After teaching 4 different preps, interacting with 80+ students, and handling endless paperwork, teachers leave the classroom feeling exhausted. However, few actually get to leave school empty-handed. Instead, so many are carrying home computers, papers to grade, and lessons to fix for tomorrow. Due to this, teachers are working on very little sleep. Instead of continuing this pattern, teachers need to stop tired teaching and start leaving work at work! Now more than ever, teachers need to make themselves a priority.
Tired Teachers
If you are more tired this year than in previous years, know you are not alone! Last year was exhausting; however, this year presents so many additional challenges. First, teachers are helping many students adjust to being back in the classroom. This includes so much emotional support and pep talks throughout the day. Second, teachers are having to teach a lot of the curriculum from last year with the curriculum from the current year.
This is due to the fact that there was an incredible amount of learning loss with the pandemic. Third, teachers are adapting to new curriculum, school policies, and being back in the classroom. Truly, there is so much to handle every day and it is exhausting! By the time the school bell goes off, so many just need to take a deep breath and relax.
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Ways to Leave Work at Work
Alter Teaching Strategies
As secondary teachers, it can be incredibly stressful planning multiple preps. For instance, 4 different preps mean 4 different lessons need to be planned for every school day. This is a lot of work! However, try and alter teaching strategies used in order to provide a breather throughout the day. For example, maybe one lesson requires a lecture or for the teacher to be up and moving the entire lesson. This can be mentally and physically exhausting to handle for each prep. Therefore, the next prep can have a student-based project. Here, you can instruct what to do and then simply walk around and help. Or, you can monitor discussions and provide input as necessary. It will be so nice to have a better balance throughout the day!
Create a To-Do List in the Morning
It can be mentally exhausting to remember each item that needs to be handled that day. Therefore, create a to-do list and organize it by the most important tasks. If something does not get done and is not time-sensitive, it is okay to handle it the next day. It will feel so great to stay organized and mark items off the list!
Use Your Commute Time Wisely
Whether there is a 20-minute drive or a 1-hour drive, the commute is so important. In the morning, it is vital to get into the right mindset. For some, this means listening to calming music or an audiobook. For others, it means reviewing items that need done for the day or reviewing lessons. On the way home, take some time to decompress. This may be reviewing the highs and lows of the day. Or, it may mean listening to more music or an audiobook. Whatever works for you should simply help create a positive headspace for the day or evening.
Allow for Transition Time
After getting home from school, many may instantly start dinner. Or, start going through bookbags for your own kids. However, allow yourself some transition time between teacher mode and home/parent mode. This may be drinking a cup of tea, watching part of your favorite show, or reading a chapter. Or, it may be doing a few yoga poses, taking a short walk, or changing into different clothes. It is important to try different strategies to see what works best for you.
Disconnect Email from Phone
As a secondary teacher, you work with 80+ students each day. Therefore, this can lead to a lot of questions, concerns, or emails from parents and students. However, avoid checking or answering these while at home. Honestly, many times it leads to frustrated feelings over students asking for an extension or something already covered in class. Therefore, remove email notifications from your phone. Instead, check them before school starts.
Don’t Take Work Home
This may be one of the hardest items to adjust with. However, leave the teacher’s bag at school. From now on, work stays at work. Yes, this may mean students receive graded assignments back a bit later than they are used to. They will be okay! After the contracted hours, it is time to recharge as a teacher.
Practice Self Care
In order to feel refreshed and ready to teach, teachers need to focus on themselves. For some, this means going on a walk, cuddling with an animal, or taking a nap. For others, this means working out, getting nails/hair done, or going shopping. Truly, self-care is an essential way to feel ready to take on so many daily challenges.
Teachers are humans. While they may have superhero powers, they should not have to act as superheroes. These strategies will help teachers take back personal lives and leave work at work.
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This really struck a cord with me. I have 6 – 45 minute preps this year with no repetition. I’ll be making a to-do list for the following day before leaving school each night. Hopefully that will allow me to relax a bit more each evening!
I make a to do list for each day of the week on Sunday and to it through out the week. I also prep agenda slides and Bellwork for the week all at once.
My goals are to give myself more time without work and leave on time. I’m not doing so well.
I thought I had a good plan going into this year, but it has not worked. I’m routinely staying late and bringing work home. Along with teaching 2 classes for each grade at the Middle School level, our school has Accreditation, I am going through an Induction Program, and working towards an additional certification; so I am swamped.
I prioritize my list, so the important things get done, everything else can wait.
Divide and conquer! I have a team with 2 other teachers. Any task that can be split gets us out the door sooner. I try to utilize at least 10 minutes per class period for my teacher tasks like responding to emails, entering a set of grades, uploading assignments to our school’s digital platform, etc. . That adds up to an hour of work I don’t have to do at home.
I’ve been making an effort to not bring work home this year. It helps me to keep a list to keep me on track and to reach my goals.
I have 4 kids under 10 and a wife at my house. There’s no way I can do work at home. The most I do is post assignments in Google Classroom.
Phew! This is my third year teaching and I finally just told myself, “It’ll never all be done!” Then, I set an alarm and leave when the alarm goes off. Otherwise, I’m here until 7 or 8.
I started the 40 Hour Work Week program this year. I haven’t had the chance to get too far into it but the list making procedure has changed my life. Instead of just having a super long to-do list, I make my list for the week according to when I have time. Work that requires brain power might be after school while easier paperwork might be during my study hall. Lesson prep is often during my prep. It’s meant that I haven’t been working on the weekends like I used to and only bringing work home once a week in the evenings.
I maximize my prep time by creating lists throughout the day as I think of things I need to accomplish. I also try to get to school about 20 minutes early to make sure I’m ready for the day. My family time is valuable, so I try my hardest to leave work at work!
Check your email 🙂
Grading a lot of assignments for completion by reading 1-2 random responses. If they are good, they get full points. If responses aren’t good, I dig deeper. Gives me time to spend reading assessments and essays!
Omg! I would love to leave work at work! I tend to take stuff home then not touch it. Then I fall being in grading. This is definitely something that will help me get myself back on track. This year has been HARD and it’s only October.
I always joke (although it’s not really a joke) that I take the work home as penance. I know I’m not actually going to grade it right away, but in order to justify not grading it, I need to lug it around everywhere I go.
It has taken me a long time to not feel badly about not grading everything. I am really tired of the question,”Is this a grade?” . Now, I have more time for me which makes me a better teacher .
I really needed this blog this week! I promised myself this year that I would leave on time AND NOT TAKE WORK HOME!!! Needless to say…that did not even last a week. I get to work by 6:30 (we don’t have to be here until 7:40) and usually stay until 4:30; and I STILL take work home. I feel like I am on a sinking ship. I teach 4 preps and we have had so many changes with admin. this year. HELP!!! I would love feedback from one and all!
I have just been in the habit of leaving work at work since my children were little. There are some times that I take grading home, but for the most part I leave it at work.
I try to make as many assignments as easily gradable as possible so I don’t have to bring things home. I also designate certain days of the week to be my “go straight home and be at home” type days. Most days I arrive early (about 30-45 minutes), I like to have plenty of time to ease into my day. I usually stay about 30-45 minutes beyond our check out time about twice a week.
This is my 23rd year of teaching and the best advice I can give new teachers is to use their time during the day (as much as possible) and try not to take work home. If you don’t, you will burn out!
I need to do so many of these suggestions. I have let teaching consume me and become my entire life. I’m grateful for the strategies suggested to help disconnect work from home life.
I make an effort to not log in to my work email or my online teaching platform. I walk away from my home office and don’t enter it again until the next day. I put a vacation email from Friday to Monday so students know not to expect a repsonse.
This! A thousand times this! I started with leaving work at work last year, and it was the best thing that I could have done for myself. I still think a lot about work – but I leave the physical manifestations of it on my desk, and I try to leave as close to the end of my contract time as possible (I get to work absurdly early, so that helps). We have to take better care of ourselves as teachers or we lose our impact in the classroom, and our own personal lives!
We are right there with you girl. We are struggling to manage time well. One thing I have learned is that you have to set boundaries and then honor those boundaries. Set specific times when you are done with school work. Do not check your email, do not check on grades, do not do anything school related after the time you have set. You will find that you will become more productive with school “stuff” during school hours. You will also feel so much better!
Something I’ve really given myself permission to do this year is also allow my students to not take the work home with them. We happily shifted to a block schedule so I now have the time in class to almost never send anything home. If we can do all the work in class and I can check in with my students during the process it means that all of that stuff that I used to take home with me is already managed. We live in a symbiotic relationship with our students and I find that giving them the permission to leave it all at school has also helped me do the same thing.
This post really resonated with me. There just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day for teachers. Some strategies I use may not work for others, but here is how I try to leave work at work: I try to be intentional with my time during prep period (no visiting other teachers, no scrolling on my phone, etc). I stay after school for an hour each day to grade, plan lessons, make copies, contact parents, etc. I turn off notifications on my phone for school emails (this has been a lifesaver for my sanity). I do not leave on Friday until I have Monday’s lessons ready to go…I will either have the entire next week’s lessons ready, or just Monday’s (I will do the rest of the week’s Monday after school). I refuse to work on the weekend, as that is MY time.
This year has been so hard. I’ve struggled to find the proper work/home balance, and I haven’t been very successful with it.
This and coaching high school football….EXHAUSTED
I have been asked multiple times whether this year is easier compared to last year. I said this year because of the mental state of students, their inability to learn, the difference in attitudes, amongst everything else. It’s tough!! I am trying REALLY hard to leave everything at school and take more time at home. I HAVE to – I have a 5 year old and 3 year old times that I go home to (oh and a husband!) that deserve my attention.
Yeah I have a 5 and 3 year old and life is sooooo busy!
I have been trying really hard to not grade and check work emails after getting home from Volleyball practice, then eating dinner and by that time it’s already almost 9pm!! I am lucky to have almost an hour for my prep period everyday and am working to be productive during that hour!! Thanks for all your tips! 🙂
My plans this year’s was to grade as I go and make all copies on Saturday. That plan failed miserably. I was giving an extra class this year so my only break is my planning period which is usually taken when other teacher are out and I have to cover a class. I am not giving up though. I will conquer this. I am starting fresh this weekend. Planning ahead. I will master this and my students will succeed. Its all according to my faith. This is going to be a great year.
Hands down, this is the hardest year yet! Thanks for helping to make it a little easier.