Well, I just feel bad for you Tri-Girl. I got Nat. Board certified about ten years ago. I did the work, kept it to myself, and took the money the state gave me for it... even when I was the biggest workaholic around, I still made time for the rest of my life. I don't know why teachers are such b****es to each other. OK guys, I can say this because I was a teacher for 31 years. I worked in 8 different places and it was the same everywhere; just varying degrees.
I taught SS to fifth graders for 2 years, along with LA to my HR. But I only had a team of 70 kids. After that, I just did LA in gr. 6 or 7. Yes, the work load is tough, but I preferred it to having to teach more than one subject.
One of the reasons I quit the job I had before my last job is that they were going to make me use a "series" to teach LA. I felt like I was being punished because I could teach skills and strategies within the context of a holistic approach. It's a lot more work, but definitely more fun. No one believed me when I said I would quit, but after I burst out in tears at a curriculum meeting, they sort of got the idea I was serious. I was just lucky someone else hired me, with 22 years experience. I had to do a lot of negotiating for the salary, but miraculously, they "found" an extra 15K over what they had budgeted for the position.
I had dinner the other night, with one of my former colleagues. I'll just say that I felt really good about my decision to quit. For the first time in my life, I am dealing with adults all day long.
