Alexandra Laing, A Worthy Educator and a Champion for bringing together educators around our common values and mission!
She is currently pursuing her passion as a STEAM Education Specialist with the Belize Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology through the Peace Corps Response program. When I was a student in high school, I was deeply engaged in the mental gymnastics of deciding what I was going to do when I grew up. Becoming an educator was nowhere on my list, but as I considered what I wanted to influence and how I wanted to enact change in the world, I quickly realized that the largest catalyst for influence was the classroom. Fast forward twenty years later, and it's the students that I have had the opportunity to learn from and support that still drive me every day.
But this work is difficult, seemingly getting even more difficult, and the challenges we face in classrooms can seem insurmountable. On top of that, time seems to be our biggest enemy. It's easy to lament that we don't have time to support our students, lean into that new initiative, or (dare we say it?) change the world. But I would like to round out this month of self-care conversation with The Worthy Educator by suggesting ten ways that we can make more time.
Yep. I said it. And I’ll say it again. You can make more time. And I’m not talking about time-travel, freezing time, living longer, or making a case for changing anything about our current calendaring system. The Earth’s rotation and revolution is what it is. I’m talking about handling everything you have on your plate every single day like a sharpened-pencil-wielding, calm-in-the-storm, doer-of-all-things education ninja. I’m talking about being able to walk out the door having accomplished more for yourself, more for your students, and more for your own professional growth day in and day out.
Yep. I said it. And I’ll say it again. You can make more time!
Here are my top 10 time-hacks in no particular order (Seriously - I couldn’t decide which one thing is possibly less important than the next thing.) that will make your educator life a little smoother, a little more fun, and a bit less stressful. Who am I kidding? These hacks will CHANGE YOUR LIFE. And what’s a top 10 list without a proper countdown?
10 Use Technology and DON’T Use Technology
I know. That seems like an oxymoron, right? We are in the digital age, and you don’t fit in without a device (or two!) glued to your hand. You feel it. Your students feel it. Your colleagues feel it. I have heard from a lot of educators recently about the fight against Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, IMs, DMs, and anything that is the latest, greatest craze (remember Pokémon Go?). But what if we taught our students how to use technology? What if we taught them how to communicate through dynamic platforms, select media intentionally, and leverage powerful tech tools? I am not saying that every math class needs to get flipped to a one-to-one and every writing seminar needs to happen digitally. But sometimes the technology fits the use and sometimes using technology makes the learning better. Where can you leverage technology in your day-to-day life?
9 Avoid the Insanity
I’m going to ask you for a little virtual crowd participation. Nobody is looking at you, and you’re in a safe space. It’s just you and me. One educator to another. Raise your hand if you have ever had a moment in your day that you just KNOW you will dread? Do you see my hand raised? Perhaps it’s the moment that students start to show up at your door. Maybe it’s the transition from math to reading. I mean, seriously, how long does it take to get your notebook out?!? Maybe it’s lunch. Or recess. Or dismissal. Or that parent teacher conference block looming on your calendar every Thursday afternoon. We have all heard that saying, “Doing the same thing and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.” And then we roll our eyes and count down the seconds while we “wait” for the students to be quiet. But that saying is right, isn’t it? If your dread moment is the way students enter your classroom in the morning or at the beginning of a period, consider WHY you are feeling dread. Are there systems that are unclear? Maybe the morning work you are utilizing is not engaging enough. Maybe it’s too difficult. Maybe it has nothing to do with the kids in your class and everything to do with a system that isn’t working for you. So tomorrow, next week, and when you are enjoying your pumpkin spice latte in the cool fall months, take note of the moments you dread. And do something different.
8 Systematize Everything
Yes. Everything. When the most simple tasks have a system, the complex components are easily manageable. Chaos begets chaos. Organize your systems, and your students (no matter how young or how old) will love you for it.
7 Don’t Do Anything a Kid Can Do
Hack number 7 definitely depends on hack number 8. Without systems, students don’t know how to step in, and you will become overwhelmed-with-too-many-things-frozen. Kids can do a lot, and I’m not just talking about the grown-up-beyond-their-years-kid. I’m talking VPK and up. Here’s the caveat: learning a skill takes practice (for the kid) and patience (for you). If you are consistent, diligent, patient, and are clear in your expectations, you will be pleasantly surprised. Kids can: sharpen pencils, clean up their space, keep track of absent friends in a log book, pick up the pencil that fell on the floor, cap their own glue, organize the manipulatives, turn on the computers, turn off the computers, plug in the tablets/laptops/Chromebooks to charge, video a lesson, create a slide show to help others, not lose the remote to the projector, lock the classroom door, turn on the lamps, turn off the lamps, carry the emergency binder, hold each other accountable, give a peer meaningful feedback, hang up student work samples, create vocabulary cards for the interactive word wall, carry their own recess equipment, throw their trash away, clean up if they spill, identify areas of strength, identify areas to grow, organize themselves into groups, engage in deep dialogue, and share in meaningful ways without your voice controlling the conversation. And that’s just the beginning.
6 Make Friends with the “O” Word: Organization
We all have that one friend with their color-coded, tabbed, sorted, placed, cast in bronze binder. Every time you walk in their classroom, there is never a stray marker lid on the floor, their desks are perfectly grouped and shiny, the tactile bins of pebbles and feathers and sticks are always perfectly sorted, and their teacher space is always clean. I guarantee you it’s not because they are hypnotizing their students into a deep zombie sleep so they don’t touch anything in their day. I also guarantee that it’s not because they are some sort of wizard/magician/genie who can cross their arms, nod their head, snap their fingers, or utter some magic words to make everything perfect. This hack goes hand-in-hand with hack #8, systematizing and hack #9, avoiding insanity. Pick one place that's causing you to lose your zen, and organize away!
5 Plug In
Social media has brought us YouTube stars, 90 second videos, filters, disappearing messages, and 240 character tirades. But it has also brought the largest professional network, a virtual professional learning community (hey, PLC, I see you...), straight into your hands. Want to know how to use a new tech platform? Interested in problem-based-learning? Lacking on funds? Looking to expand your students' opportunities? Turn to X and Facebook and Instagram (and The Worthy Educator!). Join groups. Follow individuals that inspire you. Believe me - 15 minutes a day scrolling a virtual professional network will leave you so much more rejuvenated than those funny cat videos.
4 Unplug
This is the total opposite of hack #5. I know... pick a side, Laing! But just as it is important to plug in to find that inspiration, fuel, and encouragement and to stay in the know with new trends, it is also important to turn the device off. Set available AND unavailable times on your classroom management apps. Choose when your email is allowed to notify your phone in the settings. And fight the urge to check the messages outside your availability. Turn off your devices. Spend time with the people you love. Make memories. Go savor the outside and the sunshine and the wilderness. A tired brain is a slow brain. You will be better and faster and more able to attend to your work life if you intentionally step away from it on a regular basis.
3 Crowd Fund Your Heart Out
(within the legal guidelines of your school and district, obviously)
I hear from businesses, corporations, and individuals all the time about how they would love to partner with schools. Make relationships with your community. Ask for help. Tell anyone who will listen what your top three needs are at any given time at your school. The worst they can say is no. The most you might have to do is write a few paragraphs on letterhead. Remember that saying, “It takes a village?” Let your village know what you need. Then write a thank you note and keep them engaged.
2 Take Care of Your Self Care
It’s hard to be productive when you’re tired. It’s impossible to show up emotionally for your kids when you yourself are drained. Is your self care budgeting in a pedicure every other week? Is it reading a book that has nothing to do with your job? Is it sitting on your back porch in complete and utter silence? My self care doesn’t have to look like yours. But we both need it to be able to do this job. Make it a priority. And then don’t cancel on yourself. That’s just bad manners.
1 Remember Your Why
I know you didn’t get into this gig because of the messy noses, big teenager attitudes, or because you just hoped to all things good that you would have the job where you dig into your own pocket to feed and clothe and care for your students. We are educators. We are teachers of reading and math and science and writing and art. But we are also incredibly important and represent countless hours in a child’s formative development. We help kids understand how to disagree, argue intelligently, share, be open to other perspectives, clean up their space at lunch, and not push in line. These kids are just tiny people - the miniature versions of their adult selves. And for me, I want to see these kids grow into the kinds of adults I want to be friends with. Because those adults will be the next CEOs, Senators, Doctors, and Presidents. And I’m pretty sure I want some amazing friends.
It's Self-Care September at The Worthy Educator! Amplify your convictions and insights here on the WEBlog! Contact walter@theworthyeducator.com to share your ideas.
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