How do we deal with the stresses and strains of teaching? I have written at length about these issues but you’re a teacher and you're busy, so you don’t have time to read a book. So here are 8 quick thoughts, each beginning with the letter P, with the aim of keeping you sane through the year.
1. Physical – although we think of stress and anxiety as affecting our minds, we can't entirely separate this from our bodies. Physical and mental health are linked. Try to get some exercise or fresh air each day, drink lots of water and try to get adequate sleep by going to bed at a decent hour. These habits will slowly pay off.
2. Pace Yourself – teaching is a long-term activity, it is a marathon not a sprint. It is tempting to go 100mph in the first couple of weeks of term. We have to manage our energy as much as manage our time. Don’t try to do everything at once. It is counter-intuitive but slowing down and consciously doing one thing at a time often gets more done
3. Perfectionism – don’t be a perfectionist. This job is never ending and there are always things that you can improve and always more things you can do. ‘Satisfactory is not good enough’ is an odd phrase that some leaders use. They clearly don’t own a dictionary. Satisfactory IS definitely good enough when the alternative is an experienced teacher off sick in a month’s time and a series of supply teachers struggling to get anything out of the class. Learn to give yourself a break.
4. Perspective – keep a sense of perspective. Teaching is an important job but we are not surgeons or pilots, so even on our worst day no one is likely to be killed by our actions. We are human and we make mistakes. Most of our mistakes are not the big deal that we think they are, an apology will probably sort it. If a lesson has gone badly we can usually put it right next time. It’s not a matter of life and death.
5. Personal - try not to take things personally. If someone criticises our lesson or a student misbehaves, it is tempting to see it as a criticism of us as a person; it is not. Most criticism is not intended to be personal and in any case we are more than the job that we do. We are not just a teacher.
6. Posts – posts are often used to mark boundaries (Yes I’m desperate to keep up the P’s) Aim to put in place clear boundaries between work and the rest of life. Without boundaries, things expand to fill the space. You may choose to spend Sunday working or you may not, You may choose to leave school at 4pm and do 2 hours at home in the evening, or you may stay longer at school but take no work home. You might take a whole weekend off. The key is that you choose in advance. Whatever boundaries you devise remember that a boundary is a boundary in name only unless you stick to it!
7. People – Surround yourself with good people who are looking out for you and in whose company you are energised and uplifted. These will probably be a selection of family members, close friends and work colleagues. The point is they do you good! Think about how you might spend more time with at least one of these people. Avoid people who are negative or critical and make you feel worse about yourself.
8. Planning – planning and organisation is essential. Take time thinking about how you will organise your work. What do you have to do? When does it need to be done? Try to devise systems that will reduce your work. What do other people do to speed up marking? How can you be more efficient with email? Sometimes a couple of hours before term thinking through these things or 30 minutes at the start of each week can save hours.
Most importantly, remember that you are the most important resource in your classroom. Look after yourself and ‘fix your own oxygen mask first.’
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