How I Got Here
- missbradyart
- Jul 28, 2018
- 2 min read
I always knew I wanted to be a teacher. Ever since I was a little girl, I would dream about being a teacher like Ms. Frizzle in The Magic School Bus or Miss Honey in Matilda. My poor, little sister was forced to sit at an old desk while I "taught" her and wrote on our giant chalkboard in our basement playroom. The idea of having a classroom and being a teacher was so amazing to me, and the dream never faded.
I attended Alma College, a small, liberal arts, private school in the middle of Michigan (quite literally). I graduated in 2016 with my Bachelor's Degree, double majoring in Secondary Education and Art with a minor in English. I thought I was made to teach secondary, so I was thrilled to student teach in a middle school. I enjoyed it. I thought, "Yeah. I can do this forever. Sure." But, after student teaching, I was hired into that same school district to teach K-6 art. I was nervous! This job would be primarily elementary! Very little secondary! Turns out, I LOVED teaching elementary - more than I had loved teaching secondary. The job consisted of me traveling between 4 schools throughout the week. And while I loved my students, I felt very disconnected from the staff at each school and I was starting to feel really burnt out (after only a semester of teaching!). I knew something had to change, but I didn't know what that something would be.
God was working on something for BIG for me. A position for the next school year (2017-2018) opened up to teach elementary art at the elementary school I had attended growing up. To teach in the district I attended and graduated from seemed unreal! I applied for the job, and I got it! I would be teaching in one school. In my own classroom. How awesome!? I finished off the year at the 4 school I was working at, and I never looked back. God blessed me with something much greater than I could have ever dreamed for myself. Not only did He open doors for me that led me to the school, colleagues, students, and career of my dreams, but He also showed me that I needed to do what was best for me and follow my heart. My students are the very best and melt each and every time I get a hug, sweet note, or pretty picture from them. The excitement in their voice when the say, "Miss Brady! Miss Brady!" is what I LIVE for.
Now, here I am. Getting ready to start my 2nd year at the school I love oh, so much. Little Allison would be grinning ear to ear if she knew she would someday really be a teacher. The perfect mix of Ms. Frizzle and Miss Honey, of course. ;)
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