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Balancing school, work and family life
Balancing school, work and family life
Balancing school, work and family life
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At seven years old, I was dressed in my brand new Punky Brewster sneakers, had my seventy count marker set, and new backpack; I was ready for the second grade! I will never forget the nerves of the first day of school, the smell of a brand new box of crayons, or my teacher. It was in that very moment that I knew what I was meant to do for the rest of my life. I wanted to be an elementary school teacher. Fast-forward almost thirty years; my life has taken many unexpected turns along the way. I have been married and divorced. I have become a mom to three amazingly annoying monsters. I have moved from the warm comforts of Texas to the frozen tundra called New York. One thing has remained constant throughout my life, fulfilling a life long dream. …show more content…
I made the decision two weeks before my thirty-second birthday. I had support from family and friends. I was probably just as excited at thirty-two years old walking into my first day of class as I was at seven walking into the second grade. On my first day of class, I made a commitment to myself; if I was going to put in the time and effort to go back to school, I was going to give it my all. I was determined (and still am) to graduate with a 4.0 GPA. I worked my butt off for two years at our local community college in Austin, and when we moved to Arizona, I was excited to enroll at the University of Phoenix. The struggles of balancing work, being a mom, and a student seemed overwhelming at times, but I knew if this was important it wasn’t going to just be easy. Nothing worth having comes easy. I welcomed the challenges because I knew it was making me a better
Unlike many people who attended college after they graduated from high school I was not one of them. I chose to be a wife and a mother of two; later after my children were grown and my first marriage was over I realized I needed a change. I decided to attend a community college taking the traditional classroom courses. It was a major struggle for me because I was working full-time and part-time jobs while working on an Associates Degree. What should have taken me only two years to complete it took me four because I was not able to work in all the classes needed to graduated in a two year time period my work crazy hours and take care of my family would not allow it. After getting my Associates Degree I knew I wanted to continue my education but traditional classroom learning constraints was not going to work for me. When my daughter started college and I found out that she was taking online courses that was accredited I soon realized this maybe the opportunity I was looking for. I did some research and found an accredited school that offered a Bachelors Degree through online learning. I received my Bachelors Degree and graduated with honors taking online classes in less time than the traditional method of learning.
My name is Stephanie Sue Hurley and I am a 28 year old mother of 4 children from a very small town in Grundy, Virginia. My children Caden, Shylar, Harley and Jacey are my inspiration for wanting to become a school teacher. I love my children, as well as every other child I meet, this is why I could not see myself doing anything that didn’t involve working with children on a daily basis, for the rest of my life. While I know dealing with children daily can be somewhat tiring, I could not imagine wanting to do anything else for a career. While taking on the profession of becoming a teacher, I will take on many roles such as, “researcher, lifelong learner, caregiver, family and child advocate, provocateur, playmate, and many others,” (Follari,
Going back to school at 30 is not the same as going back to school at 20, especially when you’re a single parent with an established career. Returning to school never left my mind throughout the years, I received my associates seven years ago and between then and now a lot had changed. So many questions I asked myself; do I have the time, who can help watch my daughter, can I juggle another load, etc. I answered every one of my questions; unfortunately I gave myself excuses instead. The decision going back to school was overwhelming because it was taking up another full time job; making it a priority and possibly putting in overtime to study and do homework.
A class full of young kids chasing me around the classroom, giving me the energy and reason I wake up to come here everyday. In two years I will finish my Associate's Degree in Early Childhood Education and management the first step to becoming a teacher. While going to school at Polk State College I will continue my job at Precious Children in the Highlands Preschool. Senior year I had interned there and got a multitude of experiences and offered a part time job as a substitute. After having this experience I have found that this is the job I want to take part in. I currently have finished my online 40 hours of child care classes during my senior year of high school. I hope to inspire young ones to be who they want and to become brilliant students.
To begin out of the countless professions one has to chose from in the world today I have chosen to become a teacher. I have chosen to become a teacher because I myself am a product of some whom I consider to be the best teachers in the world. As a child in North Carolina I was inspired by a wonderful woman named Mrs. Hollyfield. Mrs. Hollyfield taught me that no star was too far out of reach, if I put my mind to accomplishing my goal I could make it. Mrs. Hollyfield inspired me to be the best I could be at anything I wanted to be. As I have grown I have had other important teachers, some whom I am surrounded by daily whom inspire me to set out to accomplish my dreams. These wonderful inspiring people in my life have led me to the decision of becoming a teacher.
Early in high school, I considered engineering, sports marketing, and physical therapy. All of these sounded interesting, however, none filled me with the desire I was longing for. My love for learning and helping others to learn as well, whether it’s academics or sports, made me realize that a career in teaching is what I want to pursue after graduation. My mom has been a teacher for many years, and I admire the passion and dedication she has for her students. I want to make a difference in the lives of students and create a desire for learning. Education is a gift we receive and all students deserve someone who will believe in and help them to reach their full potential. I firmly believe I am that person. I have the determination and commitment to be a highly effective teacher both in and out of the
To begin, my first memory of teachers or teaching was arriving to the kindergarten classroom and dreading second. My teachers were exceptionally strict and did not make my experience any further enjoyable. In fact, looking back, they were the reason I dreaded school. I was never able to express myself nor was I recognized for my talents. My time in school continued to be dismal until my third grade year. I remained stuck with the teacher that no one else wanted. It appeared as if this year was shaping up to be just as painful as the others. However, it happens to be that this third grade teacher that changed my outlook on educators forever. This teacher was able to create a learning atmosphere that was both gratifying and pleasurable. My third grade class participated in several hands-on science experiments that were truly quite exciting. Overall, she taught in a way that all could understood. Throughout grade school, being a victim to bullying stayed a regular portion of my life, nonetheless, my third grade teacher stood up for me unlike previous teachers. I learned a noteworthy lesson that year; teachers are not the enemy, they are my friends.
Becoming a teacher has been the ultimate aspiration for myself since the first day I walked into kindergarten. As a very timid student, it was a difficult task transitioning from being with my mother everyday, to being part of a classroom environment full of strangers. However, my kindergarten teacher helped me through this transition smoothly, and adequately. I very quickly learned to love school. Soon after, I knew I would aspire to become a teacher. I would spend countless hours at home with a blackboard, acting as a teacher to my imaginary students throughout my elementary school years.
At some point in their educational career, almost everyone is inspired by a teacher. Teachers not only have an effect on the present life of the child, but they also directly affect who this child will become. I want to teach children in order to better their lives. I want to give them the social skills and communication skills they need in order to be a competitive force. I want to help them grow and reach their full potential. I want them to enjoy school and have fond memories of their early education years. My goal as a teacher is to one day be able to look back and say that I was once one of those teachers who made a difference in someone’s life. I want to be a teacher who not only prepares students for life, but one who, through education, gives a child “life itself.”
I am a hard-working, confident and conscientious and have a keen desire to be a primary school teacher. The main reason I want to pursue this vocation is because I love the prospect of working with children, being such an important part of a child’s life is a real honour. I have been fascinated at how quickly they learn things, gaining an insight into their perceptions and how they see the world, the idea of playing an active role in helping them develop, greatly appeals me. Having a long term goal of working with children, I believe I am particularly suited to a degree in Primary/Physical education. I gain huge satisfaction from being able to help them learn and discover new things about the world. Nurturing a child’s development is an occupation that offers huge satisfaction, both intellectual and emotional. My ambition is to be in charge of a classroom, to introduce ideas and skills to the class and observe and feel their response. The teacher’s skills of good communication, patience, clarity and the ability to explain the world are very demanding of one’s intelligence and one’s p...
Becoming a successful teacher is a goal I have set for myself. Teaching has always been something I have wanted to do because of my influences throughout my life. When I become a teacher I hope to accomplish many things with my future students. By the time I finish teaching I hope to leave a legacy, and hopefully inspire other students to become teachers as well.
Twelve years ago, I was not interested in becoming a teacher. I was content with my life. Then, I had two wonderful children. As they became school age, my opinion of teachers was immensely altered. I have spent countless hours within my children’s school, became personally connected to the wonderful individuals who were their teachers, and developed a respect for these tireless workers. These individuals have created a desire within me to enhance children’s lives and improve society through education.
From my earliest recollections I knew I desired to be a teacher. My bedroom closet served as a one-room school house where I taught Raggedy Ann and Andy, an overstuffed bear named Brown, and Cleo the Clown their ABC’s and how to add. In the Fall of 1969, my mom enrolled me in Kindergarten at Caldwell Playschool. I wept for the entire first day after my mom walked me into my Kindergarten class. Both Mrs. Albritton, my teacher and my mother assumed it was due to me missing my mom, however it was because I was attending Caldwell Playschool to be the teacher, not a student. Nonetheless it wasn’t until I stepped into Mrs. Estelle Barber’s Fourth Grade classroom at Bell Elementary School that I fell in lo...
At the time I did not know it, but the summer after graduating from high school would be one of the greatest summers of my life. During this summer, I became involved in a program called Energy Express. In this program, I had my own classroom of approximately ten students. I instructed these students in improving their reading and writing skills. I became more deeply involved with the program as the summer progressed and I fell in love with the art of teaching. Until this time, I did not know of anything that gave me the type of joy that teaching gives me. I had not known what a thrill that it would be for me to watch a child that could not read at all in June, read very well by the time August came around. I knew for sure after my summer was over with Energy Express that I wanted to be an educator, but not just any educator. I want to be the teacher that has a lasting impact on the lives of every single student that comes into my classroom.
I’ve wanted to be a teacher since I was little girl. I would always bring home books and papers that we no longer used in class, and I would play “school” with my little sister. I want to be like my teachers that have encouraged me to strive for the things I want, so I can do the same for other children. I believe a teacher should motivate, inspire, and encourage their students to strive for success. A teacher has the responsibility to lift the students up when they are down. I believe the purpose of education is to help students prepare for the real world by helping them become strong independent citizens and by providing them with knowledge needed for future careers. I want to be a teacher for these reasons. I want to make an impact in children’s life, like many of my teachers have done for me as a student. The thought of being with children in a classroom every day makes me really happy, because I know that I’m helping them with things they will use in the