The Answer - A blog about Education, Preparation, and Commitment.

A Day in the Life of YES Prep Teacher Lindsey Windham

March 01, 2011 by Jeremy Jones

I get asked all of the time about what it is like to work at YES Prep.  My first answer: profound.  It is tremendously humbling to work in my community with students who need access to excellent education and surrounded by amazing people.  To be this young, but to have such a powerful impact is a profound and transformative experience.  I also have the chance to host visitors from time to time or am in the community helping to recruit teachers to join our mission to prepare more low-income students for college graduation.  When talking to people or even when they are visiting, they rarely see the entire picture of what a day looks like for us at YES Prep.  I wanted to share a day in my life.

I wake up around 6 am and get to school around 7 am. If I want to shower and get stuff done in the morning that becomes 5:30 – maybe earlier. Forget about working out in the mornings, unless you are crazy (which some YES Prep teachers do). We have a morning meeting with the school for any announcements or celebrations of success and then I go to Vanderbilt homeroom – 30 kids that are “mine” and that I kind of advise during the week. I have a co-homeroom teacher who helps with everything.

I teach 1st and 2nd period from 7:50 – 9:35, then have planning time to work on stuff or meet with my co-teachers or co-planners (or run to starbucks) until 11:30. Then – advisory. We’re reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower, that will be switched off with study halls for students to have work time at school, switched off with clubs that feature some experience for students that they might not otherwise have, or switched off with focused tutorials and interventions. Then… 30 mins for lunch and I teach 5th and 6th until 2:45. I actually have 7th and 8th periods off because I have so many different roles and responsibilities (a full teaching load is 6 of 8 periods per day), but the day ends around 4:35. You might stay for tutorials until 6 pm, cover detention, or meet with another teacher or student or parent after school.

The FUN Part:

• When the parents bring us breakfast.
• When anyone brings us breakfast.
• When there are snacks in the teachers lounge.
• When I get to see my teacher friends a lot during one day.
• When people say hilarious and ridiculous things.
• When kids are awesome in class and make amazing connections about literature!
• When I get to dance like Kesha or sing like Taylor Swift during a “musical” morning meeting.
• When I get a thank you note from a kid or a school director.
• YES Prep district-wide parties.
• When I get to meet with my other manager off campus at a coffee shop instead of a conference room.
• Watching Glee with my coworkers after school on Tuesdays.

The Messy Part:

• When it rains.
• When it’s cold.
• When a kid gets in your face or does something crazy.
• When we had to have drug dogs on campus. When I have to grade. (Ugh.)
• When I sometimes have to take work home with me or feel like my to-do list will NEVER BE DONE. I mean… there are a million positives and negatives, but the positives outweigh.
   

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