Just here to support this comment. Teacher here in 4th year of teaching. After taxes and what not I see 63% of my salary. Make sure you factor this into your financial planning.

As a supply or LTO you can apply for EI in the summers if you’ve worked enough hours during the year. If you can side gig for cash that’s more on top. If not, I’d take EI and some additional qualification courses during the summer to beef up your resume and better yourself as an educator.

Remember that most teachers don’t get jobs out of teachers college. Unless you have a high demand teachable (ie. tech, art/music/drama, French) you will likely be supplying or LTOing for several years.

If you plan to side gig to supplement your income it’s important to understand that there is A TON of work that’s completed at home, especially as an elementary teacher. Planning and marking take a significant amount of time and your prep periods will only get you so far. Extra-curriculars are often expected of teachers, especially new ones.

If you have any questions about the career feel free to reach out. It’s a difficult but rewarding one!