What I DON'T Miss about Teaching

• Second floor classroom with no AC on any day above 80 degrees, especially when filled with 20 or so teens, some of whom are quite sweaty and a little smelly.
• Dealing with parents because it was never good news. Either I'm telling a parent her child is failing or a parent is trying to tell me off for not meeting her child's advanced needs. No one ever walks away from either type of conversation really happy.
  
• Kids using their cellphones and earphones in class. I'm glad I left before they all got lap tops and could use FB in class.
  
• Obviously, the foot tall stacks of grading.
• Spending all the day light hours at school during the winter.
• Having to rearrange my plans for a class full of students who didn't do their homework.
  
• As uncommon as it was, I still don't miss the fire alarm going off in the rain or cold.
• Having a runny noes when the room is quiet.
  
• Having to wait until in between class or even lunch or after school to pee.
• The night before grades are due.
• Hearing kids say queer, gay, retard, and the occasional racist remark.
• Long staff meetings or in service days when I don't care about the topic and have other work I'd much rather be doing, either because it is more interesting or more immediately important, or both.
• The unlucky placement of testing, bus evacuation drills, picture day, and pep rallies.