How do you deal with students who smirk/chuckle/giggle when you scold them?

I was telling off a child who kept arguing and being unreasonable with his classmate. He smirked and his friend giggled as I was telling him off. It feels like they are not taking in whatever I was saying to correct their behavior.

Context: elementary/primary school children

Edit: Several comments mentioned that I shouldn’t be telling off children. However, let me tell you, this particular child ALWAYS creates trouble with his classmates. Constantly finger pointing his special needs classmate and blaming him for whatever reasons. His blaming is so loud such that he draws the attention of the entire class, distracting them from my lesson. Even his homeroom teacher cannot improve his behavior. Strict consequences are not allowed in the school because it is for-profit and student happiness is prioritised. What should I do?

I feel like most activities either get burned through immediately or somehow create more chaos than the actual lesson. Trying to build a rotation of low-prep options that keep students occupied without turning into another thing I have to actively manage across the room. What has actually worked consistently for people?

11th grade teacher

Hi! I've never posted on Reddit before, so bear with me haha. I graduated from college in May, and I have a job as a kindergarten teacher for this August! I am so beyond excited. I get my classroom keys on Monday, and I am just a bit overwhelmed, to say the least.

I have so much stuff for my classroom.. but what do I do? Where do I start? Do I walk into my classroom on Monday, look, and cry (lol)?

I'm in need of some tips, tricks, and advice. Literally anything that you think might help me, I'm all ears! I want to be the best teacher I can be, and I want to have some sort of game plan for when I walk in. Whether it's where to put the teacher/small group table, or something you did in your classroom that made life 10x smoother- let me know!

Thanks friends!

Hi! I’m about to start my first year teaching 2nd grade and I’m excited. If you could give one piece of advice to a new teacher, what would it be? Whether it’s something you wish you knew, a classroom must-have, a favorite routine, or a mistake to avoid, etc. I’d love to hear it.

Thanks in advance! ☺️

I have moved classrooms and am stuck as what to do with all this weird empty space under the cabinet area. My room is oddly shaped and this is off the main section of the classroom. I need ideas as what to do with this wasted space or how to better utilize the weird shape of this small new room. This is Applied Skills Kindergarten in a public Elementary School.

Hearing so many stories about how students and parents are getting worse and worse. The kids are either unruly as hell or are barely smarter then a gold fish all while refusing to actually learn. The parents being rude to staff and don't care about their kids future. My wife really wants to teach and she cares about her future students but I feel like it's gonna be a loosing battle

I’ve had about 20 interviews, all go with the other candidate. I’ve been told I was a quality contending candidate, and they could hear my drive & passion in the interview but they hired internally. I’ve applied literally everywhere. Even a radius of a 30 minute drive from me. My experience is in a 6 month long term sub position for 2nd grade where I student taught Pk-8 PE/Health at a private Catholic school, and regular subbing. I’ve had one offer, LRE Resource position where I subbed. They gave the 5th grade job to someone internal. I was told by both principals at both elementary schools in this district that if I took this position, I would not be stuck in sped. They said they do transfers all the time. I know they could just tell me what I want to hear. My biggest fear is ending up in sped indefinitely never having my own general education classroom. Help!

Hello! I live in upstate NY and I’m trying to figure out whether choosing between education (health or physical education) or accounting would be a better fit for me. I live in a very financially hard household and I’d like to help my parents out eventually after college when I graduate. Thing is, I feel I’m more passionate in education or working with children but I know it doesn’t make a whole lot starting off. And I don’t think I’d mind accounting but it isn’t my first pick, and accounting makes pretty decent money depending on the place.

So I don’t know, if I choose Physed/health education I’d have to transfer to a school that offers it, or continue at the school I’m at now with accounting.

So what do you think, I’d appreciate any advice, suggestions or guidance. And how much can I realistically make with both professions starting out? And can summer work as an educator or other jobs increase my pay to roughly the same as accounting?

Thank you.

Has anyone else gotten stuck long-term subbing for many years? I get good recommendations, good reports following my observations from administration, and yet year after year I’m passed over when applying for more permanent positions. I’ve come to believe that this is because I started teaching at age 31 with a Masters degree. I’m now older, more educated, and have a resume full of LTS positions. Staying at one school, no matter what the position, is not an option for me. I’m a single parent and need a proper salary.

hi guys im currently a highschooler who is in charge of tutor-tutee pairing for a club in my school that includes peer to peer tutoring.

And i would like to say that it has definitely been one of the more mind numbing experiences that ive gone through, having to scan through 2 spreadsheets of tutors and tutees side by side.

because of this i actually ended building a tool totally free to use with another officer of the club called kaisenapp.com

this bascially centralized tutor-tutee management and put it into one website where it has automated matching as well.

If you sponsor club that is a peer tutoring program, id love to hear what you think. Here's a short demo showing how it works:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBW9vQyOEwQ

I have taught at a preschool for two years now and I worked as a floater and a permanent sub mostly for the fours and five-year-olds.

I got a job offer at a different school for my own kindergarten class where I would fully be on my own and we would have a floater come in only three days a week.

The class size is sort of large, so I’d like any advice on how I can navigate the first few weeks on my own. Do you recommend any methods to explain classroom rules? Learning songs or games? Keeping them busy during the day to avoid acting up? Any solid advice helps! I’m anxious but super excited as well!

Edit: updated 1: I withdrew my acceptance for offer 1 and accepted offer 2. I feel way more excited about this and very happy with this decision! Thanks for your help!

Since it’s nearly the end of summer, schools suddenly seem desperate to fill positions

I have to decide on a possible offer tomorrow morning after interviewing today

I already told another school I’d take their offer but this second offer feels like a better fit. I have a multiple subjects credential and 10+ years experience but I’m tired and don’t see myself doing either one long term.

Offer 1:
Single subject middle school (I’m not trained for this)
Rough neighborhood
Already said I’d join the team
An acquaintance got me the interview
Not excited about teaching 150 students and repeating lessons all day
Nervous about older students
All curriculum is planned out to the day
Lots of prep time and collaboration time
Will have extra training and content support
Will have an acquaintance maybe two at work
Great pay.

Offer 2:
Elementary school multiple subjects
More comfortable with this age group
Interviewed today and they want to know by tomorrow morning so I feel rushed
Safer neighborhood
No social studies curriculum and I might have to teach PE
Excited about the vibe /age and having a self contained class but nervous about all the prep and planning. Haven’t taught all subjects in over 6 years
Same pay as other job
Two preps per week
School day ends 45 earlier than offer 1
School starts one week later

I’m leaning towards offer 2 and feel very guilty about walking back my acceptance even though I haven’t signed a contract and I’m not obligated to follow through. I generally am excited at teaching elementary school again and feel more confident in managing behavior at that age.

How do i go about making the decision and walking back an acceptance ?

Hi! Working in a high needs behavioral classroom and I can’t have my owala. Any recs to water bottles that are going to keep my water cold but can’t be used as a weapon?! I don’t want a plastic one use water bottle bc they are expensive and I want my water cold!

Thanks!!!

Hi! I am about to enter my senior year and will begin teaching in the fall. After graduation, I do not want to stay in the state where my university is (Arkansas lol) but will graduate with an Arkansas teaching certificate.

When should I start applying for jobs? How does one go about applying for an out-of-state license, and when?

Thank you!

I have an interview tomorrow at a K-8 school(it's a 0.8 role split between 2 schools) in Portland, Oregon for a science teacher role. I'm a recent WA CTE grad(initial) in marketing/business, digital media and have been a paraeducator at a hs. Not really sure what to expect for the interview, however, if things were to move forward I would be open to getting an Oregon teaching License.

Any tips/tricks for interviewing for K-8 schools?

I immigrated to Québec, Canada when I was seven and am now sixteen. I got very lucky and became fluent in both English and French at a very young age without much difficulty. My family learned just enough French to get by but they don't have any English-speaking abilities. I would really like to teach them; my dad even offered to pay me, but I have no clue on how to teach a language. Does anybody know of any resources or YouTube tutorials or whatever would be most effective way for me to learn how to teach English?

So I graduated from WSSU in 2023 with a BS in Birth to Kindergarten Education and immediately after, I became a teacher assistant. I have been an assistant for 3 years and the 2026-2027 school year will hopefully be my 1st time as a lead prek teacher!

Any advice for me? I’m not creative so I am really trying to see what I can do for activities and decor for the classroom. I know the creative curriculum though.

My student and I meet every week for an hour. During this time, the student has behavioral issues that make it difficult for him to stay on task and use our time effectively.

I've reminded him multiple times to use the restroom before our session, but he still asks to either use the restroom as soon as he's called in or in the middle of the session.

I have an issue with this because he spends extra long in the restroom at times. He also plays around and makes loud silly noises. There was a time he splashed water all over the floor and told me that he wanted to get someone to trip. Basically, I suspect that he's just wasting time and not actually using the restroom.

I'm not sure if I should refuse his request to use the restroom in case he actually needs it.

Hi everyone. I guess I’m mostly looking for advice (and maybe just venting a little).
I recently relocated to Pennsylvania (outside of Philadelphia) and have been applying for teaching positions since February, when I knew I’d be moving.
I have 6 years of experience teaching kindergarten at a Title I school in Virginia. During that time, I also served as a new teacher mentor and literacy team lead. I have an updated resume, strong letters of recommendation, and have been consistently applying to positions as they’re posted.
The problem is…I’m barely even getting interviews.
At this point, it’s getting really discouraging because August is getting closer, and I’m starting to wonder what I’m doing wrong. I knew the market might be competitive, but I genuinely thought I’d at least be getting interviews.
For those of you who teach in southeastern PA:
Is the job market unusually competitive right now?
Are districts mostly hiring internally?
Is there something specific schools are looking for that I might be missing?
Is there anything you’d recommend I do differently?
I’m primarily applying for kindergarten and first grade positions in districts around the Philadelphia suburbs. I’ve applied to Central Bucks, Upper Merion, Lower Merion, West Chester, and a few others.
If anyone works in HR or is involved in hiring, I’d especially love to hear what stands out to you, or what might be causing a qualified applicant to get passed over. I’m genuinely open to honest feedback because I feel like I’m missing something, and I don’t know what it is.
Thanks so much in advance. I’m really hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

Edited to add: i already have a PA teaching license so i don’t think that should be an issue

A considerable percentage of teachers don’t make it past their first five years. I’ve been thinking about why. Here are what I believe are some of the reasons. There may be other reasons that haven’t come to mind. I’ll number them for convenience sake, but they’re in no particular order.

1. College cannot fully prepare you. Even good colleges can’t. 
2. Student teaching is a crapshoot. Some people have a wonderful experience and others have a nightmare experience.
3. Toxic admin. They cause problems for most teachers, but new teachers don’t know how to handle it as well.
4. To piggyback off that, if the admin doesn’t want the teacher around they can make evaluations look as bad as possible to justify nonrenewal. Tenured teachers have more protection from admin. 
5. Toxic coworkers. So much gossip and backbiting in schools. Teachers conspiring to get rid of admin and/or other teachers. 
6. School boards making personnel decisions based on popularity. Good people get let go because they’re not friends with the right people. Bad people are retained year after year because of their friends/family. A good new teacher may get let go and decide not to try again. 
7. Lack of support. I had a great mentor, but for many that is not the case.
8. New teachers get the students/classes that no one else wants. New teachers who are least experienced  with behaviors often get the worst of them. New teachers may be asked to teach subjects they’re not certified for. They may have five or six different classes to prepare for everyday. 
9. Toxic parents cause problems for all teachers, but new teachers are less prepared to handle it. It seems like getting cussed out/screamed at by parents is a rite of passage. 
10. Student behaviors also are a problem for all teachers, but new teachers are still learning how to handle them. 
11. The inequality of it all. It’s so frustrating seeing the double standard even the kids deal with. So many admin do not discipline kids fairly. The ones with the right last name get away with things the other kids get in serious trouble for. I know that’s the way the world works, but schools should not be that way.
12. New teachers may see laws being broken and sketchy things being done. The new teachers have no job security, so do they ignore it? They may be asked to break the law. Do they refuse and risk retaliation? Do they go along with it and risk legal trouble? 

Like with any profession, there is probably a small percentage who just aren’t cut out for teaching. However, there are some who would make great teachers and give up for some of the reasons mentioned above. I feel like so many teachers are thrown into the deep water to figure out how to swim. It’s no wonder so many don’t stick with it. Are there any reasons I left out?

Hey yall, I need a little advice. I have 5 years elementary teaching experience in a district with some tough behaviors. I wasn’t super happy in the job but it was ok. We moved to a new state summer 2024 and I’ve been in an office job here since then. Recently, I applied for and was tentatively offered a position at a school - class sizes are around the same as what I was dealing with but I think behaviors would be more manageable. I am also a special areas teacher. The kicker is, I just found out I’m pregnant. I had a miscarriage earlier this year so it is really important to me that I take care of my mind and body. My biggest concern is maternity leave - I will not be eligible for FMLA and am due end of March. This would put me back in the classroom sometime in May. The question I have is, how likely is it that I can find SOME way to stay out for the remainder of the year? Being unpaid is not an issue. Will my doctor be willing to write me out till the end of the year? Is it easy to put in a request for “leave without pay”? I am going to call HR of the district tomorrow, but wanted to see if anyone had some advice for me. If it matters, if I wasn’t pregnant I’d be super excited about leaving my office job and getting back into the classroom.

EDIT: something that I failed to mention that I think is important is that positions in my area of expertise are hard to come by in my state. This position is right in town (I live in-district in fact). This feels like I could be setting myself up for a great job to have summers off with my kids for the rest of my life, school is only 12 minutes away. I don’t know that I will come by this opportunity again.

EDIT 2: my state requires employers to give 6-8 weeks no matter how long you’ve been working somewhere. Though I’m not eligible for FMLA, I am eligible for this. Worst that will happen to me is I’d go back early-ish May and finish out the school year after baby is born. I am hoping to avoid that though, and am wondering if anyone has been in this same position (first contract w/ school and had late March/early April baby).