year. I quickly found out that there are actually many people who are hard on, shame, and snub first year teachers. There are common biased assumptions that "first year teachers know nothing and are incompetent or unintelligent" despite their education as horrible as it sounds. Unfortunately, I also discovered that no matter how many times it is communicated to some people that they "should put themselves in first year teachers' shoes and show them compassion," they just do not care to do so. Some people are just lost causes and will not ever change. In spite of all of this, I also opened up about hosting an Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting for the first time to the whole team with support from the administrator serving as the Local Education Agency (LEA) who was training me on how to do so. Everyone on the IEP team was extremely supportive even the students' parents who told me I did so well hosting and teaching their child.
So, in hindsight, I recommend that first year teachers take at least a few weeks or so to observe what the individuals on their team are like to determine whether it is a safe space or not to be open about this. If you experience workplace bullying from any subordinates or other colleagues as a first year or veteran teacher, talk to an administrator about your concerns. I also recommend that workplaces require consistent utilization of bullying prevention strategies and zero bullying tolerance policy protocols when incidents like these do occur. This is important to protect teachers' well-being and staff retention throughout the school year. This is especially essential for suicide prevention, considering laws against workplace bullying, mainly harassment, and "one in twenty teachers report experiencing a mental health diagnosis lasting longer than a year. We can assume many more are suffering silently or undiagnosed, and that the numbers are on the rise with the added stressors of pandemic teaching. One of the mental health conditions teachers are often diagnosed with is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)" (Moshman 2023).
Related Links:
3. How to handle workplace bullying and my legal rights
I knew from hearing about my parents' many years of work experience growing up that there were chances that I would encounter unkind people in my own experience as well; however, I never thought about the words "workplace bullying" until a very traumatic workplace bullying experience in my first job in my early 20s. This was when I quickly learned that workplace bullying is an unfortunate thing and that I have legal rights because there are laws against this. In fact, I learned that not all but not many workplaces in and outside of education do not consider how workplace bullying can negatively impact employees' well-being.
Document, document, document ALL workplace bullying incidents with all bullies and witnesses' first and last names along with the dates, start and end times or ranges, and locations via email to administrators. Maintain a log of the incidents to the best of your ability. This is extremely important for your own protection and to create a paper trail. If you do not remember the exact time that the incident started and ended, give an estimate or range, such as, "Karen Simpson pointed in my face and screamed at me for about 15 minutes." Stating "morning", "afternoon", "before Karen/I left/returned from lunch", "during morning meeting", or the class period number are also very helpful communication if you are unsure of the exact time. Administrators can gauge estimated times based on this vocabulary since they usually have a master copy of schedules saved somewhere. It can be difficult to know the exact time that any incidents start since they can happen so fast and unexpectedly. Calmly and assertively standing up for yourself and protecting students are also bigger priorities in the moment. If the incident involves a child, avoid saying the child's name for confidentiality purposes. Instead, say something such as, "Karen Simpson pointed in Student's A face and screamed, 'No!' when they eloped from room 400 at about 12:00pm on Thursday, October 30, 2026. Karen grabbed Student A by their backpack strap and laid them on the ground. Then, Student A kicked Karen's legs." If you believe it is necessary to state which specific child the incident involved for health and safety purposes, write the child's first and last initials. This may be necessary if you witness or suspect IEP violations, discrimination, or child abuse/neglect. If you witness or suspect that a child was physically injured, please state any marks or discoloration of their specific body parts (example: "Timothy's index finger turned red afterwards" or "Elizabeth had a bump on her forehead") that you observed or if the child communicated feeling any pain. Please also state if the child exhibited any specific concerning physical, emotional, or verbal behaviors during incidents of mistreatment, such as crying, hitting, stating, "I hate you" or "I feel/felt scared/angry/sad." If the mistreatment appears to be harming students' mental or behavioral health, contact your school's Licensed Behavior Specialist (LBS), Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), and/or school counselor in addition to your principal and vice principal.
Related Links:
4. Not all but many people would invalidate my educational background and multiple prior years of experience in my first year of teaching.
Did I also mention how much unqualified teachers are hired to teach in childcare centers despite this being illegal and that not all but many childcare center administrators and these unqualified teachers insist that this law does not exist despite the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Code saying that at least one of the following qualifications or credentials is required?:
- "Child Development Associate (CDA) certification or Certified Childcare Professional (CCP) certification equivalent to 9 credit hours from an accredited college or university in early childhood education or child development" (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 2024)
- College degree in Early Childhood Education "accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or the Council on Postsecondary Education and acceptable to the Department of Education" (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Code 2024)
- "Pennsylvania school-age credential equivalent to 9 credit hours from an accredited college or university in elementary education or child development" (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Code 2024)
In childcare centers, many unqualified teachers will also snub the qualified teachers as if their qualifications do not matter after all the hard work that they put in to get those certification(s) and/or degree(s). It is not "just a piece of paper" or "hoopla." So, please put an end to that insult. It is documentation of education, qualifications, and credentials. According to a study conducted by Slate.com, "the educational and experience requirements for people directing early childcare vary wildly by state" (Bornfreund & Lieberman 2017). In not all but many states, including Pennsylvania, ALL childcare center teachers, assistant directors, and directors, ARE required to have at least a college degree in ECE and/or CDA certification. Professional development continuing education unit (CEU) trainings are also required on a daily basis.
Related Links:
5. My mental and physical well-being are still important even in the workplace and to prioritize self-care.
I experienced very severe prolonged workplace bullying in my first year of teaching that I never saw coming and it will always stay with me. I still experience traumatic flashbacks till this day, especially during evaluation season every year. I will probably never be able to unsee nor fully recover from any of my lived experiences with workplace bullying. While it is not easy to manage, I am able to work through these flashbacks by compartmentalizing, grounding myself in the present, and I have made progress in my healing journey. Flight attendants instruct passengers to put on their own oxygen masks before assisting any other passengers. This is because common sense logic is that if you pass out from lack of oxygen, you are unable to help anyone else. Similarly, while it is fair to say that "the children come first" at times, it is important for staff to prioritize self-care. Prioritizing self-care prevents burnout and mental health crises in order to be there for the students.
So, rest as much as possible, set and stick to appropriate boundaries around your lunch break, prep period, weekends, and Thanksgiving, winter, and spring break and take those days off. Please avoid giving up your lunch break and prep period! Going to your prep period every day even when the paraprofessionals, teacher next door, or others who are not your supervisors tell you not to is setting a boundary. It is your union right. Setting boundaries is also not rude. People can set boundaries and still be respectful. Avoid people-pleasing, "in which you ignore or may not even recognize your wants and needs, in order to avoid conflict and maintain status quo" (pg. 101, Radico, O'Reilly, & Helverson 2024). "Boundaries can be small or big declarations. It may be protecting your self-care time by not responding to a text or email immediately, or saying, 'I'm sorry. I already have plans' to protect your peace. Small boundaries give us the space we need to set the bigger ones. You may also think of self-care as luxurious acts, like taking a vacation or having a spa day, but really those things are self-comfort. True self-care means doing difficult tasks that make our lives healthier overall, like exercising or going to therapy. Setting a boundary is self-care, because it's not about saying no to others; it's saying yes to yourself and what is healthiest for your life" (pg. 104, Radico, O'Reilly, & Helverson 2024). "In some circumstances, setting boundaries may not feel safe. I encourage you to utilize your support system so that you may move forward in a way that will be best for you" (pg. 104, Radico, O'Reilly, & Helverson 2024).
Avoid having your email and school messaging apps connected to your phone and checking it on days off, sick days, long weekends, and Thanksgiving, winter, and spring break. "Teaching can easily become a 24-hour-a-day-job----emails to reply to, papers to grade, and students who schedule meetings during your lunch or prep time to discuss their grades or seek emotional support. There may be that one club that needs an adviser, or one more guidance counselor or parent who wants your input. To thrive in this profession, create more space between your work responsibilities and your personal life so that you can rest, restore, and cultivate a full life outside of school" (Pandolpho & Dunne 2025). While it is important to avoid taking too many days off from work, I wish that I would have taken more days off in my earlier years of teaching. I am really proud of myself for listening to my mentor teacher about requesting days off this school year. It was definitely worth it. Teaching is hard because it matters. Also, self-care is not selfish or the act of a person caring only about themselves at all.
Related Links:
6. The lack of care about students' and teachers' well-being
This is one of the issues in education that breaks my heart the most and leads to traumatization among students and teachers💔
7. Not all but some people working in education lack compassion and empathy --- administrators, colleagues, and families included.
I question why these specific staff members are even working in education. What is their purpose if they do not prioritize these key values? Compassion and empathy are NOT weak, making excuses, immature, or a waste of time. Actually, compassion and empathy ARE signs of an educated person with emotional intelligence. Meanwhile, lack thereof is a sign of emotional immaturity. People with compassion and empathy provide explanations instead of excuses and there is difference between explanations and excuses. Prioritizing toxicity over compassion and empathy is wasting time and harming students' social-emotional development, especially who are in disability community and other marginalized or vulnerable groups. Some people are just so miserable that they let their toxic energy define who they are.
Related Links:
8. Not all but some staff and administrators have no respect nor compassion for children of all differences.
Presuming incompetence and biases really upsets me.
9. It is okay for teachers to make mistakes.
I was so insecure about my mistakes when I was doing my student teaching for my Child Development Associate (CDA) certification and as a first-year Special Education teacher. This was due to many people's fixed mindset about teachers needing to be perfect even though it is common sense knowledge that no one is perfect and that it is ok to be imperfect. Interesting way to model normalizing imperfection and lifelong development of problem-solving skills in front of children🧐
Related Links:
10. Teachers do not need to know every little thing to be teachers.
To reiterate, there is a common misconception that teachers are expected to know every little thing to be teachers. Instead of teachers being "authorities of knowledge," teachers are actually "authorities of exploration of knowledge and discovery." This is because learning is a lifelong journey for everyone and we teachers are still learning, growing, and imperfect too and that is okay. This is why professional development is called "professional development." Edutopia prioritizes "allowing progress rather than perfection to be enough" as a boundary (Pandolpho & Dunne 2025).
11. Lack of support from not all but some administrators and colleagues
I have had some very supportive administrators and colleagues who I built professional relationships with, and I still keep in touch with; however, I have also encountered some very unsupportive administrators and colleagues. While remaining calm in difficult situations in the workplace has always been one of my strengths, I wish I would have known more about how to stand up to administrators and colleagues who bullied me. I will admit that I was intimidated in the beginning and felt more confident each time I stood up for myself. Support from administrators and the team is especially important when it comes to students with behavior concerns, trauma, and/or in the disability community. You also have Weingarten rights to request your union representative be present at any meeting that you believe could lead to discipline, termination, or changes to your work conditions and you may refuse to answer any questions without representation under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Weingarten rights are also valid to use when experiencing bullying from any colleagues or subordinates as well.
12. To take initiative
Taking initiative means doing job tasks without being asked and saying, "Is there anything that you need me to do?" if you do not know what to do. I was not aware of this very important job skill in my first year of teaching in my early 20s. Workplaces should find out and consider how many years of work experience any employees overall in any jobs and teach them job skills if this is their first job ever. This is especially important because teamwork makes the dreamwork.
Related Links:
13. More about time management skills
Teachers need more training on time management skills. One time management skill that I am still working in is prioritizing tasks effectively. I noticed that I tend to get bogged down (get so involved in something difficult that I cannot do anything else) in the details of preparation for the day or week. Sometimes this can make it challenging to manage my time efficiently. I started utilizing checklists and setting clear deadlines for myself this past school year to address this area of improvement. I also focus on delegating tasks (cutting things out, laminating velcroing, printing, making copies, organizing) to paraprofessionals and sometimes even students (throwing things out, organizing). In addition, I prioritize based on deadlines and impact to ensure that I am not spending too much time on less critical aspects of a project.
Related Links:
14. More about problem-solving skills
Problem-solving is another interpersonal skill that teachers need more professional training on. I never thought that I would improve my time management and problem-solving skills until my third to eighth years of teaching. These were the years when I really started to gain more confidence in my time management and problem-solving abilities. I have improved my ability to "think on my feet" (react fast), pivot, and conflict resolution.
15. More about healthy and safety management skills for supervising students
There was a lack of training about health and safety management skills for supervising students in my first year of teaching. In fact, this topic as part of professional skills was not taught about in any of my college classes either. I will speak frankly that this concerned me for the well-being of the children. Some strategies for child and health safety that I learned along the way include the following:
- Count the children! Do this before leaving and returning to the classroom, during ALL transitions, before and after getting on buses, on field trips, and throughout the day.
- Make sure that you can see all of the children and the whole setting that they are in in full view at all times.
- Avoid having your back turned away from students and the door.
- Make sure that young children and children in the disability community with high support needs are in arms reach at all times.
- Avoid going on your phone unless you have permission to take photos of students when appropriate to do so.
If you are a first-year teacher, request professional development opportunities for more information health and safety management skills for supervising students. I recommend the Childcare Education Institute (CCEI) (https://www.cceionline.com/), Better Kid Care (BKC) (https://extension.psu.edu/programs/betterkidcare), and Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) (https://www.crisisprevention.com/find-training/).
16. How to make and implement a schedule
I was so lost LOL😭 I never thought that making and implementing schedules for my classroom would be so hard, but it turns out that it is harder than it looks. Believe it or not, I did not discover how hard making schedules would be until my eighth year of teaching when I was a first-year Special Education teacher. This was because all of my prior years of teaching, I worked in childcare centers where the administrators created all of the classrooms' schedules and I followed the pecking order. I have always understood that all students thrive on a consistent and structured routine; however, all seven students had different schedules that required them to be in multiple different locations at different times and in my classroom as a whole group for a short period of the day. This especially became harder when their schedules needed to change when Related Services that consisted of Speech, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Vision Therapy, and Adapted Physical Education started up again. I made a schedule the best I could for the beginning of the school year, and I honestly took about one month to create a consistent schedule for my students. It is important for all teachers, paraprofessionals, service providers, and administrators to be mindful that schedules will most likely need to change over time due to needing to adjust and be flexible according to students' needs. Students' needs can change or sometimes it takes a while to discover what students need through multiple observations and that is okay as long as we keep testing things out through trial and error. I felt vindicated when my mentor teacher, other veteran teachers, and service providers told me that creating and implementing schedules are challenging for them too.
Related Links:
17. Provided with a hard copy of what the already written schedule was with the start and end times for each part of the day or period
To reiterate, all of the childcare centers that I was a teacher at created schedules for all of the classrooms; however, the lead teachers in one of the centers that I was a floater at did not provide me with any copy of what the already written schedules were. They claimed that this was unnecessary and that I should just know this somehow despite the fact that written procedures and expectations are key parts of team dynamics and success. A lead teacher who bullied me and did not stay very long in a later center that I worked at also gave a schedule with no start and end times. I was given the opportunity to modify the schedule according to what I believed was best for the children after this teacher left.
18. Training for how to mentor new teachers
I was expected to train new hires at the childcare center that I worked at in my own first year of teaching! I had mixed emotions around this because I was still learning myself while I also wanted to help in any way that I could; however, I did not receive any training for mentor skills and was thrown into the situation (suddenly placed into the situation without preparation) to do so. I would have appreciated at least brief communication about what to show and communicate to new hires. The center provided staff with online professional development trainings on Childcare Education Institute (CCEI). Eventually, administration encouraged all of my colleagues and I to take it upon ourselves to complete any CCEI trainings that interested us. The trainings titled Adult Learning: Theories and Strategies for Trainers, Coaches, and Directors - PROF105 and Staff Communication: Educational Partnerships - CCEI960 really helped me with my mentor skills. My mentor teacher when I was a first-year Special Education teacher also really assisted me with my professional skills in training paraprofessionals and new hires.
Related Links:
19. How much childcare center teachers are underpaid and dismissed in comparison to school district teachers
The education field is discussed by many current and former teachers, administrators, service providers, education program professors, education advocates/activists, and other educational professionals along with at many teacher conferences and on social media, in books, etc.; however, in many of these discussions, every grade and age group are usually mentioned except for infants and toddlers.
While this disparity has always existed, it became worse during the COVID-19 pandemic. I will speak freely that it was very bizarre that public school teachers had the opportunity to get their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before childcare center teachers. Childcare center teachers were labeled as "childcare center workers" instead of teachers and public, parochial, and private school teachers were labeled as "teachers." There is not a difference between childcare center workers and teachers. Childcare center, public, parochial, and private school teachers are all teachers. I will speak freely further that actually childcare center teachers and the exception of school district Special Education teachers who tend to have immunocompromised students and visual, hands-on learners who needed in-person learning with mask wearing should have been allowed to get their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine first before any other public, parochial, and private school teachers. This is because childcare center teachers and not all but many school district's Special Education teachers were back in person longer than public, parochial, and private school teachers. We were already exposed to germs prior to the pandemic since young children tend to be cute little germ buckets anyway; however, young children were a high-risk group for catching COVID-19 in the height of the pandemic and they still are a high-risk group. When childcare center teachers were teaching in person during the red and yellow phases, we were exposed more with all of the germs that we had to deal with. In fact, childcare centers and Special Education teachers especially in Life Skills and Autism Support classrooms dealt with way more germs than most school district teachers before the pandemic because of all of the messy work that we are required to do.
There is a lack of representation of childcare center teachers who do not "get the summer and long weekends off" since childcare centers are open all year round. In addition, as many people know all teachers are underpaid and deserve better; however, childcare center teachers tend be underpaid much less than school district teachers even when they have the same level of education. According to ZipRecruiter in June 2024, Pennsylvania public grade school teachers made $6,383.00 per year ($20.00 per hour, $792.00 per week, $3,435.00 per month, & $41,222) more or higher than infant/toddler teachers ($17.00 per hour, $669.00 per week, & $2,903.00 per month, & $34,839 per year). This underpay is on average even though our teaching is equally important and leads into my next point.
20. There is a lack of respect, value, and appreciation for infant/toddler teachers. What makes this especially frustrating is that not all but many people do not consider them as "real teachers." Infant/toddler teachers ARE real teachers.
Infant/toddler teachers have been at risk for so many sicknesses long before the pandemic for the reasons stated above. This is accurate despite the requirement of repetitively disinfecting all diaper changing tables, highchairs, tables, shelves, and toys. Infant/toddler teachers are even required to wear gloves for every diaper change and feeding and wash and wiping their and the babies' hands before and after meals and diaper changes. Unfortunately, even 6 years after the pandemic, the label that "infant/toddler teachers are not real teachers" has seemed to stay and become more common instead of including infant/toddler teachers in the job occupation name, teachers. This is especially ironic since state inspectors that supervise childcare centers in Pennsylvania are from the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) as a dual deputate of the Department of Education (PDE) and Department of Human Services (DHS). In fact, the United States Department of Education advertises on their website that they "foster educational excellence and ensuring equal access to birth to 12 education" (U.S. Department of Education 2026). All because we teach different age groups does not mean that infant/toddler teachers are not teachers and the fact that they are underappreciated does not matter. Infant/toddler teachers ARE real teachers.
Related Links:
21. Not all teachers will teach, and not all support staff will support students even though that is the purpose of their jobs.
This is a sad heartbreaking truth. When I was a teacher in childcare centers, there were some people who would openly complain that lessons were a waste of time, meaningless, and unimportant. This was confusing since the whole purpose of childcare centers is to be an educational setting for students to learn prerequisite developmental skills. I remember a lot of childcare staff complaining about my lessons that involved paint and needing to feed food to the children and being "made to do all of the messy work." However, childcare center teachers', elementary school teachers, Life Skills/Autism Support teachers, and paraprofessionals' jobs are messy and people should take that into consideration before accepting jobs. When people accept jobs, they know the pay, schedule, and responsibilities.
Related Links:
22. Colleagues cannot be forced to build professional relationships with you.
I am a huge advocate for building professional relationships with colleagues when it comes to school and classroom culture and absolutely adore many colleagues that I have built professional relationships with. Unfortunately, however, not everyone likes everyone. Sometimes people will not like you even when you did nothing wrong due to jealousy, resentment, discrimination, misunderstandings, or unknown reasons that they refuse to admit. In fact, these Negative Nancys may tell you from the second they meet you on day one, "I don't want to build a professional relationship with you because I don't like you" without knowing anything about you for whatever reason. In times like these, this rejection may or may not be hurtful because everyone reacts differently to this situation; however, no matter who you, remain professional and calm, keep fulfilling all of your job responsibilities even when you get pushback from people who are not your supervisors, and try not to take their negativity personally. Avoid pressuring them to build relationships with you because you cannot control other people's actions unfortunately. This includes students, their families, colleagues, and administrators. Surround yourself with as many positive people as possible and build healthy relationships with them instead. "Positive social relationships are essential to your mental and physical health---and unhealthy relationships have a slew of negative impacts" (pg. 101, Radico, O'Reilly, & Helverson 2024). While it is important to "explore ways to improve relationships," it is also "important to note that not all relationships can be improved, especially if there is abuse or fundamental incompatibility" (pg. 101, Radico, O'Reilly, & Helverson 2024).
Related Links:
23. That people do not obey pecking order
Some people have no respect for authority whether that is the lead teacher, case manager, service provider, vice principal, principal, or superintendent in their first, fifth, twentieth, thirtieth year. Some people also do not care even when they face consequences for this insubordination.
Related Links:
24. Some people will never admit their wrongdoings even while doing them in plain sight meanwhile they will gaslight and deflect you.
Literal narcissists in the workplace IRL.
25. Not all but some people have fixed mindsets about what curriculum and life skills are.
Some people think that curriculum is just what students are learning and that teachers decide the curriculum requirements and that if they, the subs, paraprofessionals, and/or students do not like it that they do not need to do it. Contrary to popular belief, this is very incorrect. In fact, not following curriculum requirements is a very serious violation whether it is in the Present Levels of Academic and Functional Performance (PLAAFP) section of their IEP or not and can result in a write up. Teachers are required to follow curriculum requirements and typically have no say in deciding these requirements and when students with Special Educational needs are exempt from certain curriculum programs, they are required to meet the criteria for to be eligible for exemption. Just saying they have a disability or what their disability is does not automatically guarantee exemption. It is important to presume competence and collect and present data first.
In regard to life skills curriculum programs, the narrow, closed-minded beliefs about what life skills students should be learning are often based on common biased stereotypes. Many people have the deficit-based assumption that these programs are only for students with severe intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) viewing the content as purely remedial rather than foundational. Many people assume life skills are limited to only cooking, cleaning, folding laundry, nutrition, hygiene, money, time, and measurement while skipping digital literacy, balancing screen time and off-screen activities, civic engagement, bodily functions, and five senses while ignoring complex social-emotional skills. When it does come to teaching social-emotional skills as life skills, many people incorrectly and divisively view this as only compliance over choice. To elaborate, they will insist that passive obedience, such as following directions without question, needs to be taught instead of self-advocacy for basic wants and needs, identifying emotions, self-regulation, problem-solving, consent, personal choice, and self-love. It is also important to avoid ignoring the reality that adolescents and adults with life skills needs experience dating, identity exploration, and individual human sexuality. There are many people who push all participants towards the exact same segregated programs or low-wage job track without presuming competence and exploring personalized opportunities and ambitions. There are also many cultural and social blind spots. There are many people who cook up (randomly create) standards of what "proper" hygiene, home organization, or social interactions look like. This can be harmful to students from diverse racial, economic, or disability backgrounds who are insecure about their abilities and privileges, especially since there is no right or wrong way to fulfill life skills. Another biased assumption is family blaming. To elaborate, many people wrongly assume that what appears to be a lack of home-based skill practice means families do not care or are uninvested. This ignores cultural differences, a lack of structural support, and shows a lack of compassion and open-mindedness towards considering the fact that families are doing the best we can, and we never know the full story about what their home life is like behind closed doors for sure.
Also, consistency and structure does not mean being overly strict, shaming, or yelling at students. It means creating and reinforcing developmentally-appropriate requirements with a calm, positive, compassionate tone of voice.
Related Links:
26. My worth is not dependent on other people.
There is also no such thing as "Respect needs to be earned." The opposite of respect is disrespect, which is bullying and bullying is illegal, harmful, and disgraceful. My thoughts, feelings, education, experience, and authority matter no matter how many years I have been teaching and working with the disability community. Be kind to yourself.
To learn more about teaching and workplace rights, you can visit the following organization websites:
- American Federation for Teachers (AFT) - www.aft.org
- Bored Teachers - www.boredteachers.com
- Commonwealth of Pennsylvania - https://www.pa.gov/agencies/hrmoa/programs/employee-relations/discipline
- Commonwealth Policies and Laws - https://www.pa.gov/agencies/oa/programs/eeo/policies-and-laws
- Edutopia - www.edutopia.org
- National Education Association (NEA) - www.nea.org
- National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) - https://www.nlrb.gov/about-nlrb/rights-we-protect/your-rights/weingarten-rights
- Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) - https://www.psea.org/for-members/member-resources/member-rights/
- We Are Teachers - www.weareteachers.com
If you are a first-year teacher, I highly recommend reading the following books below:
- Your Introduction to Education: Explorations in Teaching: Third Edition written by Sara Davis Powell
- Collaborative Teaming: Teachers' Guides to Inclusive Practices: Practical tips on working together to help all kids succeed!: Third Edition written by Margaret E. King-Sears, Rachel Janney, and Martha E. Snell
If you are affected by workplace bullying, you are not alone and there is hope. If you or someone you know needs support right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text "HOME" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 if you live in the USA or text "CONNECT" to the Crisis Text Line at 686868 if you live in Canada. You can also visit my hotline resources page by clicking on this hyperlink: Hotline Resources
Did you enjoy and find this post helpful? If you want to see more content like this and my other content about advocating for the disability community and teaching, please follow me on Instagram and like my Facebook page if you have not already by clicking on the hyperlinks below:
Instagram: @firstformerbuddyclubpresident
Facebook: First Former Buddy Club President
Give feedback! Questions? Compliments? Suggestions? Let me know in the comments section below and/or email me at ehoffbuddyclub@gmail.com !
If you repost any of my content to your own page or story, please tag me in the caption and the post and keep my logo visible. Thank you💕
Citations
1. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Code. (30 Mar. 2024). Chapter 3270. CHILD CARE CENTERS. (30 Mar. 2024). https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/055/chapter3270/chap3270toc.html&d=
2. Moshman, R. (Feb. 2023). PTSD in Teachers Is Real and Serious. Here's What You Need to Know. https://www.boredteachers.com/post/ptsd-teachers
3. Infant Toddler Teacher Salary in Pennsylvania. (2024). Zip Recruiter. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Infant-Toddler-Teacher-Salary--in-Pennsylvania#:~:text=As%20of%20Apr%201%2C%202024%2C%20the%20average%20hourly,Toddler%20Teacher%20in%20Pennsylvania%20is%20%2416.75%20an%20hour.
4. Pandolpho & Dunne. (11 Aug. 2025). Getting Off to a Good Start as a New Secondary Teacher. https://www.edutopia.org/article/strategies-new-secondary-school-teachers?utm_content=linkpos4&utm_campaign=weekly-2025-08-13&utm_medium=email&utm_source=edu-newsletter
5. Preschool Teacher Salary in Pennsylvania. (2024). Zip Recruiter. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Preschool-Teacher-Salary--in-Pennsylvania#:~:text=How%20much%20does%20a%20Preschool%20Teacher%20make%20in,Preschool%20Teacher%20in%20Pennsylvania%20is%20%2415.62%20an%20hour.
6. Public School Teacher Salary in Pennsylvania. (2024). Zip Recruiter. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Public-School-Teacher-Salary--in-Pennsylvania#:~:text=How%20much%20does%20a%20Public%20School%20Teacher%20make,School%20Teacher%20in%20Pennsylvania%20is%20%2419.82%20an%20hour.
7. U. S. Department of Education. (29 June 2026). https://www.ed.gov/
8. You Will Get Through This: A Mental Health First-Aid Kit: Help for Depression, Anxiety, Grief, and More. Julie Radico, PsyD, ABPP; Charity O'Reilly, LPC; Nicole Helverson, PsyD. 2024. pgs. 101 & 104. Print.
Comments
Post a Comment