A day in the life of a PE teacher? Let’s see, you are responsible for teaching kids about physical and mental health. Which, you know, sets them up to live happy and productive lives. (No pressure.) As if that responsibility weren’t heavy enough, PE teachers also tackle auxiliary duties most people don’t factor into the workday equation.
Really, there’s no such thing as an “average day,” at least not for those who teach physical education and health classes. Regardless, let’s take a look at what the PE teacher’s average Monday might look like. Just for fun, we’ll take this voyage in GIF form.
7:15 – Starting the Morning with Preparedness and Optimism
You arrive at school, not yet caffeinated, but eager to instill the knowledge students need to maintain their physical and mental health. This Monday is going to be aces!
7:30 – Meeting with Colleagues and Administrators
There’s an early faculty meeting you may or may not have forgotten about. You guzzle lukewarm coffee while listening to ideas for stretching an already-thin budget. Perhaps you could use recycled milk jugs for barbells?
8:00 – Welcoming the Students
The kids begin to arrive, those delightful cherubs. Why is it that the PE teacher gets saddled with ensuring car drop-offs go smoothly? How long must you keep this parent-friendly smile on your face?
8:30 – Teaching a Lesson on Yoga
It’s PE class time! It’s the day you’ll teach youngsters the health benefits of yoga. Sigh, there will be malicious giggles when you get to the Half Lord of the Fishes pose.
10:00 – Building a Blueprint for Scholastic Success
Planning period. Yep, PE teachers need those more than most because guess what? You also have to teach health classes. The non-teacher folks might think these courses are all about balanced nutrition and vitamin intake. Nope, the curriculum is eating disorders, drug use, and of course, the lesson you’ll teach today: sex education.
11:30 – Teaching Another Lesson on Yoga
It’s PE class time! Again. Perhaps your students will be more mature about One-Legged King Pigeon Pose. Alas, that’s a tall order.
12:45 – Enjoying a Nutritious, Energizing Meal
Lunch. We’re teaching kids about nutrition and then serving them food covered in orange, glowing cheese and/or heavy syrup that’s nothing short of liquified sugar.
1:15 – Discussing STDs and Pregnancy Prevention
Now you transition from PE to health classes. And today, you’ll be covering preventing sexually transmitted diseases through the proper usage of…
2:30 – Discussing STDs and Pregnancy Prevention Again
Ah, more health class, more checked permission slips, and more slides showing various rashes and sores. Next year, maybe you’ll tackle this before the unit on nutrition? And maybe you’ll get some slides made sometime after 1972?
3:45 – Dismissal
This morning, it was car duty. Now, you’re making sure everyone gets on their bus smoothly. If only the general public knew how far your responsibilities stretched. If only…
4:30 – Lesson Revisions and Extracurricular Planning
You sit down and look at the field data you collected. You enhance what went well and rework what fell flat. You’re also working on scheduling travel plans for the tennis team you coach, which means you’re on hold while you work on other to-do items. It’s a perpetual cycle, but teachers never stop learning.
5:30 – Home
Spousal/family bonding? Check.
Sweatpants? Check.
Healthy* dinner? Check.
Netflix? Check.
A determination to make a positive impact tomorrow? Check.
*Healthy, meaning preparation didn’t happen inside a microwave.
