Need to escape the classroom

On the days you are working, you should share pick up/drop offs. You’re both teaching so just because he’s more senior shouldn’t mean he’s off the hook totally.

Similarly, if you were to quit and tutor, why couldn’t he help a few eves/a weekend day? My friend is an ex primary teacher, husband has a ft lucrative job and he does the afternoon/eve shift with their 3 kids 4-8 twice a week and a few hours at weekend whilst she charges £40/hr.

Teaching is hard/inflexible with young children but it doesn’t sound like your DH is having the same problems…

Teaching part time is hard in many ways as you don't have full control, you're out of the loop and I would imagine you have extra responsibilities if you are on UPS3. It's so hard to fit it in, in less time but have the same responsibilities as everyone else. I felt so stressed today like I'm on a hamster wheel and I can't get off. I do 4 days and I've just come back after a sickness bug last week. I have 2 children- one a toddler- and I feel like I just don't stop going from one job to another. Husband is very hands on too. I actually found 3 days harder but my job share was tricky. I hope you figure it out. I still haven't but with behaviour getting more challenging I know I need to find a way out too eventually.

I haven’t read the full thread, sorry. Could you get registered as a childminder and take on one child now (at same time as yours) then add more as yours go off to school?

Sorry if I’ve missed it but how much do you pay in childcare?

Your DH is on a good wage and so I personally would leave and take the kids out of nursery for a year or 2.

You won’t have the stress of getting them to childcare etc and it’ll give you time to really decide what you want to do.

I think that's a helpful and hopeful post 😄

Teaching is not nearly as family friendly as it looks. I taught primary 2 days a week with 2 children and nearly packed it in many times with the constant illness from nursery, ridiculously early starts (leaving the house at 6.30am with a baby and toddler in tow), ofsted pressure and crap SLT but I'm glad I didn't give up. I now teach full time. My teens get themselves up and walk to school 2 hours after I leave the house in the morning and let themselves in in the evening. I can even bribe them to cook dinner. Hang in there, it gets easier OP.

I totally get it. I am also a teacher with 2 young children and work 1.5 days a week. The money is pretty good and obviously the holidays off are great with a young family. However, I dream of getting out. I can’t really moan about it to anyone as ‘you only work 1.5 days’.

For me, it’s mainly I have had enough of teaching and all the crap that comes with it - I feel anxious the night before I work. I also can never escape from children (I definitely don’t go to work for a break like many of my friends say!?). But I struggle to see a way out - my husband works shifts so I can’t really rely on him for childcare set days a week - my youngest is at home with me for another few years. What part time job can I do that isn’t rubbish pay and ideally with some flexibility/wfh. I’ve kind of decided I’ll be doing this until they’re about 15 and then I can think about me and doing something I’d enjoy 😆

I really wish I'd retrained when mine were small. I really don't like my work now.

I do think 3 days in many jobs that I've looked at would be less intense stress than 2 days teaching and preferable for me personally. And I'd split holidays with my partner.

Look at fb group life after teaching. I think more than half teachers are trying to leave. Do it whole you're young and sparky.

If OH is in management, I'd imagine they'd ve on more than 50k. I'm on 51k as a non-promoted state-sector teacher.
I would not give up your job, especially if you are not married.

I think you are making your life hard outside of work in many ways. Why do you have 1 child at nursery and one at a child minder? Can't they both go to nursery so you only do one drop off, or the 3 year old go to pre school at the same place as the 7 year old?

Why do you have both kids at home with you for 3 days, the 3 year old will be entitled to 30 hours nursery, so take it and give yourself a slight break by only having one kid.

My child is primary school age I am a single parent so need the structure or things just don't get done! If your 3 are primary and younger there's no easy answer just remember its not forever xx for me the stress of teaching is balanced out by the school holiday times I have with my child. Once they are passed school age I will evaluate career changes then as its not a job I can imagine doing for another 25 years!

If school holidays are a priority then I would imagine your strongest opportunities would be in the education sector. Would you consider becoming a private tutor for 11+ or GCSE? It would still mean working with children and /or teenagers although you can set your own schedule.

Do you live near to a university? Have you investigated the professional services roles on offer there? I left teaching to work in education tech/instructional design. I earn more than I did as a teacher. The job is less stressful and more flexible. I have 44 days leave a year, but can buy 10 more days. Lots of my colleagues left teaching to work here.

Her initial post asked what could she do for similar hours and pay. The response was not a lot without a tonne of experience and/or specialist qualifications.

That's why people are looking at the total salary.

I suppose this is what I have tried to convey so OP investigates so she is happy with decision she makes. Nobody wants to be unhappy in their job but unfortunately moving job doesn't guarantee it'll be a happy move. It might be though but that's where good research comes in

As usual, there's the, "I work 80 hours a week as CEO of a FTSE 100 company, have eight kids and still manage to all housework and cook from scratch" brigade on this thread. Please ignore them.

Experience is personal and you feel stressed and out of control because you're not in alignment with what's right for you. Focus on small wins that will make you feel better about the situation. Things that help the situation to flow and relieve some of the stress. Ask yourself, "What would me feel better?" when you come up against a problem or stressor. All of the answers are within you.

When I was you, a part time teacher with a full time teacher DH (but only two children) I did realise to a point that I was lucky. But I only realised just how lucky, when my DD (a nurse working 13.5 hour shifts) and her DH (in retail, working evenings and every weekend day) had my grandchildren.

Seriously, much as teaching has become a much tougher job, you'll never find a job that makes family life easier, and on that money. Anything else is likely to make things much harder.

I only have two. Three is a lot you’re right! I do think it’s easier to work more days and be more flexible career wise when they’re all in school.

I don't know why PP are trying to work out equivalent salary and say it's good for 2 days, as it's not really a good salary full time for the additional hours and level of challenge required. OP said she has accrued UPS3, which is the top of the pay scale. She obviously has the experience and expertise to have successfully passed performance related pay over a sustained number of years.

She also acknowledges that it would be difficult to go in at that level elsewhere. It doesn't mean she wants to do the job or that it's easy so she has it good though.

I'd look into tutoring and maybe a day of supply to reduce workload and the cognitive demands of managing behaviour and progress of a whole class (often without a break, resources, or thanks).

What do you do on the five days a week when you aren't teaching? Genuine question as a teacher working five days with two small children in two different settings. I do one's drop off and pickup, DP does the other one. Seems like your DP needs to step up on your work days but equally if I were working five days and DP only two I would absolutely expect him to do the bulk of the legwork with the kids and house etc

You need to make those two days you work be simply about eating, sleeping and getting everyone where they need to be on time. You've got five more days in the week to do all the life admin, housework etc. And the holidays.

Seems to me the main issue here is that you don't want to teach, which is absolutely fair enough, but is a very different question to one about actually making teaching those days work.

I wasn't sure if it was about working in a school or struggling with getting the kids out but you've cleared it up that it's just the school environment which hopefully you can find something that you enjoy