Teachers are more than just people responsible for shaping the minds of future generations: they have daily routines too, and spontaneous weekends and lives.

 Take Profe Garcia, an 11th and 12th-grade Spanish teacher; this is her routine.

An hour before the day “begins,” she spends preparing her classroom, finishing grading, and lesson preparations. 

At the 8:20 bell, her classroom fills with the “early birds.” Slowly, the rest of her class trickles in. She spends this forty-five-minute period presenting her pre-planned lesson by engaging her students with interactive prompts and activities. The bell rings again, indicating that the period is over. As the first group of students rushes to their next period,  her next class flows to their seats, where her teaching routine remains constant, although the content changes.

Teachers also have free periods; however, theirs aren’t always “free.” Garica spends these “frees” grading students’ work, meeting with other teachers for lesson planning, and working with her interns to complete various tasks. After all the immediate work is done, the rest she uses to grab lunch, use the bathroom, and check her email.

When the bell rings at 2:40, her day is far from over. Mondays and Tuesdays are meeting days. Wednesdays, she meets with students who need extra help or to complete missing work. And Thursdays, she has a 9th period for her AP class. She leaves school around 5:00 p.m. each day.

After 5:00, Garcia finally hits the gym. After that, she arrives home around 8:15 and starts her meal prep for breakfast and lunch. Ending her “busy work” around 9:00, Garcia showers and gets ready for bed. The occasional tv-show if she’s not too tired. Her eyes shut at 10:00, getting ready for the next day.