My Disability Journey
Taking a hiatus from teaching was the last thing I wanted to do. In 2017, I fell chronically ill with an autoimmune disease that crushed me physically and mentally. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I was on my second to last day of Thanksgiving Break. I remember preparing and submitting my lesson plans and spending my last few hours with my children before heading off to bed. That morning, I woke up unable to walk on my left leg and felt numbness/ tingling on my left side of my body. My husband rushed me to the hospital and two hours after sitting in a hospital room, I was told that they would be admitting me. The next day after several tests including an MRI and Spinal Tap, I was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome. 😥
I never heard of this and was so perplexed, but the only thing I could think about is getting back to my children and letting my principal know that I will not be returning back to school the next day. I thought my journey would be a walk in the park, but it was not. I am considered disabled and am still recovering from this illness. In the future, it is my hope to write about my battle with my health, but for now, I would like to share some information about what disabled teachers can do to stay in education. As I mentioned before, one of my worries was informing my principal that I would not be there for my students. My transition into being a disabled teacher and mom was rough at first, but I quickly went online to figure out ways that I can continue my dream of being a teacher and staying relevant in the education world. Here are some things that helped me continue my dream of being a teacher and helping the community.
Top 5 Things Teachers Can Do in Education:
1. Teach Online: There are several companies out there that will hire teachers immediately to teach children in Asian countries. ESL companies are looking for teachers that have ESL certifications or teaching experience. Working for DaDa has been a blessing. I get to pick my hours, have a full schedule of eager students and DaDa is a flexible company that allows me to take time off when I am not feeling well. I have only worked for DaDa, but I have heard good things about Magic Ears and GoGo Kids as well. For more information about these ESL companies and others, feel free to search for Facebook groups about ESL/ teaching online.
2. Grade State Standardized Test: Depending on what state you live in, I recommend that you search for the companies that are in charge of distributing and handling your state test. One of those companies that are well known is Pearson. It may take some time to get approved with Pearson, but once you do, you will enjoy the flexibility and work from home contract position. Disabled or even retired teachers will enjoy the comfort of working from home and grading papers.
3. Teachers Pay Teachers: I always used TPT when I was a teacher, but I never thought to open a store on TPT. I began in August 2018 and never looked back. I wanted to provide resources that would help teachers cut back on the time they spent posting learning objectives, vocabulary words and more in the class. I remember the days when the administration would reprimand teachers for not having their learning objectives posted, so that was my first product. I not only have them for my state, but I research other states' learning objects and put them on colorful backgrounds making it easy for the teacher and students.
4. Share Resources: I reached out to my principal at the last school I taught at and offered to help with resources that teachers were looking for in their classrooms. I was able to help out by sharing my vocabulary posters. I know that this particular school and most schools, in general, need help with vocabulary retention, so I created vocabulary posters with illustrations and easy definitions for several subjects and grade levels. Informing your school that you are still there for the students not only shows that you want to be involved, but it may also help you with future employment in case you decide to return to work.
5. Join Education Groups: I am not able to get outside as much as I used to, but I use social media as my "education fix". I try to stay up to date on what is going on in education particularly the politics, social reform and things that are affecting students. I have joined several home school groups, local education groups, and ESL groups. This is also a perfect way to network with other teachers that share your same struggle.
This took a while to implement in my life, but I did not want my illness slowing down my dreams or ambitions. I believe that the more you keep busy, the less time you have to worry about the progression or status of your illness. My goal was to stay relevant and continue to educate from a distance. I am hoping you can find hope in implementing some of these things in your life as well.
Taking a hiatus from teaching was the last thing I wanted to do. In 2017, I fell chronically ill with an autoimmune disease that crushed me physically and mentally. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I was on my second to last day of Thanksgiving Break. I remember preparing and submitting my lesson plans and spending my last few hours with my children before heading off to bed. That morning, I woke up unable to walk on my left leg and felt numbness/ tingling on my left side of my body. My husband rushed me to the hospital and two hours after sitting in a hospital room, I was told that they would be admitting me. The next day after several tests including an MRI and Spinal Tap, I was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome. 😥
I never heard of this and was so perplexed, but the only thing I could think about is getting back to my children and letting my principal know that I will not be returning back to school the next day. I thought my journey would be a walk in the park, but it was not. I am considered disabled and am still recovering from this illness. In the future, it is my hope to write about my battle with my health, but for now, I would like to share some information about what disabled teachers can do to stay in education. As I mentioned before, one of my worries was informing my principal that I would not be there for my students. My transition into being a disabled teacher and mom was rough at first, but I quickly went online to figure out ways that I can continue my dream of being a teacher and staying relevant in the education world. Here are some things that helped me continue my dream of being a teacher and helping the community.
Top 5 Things Teachers Can Do in Education:
1. Teach Online: There are several companies out there that will hire teachers immediately to teach children in Asian countries. ESL companies are looking for teachers that have ESL certifications or teaching experience. Working for DaDa has been a blessing. I get to pick my hours, have a full schedule of eager students and DaDa is a flexible company that allows me to take time off when I am not feeling well. I have only worked for DaDa, but I have heard good things about Magic Ears and GoGo Kids as well. For more information about these ESL companies and others, feel free to search for Facebook groups about ESL/ teaching online.
2. Grade State Standardized Test: Depending on what state you live in, I recommend that you search for the companies that are in charge of distributing and handling your state test. One of those companies that are well known is Pearson. It may take some time to get approved with Pearson, but once you do, you will enjoy the flexibility and work from home contract position. Disabled or even retired teachers will enjoy the comfort of working from home and grading papers.
3. Teachers Pay Teachers: I always used TPT when I was a teacher, but I never thought to open a store on TPT. I began in August 2018 and never looked back. I wanted to provide resources that would help teachers cut back on the time they spent posting learning objectives, vocabulary words and more in the class. I remember the days when the administration would reprimand teachers for not having their learning objectives posted, so that was my first product. I not only have them for my state, but I research other states' learning objects and put them on colorful backgrounds making it easy for the teacher and students.
4. Share Resources: I reached out to my principal at the last school I taught at and offered to help with resources that teachers were looking for in their classrooms. I was able to help out by sharing my vocabulary posters. I know that this particular school and most schools, in general, need help with vocabulary retention, so I created vocabulary posters with illustrations and easy definitions for several subjects and grade levels. Informing your school that you are still there for the students not only shows that you want to be involved, but it may also help you with future employment in case you decide to return to work.
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| A sample of my work |
5. Join Education Groups: I am not able to get outside as much as I used to, but I use social media as my "education fix". I try to stay up to date on what is going on in education particularly the politics, social reform and things that are affecting students. I have joined several home school groups, local education groups, and ESL groups. This is also a perfect way to network with other teachers that share your same struggle.
This took a while to implement in my life, but I did not want my illness slowing down my dreams or ambitions. I believe that the more you keep busy, the less time you have to worry about the progression or status of your illness. My goal was to stay relevant and continue to educate from a distance. I am hoping you can find hope in implementing some of these things in your life as well.
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