See Me After Class by Roxanna Elden

“While Neil Armstrong no doubt experienced some fear and loneliness as the first person to set foot on the moon, many educators say it couldn’t compare to the feeling on day one of a teaching career, when you close the classroom door and are alone with your first class — and your self-doubts. Often, young teachers struggle so much in the beginning of their careers they wonder if they have what it takes to be educators at all.”

Click here for this article and other new teacher resources in EducationWorld.com.

In the four years it took Hialeah High School teacher Roxanna Elden to publish her new book, See Me After Class, she received dozens of rejection letters, but where others might have found disappointment, she saw something more. Each letter, she noticed, was more detailed than the previous one. “No” became “maybe next time.” She collected all the letters in a packet and passed them out to students in her creative writing class to show them what writers have to go through.

“You have to know what progress looks like,” said Elden, 30, a language arts and creative writing instructor at Hialeah High since 2004. “Sometimes, it comes in the form of more personal rejection letters.” (click here to read this in the Miami Herald.)

“In her book See Me After Class: Advice for Teachers by Teachers, Roxanna Elden sets out to provide teachers with that special brand of inspiration that teachers often need when the demands of the profession prove overwhelming.” TeachersCount.Org

“Elden has collected sage advice from experienced teachers, but even more useful, she gets them to admit their abject failures with wry humor and grace.” (Earlyword.com)

New teachers, take heart — you’re not alone.
“….While this book is a good buy for new teachers, it is also a valuable read for veteran teachers. Who says you can’t teach an old dog (or teacher, as it were) new tricks?” 
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Miami, Wednesday, May 20, 2009 – Roxanna Elden, a creative writing and English teacher at Hialeah High School, decided to write a book, a funny and practical guide for new teachers, but soon discovered the world of publishing could be a daunting place. That’s when the teacher decided to go back to school.
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“Roxanna Elden demonstrates great insight into the teaching profession and the many obstacles new teachers encounter. Teachers will find the answers to many of their questions and, most importantly, will find that they are not alone in experiencing this great profession of ours. I especially enjoyed the shared stories from those educators that have been in the profession for the long haul. Great job!”

“A great idea for required reading in teacher education classes.”

“Sarcastic humor mixed with gentle, tangible advice…. a quick and easy read by someone who doesn’t take herself too seriously. I wish I could give every teacher I supervise a copy of this book.”

“This book uses humor to shed light on how to deal with the difficult times of being a rookie teacher. It should be a required read for all pre-service and beginning teachers.”