Raising Dawson

Debt Avalanche vs. Debt Snowball

July 14, 2019 No Comments

The debt avalanche and the debt snowball are both approaches to pay off debt with the goal of being consumer debt-free. In this post, I want to share with you what each method is to help you decide which approach you want to take to pay off your debt.

What is the Debt Avalanche Method?

The debt avalanche method is simply paying off your loans starting with the highest interest rate first. Any extra money you are applying to debt would go towards the loan with the highest interest rate, while making minimum payments on the rest of your loans. As you pay off one loan, you focus your extra payments on the next highest interest rate, and so on.

Since you are paying off the loans with the highest interest rate first, you will be paying less interest overall. If you work at the same momentum, is likely that you will pay off debt quicker than the snowball method. The downside is if your loan balances are large, it is easy to loose motivation.

Teaching

First Year Teacher Tips to Succeed Your First Year

June 27, 2019 No Comments

Congratulations on your new teaching job! Being a first year teacher is exciting, but can also be overwhelming at times. Here are 10 tips and tricks to help your first year teaching be successful and help you have a great year.

1. Before the first day of school, create a well thought out classroom management plan.

As a first year teacher, this is probably the most important thing you can do before your students arrive on the first day. Think through your classroom management plan and what routines and procedures you want students to practice those first few weeks of school. Stay consistent with your expectation and review the rules often. Think through:

What classroom rules will your class use?
What consequences will students have for not following the rules?
Will you set up a reward system?
How will students get your attention?
When can students use the bathroom, get a drink, sharpen pencils, etc?
How will you hold students accountable for incomplete work?
What will students do once they are finished with their assignment?
How will you communicate with families?

2. Build relationships with your students

Greet them at the door each morning and learn about them and their interests. This helps so much with setting up a positive classroom community.

Budgeting, Family

10 Ways to Save Money at the Grocery Store

June 20, 2019 No Comments

Since starting our journey to becoming debt-free, we have been looking for ways to cut our budget and save money. Groceries is an area I knew we could cut down on, but I want to make sure we aren’t sacrificing quality for a cheaper price tag. Here are 10 tips to save money at the grocery store that do not involve couponing.

Since starting our journey to becoming debt-free, we have been looking for ways to cut our budget and save money. Groceries is an area I knew we could cut down on, but I want to make sure we aren't sacrificing quality for a cheaper price tag. Here are 10 tips to save money at the grocery store that do not involve couponing.

1. Meal Plan

Meal planning takes the guess work out of “what’s for dinner.” My husband and I like to sit down once a week and create a list of dinner’s for the week. By creating a plan for the week you know exactly what needs to be purchased from the grocery store.

2. Create a list

Going grocery shopping without a list is a sure way to overspend. As you are meal planning, write down the things you need and when your at the grocery store, stick to your list!

Beauty

Remedies for Dry, Chapped Lips

May 18, 2019 No Comments

Do you struggle with dry, cracked lips? Every winter, I have a consistent problem with my lips cracking and peeling. It seems like no matter what preventative measures I take, it’s never successful. I have tried many different products and while some seem to work while the product is on my lips, my lips never fully “heal.”

Dry winter air can wreak havoc on skin and lips. Add moisture and help them heal by following these 8 remedies for dry, chapped lips.

Here are a few tips to keep your lips nice and hydrated:

Teaching

10 Tips to Land a Teaching Job

April 28, 2019 No Comments

Whether you're looking for your first teaching job or you're veteran teacher, these tips to land your next teaching job will help you prepare and ace your next interview! #teaching #teacher #interview #tips #jobs

Searching for a job can be stressful and time-consuming. When I graduated college in winter of 2014, my plan was to substitute teach for the remainder of the school year in a few schools I was interested in teaching in. I happened to find a paraprofessional job at the end of February and worked as a parapro in a first grade classroom for the rest of the school year. In the summer I taught summer school at the same school district. I would love to say that helped me find a teaching job right away, but it didn’t. What it did do was give me experiences in different grade levels that helped me figure out what grade I wanted to teach, and were experiences that looked good on a resume. When I graduated, there were hundreds of applicants for each teaching job that was posted in my area. Thankfully things have relaxed since then, but it took me a few years to get into a school district I could see myself in for the long-haul. These are the tips I have learned through my experience looking for a teaching job over the years.

1. Look for jobs daily

Take a few minutes each day to check on the new job listings. In my experience, when a school knows that a teacher is leaving or retiring, they start posting the jobs as early as spring. Apply to the job early. Just because a posting is set to close at a certain date doesn’t mean that principals aren’t looking at applications and setting up interviews prior to then.

2. Go to job fairs

This is a great way to meet many people at once and there is a good chance that there will be principals and others that make hiring decisions there. Be sure to bring multiple copies of your resume that you can pass out to individuals you meet.

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