I go to school on Sundays.
No, not Sunday school. No, not to learn. To prepare for the week ahead.
I figured out several years ago that, while I can fly by the seat of my pants when it comes to my work as an educator, it’s not the best idea for me or for my anxiety. Most classroom teachers have a curriculum they can refer to —I don’t, and each of my students are working on very different skills at very different levels and have very different learning styles. I would say that they have very different interests, but a lot of them seem to enjoy Minecraft. Not all of them, though!
What I do with students requires me to be responsive, so there is a lot of improvisation that happens. A couple of years ago, though, I had an epiphany: if I spend a little time every Sunday preparing myself, my stress level goes down significantly.
Today was a typical Sunday.
The walk over was pleasant. It’s nice that the sun was out, even if the weather was cool. I had a series of videos I had to watch in order to check off a box by tomorrow —there are a lot of boxes to be checked off in the world of education. While I listened, I prepared communication books for teachers to use with their students. Currently, I have a fully-functioning printer and a laminator that a friend got me. I also invested in googly eyes and construction paper on Saturday in order to top up my supplies, so I was able to prepare for an activity that I know from experience all students love (puppets, anyone?).
It is amazing what having adequate resources will do for your mood. It is amazing what adequate preparation and having enough time will do for your mood. It is amazing what a bit of sunshine will do for your mood —I mean, let’s be honest.
What was the purpose of this blog? Nothing really. We’re just a couple of friends talking about what educators do with their weekends. There might be a little something in there pointing out the obvious —resources help people feel like they can manage their lives. No reason at all for this blog.
Have a great week.