Yep. That's me.
My name is Emerald Boyd and I am over caffeinated most of the time and usually busy prepping materials for my students.
I'm a high school special education teacher and I work with students with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities. I personally think (just like about every other teacher) that I have some of the greatest students on the face of the planet. My job truly brings me joy. But it's hard. Okay. That's putting it lightly.
Some days it can feel like you've been handed the keys to a car that's on fire, has no engine, and is rolling down a hill towards a city to cause mass destruction.
The IRIS center of Vanderbilt University reported that there is a 25% turnover rate of special educators. They go on to report that almost 50% of the teachers leaving the field to pursue other interests are in their first years of teaching.
Those numbers are crazy to me, but not shocking. The first three years of teaching for me felt like I was drowning on a consistent basis. The paperwork, the lack of prepped materials, just learning to manage a classroom full of students that each required unique prompting and supports, the meetings, etc. (I could really go on here so I will spare you).
This information is what sparked my interest in starting this blog. I have had the opportunity to support beginning teachers in my district that teach in similar classrooms to mine as well as host student teachers. I already knew I loved teaching my students, but I learned I love working with other teachers too.
My goal is to bring practical information and resources to support teachers of any experience (but especially you beginning teachers) to better serve the learners we teach. I know there is a need for more age-appropriate materials. I have been working on creating/ finding them for my own classroom since 2016. So I will be creating and posting materials and resources to help you solve problems in your classroom, or at least make teaching not feel like a daily climb up Everest.
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