Latest / Teacher Approved: Elementary Teacher Tips & Strategies / 242. 6 Small Tweaks That Can Save Your February Teacher Energy

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242. 6 Small Tweaks That Can Save Your February Teacher Energy · Teacher Approved: Elementary Teacher Tips & Strategies

0:00
Heidi: This is episode 242 of Teacher Approved.
0:05
You're listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping
0:09
educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I'm
0:13
Heidi.
0:14
Emily: And I'm Emily. We're the creators behind second Story
0:17
Window, where we give research based and teacher approved
0:20
strategies that make teaching less stressful and more
0:23
effective. You can check out the show notes and resources from
0:26
each episode at secondstorywindow.net.
0:29
Heidi: We're so glad you're tuning in today. Let's get to
0:32
the show.
0:37
Emily: Hey there. Thanks for joining us today. In today's
0:40
episode, we are talking about how to manage your energy so
0:43
that you can have the best February yet. Plus, we're
0:47
sharing a Teacher Approved tip that might be a little
0:49
controversial, but has the power to change your whole month.
0:52
Heidi: But first, let's start with a try it tomorrow, where we
0:56
share a quick win that you can try in your classroom right
0:59
away. Emily, what is our suggestion for this week?
1:02
Emily: This week, how about sending a 'one good thing text.'
1:06
At the end of your school day, you know, like before you leave
1:09
the building, or right when you get home, text one person and
1:12
share something good that happened that day.
1:14
Heidi: Now your good thing does not have to be big. It could be,
1:17
oh, a kid who's been struggling finally got something today, or
1:20
I actually ate lunch sitting down, which is always a win. But
1:25
the magic is that this forces your brain to scan the day,
1:28
looking for something good, and then sharing it doubles the
1:32
boost.
1:33
Emily: And this is especially helpful this time of year when
1:35
the days are gray and cold and dark and it's easy to just drive
1:40
home and replay everything that went wrong in your head. So try
1:44
this tomorrow or hey, today, depending on when you're
1:46
listening, pick one of your favorite people and send them
1:50
one good thing from today.
1:51
Heidi: And if you find that this podcast is one of your good
1:55
things, would you take a second to leave us a five star rating
1:58
and review in your podcast app? It really helps other teachers
2:01
find us and we read and appreciate every single one.
2:04
Emily: And you can include it in your one good thing text, if you
2:07
want when you text.
2:08
All right, Heidi, so can you believe it? It is almost
2:13
February. I feel like January is 1 million years long. So it does
2:19
feel like a relief to get here after the slog of January.
2:23
Heidi: Oh yeah. It is the worst. Fully the worst. When I was
2:28
teaching, January was my least favorite stretch of the entire
2:31
school year. Nothing else even came close to how much I hated
2:34
it, because I would come back from Christmas break. You know,
2:38
you're already mourning the loss of the break being over, and you
2:42
come back and the festive December sparkle is all gone,
2:46
and immediately I would have to jump into catching up my
2:50
mountain of grading.
2:51
Emily: Yes, because in our district, term two didn't end
2:54
until that first week back. And so that meant when we got back
2:59
the report cards and the parent conferences were just there
3:02
waiting for us right out of the gate.
3:04
Heidi: And now, if I'd been on top of it, this would have been
3:06
something I did before the break, but that happened exactly
3:09
zero times. And when we had conferences, we did not have it
3:13
easy, like these young teachers nowadays, like we did not have
3:17
half days for conferences for us.
3:19
Emily: No, no, and, and I don't know if it's just around here
3:22
that they're getting those half days. Maybe some people are
3:24
suffering the way we used to suffer, but it was a long day.
3:28
Heidi: Yeah, we had to go straight through. So we taught
3:30
all day, and then we had conferences 3:15 to 9. And if
3:34
you were lucky, at some point, you got 15 minutes to sneak away
3:37
for some PTA prepared lasagnas in the faculty room. And you
3:41
just had to hope there was food left by the time you got the
3:43
time you got in there.
3:44
Emily: Right. And I usually had a few conferences before school
3:47
too. So it was, it was a marathon day. And, you know, we
3:50
deserve some kind of reward for having to do that in the
3:53
beginning of January, especially.
3:55
Heidi: Yeah, or, you know, some bonus pay or something.
3:58
Emily: Ha! Wouldn't that be nice? Well, on top of ending the
4:03
semester, January brings all the mid year reset pressure too,
4:07
which is important. And we talk about doing mid year resets for
4:10
sure, but it can feel like another big thing to manage. And
4:14
while you're trying to fix everything that drifted off
4:16
course in September, your students are also crawling out
4:19
of their skin because of the cabin fever.
4:23
Heidi: Yeah, it's relentless this time of year. I remember
4:26
finally making it to February and just being in this fog where
4:30
I was hopping from task to task with no real strategy, you know,
4:33
just moving the stacks of paper around the room.
4:36
Emily: Yeah, and for me, it was the grading, because I hate
4:40
grading, I'd put it off, and then I'd finally catch them in
4:43
January, and then immediately fall behind again, because I had
4:47
dropped everything else to do the catching up on the grading.
4:50
And you know, it's just a vicious cycle.
4:52
Heidi: Now, looking back with some perspective, I can see
4:55
though, that February offered some opportunities that I
4:58
completely overlooked. You know, the conferences were done for a
5:02
couple of months, the mid year reset push was winding down, but
5:06
the testing panic had not kicked in yet.
5:09
Emily: Yeah, you do kind of get a bit of breathing room here,
5:12
but often you're so drained that you kind of just drift through
5:16
it.
5:17
Heidi: That is what I wish I had understood back then, February
5:20
can be such a gift if you are aware enough to take stock of
5:24
where you are and where you want to go.
5:27
Emily: That's actually why it's so important to think about the
5:29
school year in seasons, because February needs something very
5:33
different than December or March.
5:37
Heidi: This is the lens that we use inside the Teacher Approved
5:40
Club to help you decide what actually matters right now,
5:44
instead of trying to fix everything at once. So we are
5:47
going to apply that same framework to our discussion
5:49
today. We want you to have the kind of February that we didn't
5:53
get to have.
5:55
Emily: That starts with reflecting on what you need from
5:57
the month and how you can use it to make teaching more
6:00
sustainable. So back in December, we shared our December
6:03
teacher survival kit to help you make a plan for how to manage
6:07
planning and teaching and hyper kids and prepare for January all
6:11
at the same time. And we got some very lovely feedback that
6:15
we wanted to share about that resource.
6:18
Heidi: Yeah, Jonathan reached out, and he said, I've been
6:20
teaching for 14 years, and I recently came across your
6:23
December Survival Guide, which I purchased. I just wanted to tell
6:26
you thank you so much for this product, because this has been
6:29
the quietest, calmest winter break I've ever had. I've not
6:33
thought about school at all, and have just been able to relax
6:36
because I know everything is all set from the prep I did through
6:39
your guide.
6:40
Emily: I love it so much. Thank you for sharing that with us,
6:42
Jonathan. Kind of got a little teary the first time I read it,
6:45
because that's exactly what we hope the December guide will do
6:49
for you. So we got to thinking about what teachers might need
6:52
in February, because even though the challenges look different,
6:56
the weight this time of year isn't any easier to carry.
7:00
Heidi: And so, allow us to introduce our newest product,
7:03
the very cleverly named, February Teacher Survival Kit.
7:07
Emily: Hey, it's a good name. It says what it is.
7:09
Heidi: It is, you can, you know exactly what you're getting.
7:12
Now, this is much smaller than the December version, because
7:15
there are fewer moving pieces this time of year, but we wanted
7:18
to give you the tools that you need to take advantage of this
7:21
little reset that February can offer.
7:24
Emily: So there are 14 exercises, and they're organized
7:26
into five planning categories: evaluate, clarify, plan, sustain
7:31
and look ahead. And those will give you the perspective you
7:34
need to take advantage of this moment without adding to your
7:37
overwhelm. Unfortunately, we can't go into all of them in the
7:40
time that we have today. So we had to pick the one we think is
7:43
the most important.
7:44
Heidi: This was a tough decision, but we finally decided
7:48
that the February energy audit was the key to making everything
7:52
else work. By this time of year, teachers are often moving
7:55
through the day on autopilot. You know that feeling. It is
8:00
very likely that some of the things you are doing right now
8:02
could be easier with just a few tweaks.
8:05
Emily: Especially if you can plug any energy leaks. An energy
8:09
leak is a repeating drain that costs more than it should. It's
8:14
often invisible because it's just part of the regular
8:17
routine.
8:18
Heidi: So these are things like that afternoon transition that
8:20
takes five minutes longer than it should. I just felt my blood
8:23
pressure spike, just thinking about it. Or, you know, it's the
8:26
email that you check real quick that pulls you out of your
8:29
morning prep, or it's the crating that follows you on
8:31
because you couldn't get it done during your planning time.
8:34
Emily: What makes energy leaks sneaky is that they don't feel
8:38
like emergencies. You don't notice because nothing is
8:41
forcing you to really look, you're just trying to get
8:43
through but every one of them is depleting your battery like an
8:47
open app that's running in the background.
8:49
Heidi: Okay, so here's how we're going to make this energy audit
8:53
work in an audio form. We're going to walk through six areas
8:56
of your day where energy leaks tend to hide, and for each one,
9:00
we want you to rate it like a traffic light. So green means
9:03
that this area is working, and these are the things that you
9:05
want to work hard to protect.
9:07
Emily: But if you're rating somewhere is yellow, it means
9:09
it's draining more than it should, and something here could
9:12
probably be better. And obviously, if you go to red, it
9:15
means this is actively costing you, and something that needs to
9:18
change.
9:20
Heidi: So you can do this right now as we go through the
9:21
episode, you know, in your car, on your commute, just listen and
9:25
rate each area in your head.
9:27
Emily: Although if you're the type who needs to write things
9:29
down, you maybe want to wait until you're parked, or you can
9:33
listen and then maybe at the end, come back and zip through
9:35
and write down what you want to write down, because we do not
9:40
Heidi: Yes, no accidents, please. It's a hot take, but
9:41
want to be responsible for any accidents.
9:42
that's what we're standing on.
9:44
Emily: Yes, yes. That is a firm teacher approved stance.
9:47
Heidi: Okay, let's start with before school. This is
9:51
everything that happens from when you arrive until the kids
9:54
walk in. Now, do you ever find yourself trying to wrap up all
9:57
of that morning prep while the kids are walking in? So you
10:00
know, now you're half prepping, half greeting, half answering
10:03
questions.
10:04
Emily: That's three halves.
10:07
Heidi: Well, that is exactly how it feels. You are doing 150% of
10:11
a job, and probably none of it well.
10:14
Emily: If you only reflect on one part of your school day,
10:16
this is the one. Energy leaks here can be extra sneaky,
10:19
because they often look like productivity. You're at school
10:22
early, you're working! But if you look closer, sometimes that
10:25
time is leaking like a colander.
10:28
Heidi: So take a second here think about your before school
10:31
time. Is it green, yellow, or red? If it's yellow or red, take
10:36
a few minutes to examine your morning routine. It might help
10:39
to write it down, and we've got a page for this in the February
10:42
guide, if that's helpful. So think about what you're doing at
10:46
that time and what is eating into your time.
10:49
Emily: And even if you don't have the guide, just writing
10:50
this down on any paper will help you see what's happening. Maybe
10:53
you need to batch similar tasks. Maybe certain things should only
10:57
happen on certain days.
10:59
Heidi: Or maybe the key to the whole thing is prepping your
11:02
morning before you leave the night before. I know this can be
11:05
so hard to manage when you're tired, but think of it as a gift
11:08
to your future morning self. You also will not have the time or
11:12
energy to do the tasks that you're putting off right now.
11:14
Emily: Right. You're going to be tired probably both times. But I
11:17
often am more motivated to help future me than I would be just
11:21
to help now me.
11:23
Okay, let's look at area two, during instruction. This is the
11:25
time you're actually teaching.
11:28
Heidi: Now, you know teaching is tiring. This is just true.
11:31
Standing in front of humans all day and having to be on is
11:35
inherently demanding. But there's a difference between,
11:38
teaching is hard, and, something about my instruction is draining
11:42
me more than it should.
11:43
Emily: If your kids are disengaged during instruction,
11:45
that might be a huge energy leak. You're working so hard to
11:49
deliver this lesson, and it's just crickets and fidgeting, and
11:52
that one kid who's definitely building something out of eraser
11:55
bits.
11:56
Heidi: Oh my gosh, the eraser bits. You know, and so that
12:00
leads to another leak, off task behavior. When kids aren't
12:05
engaged, they find something else to do, and then you're
12:08
spending energy managing behavior instead of actually
12:11
teaching.
12:12
Emily: It's so exhausting, you leave those lessons feeling like
12:14
you ran a marathon but somehow also lost the race. So consider
12:19
your during instruction time. Would you rate it green, yellow
12:21
or red?
12:23
Heidi: If it's yellow or red, think about the balance between
12:26
structure and spark or novelty. We talk a lot about this because
12:30
it is foundational for everything that happens in your
12:33
class. To add some spark to your lessons, try adding more active
12:38
student response.
12:39
Emily: And we did a whole episode on this episode, 161
12:43
where you get every student participating, instead of just
12:46
the hand raisers. You can also try a new lesson format,
12:49
something that encourages exploration or discovery or
12:53
play. Even just turning a lesson into a game can completely shift
12:56
the energy.
12:57
Heidi: All right, you've thought about the before school moments
13:00
and instruction time. Now let's talk about one of the big ones,
13:03
those in between moments. Think about your transitions, the five
13:08
minutes it takes to get from the carpet back to desks, or the
13:11
five minutes to switch from math to reading. On their own these
13:14
long transitions might not seem like a big deal, but if you have
13:17
got three transitions a day that take an extra five minutes, that
13:22
adds up to 45 hours a year.
13:25
Emily: Oh, yikes. Those last moments really do add up fast.
13:29
Another energy drain is the time lost to interruptions. It's hard
13:32
to get through a lesson when someone is knocking on the door,
13:35
the phone is ringing and a kid needs to go to the nurse. Those
13:38
constant, small disruptions break everyone's focus.
13:41
Heidi: So think about your in between moments. Would you say
13:44
they are green, yellow or red? If transitions are your leak, we
13:48
have three episodes that can help you with this. Episodes,
13:51
48, 49 and 50.
13:55
Emily: Yes, we did, in fact, spend three episodes talking
13:58
about transitions, because they are so tricky, and getting them
14:01
right is really important to the flow of your day. It really can
14:04
make or break the whole day.
14:05
Heidi: Oh, seriously, that's not hyperbole. And I think with
14:09
transitions, one of the most effective ways to plug any
14:13
energy leaks is to have clear bookends to your transition. So
14:17
bookend beforehand by making sure you have everyone's
14:20
attention while you're giving directions. That will clear up a
14:23
lot of confusion and wandering around. And then bookend at the
14:26
end by making sure you have created what we call a landing
14:30
pad activity. This is something that engages students the second
14:35
they arrive at the next spot.
14:37
Emily: And landing pads can be so simple, it can be drawing a
14:40
picture, playing the quiet game, taking out a book, discussing a
14:43
silly question with a neighbor. But if kids arrive somewhere
14:46
with nothing to do, they will find something to do, and I
14:49
promise you, it will be disruptive.
14:51
Heidi: Yeah, that's that's a threat, and that causes an
14:56
energy leak, because when you have to spend time and energy
14:59
getting their attention all over again, that easily eats another
15:02
five minutes. And if you consider how many transitions
15:05
you do in a day, that's a lot of leaking energy.
15:09
Emily: All right, we're halfway through. How are you doing out
15:12
there? Still with us, I hope. Let's look at area four, after
15:15
school. This is the time between dismissal and when you actually
15:19
leave the building.
15:20
Heidi: And for a lot of teachers, or maybe I'm just
15:23
adding my own bad habits, this is where the wheels completely
15:26
come off. If you don't have a plan for how to handle this
15:29
time, it's really easy to just putter around for an hour and
15:33
still somehow not be ready for tomorrow.
15:35
Emily: Yeah, but you'll feel productive because you're doing
15:38
stuff. But unless you know exactly what needs to happen for
15:41
tomorrow, what you're doing may not actually be helping.
15:44
Heidi: So reflect on your after school time. Does it feel green,
15:48
yellow, or red? This is why an end of day routine helps so
15:52
much. When you have a routine, you don't have to figure out
15:55
what to do. You just do the next step.
15:58
Emily: The February survival kit has an end of day routine
16:02
planner that walks you through building one, but even just
16:04
writing down, first I do this, then I do this, then I leave,
16:07
gives you something to follow when your brain is mush.
16:09
Heidi: Now we're going to be talking about this more in the
16:12
next couple episodes, plus we'll be talking about how to do a
16:15
planning time routine. So make sure you're subscribed to this
16:17
podcast so you don't miss anything. We want to help you
16:19
figure out the right routines that support your needs, so your
16:22
job is not any harder than it has to be.
16:25
Emily: All right, let's check out area five, at home. This is
16:28
how school follows you home. You know how it goes. Grading on the
16:32
couch, planning on Sunday, answering emails at 8pm while
16:37
you're trying to watch TV with your family, but you just can't
16:40
turn off the teacher brain.
16:41
Heidi: Yeah, the leak here is doing school tests at home,
16:44
which means you're never actually off. So think about
16:47
your at home time. Is it green, yellow, or red? If this is red
16:51
for you, let's think about what's usually following you
16:54
home.
16:54
Emily: And I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's probably
16:58
grading.
16:59
Heidi: Oh yeah, grading is like laundry. You're never done. So
17:03
do what you can to make it more manageable, if possible, only
17:07
grade the bare minimum.
17:09
Emily: Yes, this is your permission slip. You do not need
17:12
to grade every bit of student work. You can mark things pass
17:15
fail. You can look at one or two questions on each page, and that
17:18
will tell you if the student understands it or not. Figure
17:21
out how much information that you need to assign a grade, and
17:25
then don't grade any more than that.
17:27
Heidi: And if you do morning work, don't grade morning work.
17:30
Emily: Oh yes, please don't.
17:31
Heidi: Yeah, correct it as a class, everyone is learning, and
17:35
you're saving yourself a huge headache.
17:37
Emily: Yep.
17:37
Heidi: Okay, so let's look at our last area, emotional labor.
17:40
This is the invisible category. It's the effect of all of the
17:44
worry and concern that you're carrying.
17:47
Emily: This might not even show up on your to do list, but
17:49
compassion fatigue and decision fatigue and seasonal depression
17:53
are all out there, stealing your energy. So is your emotional
17:58
labor green, yellow or red?
18:00
Heidi: This one is a lot harder to fix, but there are things
18:03
that help. First, try naming what you're carrying. Just tell
18:07
yourself, I'm holding a lot right now. That awareness alone
18:11
can make a huge difference.
18:12
Emily: Second, treat yourself gently. Gretchen Rubin has a
18:15
saying that you should treat yourself like a toddler. And I
18:18
know it sounds silly, but it's actually great advice, because
18:21
toddlers need rest, snacks, play and someone who's patient with
18:25
them, and you need those things too.
18:27
Heidi: And also, you know, like a toddler, give yourself a
18:29
bedtime. Make sure you're getting more in your diet than
18:33
caffeine and sugar. Take time to do something that's just for
18:36
fun, and when you're struggling, be as patient with yourself as
18:40
you would with a tired three year old.
18:42
Emily: There are so many factors that go into teaching that you
18:44
can't control, but you can build your capacity to handle them,
18:48
and sometimes that starts with a snack and an early bedtime.
18:51
Heidi: Yes, a snack and a rest are never a bad idea.
18:54
Emily: Yeah, I think those solve a lot of your problems.
18:58
All right, you just rated six areas of your day. So let's talk
19:01
about what to do with what you found. For your red and yellow
19:04
areas, you basically have three options. Option one, strategic
19:08
swaps. These are the small shifts that reduce the drain
19:11
without overhauling everything. So for example, instead of
19:15
planning from scratch, you lean on what worked last week and
19:18
just tweak it.
19:19
Heidi: Now, we gave you some swaps for each of the six areas
19:22
already in this episode, and there are more in the February
19:25
survival kit, but the guiding principle here is to look for
19:28
small and targeted and sustainable tweaks.
19:32
Emily: Your second option for managing your yellow and red
19:34
lights is to set boundaries to protect your time and energy.
19:39
Try a hard stop for leaving school or being clear with a
19:42
chatty co worker. Oh, that's hard.
19:45
Heidi: Yes, yes. Boundaries definitely feel uncomfortable at
19:47
first, especially if you are not used to setting them. It's like
19:51
a muscle you have to train, but they're how you keep those
19:53
energy leaks from taking over.
19:55
Emily: And then we have option three, channel your inner Elsa
19:58
and let it go. This is the hardest one for a lot of
20:01
teachers, because we care so much, we want to do everything
20:05
well. But not everything that's draining you is essential, so
20:08
some things you can just stop.
20:11
Heidi: So for example, maybe you could stop sending the weekly
20:14
newsletter that no one reads, or turn over bulletin board
20:17
decorating to your students. They would be thrilled. If it's
20:20
not mandatory and they aren't paying you extra to do it, let
20:24
it go.
20:25
Emily: So hopefully, today's energy audit helped you identify
20:28
a few strategic shifts that will help you use February to refill
20:32
your tank.
20:33
Heidi: If today's episode helped you see what's actually draining
20:35
you, that's huge, but knowing what's wrong is only half the
20:39
battle. You still have to figure out what to do about it while
20:43
teaching and grading and managing the 100 other things
20:46
you juggle in a day.
20:47
Emily: And so most teachers end up doing the same thing,
20:49
scrambling for random solutions for whatever problem's bugging
20:53
you the most at 10pm on Sunday night, or just white knuckling
20:57
through the chaos because that feels easier than fixing the
21:00
problem.
21:01
Heidi: But what Emily and I have learned over the years is that
21:04
many of the challenges that come with teaching are actually
21:07
predictable. February boredom happens every year. Extra
21:11
chattiness is coming in March. Sorry if that's a spoiler.
21:15
December, chaos is not a surprise. We can see it coming.
21:18
Emily: So we created the Teacher Approved Club to give you real
21:21
solutions before you need them. Every month, we deliver
21:25
strategies for what's actually happening in your classroom
21:28
right now. And these are not generic tips like, batch your
21:31
copies. Although that's a good idea, you should batch your
21:34
copies.
21:35
Heidi: Yes, do that.
21:35
Emily: But what we're offering is specific tools for the exact
21:38
challenges of the season you're in.
21:40
Heidi: When we get to April, you're not going to be Googling
21:43
how to manage spring fever, because you've already got it
21:46
locked down. You got your April strategy on the first. And when
21:49
December rolls around again, you won't be drowning in festive
21:52
overwhelmed because your November prep already included
21:55
your holiday management plan.
21:57
Emily: The club is set up to give you structure and spark in
22:00
action. We have monthly strategies and easy, quick win
22:04
challenges to help you take action and live calls with us
22:08
and a community of teachers who get it, so you can say goodbye
22:11
to the midnight googling.
22:13
Heidi: So if you are tired of figuring this out alone, if you
22:16
want to actually prevent the problems instead of just
22:19
reacting to them, come join us. Head to
22:22
secondstorywindow.net/club to learn more, or head to the link
22:27
in the show notes.
22:29
Emily: Now for our Teacher Approved Tip of the Week, where
22:31
we share an actionable tip to help you elevate what matters
22:34
and simplify the rest. This week's teacher approved tip is
22:37
create some bonus prep time. Tell us about it, Heidi.
22:41
Heidi: Okay, I know this is going to ruffle some feathers,
22:44
but I am okay with that.
22:45
Emily: You're taking a stand.
22:46
Heidi: I am on this one. So since January is wrapping up, we
22:51
want to challenge you to carve out some time during school this
22:54
week or early next week to plan for February. Now, if you
22:58
remember, back in December, we talked about claiming pockets of
23:01
prep, just a few minutes here or there, so you can get ahead on
23:04
all of the work that's waiting for you. And that's what we're
23:07
going to do here, but on a bigger scale. Now, a whole day
23:11
would be ideal, but an afternoon, or even just an hour,
23:15
if that's all you can find, can completely change your whole
23:18
month.
23:19
Emily: So here is what that looks like in action. Instead of
23:22
teaching lessons, you're going to keep your students involved
23:24
in independent work. Maybe you plan a small group review
23:28
challenge, get out math games from last term, or use
23:32
flashlights to stretch reading time just a little bit longer.
23:35
Maybe you're going to have the kids do online activities, or
23:38
you're going to use a work packet or show a Wild Kratts
23:41
video.
23:42
Heidi: There are so many options to keep kids engaged
23:45
independently, but while they are doing all of that learning
23:48
on their own, you're going to be at your desk actually planning.
23:52
This is your chance to pause and really look at what needs to
23:54
happen next month, figure out what you need to prepare, or
23:58
deal with that mountain of grading. This lets you finally
24:01
get ahead instead of playing catch up for the next four
24:03
weeks.
24:04
Emily: Now, I can feel some of you panicking through your ear
24:07
buds right now. I can't do that! My principal would have a fit!
24:10
So let's talk about it. First, as long as your students are
24:13
engaged in meaningful learning activities, you are not short
24:16
changing them. Reading is learning. Games that practice
24:19
skills are learning. Review work is learning. Educational videos
24:23
are learning. Your students are still benefiting from
24:27
instruction, even when you're not standing at the board,
24:28
delivering a lesson.
24:29
Heidi: Second, one day, or one afternoon a month without small
24:34
groups, is not going to hurt any student's progress. And in fact,
24:39
if you look at the big picture, this might actually help them,
24:43
because this month, you will be able to more strategically meet
24:45
their needs, instead of just plunging forward without any
24:49
idea of your destination.
24:51
Emily: And third, let's be honest, you will never be given
24:54
the time you need to do your job well, so you have to get
24:56
creative about using the time you have. If you can't take a
25:00
whole day, rearrange your schedule. Put all your lessons
25:02
in the morning, and reserve the afternoon for independent
25:05
activities.
25:06
Heidi: And honestly, your principal may not love it, but
25:09
until they start paying teachers overtime, do not feel guilty
25:12
about using work time to do work tasks.
25:14
Emily: If you're worried about doing this all in one chunk and,
25:14
you know, whatever your principal might think about it,
25:14
you could also do a few smaller chunks over a couple chunks over
25:22
a couple of days. So maybe just show a short video every day for
25:26
three days, three different videos. Don't just show the same
25:29
one three times. That would be wasting the children's time, but
25:33
do three quality videos over three afternoons, and you can do
25:37
it that way if that feels a little more comfortable to you.
25:39
And the February kit has planning pages that make this
25:43
planning time even more effective. There's a one small
25:45
step page that helps you sort through everything and pick the
25:48
one thing to focus on, and a finished, strong focus page that
25:52
helps you clarify your priorities for the rest of the
25:54
Heidi: Hopefully this is something that you can make part
25:54
year.
25:57
of your monthly routine. Maybe you schedule it the last Friday
26:00
afternoon of the month. Your kids will feel like they're
26:03
getting a treat, and you will feel like you won a prize,
26:06
because you actually have a chance to be the kind of teacher
26:08
that you want to be.
26:09
Emily: I love it.
26:10
Heidi: To wrap up the show, we're showing what we're giving
26:13
extra credit to this week. Emily, what gets your extra
26:17
credit?
26:17
Emily: I'm giving extra credit to hinge toppers. Did you
26:17
already give extra credit to this one time? I can't remember.
26:18
Heidi: I did. But I have different ones than you do.
26:23
Emily: That's true. So I just loved the idea so much when you
26:27
shared about it, about these little magnetic cutie things.
26:31
Heidi: They're about an inch tall.
26:32
Emily: Yeah, like figurines, they are magnetic, and you can
26:35
put them on the top of the hinges of your doors, you know,
26:38
just a few scattered throughout your house. And what kind do you
26:40
have, Heidi?
26:41
Heidi: I have dragons.
26:42
Emily: Oh, which is so cute. Well, you gave me some little
26:45
gnomies.
26:46
Heidi: They're so cute.
26:47
Emily: For Christmas, and I love them so much. I just put them
26:50
up, and they just bring me so much joy, especially because
26:53
they're not, the ones I got, they blend in with the hinge,
26:56
which I actually think is the best way to do it. You can do,
26:59
there's cute ones I've seen that are colorful, and that would be
27:01
fun too, but I do really like that they blend in, because then
27:04
they're even more fun when you notice them there, because it's
27:07
like a little surprise.
27:08
Heidi: Yes, this little sprinkle of whimsy, but it's so
27:11
unobtrusive. And I don't, yeah, I don't think anyone has noticed
27:14
my dragons unless I point them out, but it makes me happy. I
27:18
love feeling like my doors are being guarded.
27:20
Emily: Yes, it's like adding just like a little secret to
27:22
your house. I think it's so cute.
27:24
Heidi: I'm glad you like the gnomes. I thought they were
27:26
pretty cute.
27:26
Emily: I love them. And whimsy is my word of the year. So you
27:30
just front loaded me with some way to add some whimsy to my
27:33
year. So thank you. What are you giving extra credit to, Heidi?
27:37
Heidi: Well, I'm giving extra credit to the blue air invisible
27:40
mist humidifier. I started using this, well I got it for
27:44
Christmas, so a month ago. I have really enjoyed it. It does
27:47
a good job. Now, my benchmark for what kind of humidifier I
27:51
wanted was I needed something that was easy to clean. And this
27:53
is, you do have to disassemble it a bit, but it's not too bad,
27:57
and you can use tap water. That was the other thing, I don't
27:59
want to have to, it doesn't leave, there's no that white
28:02
residue anywhere.
28:03
Emily: Yeah, sometimes you get with humidifiers.
28:06
Heidi: Yes, and it's really easy to control in the app. The only
28:09
problem I have is that when it is on night mode, you cannot
28:14
turn the display all the way off. When it's just on regular
28:17
running setting, you can turn the display out, it has like an
28:20
LED display, you can turn it all the way off, but you can't do
28:23
that in night mode. And I thought, okay, it might not, I'm
28:25
just gonna Google it, and there, I guess you used to be able to
28:29
and then they did some kind of upgrade, and it's not a function
28:33
now.
28:33
Emily: What?
28:33
Heidi: I know, it's so bizarre. So the way around it is I just
28:35
don't use night mode. I just set up a, like, a schedule, because
28:38
it's not a big deal. I just set it up for like, the hours I want
28:41
to turn on and the level of humidity I want, and then I can
28:45
just turn the display all the way down, because I didn't want
28:47
that blue light all night.
28:48
Emily: There we go. That makes sense, and that, I have a blue
28:51
air purifier in my room right now, and that is my complaint
28:56
with it, is that it's got this light on it that you can't turn
28:59
off, and it's so annoying, I've covered it up with stickers, but
29:02
I guess to see it through the little black stickers. But
29:05
anyway, that's good to know. I really need a new humidifier, so
29:09
I've got my eye on this.
29:10
Heidi: Yes, watch for sale.
29:12
Emily: I will.
29:13
Heidi: That is it for today's episode. Don't let February
29:15
drift by. Audit your energy, find your leaks, and make one
29:19
small shift. And remember to grab the February survival kit
29:22
so you have a place to reflect and plan.
29:24
Emily: And if this is the sort of topic you want to hear more
29:27
of, be sure to join us in the Teacher Approved Club. Each
29:29
month we're preparing you to handle what's ahead so you can
29:32
protect your energy and enjoy your job.
29:34
Heidi: We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I'm
29:40
Heidi.
29:41
Emily: And I'm Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow
29:44
or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an
29:46
episode.
29:47
Heidi: You can connect with us and other teachers in the
29:50
Teacher Approved Facebook group. We'll see you here next week.
29:53
Bye for now.
29:54
Emily: Bye.