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Earned my FL teaching certificate
05-07-2013, 07:38 PM
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#1
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,657
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Earned my FL teaching certificate
I ER'd about 2 years ago at the age of 52. If we had a repeat of 2007, I wanted to have something in my hip pocket that would allow me to earn a few dollars but on a schedule I could control that did not require a full-time commitment. At my final job, I did some STEM activities with kids and I enjoyed it. I love math and want kids to love it too so I decided to get my teaching certificate to teach middle grades math, grades 5-9.
We have a wonderful treasure of a community college, St. Petersburg College, that awards 2-year, 4-year, and advanced certificates. I went through their one-year educator program that includes student teaching. I graduated Saturday so I will have my teaching certificate soon. What a year!
I did my student teaching in a "tough" middle school in an 8th grade "intensive math" classroom. Even though my internship ended at the end of March, I have continued to volunteer in my internship classroom 4 days a week because the need is so great. I would never have imagined that a classroom with only 15 students needed 2 teachers in order to both manage the classroom and to provide the academic support the students require.
I would have never thought I could fall in love with a bunch of messy 8th graders with all their teen drama and all their very real and very serious family problems. In the future, I'll be volunteering or subbing or working part-time. By far, the hardest job I have ever done!
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05-07-2013, 07:42 PM
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#2
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Madeira Beach Fl
Posts: 1,403
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Pretty cool.
__________________
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"A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do" --Bob Dylan.
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05-07-2013, 07:54 PM
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#3
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,657
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I was the oldest in our cohort of 24 students. At 54, I was probably 20 years older than the next oldest student which, of course, earned me the nickname "mom."
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05-07-2013, 09:33 PM
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#4
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Tampa Bay Area
Posts: 1,866
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VERY cool ! This is something that I've considered also. I'd love to learn more about the program.
Congratulations and thank you for working with kids.
__________________
"For the time being no discipline brings joy, but seems grievous and painful; but afterwards it yields a peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." ~
Hebrews 12:11
ER'd in June 2015 at age 52. Initial WR 3%. 50/40/10 (Equity/Bond/Short Term) AA.
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05-07-2013, 09:59 PM
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#5
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 1,608
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Congratulations Buckeye! Your passion and talent are very much needed in the school system.
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05-07-2013, 10:06 PM
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#6
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Collin County, TX
Posts: 9,296
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Bravo Buckeye...I'm proud of you! 
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There's no need to complicate, our time is short..
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05-08-2013, 04:15 AM
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#7
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 759
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That is inspirational. Thanks for sharing and sparking an interest as I too love math and may need something similar to feel I am contributing to something meaningful.
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05-08-2013, 05:26 AM
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#8
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Moderator
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Eastern WV Panhandle
Posts: 25,346
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Way to go!
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When I was a kid I wanted to be older. This is not what I expected.
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05-08-2013, 06:19 AM
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#9
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Naples
Posts: 2,179
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Good luck Buckeye! I also think it's great that you can fulfill a community need while satisfying your own desires.
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Congratulations, Buckeye!
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05-08-2013, 06:24 AM
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#10
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Ohio Suburb and WV Farm
Posts: 519
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Congratulations, Buckeye!
What a great use of your math skills; you probably already know that there is a shortage of math teachers nationwide. Plus, IMHO, anyone who can revel in working with middle-school students has a special gift and calling.
I mentor 4 first-year math teachers, gr. 9-12. With those who are assigned freshmen, we work on teaching "Civilization 101" or "How to Go to High School."
Having dedicated folks like you in gr. 6-8 makes such a difference.
Now, if you could only clone yourself.......
Best wishes in your encore career, making the world a better place!
 
__________________
"Everything becomes more itself." --C.S. Lewis
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05-08-2013, 07:02 AM
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#11
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 3,532
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Wonderful! We need more dedicated math teachers.
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05-08-2013, 10:38 AM
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#12
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Cooksburg,PA
Posts: 1,874
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Way to go Buckeye!
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Free to canoe
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05-08-2013, 12:12 PM
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#13
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Chicago area
Posts: 431
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Wonderful way to contribute and find meaning in ER.
AIR
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05-08-2013, 12:45 PM
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#14
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Texas: No Country for Old Men
Posts: 50,022
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 Quote:
Originally Posted by AnIntentionalRoad
... find meaning in ER.
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Must we go there? Can't we just 'be'? 
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Numbers is hard
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05-08-2013, 01:39 PM
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#15
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Hooverville
Posts: 22,983
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A totally un-American idea. Can't you be a team player and get with the program?
Ha
__________________
"As a general rule, the more dangerous or inappropriate a conversation, the more interesting it is."-Scott Adams
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05-08-2013, 05:08 PM
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#16
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 7,733
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I think it is cool you doing this, also slightly crazy
Well it certainly makes it easier to answer the question. "What will you do all day
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05-08-2013, 06:27 PM
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#17
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,657
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Quote:
Originally Posted by clifp
I think it is cool you doing this, also slightly crazy
Well it certainly makes it easier to answer the question. "What will you do all day |
I have to agree with you I went a little crazy.  I'm not totally sure what got into me but sometimes I know what I have to do and I just get it done. I put my head down and went like heck for 12 months.
The subjects of all the classes I took were new to me so I was really stretching my brain and working hard. Because I was in what I call the "one year wonder" program, I have only begun to scratch the surface of the profession of teaching. As a registered sub in my local school district, I am eligible to take district-sponsored education-related classes for free which I consider to be a huge benefit.
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05-08-2013, 06:35 PM
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#18
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,657
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dreamer
Wonderful! We need more dedicated math teachers.
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No, I can't claim to be a dedicated math teacher because I'm only going to work part-time. The dedicated teachers are the ones who are in the classroom EVERY day, ALL day. I can't put up with all the organizational BS which is how I ended up ER'd in the first place!
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05-08-2013, 09:20 PM
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#19
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Harrogate, UK
Posts: 921
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After almost 30 years in teaching....to put it simply....and nicely....if you can handle it...hats off to you.
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05-09-2013, 04:49 AM
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#20
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,657
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Quote:
Originally Posted by F4mandolin
After almost 30 years in teaching....to put it simply....and nicely....if you can handle it...hats off to you.
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No, hats off to YOU who made a long term commitment! As a part-timer, I'm like a grand-parent. I can enjoy the good parts and then give them back to their "real" teacher!
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