1. Combine what you love, your favorite subject and kids.
2. Have a captive audience for your jokes and stories.
3. Be remembered forever by someone you may inspire, mentor, or encourage.
4. You get most of the summer off.
5. Be  known by the community.
6. See the fruits of your labor through higher test scores, better foreign language skills, student music, art creation.
7. Stay current on new fads, music, ideas by being around young people.

When I was in high school, my parents told me that the business world was the future for me; I ended up studying accounting, finance, statistics, and other important tools for my future positions in business and finance. Even though I learned important information which helped me get a start as managerial trainee in an insurance company, I felt that something was missing from my life.

After 15 years in the business world, a good friend who worked at the local university invited me to give some conferences to his students; it was a revelation for me. Fielding questions from these young people made me realize that my real vocation was in the classroom. After earning my teaching credentials from an alternative program in one year, I took the state test to earn my certification in special education. (more…)