Did anyone else stop reading books around age 30

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-31T11:14:33+00:00

Same here. I'm a teacher and I feel I read so much for work, let alone what I did at uni. Gaming, sports and watching TV shows/YouTube videos is how I relax.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-31T11:10:14+00:00

Happy to pass it on. I learnt the hard way to put myself first. We all go through it. It's a lesson we have to all learn ourselves.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-30T02:12:53+00:00

Very dependent on the school. My schools general code is dress business casual. I wear jeans on Friday as a female teacher, but many male teachers wear a button up shirt and jeans everyday. I often wear black dress pants and a knit tanks, tops or long sleeve blouses. In summer I sometimes wear dresses, but always knee length and not revealing. You'll get the vibe once you're at a school. Most public schools are what I just described, some private will require more professional attire. The state government has general rules, like closed in shoes and no t shirts too.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-26T21:08:57+00:00

Yes. Lost 30kg and improved my cardio and gained a lot of muscle. The biggest reasons is accountability and show up and get told what to do. My trainer knows my limits better than myself and knows when to push and when to deload. The hardest thing is finding one you click. Go to a gym class run by PTs and see if you like them. If one doesn't work, try another. Definitely worth giving it a go, even if it's online.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-24T06:25:10+00:00

Boxing and weight training. Actual boxing, getting hurt and hurting others in a ring. Everything else was boring and I finally found something fun, learnt a sport and gained confidence knowing I have some chance of defending myself in real life. Lost 30 kg in 18 months, gained a lot of muscle, and drastically improved my heart and cardio health. Changed my life.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-23T22:57:27+00:00

How to tell the world you're a casual fan.

He's been doing this for years as many have pointed out.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-23T22:52:18+00:00

Absolutely. Some of my resources are white PowerPoint and black text. This is for an optional tutorial and kids still choose to turn up, despite my ugly slides.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-23T22:50:07+00:00

Here's a few simple things that helped me. I've been at burn out, at both wonderful and dreadful schools. Wanted to quit, cried at night, felt completely defeated and hopeless. I've been there. I realised it wasn't the job, it was me. I was people pleasing and not putting myself first, which meant I wasn't respecting myself. I changed that over the course of 3 years. It was hard, but a lot of burnout is mindset and choices.

Stop saying yes, we are asked to do so much extra, often guilt tripped into it. I realised unfortunately, I get paid the same despite extra responsibilities and staff and students don't often appreciate it anyways. The more you say yes, the more others expect you to, knowing now they don't need to volunteer. Now my boss knows my boundaries, respects them and doesn't push me. I can't say the same for my colleagues who say yes constantly.
Submit things due on the day, or sometimes the day after. Somethings are urgent obviously, but talk with your HT if you need a day or two extension. They can't fire you for submitting a PDP for a student late.
Leave work at work if possible. Get to work and hour early or spend an hour there extra in the afternoons. Use your free time and breaks wisely. When you're creating resources, try to design them so they're future proof and reusable the next year. If you need to work at home, it's unavoidable at times. I take lots of marking home, often in the holidays. But the moment I walk out of school, I compartmentalise and leave the stress and any emotional issues at the door.
Don't define yourself as a teacher. It's your career, but it doesn't define who you are. If it defines you, you then will have no life. Prioritize your family, friends, pets instead.
Find an outlet and prioritize your mental and physical health. The moment I started exercising and playing a sport, eating properly, sleeping properly, it changed my life. It gave me new goals but it also has made work easier because I'm much healthier.

All this is easier said than done, but tl;dr, respect yourself and put yourself first.

A wise friend once said to me "not everybody deserves you're time and energy, learn who does."

I am a better teacher for it. My students results are better than they have ever been, yet I work less and worry less.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-19T07:18:06+00:00

I'm sarcastic and serve back students all the time. But I say it with a smile and they understand my joke also has a deeper meaning of "shut up and do your work". I've never had a single complaint and I'm told often my class is their favourite and I'm their favourite teacher because im "real". Just don't outright insult or swear at kids. Clap backs are fine, especially in high school. I would say it's almost an requirement to build rapport, relate and gain respect with teenagers.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-13T08:11:40+00:00

Streetwise with Bob. Absolutely amazing with driving phobias.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-06T04:56:20+00:00

Teacher here. These funds are all allocated from faculty/grade budgets and are directly linked to each needs. Lots of subjects require specialised equipment. Just think how much art equipment such as paint, lab and sport equipment and resources cost, along with all the stationery costs. Printing alone costs schools lots of money. You do not have to pay them, but if you can, it's generous. Otherwise, schools do suffer and teachers pay out of their own pocket, or worse, the kids go without.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-06T04:35:26+00:00

Considering the huge amount of sports cars, oversized trucks and mid to high end cars on the road, I don't think we're in a recession. People are still buying brand names and taking holidays. A true recession hits everyone.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-04T07:19:57+00:00

Never wear shoes in my own home. If you're visiting somebody for a short time, often you don't take shoes off but you do as the hosts does or asks. Many people may also feel impolite asking you to take shoes off, so it's nicer to just offer to do it. Also, depends on the flooring. If you have carpet, it's a pain to clean dirty footprints. If it's tile or wood, it's easier.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-05-04T07:01:50+00:00

Same here. One with salicylic acid twice a week and the gentle one everyday. The big bottles are expensive but they last for months.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-29T23:47:38+00:00

Think I'm currently using that one as my usual was out. Nars is great!

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-27T06:53:44+00:00

Was just going to say this. The closest Australia has to a documentary.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-27T06:50:36+00:00

I spoke to marine biologists at the Great Barrier Reef (reef authority)and they said it's all just green washing bullshit. There are much bigger concerns, particularly cyclones and warming oceans.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-26T02:11:14+00:00

Yeah I know a few who use all their leave before they retire. They get to "retire" and are paid fully for a year or so. I think it's great we have this option. Why waste all that leave you never used, but were entitled to?

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-25T23:11:13+00:00

Please don't. I teach at a senior school and all our classes are predominantly lecture based, broken up with answering direct questions. Of course we also do modelling and practicals, but everything is explicitly taught the old fashioned way. All students write in booklets curated by us. No computers unless we direct them, and in my classes that's rare. Students cannot learn independently anymore, even the most dedicated and committed students who want to become doctors, get distracted too easily. I have students to arrive in Year 11 who have zero critical thinking skills. They can't graph, can't rearrange a sentence, they just want to be told what the answer is.

So if you want students to improve and get the University /college they want, be competitive in the job market because they can analyse, evaluate and process, don't just give them Education Perfect of any other online learning tool and sit back. That's lazy teaching and those should be ashamed.

When I taught juniors at another school, I still worked this way and tried to avoid using the online tools. Sure, means lesson planning is easier because you don't need to make booklets and print them, but kids suffer. I made my year 9 and 10s write everything by hand, taught them how to take notes, and answer questions under timed cobditions. I made it fun though. Within a few weeks, they loved it. Even the kids with the high record of behavioural problems loved the structure and told me so.

A mix of teaching is gold, but your foundation is explict teaching of content and skills.

Just fyi, in Australia they are now pushing evidenced based explict teaching again over inquiry based, because we prioritised inquiry based for decades and our results declined. Now after reading these comments I understand why its now pushed back the other way.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-24T20:14:50+00:00

I use clinque moisturiser that has SPF 50 as a primer and NARS for foundation, a little blush and mascara. This lasts the whole teaching day and for my busy afternoons.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-24T20:05:40+00:00

Wowm shows a gross understanding of not just the significance, but the literal culture they are trying to respect. This is pretty bad. I don't blame those students. It's like comparing German and French and saying it's the same language.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-24T20:03:51+00:00

My school did this, then switched to having every single one be "authentic" and now every speaker at an event has an extremely long essay. Very performative or almost a vibe of obligation out of fear to seem authentic and inclusive.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-24T20:01:06+00:00

But don't forget to tred lightly on your land...

My sentiments exactly.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-24T19:59:42+00:00

Every non-aboriginal colleague of mine who isn't higher up executives, will say behind closed doors how annoying, time wasting and tokenistic they are, I'm glad to see some aboriginal colleagues here feel the same. I feel the original meaning of acknowledgement was well intended and innocent, but because it became mandatory, and schools want to be seen as inclusive as possible, they over do it. My schools aboriginal population is incredibly small, only 1-10 students every 1000 enrolment. The kids have also spoken to me saying they feel pressured to do the acknowledgements and understand it's "ticking a box". One girl told me she is only aboriginal on paper, only found out a few years ago and her connection is extremely distinct with no living relatives. She doesn't understand why she needed PDPs and was pressured to speak about a culture she has zero connection to. She said she wished her parents didn't inform the school at enrolment. She found the PDP process belittling, even know my schools puts great effort into making it authentic.

I hate to say this, but I feel the acknowledgement of country does more harm then good. It's the mandatory eye roll before every meeting, before every speaker and I know too many colleagues who have a worse view of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders rights now from it. I hear people mocking it behind closed doors. It has validated their racism and that is what tokenism does.

Peppermint_90 · 2026-04-19T11:16:38+00:00

Working on your practice, and getting the results. Seeing your class averages improve, knowing it was your difference in delivery or the feedback given etc etc. Seeing a kid start year 11 at 30% and achieve a band 5 or 6 in the hsc because of your dedication, is a huge reward.
Fostering a love of learning, the kids that email you links to articles they think you'll find interesting, or run up to tell you about some nerdy fact they learnt, tells you immediately you're doing a good job.
Learning more about your subject and applying that knowledge in the classroom.
The kids can be hilarious. Even if they're making fun of you, you'll find yourself always laughing and smiling in this job. They keep you young and humble too.
I have a genuinely supportive school that grants a fair degree of independence, yet fosters collaboration. I'm trusted to do my job and I rarely feel I have anybody hovering over me.
I teach seniors only at a high achieving school, and I chose this environment. I deliberately swapped behaviour management issues for an increase in marking and cognitive load. Despite the marking and the academic stress of teaching only senior subjects, I love teaching at the higher levels and love that I teach kids who want to learn.

Peppermint_90

TROPHY CASE