If you are a mom or teacher, I hope you pay attention to your own self-care and wellness. But it’s also important to teach your children or students to do the same.
Both my husband and my son graduated from a preparatory boarding school for boys in Chattanooga, Tennessee called The McCallie School. (If you have a son, check out the school here.)
We get the school magazine and I always enjoy reading it, but their springtime issue especially caught my eye. The focus of the magazine is “Seeking Wellness — Finding Balance in a Pressure-Packed World.”
The letter from the headmaster, Lee Burns, made several important points. He talked about how the school has significantly increased its focus on wellness, which has become an institutional focus for the school. He starts his article with these words:
“McCallie is a school of high standards and excellence, with a culture of hard work and achievement . . . That culture is a defining McCallie characteristic, a strength. Yet we must be thoughtful and careful of our strengths, lest they throw us off balance or create unintended consequences.”
He goes on to talk about the pressures that our middle school and high school students face. These pressures are leading to higher levels of anxiety, loneliness, and depression. I see this even in elementary school. McCallie is putting an intentional focus on wellness.
Some of the practices they are promoting include: expressing gratitude, being mindful, breathing techniques, journaling, regulating social media use, eating healthfully, exercise, and sleep.
It’s ironic to see that some practices (such as keeping a gratitude journal and meditation) used to be considered “woo-woo” or out of the mainstream, but are now being acknowledged as practices that really do make you healthier and better able to handle stress.
Two of McCallie’s counselors, Will Honeycutt and Trey Tucker, wrote a piece in the magazine called “17 Ways to Live Better in a Busy World.” They suggest to the boys that they try picking four or five actions to try or to repeat. Check out this list and see what you can incorporate in your own life and can teach your children or students to do:
1 – Sleep (go to bed early, take a nap, sleep in)
2 – Volunteer
3 – Go outside
4 – Treat yourself (indulge in something just for you)
5 – Learn something new
6 – Give hugs. Get hugs.
7 – Limit technology
8 – Smile when you wake up (think of something that makes you happy)
9 – Nurture your faith (pray, meditate, read Scripture)
10 – Express gratitude
11 – Laugh
12 – Cultivate friendships
13 – Declutter
14 – Exercise
15 – Go solo (spend some time by yourself)
16 – Practice hospitality (invite people to join you for something fun)
17 – Eat natural food
As you enjoy your summer, remember to take time for your own self-care and teach your kids how to do the same!
In my last post, I wrote about how teachers can keep students motivated and engaged at the end of the year. But if you’re a teacher, you’re also concerned about keeping yourself going at the end of the year! Here are 18 self-care tips for this busy (or busier than usual) time of year. If you’re not a teacher, these tips will work for you too!
1 – Try 1-2 minutes of mindful deep breathing. Just take a moment to close your eyes (if possible) and take deep inhales for a count of four and then exhale to a count of four. Even if you can only spare 30 seconds, it makes a difference. I hate having recess or lunch duty, so I really try to do this at those times. I have to keep my eyes open, but it still calms and relaxes me to where I almost enjoy the duty after all!
2 – Go to bed earlier, even by just 15 minutes.
3 – Get up earlier in the morning to enjoy some relaxed time at home before leaving for work. Enjoy a leisurely cup of coffee or tea.
4 – Make lists of all the thousands of things you need to do! This doesn’t get stuff done, but it does help clear your mind of all the nagging little thoughts of everything you have to do.
journal
5 – Make one of those lists a list of all the things that went well this school year. Keep adding to the list every day. Even in your toughest years, you will find many things that were good and that you did well.
6 – Plan your day in time blocks. Read my post about time blocking HERE.
7 – Get some exercise every day. Even a 15 minute walk counts.
8 – Eat more food that nourishes your body. While hitting the candy stash probably is more inviting right now, try eating just one or two more servings of fruit and vegetables instead.
9 – Stay hydrated. Drink half your bodyweight in ounces of water, every single day. Add lemon or lime to your water, or drink flavored sparkling water. Whatever helps you to get your water quota into your body!
10 – Read something that you enjoy reading, even for just five minutes.
11 – Cut back on screen time. Try to enjoy more time outside instead.
12 – Spend five minutes clearing a messy area at school (your desk, a bookshelf, part of a closet). Five minutes a day will make a big difference by the end of the week!
13 – Spend five minutes clearing a messy area at home.
14 – Listen to a podcast while you’re doing that clearing or while cleaning anything at home.
15 – Repeat positive affirmations to yourself.
16 – List five things you are grateful for, both morning and evening.
17 – Set three goals for self-improvement during the summer and things you could do that will lead to that improvement.
18 – Make lists or plans of things you will enjoy doing when you are finally out of school! Having things to look forward to will keep you going!
Stay strong, take care of yourself with these self-care tips, and enjoy your summer break.
If you’re a teacher, you are now in the home stretch. And you are probably are feeling really worn out from all the stuff that has to be done during the last month of the year (including state testing). There are so many memes on social media about the end of the year and while they are hilarious, most of us are trying hard to stay strong, keep the kids focused, and end the year in a positive way. We need to keep teaching until the very last day, but we need some ideas for how to do that in an engaging way.
First, some thoughts from one of my favorite bloggers, Vicki Davis of Cool Cat Teacher:
You can do it. You can finish well. Love the kids. Make memories. Share moments of laughter. You’re teaching until the final bell rings and then as your words ring in their head – if you’ve said good and worthy things – you might just have the opportunity to teach them the rest of their lives.
So, how do we do that? Here are 21 ideas!
1 – Think about some fun learning units or lessons you could do at the end of the year. Anything that is more project-oriented or takes more time than what you can usually spare during the year might be a good choice. This is the part of the year where your students are “trained” to work together well and they know your expectations. So take advantage of that and bring in every project or fun idea you can. For instance, our students will be creating “chariots” for Spheros and we will be holding chariot races during the last week of school!
2 – Have your students create a memory book about the school year. There are lots of ideas for this on Teachers Pay Teachers, but you can also make up your own prompts. Think about a list of favorites — favorite science unit, favorite thing you learned in math, favorite read-aloud book, etc. Open-ended prompts work best. You can make the memory book on paper, of course, OR you can make it into a technology project using Google slides. I’m happy to share the Google slides memory book we created for our fifth graders. Email me and I’ll send you the link.
3 – Your students could also write advice for next year’s students. Think about open-ended prompts for this as well. While it’s fun to have a letter from every student that you can give to your students next year, it’s also fun to have groups of your students work on this project and create Google slides of that. You can show the presentations to your class next year.
4 – Write a six-word memoir about the year. We also do these on Google slides (clearly, we love that tool!) and our technology specialist incorporates them into a slideshow for our fifth-grade graduation event. You could create a slideshow for your own class. These are fun and meaningful.
5 – We take a grade level photo of all of our kids on the playground equipment. We then get copies made of the photo. Students decorate inexpensive picture frames like THESE. When the picture frames are dry, we insert the pictures for a fun memento of the year.
6 – One of my favorite end of year activities is something we do on the last day of school. We call it “the REAL EOG” since our state takes EOG’s, or End-of-Grade tests. This is a series of reflective questions, asking for student feedback on whatever you want to know — what they liked, what they would prefer to be different, what helped them, what did not help them. We create this in Google forms and have all of our students complete it on the last day of school. They are always a bit shocked when we say that we have one more EOG to take, but then they are pleasantly surprised! If you want a copy of the questions I use, send me an email.
7 – Do any of your students have a special talent or passion? Give them the opportunity to teach! This could be the result of a Genius Hour project, or it could be just a chance to share. This year, I have a student who has a passion for origami. We’re scheduling time for him to show some simple origami projects and my kids can’t wait. Another student developed a strong interest in the American Revolution and has created an entire Google slides presentation of his research. Ask your students if they would be interested in sharing something like this and you may be surprised at what they are capable of teaching everyone!
8 – If you have taken pictures of your students throughout the year, make a slideshow using Animoto or WeVideo!
9 – Allow some (or all) of your students to interview a classmate — about the year, about what they look forward to for summer and for the next school year, about books they recommend. They can videotape the interviews. You, of course, have final editing rights! These are also fun to show the class.
10 – At the beginning of the year, we had our students write letters to their “future self” about their goals for the year. We give these back at the end of the year and it’s fun for students to read their letters to themselves and see how they have achieved goals and often even surpassed them. Even if you don’t have letters like that from the beginning of the year, it’s fun to have them think back to the beginning of the year — what they were worried about, what they wanted to learn how to do — and spend some time writing or just talking about how far everyone has come.
11 – Have your students use Flip Grid or WeVideo to make brief videos about favorite books. Let them work together and create a script first, but encourage creativity and “selling” the book. You can show these videos to your class next year!
12 – If the weather and your school safety plan allow, spend more time outside. You could read outside, take whiteboards and do math review outside, play various review games outside. Take advantage of the spring and early summer weather.
13 – Write end of the year haiku or acrostic poems. These could be focused on a certain field trip or different learning activity from the year. They could be about other students, or just about the year in general.
14 – If being outside is not an option, consider having a classroom “camping day” or “beach day”. Allow students to bring bath towels, beach towels or blankets. You can find campfire scenes or beach scenes on youtube and keep that up on the Smartboard all day. Consider bringing a fun snack like pretzels, popcorn, or low-sugar cookies.
15 – Your students could spend time writing thank you notes to adults in the school who make a difference to them. Rather than writing lots of notes (although that is fine too), encourage them to put some thought into it and only write two or three notes. This is an especially good activity for upper elementary students who may have been at the same school for several years.
16 – Make a graffiti wall out of bulletin board paper. Let students write things they will remember, funny moments or memorable moments from the year, what they will miss, etc. You could also let them use a whiteboard. Another fun graffiti activity is to do this outside with sidewalk chalk.
17 – My students love to answer “Would You Rather” questions during our class circle. Here’s a link to a great free resource for end-of-year and summertime questions!
18 – Get your students to help with end of year cleaning and organizing tasks. You’d be amazed at what they can do to help.
19 – Consider having an “awards ceremony” on the last day of school. There are some great ideas on Teachers Pay Teachers. This is one of my favorites. You can have your students vote on these or you could just award them yourself.
20 – Make plans for summer reading with your class. You could all brainstorm a list of books to read. Encourage your students to keep in touch with each other and talk about their books. Some options for talking to each other include actually getting together to talk, writing a letter and mailing it, using email, or using Edublogs.
21 – Keeping everyone focused and motivated to follow rules and routines is always a challenge at the end of the year. One thing I do during the last two months of school: select mystery students. Every morning I randomly choose five students who are that day’s “mystery students’. I tell the class that at random times, I will be watching to see if my mystery students are doing the right thing. I keep it simple and keep track with a sticky note and tally marks. Then, at the end of the day, I announce that day’s mystery students and reward them with an Oreo cookie or a small piece of candy such as a Jolly Rancher. If someone doesn’t get the reward, I don’t announce their name publicly, but I do talk to them privately and explain why they didn’t get the reward. This system always works, but mostly because it’s a change of routine. Try it and see what you think!
Taking time to change up the routine with different activities and to actually enjoy your students helps end the year on a positive note. It will create great memories for your students, but it will also help you to remember why you do this important work. If you have other suggestions or ideas, please share!
If you are a woman, I highly recommend reading The Hormone Fix by Dr. Anna Cabeca. I listened to an interview with Dr. Anna on one of my favorite podcasts (The Intermittent Fasting Podcast) and I immediately ordered her book. I’ll share some of the takeaways I got from reading the book.
Dr. Anna talks about her OB-GYN practice and the many women she has treated over the years, along with their hormonal complaints. She goes on to recommend that you “test, don’t guess” and she includes some questionnaires that help you identify exactly what hormonal issues you might be having. She recommends measuring your waist and your hips to determine your waist-to-hip ratio. (By the way, that ratio is W divided by H. A ratio of 0.80 or less is considered to be healthy or safe for women.) Dr. Anna recommends purchasing some pH trips and ketone strips at your local pharmacy and testing your urine daily. The goal is to get your urine pH in the alkaline range of 7. The goal for the ketone strips is to get your body into ketosis so that it is producing ketones. (More about habits you can implement to get those results below.)
Similar to implementing many other habits, Dr. Anna recommends down tracking your data and your habits daily. (I confess that I miss a day here or there, but tend to get back in the habit of tracking quickly. Habit tracking is very effective!)
Dr. Anna recommends tracking:
*your weight, waist measurement and hip measurement once weekly;
*your hours of sleep from the night before;
*your urine pH and ketones;
*your water intake;
*whether or not you added an alkalinizer to your diet, like Dr. Anna’s Mighty Maca Plus, baking soda, or apple cider vinegar;
*whether or not you had a bowel movement;
*what physical activity you enjoyed;
*writing down at least one thing you are grateful for daily;
*setting your intentions for the day – what you want to accomplish, enjoy, experience or improve in your life;
*choose a “cheer word”. Dr. Anna says: “This is a word that when you say or think of it, it brings a smile to your face. . . . . Say this word many times throughout the day so that you’ll smile, instead of ‘resting witch face.’”
*write down what or with whom you have connected with this day;
*write what oxytocin activity you did or plan to do (more about that below);
*she includes a brief positivity self-assessment where you rate yourself with the following scores: 0 = not at all; 1 = slightly; 2 = more often; 3 = absolutely. The positivity self-assessment helps reset your mood because the more often you say these statements to yourself, the more you will believe they are true! (Similar to saying affirmations daily. See my morning routine post about that HERE.)
Dr. Anna recommends following a ketogenic diet but making it more alkaline with greens and other veggies. A ketogenic diet restricts carbohydrates which is helpful to midlife women since we just don’t need as many carbs. Other benefits of ketosis: prevents insulin resistance, optimizes your blood sugar, tames your appetite, prevents disease, and improves memory.
“Lifestyle, from sleep habits to stress management, also makes a huge impact in the quality of our lives and relationships — which is what women really want upgraded at this point in their lives. . . . All of my experience and research had now come full circle. I discovered that the best way to lose weight and ensure optimal health is to combine an alkaline diet and lifestyle changes, along with getting into ketosis.”
Dr. Anna also recommends my personal favorite eating plan: intermittent fasting. Read my post about that HERE or read my favorite book about intermittent fasting, Delay Don’t Deny by Gin Stephens. It is a key component for getting into ketosis. Intermittent fasting accelerates fat burning and kick-starts the process of autophagy. Autophagy is the process by which the body cleans out the damaged cells and defends against stress and disease. Think of it as spring cleaning for your body, every single day. Dr. Anna lists other health benefits of fasting. She says that fasting can:
~reduce body weight
~slow down the growth of tumors and decrease cancer risk
~improve joint & bone health
~help manage blood sugar
~protect the heart
~reduce the risk for menstrual problems
~improve mental health during the menopause transition
~reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression
~ease stress levels
Dr. Anna is a proponent of eating a more alkaline diet. This is something that I am still learning to do. Dr. Anna says: “In general, fruits, vegetables, certain vegetable oils, herbs and spices, and nuts and seeds are the most alkaline, due to their nutrient content. Meat, poultry, dairy, sugar, processed foods, caffeine, alcohol, and so forth are the most acidic. Of course, there are some outliers: grains, which grow from the ground, are slightly acidic. And some carbs, such as potatoes and sweet potatoes, are alkaline.” Dr. Anna says that staying alkaline also has a huge lifestyle component. These factors include your level of hydration, how much you sleep and exercise, how positive you are, how often you have bowel movements, and how much time you spend in nature.
Benefits of becoming more alkaline: impacts bone health, helps your heart, improves fat burning, maintains lean muscle mass and youthfulness, prevents magnesium deficiency, reduces pain, and improves detoxification.
Some of Dr. Anna’s tips for getting and staying alkaline:
*test, don’t guess!
*drink morning alkaline water (½ T. lemon juice, ½ to 1 T. unfiltered apple cider vinegar, 1 pinch cayenne pepper, and ½ tsp baking soda
*double veggies in a salad
*slow down your eating & chew your food well
*drink bone broth
*hydrate!
*drink ½ tsp to 1 T apple cider vinegar before meals
*use MCT oil or extra virgin olive oil as a base in salad dressings
*take magnesium at bedtime
*avoid constipation
*do your best, but give yourself grace (a mindset tip)
*get quality sleep
Dr. Anna includes a keto-green 10 day quick start detox diet plan. The specifics are in her book, but here are some quick start eating guidelines:
*get rid of sugar
*no more diet sodas
*avoid gluten and grains
*ease off caffeine and alcohol
*stay hydrated
*drink less water WITH meals (drink between meals instead)
*chew your food well
She also recommends doing the following every day when you wake up: test your urinary pH; drink a large glass of warm alkaline water; drink coffee or tea; spend time in meditation, prayer and expressing gratitude.
Supplements that Dr. Anna recommends include:
*a multivitamin/mineral
*omega-3 fish oil
*vitamin C
*magnesium
*a probiotic
*a liver detox supplement, such as milk thistle
*fiber supplementation, such as flaxseed or chia seeds
*maca
Check out her book for more specifics about brands and dosage. You’ll also want to read her information about the benefits of maca!
After the 10 day detox, Dr. Anna gives tips, menus and great recipes to help you eat keto-green all or most of the time. She recommends familiarizing yourself with alkaline and acid food choices (she includes a chart in the book) and eating macros of 55-70% fats, 5-15% carbs and 20-30% protein. She suggests eating protein at every meal, avoiding gluten and grains, drinking half your bodyweight in ounces of water, taking supplements, keeping carbs around 30-40 grams per day, and daily intermittent fasting.
In addition to the keto-green eating guidelines, Dr. Anna includes chapters about several other important lifestyle elements. These include how to protect yourself from toxic overload that disrupts hormones, how to deal with stress, what to do about midlife vaginal changes, recommendations about exercise and sleep, and how to boost oxytocin.
In the chapter about reducing toxin overload, Dr. Anna suggests avoiding deodorants that contain aluminum. I have read about this in many places and have made the switch to Kopari deodorant. My daughter loves the Native brand. Try one of these and see what you think! Dr. Anna also suggests using natural cleaners such as Thieves or Seventh Generation. I also use a supplement that she recommends called DIM. This is a compound that is found in cruciferous vegetables (such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) and is used for hormone balance.
Other ways to protect yourself from toxic overload: buy organic fruits and vegetables; buy organic, free-range, grass-fed, hormone-free meats and eggs; eat fish low in mercury; emphasize cruciferous vegetables; stay alkaline; drink more water; exercise at high intensity (sweat is a natural detoxifier); use a steam room or infrared sauna.
In the chapter on reducing stress, Dr. Anna recommends several strategies but she emphasizes that you need to incorporate activities that you love into your daily routine. Some of her personal favorite strategies are taking a walk, going to yoga class, taking a bath with essential oils, reading a devotional, and meditating. Other recommended activities include creating some kind of art, exercising, being in nature, listening to music, changing your thoughts to positive ones, connecting with people you love, and reading a good book. Once again, staying nutritionally alkaline plays a big role in helping our bodies heal.
Dr. Anna includes a daily spiritual assessment with six questions. She suggests sitting in a quiet place without interruptions and meditating on the questions. Review your day with gratitude and look optimistically toward tomorrow.
In the chapter on vaginal health, Dr. Anna addresses issues such as dryness, painful intercourse, and incontinence. If you are having any of these symptoms, check out her book or website for tips and resources.
In the chapter on movement and sleep, Dr. Anna emphasizes that exercise and sleep are very effective hormone fixes. Benefits of exercise, especially at midlife, include:
*stronger heart
*greater bone density
*more energy and stamina
*natural detox of system
*elevated mood and positive feeling about your body and life
*reduced intensity & frequency of hot flashes
*protection against creeping weight gain
*help with prevention of dementia
Dr. Anna says that the best exercise is whatever you love and will stick to doing! If you do not currently have an exercise plan, she recommends starting slowly, with a 15-minute walk for instance, and to keep the habit going. The power of small amounts, done consistently, will change your life for the better. (See my posts about small changes that lead to big results HERE, HERE and HERE.)
By the way, if you’re interested in getting support with healthy eating and great workouts, consider joining Faster Way to Fat Loss with Amanda Tress. Read my post about it HERE. The next round starts June 3!
Two types of exercise that Dr. Anna does recommend are yoga, strength training, and boxing! All three have different benefits, but they do have some of the same benefits:
*relieve stress
*increase strength
*improve bone density and balance
*increase overall well-being
Dr. Anna recommends getting seven hours of sleep every single night. That in itself can be a challenge for many of us, but sleep is so important for balancing your hormones and for regenerating your body. Here are her tips for improving your sleep:
*establish a healthy morning routine that starts your day off right.
*commit to intermittent fasting
*break your fast with healthy protein and fats, but very low carbs
*supplement with melatonin (taken at sunset, which seems to work better than taking it at bedtime)
*turn off electronics by 9 p.m. or at sunset
*avoid caffeine, sugar, and alcohol
*create an environment conducive to sleep (cool, dark, uncluttered)
*establish a healthy evening routine that leads to good sleep. (See my post about establishing an evening routine HERE.)
While there are many hormones in your body and they all have important benefits, Dr. Anna says that oxytocin is the most important because it is our most powerful and healing hormone.
When you read this list of what oxytocin does for you, you’ll want to boost it as soon as possible!
*enhances your sense of optimism, mastery, and self-esteem
*creates sexual arousal
*helps overcome social inhibition and fears
*heals wounds and relieves pain
*may be responsible for beneficial metabolic effects that help weight loss
*decreases health-damaging inflammation
*strengthens memory
*potentially helps with depression and anxiety
*reduces stress
*increases generosity
Now, how to boost oxytocin? Besides orgasms (the #1 way to boost oxytocin), here are Dr. Anna’s suggestions:
*cuddling with your significant other during a feel-good movie
*cuddling with your kids
*massages
*hugs
*increased sweating through a sauna, steam bath, hot yoga session, being in sunlight, or exercising
*socializing
*nurturing friendships with other females
*caring for a pet
*volunteering your time or being generous in other ways
*taking supplements of vitamin C., vitamin D, magnesium, and melatonin
*practicing self-compassion (talking to yourself as you would talk to a good friend; extending grace to yourself)
Some of the most powerful parts of this book are when Dr. Anna shares some of her own personal stories and experiences with hormone issues and great tragedy in her life. You can tell through her writing that she is very “real”. Her website, dranna.com, has great resources and products to try. I highly recommend the book and hope that you will find it helpful as well. I’ll end with part of Dr. Anna’s final message in the book:
“I believe every woman deserves a life filled with good health, happiness, and overflowing with love. With the right nutrition, an optimized I lifestyle, and simple, loving actions, you can dramatically alter and balance your hormonal chemistry. I wrote this book especially for you. I want you to live the most beautiful and vibrant life that you absolutely can.”
If you’ve read the book, let me know what you think!
Teaching, especially classroom teaching, is difficult and getting more difficult every day. I have been teaching or working as a coach for teachers for 28 years now and have seen many changes, but one thing remains true. Teachers have to help each other take care of themselves in order to keep going and prevent burnout.
Even with all of the demands and all of the needs of students in our classrooms, most teachers I know still love the kids and find joy in many of their interactions with students. That keeps us going and helps us find meaning in our work, but it won’t sustain us without the support from other teachers and the self-care we need to provide for ourselves. We have to stick together in order to make teaching a sustainable career. Here are 16 ways we can support each other.
1 – When someone on your team or on your staff is dealing with a big life event (illness or death in the family or a new baby for example), writing a card or a note, providing a meal, or giving them a small gift can make a big difference. At my school, two faculty members are our “go-to” people to inform of life events on our team. When we know that someone could use some support, we inform these people who organize a meal sign-up or a contribution to a gift card. We also have a social committee at our school who plan social events for our staff (First Friday after school events at local restaurants, holiday and end-of-year parties). They also organize baby and wedding showers. But even if you don’t have an organizational committee at your school, it’s easy to write a note or send an email to staff, asking for support for someone who needs it.
2 – Plan to do something you enjoy outside of school. Get together with another teacher friend for a glass of wine, a pottery class, a yoga class, or just take a walk together. Encourage your teacher friends (and yourself) to continue to engage in hobbies outside of your school life.
3 – When you know that someone on your team is dealing with something difficult at school (a stressful IEP or parent meeting, a disciplinary situation with a student), offer to do something to give them a break. Even covering their class for a few minutes so they can go to the bathroom or go to the workroom or just walk around for a bit can make a big difference. If it’s you that needs a short break, ask a trusted teacher friend to help you out.
4 – If someone on your team has a potentially challenging parent conference scheduled, offer to stay later at work so that you can be available as support or just to provide a listening ear afterwards. If you need that kind of support, ask someone on your team to do that for you.
5 – When a new mom on your staff comes back to school after family leave, check in with them and offer support. They may be pumping breast milk during the day. Your school should be providing a private and comfortable space for that, along with the time. Can you do something for them (such as make copies) during that time so that they are less stressed? They are probably sleep deprived and may be stressed about leaving their baby in childcare. Simply letting them know you care will make a big difference to them.
6 – Consider other leadership opportunities for yourself or for a colleague. Not everyone wants to be a classroom teacher for 30 years, but not everyone wants to move into administration positions either. Are there other opportunities that you could consider? Being an instructional coach, mentoring, getting a different degree or certification so that you can move into a guidance counseling role, a media specialist role or a teacher for AIG or ELL students are all possibilities. Do you have a local university where you might be qualified to teach a class? Could you do some writing for teachers or help create curriculum? What about people on your team who might want or need a career change? Do you see qualities in them that might indicate a gift in certain areas?
7 – Not everyone wants to get involved in politics, but politicians sure seem to love getting involved in education. I have seen some teachers get energized around the idea of advocating for the teaching profession through a professional organization or by directly lobbying state legislators. If this idea is exciting to you, look for ways you can get involved and make your voice heard. Writing is one way, participating in face-to-face meetings is another way, and campaigning for legislators or for school board members might be yet another way to get involved.
8 – Think about ways that you can contribute to creating a positive and supportive climate at your school. Some ideas I have seen: starting a prayer group or Bible study with other teachers; having a book study group with other teachers; having a bulletin board set aside for posting one-sentence notes of appreciation for others; sharing successes or “wins” at the beginning of faculty or other meetings.
9 – Keep a “happy list” or a “happy file.” Someone suggested this to me years ago and it has been a very positive part of my life. Set up an email file and store any emails you receive that are particularly uplifting in some way. Keep a box or storage bin for notes or letters from colleagues, parents or students that make you remember WHY you are doing what you’re doing. Keep a document where you add any and every positive thing that happens at work. Often people will say something to you in the course of the day that makes you feel happy or appreciated, but it’s easy to forget that in the course of the day. This document lets you quickly write it down so you won’t forget it, and you can come back to it at any time.
10 – School districts are notorious for having 50 billion goals and initiatives every year. 50 billion is an exaggeration, but it might not feel that way sometimes! The problem with this is: if everything is important, NOTHING is important. So think about your goals within whatever goals your school or principal has identified as being the focus. Write them all down — all the goals for yourself or for your classroom. Now prioritize them. Put them in order from most important to least important. Take a look at that list. Can you now narrow it down to your top five most important goals? How about your top three? Narrowing down your goals to what is most important for you and your classroom will help you stay focused and shut out all the “noise”. I’m not saying to ignore the goals and initiatives — you’ll have to do something with them, no matter what — but think about what matters most to you and for the students in your classroom.
11 – Do the same thing with your calendar. You do not have to attend everything. If you try to attend your students’ extracurricular events, try to limit how many of those you attend in one week. If it’s a busy week with several meetings, where can you cut back on something else? I try to maintain a “rule” for myself of no more than two evening events or meetings per week. I can’t always abide by that, but when I do it makes my weeks so much more enjoyable and relaxed. Some weeks are worse than others, but it helps to try to cut back on everything that does not have to be done or attended that week.
12 – When your team meets together for planning or for PLC meetings, it helps to allot 5-10 minutes for an opening transition and 3-5 minutes for a closing transition. I know this is hard to do when time is so limited and everyone is busy. But when you start your meeting with a chance for people to decompress (briefly), get focused on the agenda for the meeting and ask any clarifying questions before you get down to business, it helps keep everyone from getting derailed during the meeting. Same with the end of the meeting – allow for a few minutes to wrap up by stating where you will start next time, what are the next steps/things to do, and take a deep breath before going back to your classroom or to whatever next activity is on the schedule. This is one example where taking the time to do these simple things will actually save you time and help your team be more efficient in the long run.
13 – Actually stop and eat lunch. This is another tough one. Very often I am in planning meetings or PLC meetings and eating lunch while we’re meeting. I can’t change that on my schedule, but on the days when we are not meeting at lunch, I try to stop and just eat and focus on my food for a few minutes. Try it for just one day per week and see if it doesn’t help you feel more relaxed.
14 – Here’s another tip you will think you don’t have time for — go outside at lunch or during a break and walk around. Get some fresh air, a bit of exercise and a changed perspective. Even just walking your students to recess or walking around at recess will make a difference.
15 – When you’re sick, take a sick day. If you need a mental health day, take a sick day. Yes, I know that writing sub plans resembles a military general’s plans for going into battle, but your health matters more. Getting some extra rest, taking some time to get well or to spend a day doing things for yourself will make you so much more effective when you are at school.
16 – The importance of self-care cannot be overstated. This entire blog is basically devoted to that idea. You can give and give and give all day, but if you never give anything to yourself, you will burn out much faster. This is not just advice for a career in teaching — this is advice for your life! The only way to keep going in anything that is important to you (teaching, parenting, any other important work) is to take care of yourself FIRST. That doesn’t have to mean expensive or time-consuming tasks that take you away from your family or your work. This is about doing small things for yourself throughout the day. It might mean getting up a little earlier to fit in a short workout before school. It might mean taking a leisurely bath or shower before bed. It might mean taking a nap after school. If you need some simple tips for getting started with self-care, see my 5-day quick start guide HERE.
We have to take care of ourselves and we have to look out for each other. I would love to hear your ideas!
It’s the first of May and it’s also Teacher Appreciation Week! If you’re looking for some gift ideas to show that special teacher how much you appreciate having them in your child’s life, read on. Here is a list of teacher gift ideas, based on my 28 years of elementary teaching and gift-receiving!
Getting ideas for your special teacher – two questions:
1 – Does your school have a list?
Find out if your school keeps a list of “teacher favorites”. This is a form that teachers complete about some of their favorite things (indulgences, foods, collections, restaurants, hobbies, etc.). If your school does not do this, you might want to suggest it. This is a quick and easy thing for a PTA/PTO to do. The forms can be kept in a binder at the front desk of the school. These lists are a great source of gift ideas.
2 – Does your child have suggestions?
Ask your child for suggestions! Their usual response: “I don’t know what my teacher likes.” But, when given specific questions, they can often come up with great ideas. For example:
*Does the teacher have any pens or markers they especially like? (My favorite are Flair pens. At least one child gives me a pack of these every year.) Other favorites are Paper Mate gel pens, bullet journaling pens, or Sharpie markers. Including a cute journal like this or this would make a great gift!
*Does the teacher like coffee or tea? Consider a Starbucks gift card or a gift card for a local coffee shop.
*Does the teacher drink any particular brand of water or seltzer? My current favorite is San Pellegrino.
*Does the teacher ever say, “I really need . . . “ or “I really get tired of having to . . .” One of my favorite gifts ever was a customized rubber stamp so that I could put my name in my classroom library books. A student noticed that I mentioned how much I got tired of writing my name in all my books.
*Another favorite gift was a colorful clipboard from a student who noticed that I complained about never being able to find my clipboard!
*Flowers are always popular! Pick flowers from your yard, or buy them inexpensively at Trader Joe’s, Target or Walmart.
If your child is still stuck for ideas and there is no “teacher favorites” list, read on for what teachers love and appreciate:
OFFICE SUPPLIES
Teachers tend to love office supply products, especially if they are colorful or related to their interests in some way. Here are some suggestions:
*Expo dry-erase markers. Teachers and students use them all the time, but they don’t last forever and can be a bit pricey for schools to replace.
PERSONAL ITEMS FOR RELAXING AT HOME:
*Bath supply gift sets like this or this. If you’re not sure about favorite scents, go with lavender. Lavender is calming and teachers can always use more of that!
*Cute tote bags. This is a tricky one because teachers often have a lot of these. However, if you see something that is particularly cute and it reminds you of the teacher somehow, it would probably make a good gift. Bonus points for including small, inexpensive gifts inside the bag! Some good options: Scout multi-pocket tote or this bag or maybe this cute bag.
PERSONAL ITEMS FOR FUN:
*Anything related to a favorite “obsession” of theirs (my current obsession is the musical Hamilton, but other popular obsessions are Disney, Star Wars, and Harry Potter).
BOOKS:
Teachers are readers. However, unless you know what type of fiction your teacher likes, it can be difficult to choose a specific title. It’s often easier to stick to non-fiction or “how-to” books. Here are some of my current favorites:
*Cookbooks
*Trending or bestselling books
*Daily desk calendars, especially if it’s related to a teacher’s interest.
GIFT CARDS FOR SERVICES:
*Do you sell something? Are you a fitness instructor, yoga instructor, personal trainer? A personal chef? A consultant for popular brands like Rodan & Fields or Stella & Dot? Give them something from your line of work or your line of products. And who knows? You might get a new customer!
*Consider giving prepared meals from a local restaurant or one free shipment from a meal delivery service such as Hello Fresh, Green Chef, Terra’s Kitchen, Blue Apron, Home Chef, Plated.
AND FINALLY — THE MOST POPULAR GIFT – GIFT CARDS!
*Try giving a gift certificate for a manicure, pedicure, massage, or some other spa treatment.
*Gift card to Etsy — to be used in any online shop.
*Chip in with other parents to get a Visa or Amex gift card.
*Any amount is appreciated. Favorite places are Target, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, wine shops, Starbucks, local restaurants, movie theater, car wash. That, combined with a heartfelt letter from you and your child, make the perfect gift. Which brings me to . . .
AND FINALLY — THE ULTIMATE FAVORITE GIFT THAT WILL BE KEPT FOREVER:
Have your child write a meaningful thank you letter to the teacher. Consider adding another one yourself. These will be the gifts that teachers will keep forever, long after they have eaten the fudge or shopped at Target. This gift is also a favorite because everyone can do it — budgets are not an issue. Have your child be specific about things the teacher does that they really like, things they love about the teacher, what they will always remember, how the teacher has helped them.
Please know that teachers appreciate any and every expression of gratitude. While gifts are certainly not necessary, some gifts are definitely more appreciated and needed than others. I hope this list has given you some ideas and options for Teacher Appreciation Week or for end of year gifts!
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.”
