It really isn’t rocket science: happier, healthier teachers tend to have happier, healthier classrooms where learners tend to do better academically, socially and emotionally. There is plenty of evidence to support this premise. However, there is also plenty of evidence that tells us teaching is a really stressful profession.
So, how do we make peace between these two extremes?
Firstly, I suggest that we stop striving for balance. To be in a situation where we feel we can manage the stresses of the role and be at our best is terrific but I see so many people adding more stress to themselves as they strive for that perfect, imagined work and life balance. I suggest that it is better to do your best whilst at the same time becoming comfortable with the imperfections that life throws at us.
Secondly, I suggest that some of the biggest shifts and changes towards becoming happier, healthier teachers can happen between our ears. I know it has for me, and whilst managing my workload at times is still a struggle, I am far happier in myself and how I cope with it now than I was trying to cope with it a few years ago. Here are a few suggestions to get the ball rolling with this in your work:
Give Yourself a Break
Do you come home from school and worry about what you did that day, what you didn’t do and what you have coming up? Do you look at your to-do list and feel like a failure because it just doesn’t seem to be getting smaller? (And do you secretly suspect that someone is surreptitiously adding things to it to make it even longer, like a random stranger that walks past and puts things in your shopping trolley when you aren’t looking… if you are I am with you on this one!) In all seriousness, perhaps that list isn’t going to get shorter or you did fall
short today, but beating up on yourself isn’t going to do you or your learners any good. If you messed up, then own it, apologise the next day if you didn’t get a chance to at the time and find a way to fix it. If you can’t fix it, then ask for help. Ask yourself if it is going to matter in five weeks, five months or five years from now. This is a great way to gain some perspective.
Consider Recording What You Actually Do
Do you ever look at your planning and feel really bad because what looked amazing on paper just didn’t happen? I am thinking that I am not the only one that has done this! I’m all for long term curriculum planning, having clear goals and next steps for learners and ensuring that my planning is clear and easy to follow… but I wondered what might happen if I recorded what I actually did instead of writing the fantasy daily plans that I used to write down, which by the way would have worked perfectly if no children came to school! What has happened from making this change is that I feel less guilty when I reflect on my day and the learners I work with during the day get a better deal because I am not rushing to squeeze in the extra group I had planned. I have time for teachable moments, like today when we were playing a great new
game of running spelling and we had the opportunity to explore sportsmanship and empathy. I also don’t rush the social coaching that sometimes needs to happen as learners navigate some pretty tough emotions. I give myself time to breathe, to pause and reset, to observe, to work alongside someone for a little while just because I can, so I know my learners better and I have a calmer classroom more often than I did before.
Self-Appreciation: Celebrate
How often do you stop during your day and appreciate the good things that are happening in your classroom? It is so easy to get caught up in the busyness of a school day and barely stop for lunch, I know, but appreciating the good things can make such a difference to your outlook. It is also often easier to see what isn’t working or what could be better, but it takes effort to see what is working well and what is good. Negative self talk is easy but it’s destructive. By actively noticing what is going well you can start to quiet that inner critic. If you do that, then there’s another reason to celebrate!
Remember What the World Needs Now is More of You
In my most difficult times as a teacher, I know I was trying to be like someone else, or who I imagined people wanted me to be. It never worked. I ended up unhappy, and I fear that my learners did, too. You don’t have to be more or give more of what someone else is giving: Just be more like yourself. It can be a challenge and it doesn’t mean that you can’t learn new things or adapt your approach, but I urge you to do it as you, not in an effort to be someone else. It is easy to look from the outside and compare ourselves to others but we don’t see their journey, their heartaches, their insecurities. I have found, in giving myself permission to be me, what I offer often compliments what others do and together, we end up being able to do so much more for our learners. I am open to learning from others without comparing myself, and knowing myself means what I take from learning fits and works better in the classroom.
Teaching is a challenging role by its very nature, as well as having many external pressures that add to the challenge. However, teaching is also an incredibly rewarding profession and offers more opportunities for joy than most other jobs. It is my hope that by becoming our own best friends, our own champions, we can experience more of that joy and then amplify it in our classrooms.