An A - Z of 'The Teacher'

Serious, humorous or down right taboo, this list will resonate with you. From advocate to zealous, teachers far and wide will relate to most, if not all, to the following words when it comes to the work that they do.

Some will make you laugh, others will pull at your heart strings, but all will touch your inner teacher-ness. When it comes to classroom conduct and professional image there are a myriad of words which define teachers and the work that they do. Here are just a few.

A - Advocate

We really do love teaching children. We love advocating for children and their rights. This was well and truly pushed through my university days, as well as my time teaching in early childhood services.

B - Best

How many best teacher mugs do you have?

Best teacher in the world!

No 1 Teacher!

I 'heart' my teacher'.

Some of you may have a few, one for every day of the week... but how many of you wished you had one. Maybe the thought of buying your own crossed your mind! Haha!

Well, I went one step further and designed one, just for me. But you can get it too.

Grab your Teacher mug here

Get your mug here

In saying this, teacher's really are the BEST at what they do. They do their BEST, they turn up in their BEST teacher outfit, the simply are the BEST and most favourite people to little children they are.

Speaking of cups...

C - Coffee

Ahhh... the good stuff... coffee. I once met a pre-service teacher and she said she didn't drink coffee! I was a little shocked, I'm curious, how many of my teacher friends also do NOT drink coffee... I think we may be alarmed, maybe they are a Chai Latte type. Regardless, the coffee cups from the kitchen seem to disappear for a week or two, and then voila... they're all back! There's really not a lot of teacher's who don't drink coffee. Here, up in Darwin, iced coffee is the drink of choice for many teachers.

D - Dedicated

Determined and devoted, teachers really are a special kind of people. Some say 'why teach?', or 'those who can't, teach'... but take a day in the shoes of a teacher and you will see the level of dedication they offer to every single student in their class, and even more so across their school.

E - Excursion planning

Who really does love to write out plans, risk assessments, ensure all children return their notes and chase up those who have not yet paid. Yuck! Then it comes to the day of the excursion. Everyone is so excited. Teachers have their walking shoes on, back pack, first aid kit ready and then it's time for non stop counting. On the bus, off the bus, count count and count away. What was the learning intention for the excursion again?

F- Flexible, Friendly, Focused

I'm just going to let this one stay here, not much more to say.

G - Generous

In some communities some of us became a co-parent to many children, providing recess snacks, shoes, and pencils to those who came to school with nothing. I had a little stash of Corn Thins/Rice Cakes in the cupboard for the hungry children, and there were many. I think that on average primary school teachers spend up to $1000 in a financial year on classroom resources, stationery and other essentials. I know I have spent up to that in the past. To not spend that then a classroom would look quite dull and teaching and learning programs would not include authentic resources.

H - Holidays,

Yes, we get quite a few holiday breaks, some say too many but we really do need the time to relax, and parent our own children. Considering most of us work 50 - 60 hours per week, and at times on the weekend, don't we deserve school holidays to rest and recharge.

I - Inspiring and invested

This photo says it all.

J - Jammer

Printer or photocopier jammer - It wasn't Me! But it seems to be always me fixing the damn things!

K - Kind

One of the many words children use to describe their own teacher, or favourite teacher. Kind and caring.

L - Loves laminating

I'm pretty certain every single teacher own's a laminator. I have two, one for school and one for home. Laminating those bulletin board displays cries for lamination!

M - Meetings

I nearly always go to meetings with a diary or notebook and then jot down a few things. The important details get lost. Unfortanately the day of recording information to be used as evidence is not going away. I created a very simple and generic Meeting Notes jotter, so those of you who need a little bit more structure in the way you take notes.

Meeting Notes PDF

N - Nodules bulging

So Stop yelling! So simple, or is it?

O - Optimistic

Teachers really do appear optimistic and goal driven. It's all in the work. Plan for particular goals and achieve them.

P - Parents

Whether you love them or hate them, we need to work with them. Parent teacher meetings can be a terrifying experience for teachers of any experience levels.

Q - Quotable

You may find students copying your words, you may find that teachers have particular sayings that they use every day. You may not even realise it but you do have a few quotable sayings that others know you for.

"The bell doesn't dismiss you, I do."

"It's your time you're wasting, not mine."

"Is there something you'd like to share with the class?"

R - Report Writing

argh.... yuck... don't even want to write about reports. Necessary and just part of the job.

S - Stamps and Stickers

These extrinsic rewards are just so powerful for little children, but as long as they are complimented with intrinsically driven rewards they mean absolutely nothing.

T - Tea Bags

If it's not coffee, then it's tea. Tea bags everywhere!

U - Understanding All teachers understand others and their needs. Whether it's their students, their colleagues or parents, a teacher has a deep understanding and empathy towards their challenges. We try to help solve their problems. The level of compassion a teacher has towards everyone they come in contact with within a school is beyond any other profession, I believe.

V - Voice Raising

See Nodules... but again... stop yelling!

W - wet day timetable

Yuck! Not even going there.

X - X-Ray vision

Teachers can see through, inside and behind anything. This is not true, but just in case a student reads this it is completely true. Just like eyes in the back of our heads.

Y - Yard Duty

I LOVE yard duty. Even in the heat of Darwin's wet season (high chance of wet day timetable) it gets me outdoors, soak in some vitamin D and observe students in their unstructured play opportunities. A very different outlook on students helps build greater understanding of just who our students are. It also offers the opportunity to build rapport with students from other classes and keep connections with your past students.

Z - zealous

Teachers really are filled with a strong desire to get something done or see something succeed, especially when it comes to the success, achivement and development of the students in their class.