I have been in education for 29 years. Whenever anyone asks me how I have lasted so long and been so successful, I tell them my #1 secret: I take care of myself first.
That sounds wrong, doesn’t it? Aren’t we supposed to be in education so that we can take care of our students?
But think about it this way — if you are exhausted, burned out, or sick, how effective can you be in taking care of anyone else? When you are on a plane, one of the safety tips shared by flight attendants is to put your own oxygen mask on yourself before you tend to anyone else’s mask.
So I am telling you to do the same thing. Make a plan for your own self-care first, before you start thinking about the upcoming school year, before you make plans for your own kids, before you start planning for remote learning or hybrid learning or any other kind of learning.
Self-care isn’t about spa visits or long, leisurely soaks in a bubble bath (although both of those sound awesome). It’s more about the day-to-day habits we can implement to take care of our physical and mental health.
We have to make a plan for how we will take care of ourselves first.
I have several posts about self-care on this blog because I think it is SO important. But here are ten basics of self-care to help you get started.
1 – Get enough sleep. For most people, that’s 7 – 8 hours of sleep every night. While that may not happen every single night, that needs to be your goal. Set yourself a bedtime, figure out what time you need to start a “bedtime routine,” and work on getting that necessary sleep every night. You can read more about how to develop an evening routine in this post.
2 – Get up earlier in the morning. Use some of that quiet early morning time to do something for yourself. Maybe you’ll have a quiet devotional time or maybe you’ll work out in some way or maybe you’ll take that time to sip coffee and read. But allow yourself some time just for yourself in the morning before your busy day begins. Here are more tips on developing a morning routine.
3 – Exercise in some way for 30 minutes every day. You can walk, do yoga, go to Cross Fit, work out with a DVD or a streaming service like Beachbody on Demand at home — whatever works for you. But find time every day to move your body. Exercise is actually a form of meditation and gives you more physical energy. Find something you love to do and schedule it!
4 – Eat 6 – 10 servings of fruit and vegetables every day. Regardless of what else you’re eating, try to add in more healthy, plant-based foods. (I like to think that it helps cancel out any junky stuff I might eat – like Doritos or Goldfish. I know it isn’t true, but it makes me feel better!)
5 – Keep a gratitude journal or use an app like the 5 Minute Journal. Take time to think about five things for which you can be grateful every single day. No matter how badly any day might be, finding some good things in that day will help you keep a positive mindset.
6 – Consider writing in a journal every day. This isn’t necessarily the “dear diary” type of journal, although it can certainly be that if you want it to be. Just write about whatever comes to mind, whatever is bothering you or stressing you out. You will get better clarity on what you can do differently, just from writing about it. It’s the cheapest form of therapy out there!
7 – Find someone you can talk to about school stuff. It might be someone in your family or another teacher friend. Your school will probably assign you a mentor, and that is awesome, but I also find it helpful to find other people in your school who embody the characteristics you want to have as a teacher. Get to know them and adopt them as “unofficial” mentors.
8 – Read something every day that is just for you. This could be your favorite fiction, People magazine (my guilty pleasure), nonfiction, a devotional book, a self-help book, whatever. Spend some time, even just five minutes, reading something that is not related to education and that helps you connect to other important parts of your life. (Or that helps you just escape for a bit!)
9 – Consider listening to podcasts or books on Audible. I used to complain about never having enough time to read during the school year and then Audible came along! Now I have no excuses. I can listen to books on Audible or listen to a podcast episode while I am cooking dinner, cleaning, folding laundry, or walking my dog. Some of my favorite podcasts include: 10 Minute Teacher Podcast with Vicki Davis, Cult of Pedagogy with Jennifer Gonzalez, The Big Boo Cast (with two of my favorite writers – Sophie Hudson & Melanie Shankle), the CEO Teacher Podcast with Kayse Morris, and the RISE Podcast with Rachel Hollis.
10 – Walk for a few minutes every day. This could be part of your regular workout or it could be a separate time of day. You can listen to music, a podcast, or just enjoy some peace and quiet. You can walk alone or with someone else. Just get outside and walk. The fresh air and exercise will clear your mind and help you get back to whatever you are doing with a better perspective.
Now — will every day be perfect? No way. Will you be busier in certain “seasons” of the school year than others? Of course. But having a plan for self-care makes it more likely that you will get to all (or almost all) of these important tasks every day. You are worth it and you deserve it! Take care of YOU first.
The 2020-2021 school year is not exactly starting as usual. As I write this, we are looking at some kind of hybrid learning schedule for returning students to North Carolina.
While I usually stock up on my favorite essential teacher supplies right now, I’m also looking at supplies I may need for remote teaching.
So here is my shopping list of all the supplies I cannot live without! New teacher supplies are one of the best parts of going back to school.
Room Decor & Supplies
*Washi tape – for marking off areas on the board or on tables
*Vinyl dots – these might be useful for designating where students should sit to be safely distanced from each other
*Gym tape – this might be useful for marking areas around tables or on the floor so students know where to safely stand or sit within a socially distanced zone
*Painter’s tape – while many schools do not allow you to hot glue anything to the wall, one of my favorite hacks is to use painter’s tape to attach to the wall, then hot glue the poster or chart to the painter’s tape!
Despite the challenges of starting the school year (in a normal year) and the particular stress of starting this school year, I wish you a wonderful start to your year. Be safe and remember to take care of yourself first!
Here are more great resources I have found (and that I’m using myself), but they’ll probably take longer than 10 minutes to read! That’s okay. This work is critically important and is worth all the time we can spend. Just click on something, read, and reflect. Learning and then acting on what we’ve learned is the key to change.
RESOURCES TO READ
1 – A friend shared this great resource with me. It’s called “Justice in June,” but I didn’t see it until June was halfway over. So I am going to be using it as “Justice in July” work.
2 – “Being Antiracist” is an awesome article from the National Museum of African American HIstory & Culture. It takes a little longer to read because it includes a short video of Ibram X. Kendi explaining a bit about his book How to Be an Antiracist , a TED talk by Verna Myers about overcoming biases, and important definitions for antiracist education.
3 – “Talking About Race” is another great article that could be shared with parents. This is another quality resource from the National Museum of African American History & Culture.
4 – I shared this resource from Teaching Tolerance, “Beyond the Golden Rule,” with my classroom parents. Page 17 (with tips for the elementary and preteen years) is especially helpful.
7 – This Antiracism for Beginners list is amazing. There are several articles to read, recommended books to read, terms to know, and Black educators to follow.
8 – And finally: Cooke, N. A. (2020, May 30). Anti-Racism Resources for all ages. [A project of the Augusta Baker Endowed Chair at the University of South Carolina]. This awesome collection of resources includes articles, interviews, book recommendations, and videos.
RESOURCES FOR LISTENING OR VIEWING
9 – 12 Books, Movies, and Podcasts You Should Consume to Become a Better Ally to the Black Community
10 – If you’re a fan of Instagram, consider following Ivirlei Brookes. In this brief video, she explains how white women can step up and be allies.
BOOKS IN MY AMAZON CART OR ON MY BOOKSHELF
**Note: I always recommend getting books at your local independent bookstores or at a Black-owned bookstore from lists such as these. I am including Amazon links so that you can read more about the book and for your convenience.**
*Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You by Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi. This book takes the concepts of Stamped from the Beginning and describes them for middle and high school students. Here’s a link to an educator’s guide.
Here are some ways you can learn about the important significance of Juneteenth and share the history with children!
When is it?
Juneteenth is celebrated on June 19th every year.
journal
What does it celebrate?
According to this website,
“Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.
“Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.
Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation – which had become official January 1, 1863.
The Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on the Texans due to the minimal number of Union troops to enforce the new Executive Order. However, with the surrender of General Lee in April of 1865, and the arrival of General Granger’s regiment, the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance.
“Later attempts to explain this two and a half year delay in the receipt of this important news have yielded several versions that have been handed down through the years.
Often told is the story of a messenger who was murdered on his way to Texas with the news of freedom.
Another is that the news was deliberately withheld by the enslavers to maintain the labor force on the plantations.
And still another is that federal troops actually waited for the slave owners to reap the benefits of one last cotton harvest before going to Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation.
All of which or none of these versions could be true. Certainly, for some, President Lincoln’s authority over the rebellious states was in question. Whatever the reasons, conditions in Texas remained status quo well beyond what was statutory.”
Juneteenth represents true “liberty for all.” 47 states and the District of Columbia now recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday or observance, and there is a movement to make it a federal holiday.
What are some ways to teach children about Juneteenth?
I love teaching almost anything through quality children’s literature and I found some great books about Juneteenth. Unfortunately, some of them are super expensive because they are no longer in print (which probably tells you something about how the holiday has been overlooked or not valued). I’m including the Amazon links for these books so you can read more about them, but I would suggest checking your local library for copies.
At a time when many white folks like me are trying to listen and learn, educating yourself about the importance of Juneteenth is just one small step. I’m hoping that there will soon be even more quality (and affordable) resources about this important event.
While many of us white folk tend to want a list of what we can do to solve the problem right away, these issues go so much deeper than that. The first step is to examine your own beliefs and attitudes. That can be really hard. I am continuing to read and listen and learn.
I’ve learned that there is a big difference between saying that I am “not a racist” and actively being an “antiracist.”
“What’s the problem with being “not racist”? It is a claim that signifies neutrality: “I am not a racist, but neither am I aggressively against racism.” But there is no neutrality in the racism struggle. The opposite of “racist” isn’t “not racist.” It is “antiracist.”
There is so much to learn about how to be an anti-racist. Each of the 10 articles below will take 10 minutes or less to read.
1 – How to Talk to Kids about Race & Racism is a great article for parents, educators, or anyone who deals with kids. The authors explain why it’s important to have ongoing discussions with kids about race and racial issues with tips on what to say and questions to ask.
2 – Another helpful article for parents is this one: Talking to Children About Racial Bias. It explains how children learn about racial differences and racial bias as early as six months of age. It’s never too early (or too late) to begin these discussions with kids.
3 – White teachers and parents often talk about how they feel uncomfortable talking to white kids about race issues. “These Books Can Help You Explain Racism & Protest to Your Kids” from the New York Times has many helpful suggestions, along with children’s books to use for initiating these conversations.
6 – Bored Teachers is such a great website for teacher humor as well as articles and tips on currently trending topics. This article “Being ‘Non-Racist is Not Enough – Tips For Being Actively Antiracist” by Lauren Barrett of LaurenBarrettWrites uses the 4 C’s of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity to give thinking prompts and specific tips.
7 – This article “How Systemic Racism Infiltrates Education” from Ben & Jerry’s blog (yes, the Ben & Jerry’s we ice cream lovers know and love) is very powerful. It explains a complicated and difficult issue. It ends with a list of tips for being part of the solution.
9 – 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice is just that. Each of these activities takes little time but the author, Corinne Shutack, emphasizes that working for racial justice is a marathon, not a sprint or a quick fix. This list is continually being updated to keep it current.
I don’t know about you, but I have found several good teaching practices during distance learning that I will actually keep doing next year.
When we were suddenly faced with distance teaching and learning (practically overnight), I began frantically collecting every single resource I could find. While I haven’t used them all, I plan to keep my list and explore more of them next year. You can grab a copy of my list of free resources for school closures during COVID-19.
Here are 27 practices I’ve tried and will continue to use.
1 – Video tutorials for how to navigate Google Classroom
Why I like it: it keeps me from having to explain the same thing over & over to both students and parents! You can find these videos all over YouTube and there are lots of good ones. It made it a lot easier to just refer people to a quick video rather than trying to explain the same thing over and over. Everyone appreciated having a visual model to follow.
2 – EdPuzzle tool and using your own videos, EdPuzzle content, or YouTube content.
Why I like it: you can insert your own voice to ask questions along the way and/or you can insert questions for students to answer along the way. I love how students cannot fast forward through the videos. Also, if a student clicks on another tab, the video automatically pauses. Thus, they have to complete the video and answer the questions to complete the assignment!
3 – Google Forms in quiz mode
Why I like it: it saves SO much time when grading. My favorite format is multiple choice. But when you want to use a short answer format, you might want to switch the quiz to manual grading to be sure your students get credit for their answers. (It’s impossible to think of all the iterations of their spelling or the way they might format their math answers!)
4 – Padlet walls for student collaboration and for social-emotional learning
Why I like it: students can see others’ responses. They can get pretty creative with adding color and images to their notes, which is fun. Using a Padlet wall for a class meeting/circle question is a great way to check-in with students and allows them to have some connection with each other.
5 – Google forms for social-emotional learning
Why I like it: this gives me more information about individual students and allows them to share things they might not share publicly. I like using Jennifer Findley’s forms as a starting point, but I often add my own questions or vary some of the questions. Some examples of varied questions: What is hard for you with online learning right now? What can I do to help you? How are you doing at home? Do you have the things you need for learning? Do you need me to contact you for a one-on-one chat?
6 – Scheduling one-on-one Google Meet time with students or parents (even just 15-minute meetings)
Why I like it: I actually had more in-depth “heart to heart” talks with many of my students (and several parents) during these meetings. Seeing each other’s faces and not being distracted or interrupted by others was a very valuable time. There are so many distractions in a classroom and so little time to meet with students individually. These one-on-one meetings turned out to be one of my favorite things about online learning.
7 – Sending feedback requests to students and parents with Google Forms
Why I like it: getting feedback right away was so valuable. Finding out what people liked, did not like, what they needed more or less of, and what suggestions they had to offer enabled my team and me to make changes quickly. Responding to feedback and making changes as a result of their feedback builds trust and credibility with students and parents.
8 – Giving quick written feedback via Google Classroom
Why I like it: my students liked getting those brief, one or two-sentence statements about their work in Google Classroom. And I realized that, while I give feedback with grades and rubrics and verbal comments in the classroom, I don’t usually write personalized notes to students. I’m going to keep this one up as it did seem to have more meaning for my students
9 – Read aloud
Why I like it: this kept one of our most valuable classroom traditions going, even from a distance. I read aloud both picture books and novels. It helped to use my phone on a tripod or using my new favorite toy, this gooseneck phone holder. I also bought a couple of novels in the Kindle version and recorded my screen as I read aloud. While I will always prefer doing read alouds face to face, if we do have to do any remote learning next year, doing read aloud by video will be one of the first practices I will do.
10 – Using bitmoji in Google Classroom.
Why I like it: anything that connects school to what students see and use in the “real world” is a good thing. It engages student interest and just adds another element of fun to the learning. I am still learning how to do more with bitmoji, but here is one explanation for getting started and here is another great tutorial.
11 – Adding emojis to Google Classroom assignments, in student feedback, and in emails to students. You can use this link or use control + command + space bar on a Mac and they’ll pop up.
Why I like it: just like using bitmoji, using emojis engages student interest and adds an element of fun.
12 – FlipGrid
Why I like it: I love these 90-second video options for students to explain their thinking and to interact with each other by making comments on other videos.
13 – Keeping a running list of extension assignments. Our gifted education specialist helped us with this. We created a separate topic in Google Classroom for extensions and posted assignments there. These assignments were not “due” on any certain date; they were just there as optional challenge assignments for students who finished the regular assignments.
Why I like it: extension assignments should be made available to every student that wants to try them. Keeping a list and referring students to that list makes it easier for the teacher because you don’t have to remember everything. Students like it because everything is right there for them, including the links, and they can work on these tasks whenever they have time available.
14 – Email updates to parents & weekly assignment progress reports. Okay, maybe I’m being a little ambitious to say that I will do weekly assignment progress reports. But the weekly email update to parents was very helpful.
Why I like it: At a time when everyone felt isolated and unsure if they were doing what they needed to do for their child, the weekly update was reassuring and helpful.
I did learn a cool trick for the weekly assignment progress reports if your assignments are in Google Classroom. If you click on “People” at the top of Classroom, it gives you a list of your students. Then, click on a student’s name and all their assignments (both graded and missing assignments) will be listed. You can then screenshot the student’s work and send that to both students and parents.
(To be clear: during this time of enforced distance learning, I was careful to word the emails about missing assignments in a more “sympathetic” way. I would say things like, “let me know if you need help with this” or “let me know if something is going on and you are not able to complete this assignment,” etc.)
Why I like it: Google Classroom can get a little overwhelming, even for teachers who are posting the stuff! I found that most of my students were not intentionally ignoring some assignments, but that they got lost in the “stream.” Screenshotting the list of missing assignments was not intended to be accusatory, but rather as a reminder of what to finish.
Some of my parents mentioned that one of the unexpected benefits of this time was that they could see what their students were learning and working on in “real-time” instead of waiting to see their student’s work later after it has been finished and graded. (Other parents felt stressed by this, however, wondering if their child was “on track” in terms of learning pace. This has been a source of stress for everyone in different ways.)
15 – Scheduling an individualized learning day. During the regular school year, having an entire day for this might not be possible, but having an hour would be. My team and I opted to do this when we asked for family feedback and learned that many students wanted to get to those “extension” assignments mentioned above, but were too busy completing the regular assignments. Other families asked for a slightly slower pace so that their child could catch up. Thus, we started “individualized learning day” on Fridays. Students could catch up on those missing assignments (see above) or they could move on to the extension assignments.
Why I like it: no one had to feel “behind” because there was some breathing room built into the schedule. No one had to feel like they were “done” because there were always extension assignments that they could choose to complete.
16 – Scheduling virtual field trips on “Field Trip Fridays.” We decided to include field trips as part of our Friday individualized learning day. These were such a hit that I want to keep this practice going.
To help our students reflect on what they saw and learned, we used a simple Google Form about their virtual field trip.
17 – Sending e-cards
Why I like it: this was a fun way to keep in touch with students and another way to let them know I was thinking of them. Many kids and parents gave me positive feedback about these. I already have an account with American Greetings, but you can also use 123Greetings for free.
18 – Self-paced and differentiated learning with lesson videos and with assignments. For some assignments, my team and I worked to create an extension for some students and modify it for others.
Why I like it: when everyone is accessing their own copy of the assignment, it was a lot easier to privately provide the differentiated work that students need. In addition, video lessons allowed for differentiation. For a few students, I would message them that they did not need to watch the class math video lesson that day but should watch a specific assigned video (often from Khan Academy videos) instead. For other students, I would remind them that the video lesson would be available at all times and they should feel free to go back and watch the explanation again as often as needed.
19 – Doing more contests/playing games/just having fun together
Why I like it: Every Friday, we enjoyed a social Google Meet together where we did something that was just for fun. Here’s a link to some of the activities we enjoyed doing. With all of the rush of the school year, we sometimes forget how important it is to slow down and enjoy each other. It’s good for kids as well as teachers.So doing something just for fun once a week is definitely something I want to keep doing in the classroom.
20 – Listening to music together, especially music videos that include the lyrics
21 – Viewing assignments or resources on the screen while my students are looking at them too
Why I like it: that screen sharing option on Google Meet was invaluable for being able to point out specific things to students. Same with engaging with them on Google Docs, Sheets, and Presentations while they are also working on them. Something about both of us looking at something and navigating their questions made it feel more like “we’re in this together” rather than my students feeling that they were being told what to do.
22 – Using exit tickets as formative assessment, usually via Google Forms
Why I like it: these were quick, easy, and I could see at a glance who got it and who needed more help.
23 – Using a created artifact instead of a “test” as a summative assessment. Distance learning forced us to be a little more creative in our assessment options.
Why I like it: while tests certainly have their use, having students create something and show what they learned was valuable to us and more engaging for our students. This also allowed other students to make comments and give feedback on each other’s work, which gave more of an authentic audience for their creations.
24 – Using the “chat” feature in Google Meet
Why I like it: When we have Google Meets and many students are there, this has been great for students to be able to ask a question without interrupting, make a comment on something someone else said (again, without interrupting), or just make an observation. This way, their thoughts are recorded and will be addressed without them needing to interrupt the flow of a lesson or a discussion. It made me realize that many times, blurts and interruptions occur simply because students are afraid they’ll forget their “brilliant thought” or their question. I want to find and use better ways for them to record these thoughts and questions.
25 – Using social-emotional check-in questions as warmups before a lesson
Why I like it: I have been working to incorporate more mindfulness practices throughout the day, for my students’ physical and mental health. (And mine as well!) Deliberately using these at the beginning of video lessons made a positive difference for our students. We encouraged students to check in with us during “office hours” if they needed to talk, and many students did that. The talks usually only lasted for a couple of minutes, as students often just needed that reassuring voice and seeing our faces and being reminded that we are and are available for them.
26 – Wearing casual clothing and sitting in a comfy working spot!
Why I like it: we all do better work when we are comfortable. Although my pajamas and yoga pants would not be appropriate for school, I am paying more attention to fabrics and comfortable clothing styles and shoes for when I am working in my classroom again.
27 – Talking directly to the student about why they are not completing assignments
Why I like it: while that is my usual practice in the classroom (and not necessarily calling the parent at the first “offense,”), I resorted to letting parents know that students were not completing assignments when we switched to distance learning. Why? I have no idea. Plus, it did not necessarily make a difference.
Then I read a post by Michael Linsin on his website Smart Classroom Management about going straight to the student if they were not doing their work. He suggests calling the home and bypassing the parents (who may or may not even be monitoring distance learning) and speaking directly to the child. When I did this, I was not accusatory, but asked questions about what was going on, were they having any trouble, could they find the assignments, did they know what they needed to be working on today, etc. Doing that made all the difference!
When I started making this list, I thought there would only be a few practices on my list. But I kept thinking of more and more things, which made me realize that distance learning has not been such a bad thing. What practices are you planning to keep?
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
