The new school year signifies a reset, a fresh start, a chance to do it all over again but BETTER this time. Unfortunately, summer break is incredibly short. There is not enough time to fully relax and get in all the prep we would ideally like to. This is especially true of the last few years. Overwhelm and impending burnout never seem to be far away. I can’t fix it all, but I can help you with some small changes that will yield big results when it comes to starting the year off right!
I don’t know about you, but over break I love daydreaming about decorating my new classroom and thinking about how I’m going to have it all together next year. Prepping for the back-to-school season can be fun and creative work, but if I get too caught up in the daydream I end up overwhelmed when school starts.
IF you want to think about school on your break, be mindful and focus on tasks that will create more time for you later. These tips will help you get ahead.
– What were the 3 biggest stressors you had last school year?
Did you get inundated with data and paperwork? Did you spend too much time grading papers? Be proactive in looking for solutions so this year will be different! The quickest thing to do is talk with other teachers or ask for help in a Facebook group for your grade level . (Just don’t get lost on social media during your search.) You can also look for suggestions on blogs, Pinterest, and in books. Choose just 3 things to focus on so you can implement real solutions.
Let’s change this narrative!
– Establish routines and plan to reinforce them to perfection.
Know which procedures you’ll teach, when you’ll teach them, and how you’ll teach them. Outlining your key routines will solidify the procedures in your mind and can serve as a quick reference.
If there were certain times of the day that drove you crazy last year, or procedures you found lacking, create a more solid plan for those instances this year. Include when and how you will teach these new expectations in the first week. Be sure to model your expectations and have your students practice them.
My students know that when they come into the room, they have two minutes to write down the homework assignment in their planner. Then, they start their morning work. To make sure I’m reinforcing my expectations, I recognize students who are following the routine by saying things like, “I see Riley remembers the routine. Thank you, Riley,” etc. This positive reinforcement usually gets everyone on task pretty quickly. I’m able finish my morning to-do list, and I rarely get that email reminding me to take attendance.
– Be strategic when back to school organizing.
Quickly map out your classroom on paper. Do the deep thinking now about where to store supplies so students can access them easily. How can you organize your room to streamline students borrowing & returning materials?
– Create the habit of putting roster numbers on everything.
This is a huge time saver for me. I can reuse file folders, mail boxes, binders, & etc. year to year without having to relabel everything with student names. Using roster numbers has also made a huge difference when it comes to entering grades. By using roster numbers you can get printed assignments in alphabetical order very quickly, and put them directly into a gradebook with minimal scrolling and clicking. This seems like a tiny change, but it makes record keeping so much easier. (If you need one, you can grab my FREE grade book template here.)
– Organize your files and resources.
Finding what we need can be overwhelming when we have too much. It’s like having overstuffed drawers but only wearing the same few outfits! Getting rid of things you don’t like will make it much easier to find the stuff you do. It’s a smart move to get rid of the materials that you don’t absolutely love.
You don’t have to do it all at once – Try this baby step: Set up Google Drive or Dropbox folders for each major unit. If you don’t have the time and energy to organize ALL of your existing digital files, you can at least add any new resources to the folders. You can always go back and add older stuff to the folders when you’re teaching that unit.
– Back to school curriculum map
This can be a quick rough draft / big picture of what you want students to learn. Having this in place makes it easier to see (and toss out) activities that you won’t have time for. I like a simple monthly plan. Don’t let it stress you out. It may need to be adjusted as you go along, but it is a nice way to bring your focus back to the bigger picture when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
– A positive start will make the entire year less stressful.
Avoid diving into the curriculum on the first day. Fill the first few days of school with fun and easy activities. This allows students to focus on the procedures and expectations that you need them to learn in those first few days. Choose your community building resources ahead of time, so all you have left to do is decide which day to use them. Having a solid first week of plans will help prevent first-day-of-school jitters.
– Prioritize in 3-2-1!
Prioritizing tasks is the foundation of using your time effectively and working more efficiently. It’s possible to have a better work / life balance. But, that requires figuring out what’s most important, doing it well, and letting go of the rest. Over time you can train yourself to recognize what is necessary, and get rid of things that are not. This allows you to let go of feeling like there’s always something more you should be doing.
When my mind is going a million miles per hour, I like to list out all the tasks. When I’m done, I go back and number them in order of importance.
If you’re not sure whether a task is important, ask yourself…. What would happen if I didn’t do this?
If you can live with the result, put the task lower on your to-do list… or remove it altogether. You are in control of how you manage your time.
Staying focused on these points has saved me time and energy. This gives me the mental bandwidth I need to cope with some of the other challenges we face. You don’t have to do it all! Each step forward is just that – a step forward – slowly but surely we will reach our goals of a better work / life balance.
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