Tag: teaching

Retirement Year One – 5 Takeaways

5 Takeaways from year one of retirement like you are not your job. Life after work does exist.

You are not your job

One of the hardest things to decide was when to leave my job as a kindergarten teacher. Most of the time I loved my job. Once I was in the classroom, it was a wonderful little universe that I had created just the way I wanted. The children were happy and learning. I was having fun and being creative. I had an important purpose teaching young people to love reading and school.

What would I be if not a teacher? Isn’t that my identity and fulfillment in life? Due to COVID and changes in my life, I made the decision to exit the work force earlier than originally planned. Once vaccinated, I came back to my school as a substitute and kindergarten screener which gave me some closure from my 21 years in that school district, but I still wondered, what do I do next.

After hours and hours of scanning want ads for teachers, both in New York and Florida, I discovered, I don’t need to be a school teacher right now. I was curious as to what was out there, but it didn’t take too long for me to engage in new activities and pastimes which are rewarding and have nothing to do with my former job! It takes a bit of adjustment for some of us, but I’m happy to declare, I am not my job. When to Retire?

It’s OK to rest

We have pride in this society in being busy. As a working mom, I spent the past 25 years very busy. My job could be demanding at times and there was no “down time” in the kindergarten classroom. Home life was busy with after school sports, lessons and scouts to attend, not to mention cooking, cleaning, shopping, laundry, shoveling snow etc. I wouldn’t trade those years for anything.

Suddenly with retirement comes some space in your daily schedule. What to do? Maybe nothing. Discovering that just being is enough. This can be a huge adjustment. What a luxury to have time to rest. You will eventually fill that time and find balance, but it is certainly OK to take some time to take a break.

Relocation is an adventure

This is a scary thought for people who do not like change. We have comfort in the known even if it is not perfect, we at least know what it is. Originally I thought I would hold onto my home in New York and do the snowbird thing where we live in Florida for 6 months, and then NY for the other six. But one day it occurred to me, I was ready for a change. I was starting a new chapter and it was OK to close the page on the last chapter. It sure was a good one in many ways, but there is more to this story.

Continue reading “Retirement Year One – 5 Takeaways”

Can a Retired Teacher teach again?

After a teacher retires, what to do? Can you go back to teach again or is there another option?

A retired teacher is open to a variety of opportunities to teach again, but it may not be the same situation as before.

In many states, a retired teacher receives a pension after working a set number of years. In New York for example, a teacher can go back to the public school and work some hours, however after a certain amount of income is reached, the pension is jeopardized.

So what is a teacher, who still wants to teach, to do?

Private Schools

Teaching in a private school may not have the same salary that 20 years on a pay scale can provide, but the income earned will not affect a public state pension. My dad was a chemistry teacher and retired at 55 years old. After a year of staying home and engaging in an extensive stamp collection, painting the outside of our house and my brother’s house, and vacationing for a month in Florida with my mom, he happily went back to the classroom in a Catholic private high school and enjoyed the lack of administrative duties and pure teaching of well behaved students immensely. Some people just can’t relax around the house and find that they enjoy teaching as a calling. The extra income never hurts either.

Tutoring

For many years when I worked full time, I also took tutoring jobs once a week after school for children struggling with math and language arts. I helped with homework and as a certified reading teacher, with reading skills. I often had children come to my home in the summer for tutoring as well. Tutoring centers are always looking for qualified teachers to work with their clients. Tutoring children at their home or in the local library is always an option as well.

Continue reading “Can a Retired Teacher teach again?”
%d bloggers like this: