Hi everyone! It's been a long school year that has almost come to an end. I had a tough group this year and a lot of change for my family. My husband just retired from the Marine Corps after 17 years of service. It's crazy to think we'll no longer be a military family.
This means our time in Hawaii is now coming to an end. Hawaii has been an amazing experience for us. We've had wonderful times here that my kids will always remember and for that I'm grateful. The last day of school for us is June 3rd, and we will fly out on June 8th.
We're returning to FL to finally settle down and stay in one spot for as long as we want. I am so excited to be settled down and have permanent ties to a community. But this upcoming move meant I was back on the job hunt. My old school district held a job fair, so I submitted an application and bought a plane ticket ASAP!
My sweet friend, Nicole from Teaching With Style, was also looking to change schools and gave me some great resume tips! You should check out her post {here}.
Being that we're military, I've done a good bit of interviewing, and I've tried to compile all the interview questions into one document. Sometimes, interviewers really throw some interesting questions at you that make you think. It's always a good idea to try and think ahead of some things that you might be asked so you're not caught off guard.
Here is a list of all the interview questions (that I could remember from previous interviews over the last few years) that I experienced. Click on the picture below to download your copy.
*Some of these questions do pertain to special ed (ESE) positions. Not all of them, but there are some.
Here are some tips from my interview process that might help you:
*Dress so you feel professional but confident! Be careful of your shoes though! I wore these awesome new shoes just for the job fair. I was so amped that I didn't realize they were killing my feet until it was over. When I got home, I had 5 blisters on my feet and they were a hot mess. I saw many ladies wearing extremely high heels. They had to be dying by the time they got home!
*When answering questions, speak from experience. This can be tricky when you're fresh out of college but try to think about your student teaching experiences. During these interviews, I really felt like I was just having a conversation about my teaching and classroom. That really helped me to feel less stressed since I talk about teaching stuff all the time with friends and colleagues.
*Remember you're trying to decide if this school is a good fit for you, too. It's not just about whether the school wants you but whether YOU want the school, also. Do you feel like the school is a good fit for you and your teaching style? Did you get an impression about the culture of the school? Not every school is good for every teacher.
*Research the schools online. My old school district has each school's School Accountability Report and School Wide Behavior Management Plan online. This was a great way to find out what's important to each individual school.
*Research the curriculum used by the school you are interested in. Many (not all) of the interviews I have experienced asked about specific curriculum that school uses.
I'm happy to say that next year I will be returning to my old school in FL as a 1st grade teacher! I've never taught gen ed before, but I am so excited about this new experience. I can't wait to have my own classroom of students that belong to me!
We still have a big summer ahead of us with this move, but I'm excited to share about my new classroom with you all.
