Speaking of Back to School

Danielle is going back to school, too. She had decided to go back to work full-time this fall, but then the county started having budget problems and was laying off teachers instead of hiring them. Then, a few weeks before summer was over, the county starting re-hiring some of the teachers it had laid off, and it looked like there might even be a few openings. So we waited, but got no calls for interviews.

Finally, a week before classes start, Danielle calls the director of human resources and says that she wants to know if there are any positions to interview for. Sure enough, there is one opening in the county, and Danielle is scheduled for an interview. It goes well, and there is only one other applicant, but Danielle decided to call human resources again. She says that she wants the job, but is willing to interview for other positions as well. Lo and behold, another position has just been created. It's in the school Danielle wants to work in (the one she liked best during her time as a substitute teacher), and it's for 3rd grade, which would be her first choice. She interviews and is hired on the spot.

So, at left and below, you'll see Mrs. Smith's classroom. Danielle has a hard job. While most teachers teach or one two subjects, and has students rotate through so that they only have to prepare one or two lessons, Danielle has her kids all day. So she teaches them everything, and has to prepare a full day of lessons. She's been working 10 or 11 hours days all week. Hopefully, once she finishes getting her classroom set up and gets more into the swing of things, she'll be able to work a more reasonable schedule.