1. Use a power list. (3-5 focused items) 2. Only RESPOND to emails once a day. 3. Batch your grading. 4. Create a lesson planning schedule. 5. Collaborate with other teachers.
@@hazelrowan2604 You are in your right to feel this way. Being overwhelmed by teaching responsibilities with life issues, hinders brain 🧠 from noticing the obvious. Hugs.
I'm a teacher in Sweden and I don't relate to this at al. We have 35,5 hours/ week when we have to work at the school. That time includes all lessons and interactions with students. After those hours we have around 10 hours/week to use how ever we please. What we dont get done in those 35 + 10 hours we simply do not do. The idéa of working unpayed outside "work hours" is crazy to me!
America is a cult that worships the owners. Teachers in particular are taught here that we're supposed to be selfless, that if we refuse to overwork, that we're being selfish.
I'm also a teacher in Sweden and the utopia you describe in far from reality for many of us! On my two previous schools I "needed" to work late nights (at home) to get all done to the level i was comfortable with. A 50 hour week was a good/slow week! Now at a school that have a 40 hour week and a more balanced workload. Loved my work back then but love my life more now!
@@christianwiberg7204 Of course it's an utopic view, but it's not expected of teachers in Sweden to always work outside the 45 hours. Many teachers work more hours some weeks (around grading time and national testing) but other weeks we are usually able to work less. If you always worked more then 45 h/week, I would say you've been to ambitious!
I think the sooner teachers find ways work closer to contract hours, the longer they'll want to teach. My husband and I have been teacher 13+ years each and we commit to contract hours + maybe one committee. We have 3 kids and don't want to work when we're hone together. Teaching can't consume us or we'd quit.
When districts learn to keep kids plugged into resources whether a teacher comes & goes out of a grade, that's when the magic will happen to stop all these crazy hours in teaching. No reason for kids not to keep momentum going with technology in the picture. They all have personal computers & should know the tools, apps, navigation.
I JUST WANT TO SAY, I watched you in high school and you made me so excited to become a teacher. Now I am a first year teacher and your love for the career inspires me and I appreciate all your videos!
I’m a teacher for over 20 years and the job plain sucks bc of admin and their directives. Most of what is taught is useless. Yea the truth and I’m a loved teacher in case you though I was at it too long and cranky. Your rose tinted specs will be tarnished soon enough
I'm in my third year of teaching and I JUST figured out how to do this. I'm SO GRATEFUL because now I can truly have a separation between work and home. My marriage and mental health is benefiting from it for sure. Praise God
Love your tips but I think this all depends on the district you teach in. I’ve been teaching primary for 30 years in the district I currently teach in and I’m going to tell you right now no power list is going to help during the 40 minute break I get a day. Unless I choose not to eat lunch. Then I get another 30 minutes! Of course, at some point I’m going to have to pee. My day runs from 8:15 to 3:30 with kids. 8:00 to 8:15 is free... wow a whole 15 minutes there. We don’t have aides for recess duty either. So that 40 minutes is all I get. I’m not getting anything other than teaching done when I have students in the room.
@@jenniferziegler6983 you need a better teacher's union if you only get lunch without students. That said, the power list would still help you leave after school sooner. You could come in at 7:00 or stay until 4:30 and potentially get everything done if these tips worked. As a teacher known to have stayed at school until 11 pm before I think these things could help.
I just wanted to say THANK YOU!!! I have been teaching for 23 years. When we started distance learning it was like I was back to year one. I have not been able to get ahead on my planning since March 2020 until I watched this video. I pulled a couple of all nighters in order to catch up and now I am happy to say I am a week ahead on my planning and it feels AMAZING!!!!! THANK YOU!!!
When I was doing in person, it took five years to get this point. But since distance learning, I feel like a first year teacher and going over all the time.
Right, I teach 5 different levels of math at a high school and I'm like what do I do next. I need to plan a day to grade to start. Just, I grade on this day, if it's late it will get put in on that day.
I started rewatching some of your old videos and this is SO refreshing to see. You used to work until 11pm at night - and in one video, you pulled an all-nighter! You seem so much less stressed.
Alright, veteran teacher here. I thought I was sooooooooo good at multi-tasking and dealing with multiple things at one time. I have ADD so it was a kind of easy and made things more exciting! However, I have been following you since the beginning of the school year and you have motivated me and gave me a positive center instead of all the toxicity around. So I decided to try. For the last week I did it. It was difficult. I turned off ALL of my notifications for the morning and chose a specific hour of the day to focus on emails. I had much more time for other tasks I was in awe of my own self! Thank you so much for even pushing me to try the email thing. I hate super-scheculing so it is difficult, but the habits always benefit me. So I am also trying the working only during contract times. Now I can't do this right now, but I am trying. When I do this I realize that I was dreaming about things I wanted to be doing during school time and undercutting my productivity. So, if I know that I'm going to give myself ALL those afterschool hours for myself, I am motivated so much more to stay on task and finish during the day. Thanks so much for your support Michelle! You helped this high school remote science teacher with over 150 students have some of her time back, be more productive, and most importantly, put her positive pants back on! Much love : )
Wow!! Thanks for these amazing advices. I'm a ESL teacher in Guatemala. 💜 And I'm working at a public school where I have 320 students... I know.. That's a great huge number lol. But with your advices have given me a different and nice perspective of how I can improve in my organization. I'm a neat and organized person but you helped me to improve. Thanks and hugs from my beautiful country. 🇬🇹
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE videos like this! I am a veteran teacher and still have trouble with “putting my job in a box” and not letting it take over my life. ~ Time to recalibrate.
I teach English and Italian at a private language school and I'm currently teaching 18 different courses, some online and some at school, from primary school kids to adults. Google Keep really helps me when it comes to keeping track of all my lesson planning, but I'm lucky if I finish working before 10:30pm these days. Thank you for the tips and the positivity, Michelle! You're a ray of sunshine.
@@principalmurray3229 I know exactly what you mean. It's just difficult sometimes to explain our jobs to other people. They just don't get it. Being mentally and physically drained, having no time for ourselves. Let's do our best, as always, and keep up the good work. I wish you the best!
I have taught sped for 39 years and contract hours has never been a reality for me. I really wish I could do this especially now. I still have three years to teach and I am putting my all into it. I enjoy your insight.
Hi I am currently a senior and fixing to start my student teaching in Fall for SPED. Any advice for me? I always here more bad things than good things, scares me but will not let that get to me. I know it is a field highly needed and it makes me sad out hundreds of Gen ed teachers only 5 of us are choosing sped.
@@CiEsDe11 we need good teachers on sped. I have loved my years in the field for the most part. Often there can be a lack of administrative support so you need to create support systems for yourself. It will really depend on this aspect in your teaching career. It can make a big difference. The area you teach can also be very different. I have taught self contained, ED, inclusion, resource, life skills EMH and TMH 5 year olds to 21 over my years. Every area is different and has its positive aspects and a few not so pluses. I think the biggest plus are the kids. I love working with them and that is why I am still there even with all the extra learning I have had to do. Lol. Good luck on you student teaching.
Oh my gosh, 39 years! You are amazing. I made it only 14 years and then the behavior issues caused me to have PTSD at work. Thank you for your service! I teach Title now, and it still has the long hours, especially when we host the family nights. I know the night custodian very well!
@@jkirkwo2 I went through that with an autistic student who hit a lot. I had moved to a new school and the student moved with me so it was my 4 the year with her. She started have major hitting issues and the new admin just did not get it. I had been injured so I was struggling a lot. The next year I changed rooms.
39 years of teaching Special Ed and you have 3 more to go?! God Bless you! That is a LONG time to do any job, much less special ed! My Mom did it for almost 30 and I have no idea how she did! May your retirement be extra sweet!
great tips thank you! I'm a first year teacher dealing with hybrid classes, as well as 2 grade levels, all while teaching all subjects! what a year it has been!
I just finished my 27th year of teaching and I'm very excited to try out these habits! Our union is struggling with contract negotiations and we have decided to ONLY work our contract day...this gives me INCREDIBLE anxiety as I have never figured out how to only work my contract hours...Thanks for your video!
Wow! I used to watch you all the time. Then I took a break from watching teacher related TH-cam videos and following teachers on social media because I realized it was contributing to my overworking (ie teaching was also my hobby and it was too much). I just happened to come across this video after a long break and I’m surprised by all the changes. The last video I saw you were struggling with not sleeping and you were working all the time. I’m so happy for you! Congratulations on your upcoming marriage.
Love this! Ive been in my job almost 14 years and needed some much needed tips and tough love. My favorite tips and the ones I use right now are a power list (game changer for me to keep me on track), batching my duties, and collaborating with others. Collaborating with my team has been a job saver for all of us. We allocate the duties for each location and we hold ourselves accountable when no one else does🤯! A great teacher told me “it takes teamwork to make the dream work”! Other rules I use are Gibbs from NCIS rule 11 (great rule for teachers in this day and time): “When the job is done, walk away! and Rule #15: “Always work as a team!”
Wow! I have been watching you for years and am so impressed that you've managed to find a work-life balance so you can spend more time with Billy and your two cats. Keep up the wonderful work! Kind Regards, Lisa ☺️
These are great tips for everyone! Thank you! I left teaching to raise my children and get the fear about returning because of how overwhelming I found the workload. So pleased to have found you!
This was so helpful - thank you! I have 14 years of teaching experience, but worked in administration for the past 7 years and gave all my teaching stuff to the teacher who stepped into my 4th grade classroom. I'm back in the classroom this year a little rusty and starting from scratch. I appreciated the advice on collaboration as I have no teaching partner this year. If you know of any awesome 4th grade teachers who would like to share and collaborate, I would love it! Thanks again and I'll continue following you!
This is so helpful! This year, I started Batching my Grading and creating a daily Power List. I need to work on responding to emails once a day and I've already got a planning routine. Our district has already created a collaboration time for us on Wednesdays, which is great! As a Special Education Teacher, I've already gone from working 65 hours per week to 50. When I work more one day, I'll work less another. It's my commitment to myself this year :-)
I have retired twice (lol) and I’m about to go back again as a part-time online teacher. I taught full time over thirty years. It was only because my husband was also a teacher, that my care were and my marriage survived! Thank you for all lol your tips!
Wow, working only contracted hours sounds amazing! I enjoyed your "power list" tip. I usually use a planner but my list is often endless. Emails never end with online learning, I am going to give your tip of only responding to emails once a day. Collaboration with fellow educators is key, I am currently working on increasing my professional learning network and you have become a great resource.
This was really interesting. I’m not familiar with the term “contract hours”. Where I live here in 🇨🇦, the school day is 6.5 hours long and teachers are required to be in the building 15 minutes before and after the bell. An elementary teacher would get 3 or 4, 30-40 minute preps every 6 day cycle. Clearly you can’t get everything done in that time frame. I’m retired now, but early on in my career I decided that I was going to work the same hours as my friends in other professions, 8 to 8.5 hours. Whatever got done in those hours was what I did. Another thing that kept me sane was realizing that in education you can ALWAYS do more, and no administrator is ever going to tell you to do less. In 30 + years I was told ONCE that I had done enough. So, as a professional, you have to decide what limits you’re going to set on what you do.
In the US many teachers have school days of 7-7.5 hours long. Plus duties before and after school. There is almost always a meeting at least once a week that goes an hour and a half past the time school ends. Teachers are usually required to be in the building anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour outside of student times. So, teachers are already working the same time frame as other professions. Most people I know (outside of teaching) work an 8 hour shift and get a 30-60 minute lunch break in there. They are also free to use the restroom or take another short break whenever they want to. Often teachers in the US have students during their lunch break. One of my first jobs I had a 40 minute lunch but so did the students... so by time I walked them to the cafeteria it was 35 minutes and then I might have students in my room over recess so... often I got 15 minutes.
@@Lillybabe84 thanks for the insight. We hear frequently here that our US colleagues don’t fare nearly as well as we do in terms of wages, benefits, job security, etc. As far as working conditions go, I think that might be quite dependent on where you live, but I surely saw that deteriorate over the course of my career. I’ve often wondered why anybody would choose teaching as a profession in the US.
I am not a teacher but I have a friend who started teaching this year and I have been building him a list of videos to watch from your channel. I also have been enjoying your videos a lot so thank you. I tutor a student 5 days a week in math, and have used a number of your videos related to Google Classroom/Docs to get me into the world of lesson planning for my student.
There certainly isn't one way fits all scenarios - but I think this video is spot on in talking about the importance of managing and balancing work vs life. As Michelle reiterates, we need to find ways to do that and make it a habit. I teach in an independent school in Canada where I am required to do outdoor recess duty every day, teach all subjects for my grade 1 class and through it all, only receive one 40 minute planning break a week (5 years ago and prior we received none). Of course - with this type of a schedule, there is no way to get everything done during contract hours only. However, it is important to find ways that will help find your rhythm and balance in life. Thank you Michelle for encouraging this!
These are amazing tips, also I am a 5th grade student in Maryland too and I live pretty close. You are very creative and kind and my parents are teachers too and they take these tips, tricks to help them too! Thank you so much, love your vids !! 😁💕
Great tips! I grade papers as they turn them in, or as I collect them. My grade book is open on my computer, and I put them in immediately. Still have to work outside of contract hours. I only get 35 minutes of protected planning 3 times a week, but this helps getting more done in the day.
Thanks Michelle. I always look forward to Sunday mornings. I know you have been fully remote. It helps with consistency. I have gone fully remote and hybrid (which always includes 6 fully remote learners) so many times. As soon as I get a routine things change again.I love my partner but she is a hot mess. (She said with love. ;)) She wants to do SO much so she is all over the place. She makes things then I have to clean them up because I can't put my name on it... I love her dearly, but we are very different.
Thank you for this! Great ideas that are easy-ish to implement. I really like the idea of scheduling my prep time. I only get one prep a week so having a focus for that time really makes sense!
Thank you for your helpful advice. I enjoy listening to you explain things and I will definitely try your strategies. Keep making videos! You are a blessing to teachers.
These are some great ideas, thank you. I like the idea of grading in batches. I’ve been doing the weekly to-do list for a few years and it has helped so much! For those of you watching Michelle who appreciate all her videos please make sure you watch the ads if they pop up....it’s one way to compensate her for all her hard work!
These are great ideas and there is definitely some truth to all of these steps. I can tell you that many teachers will be able to cut down the work time SIGNIFICANTLY because of these steps. I’ve been batch planning for YEARS. It’s a time-saver.
Great ideas as always. I am a special education teacher so I do not get a planning period. My afternoons are when I get the most work done and I do still do a lot of work some evenings and weekends. I have gotten much better at not doing as much though. Like you I like having lists. I am old fashioned though I write my lists down either in my calendar or on a to do list. These past 2 weeks I have felt super productive because i have made myself a master list of items needed to get done everyday and on Fridays and it seems I am able to really knock the items out quickly that afternoon. I have it posted on my board above my desk area so i see it without going anywhere to look for it. ( I guess this is sorta my power list) Now when i have to start working on those iEP's that's a different story LOL. I love watching your videos and getting great ideas from you
Yes! I absolutely do my best to ONLY work contract hours. This is my 6th year teaching and I'm FINALLY getting the hang of writing lists and making sure I utilize my time the best way I can. Great video with wonderful tips! I wish I could have known all of this back in 2015 during my first year haha. :)
This was so great, thank you! Weirdly during hybrid teaching I had more time to mark and plan and so although it's great being back in the classroom full time, I'm now back to having 90 minutes of PPA a week (don't worry I also get a top up session each half term) so I really need to use my time before and after school to maximum effect. I am 100% a task switcher, it takes me ages to settle into my PPA time and I am Little Miss Last Minute so I really needed to hear some of this. I'm going to adapt my current ta da lists and create a lesson planning schedule to help reclaim my weekends. You're awesome, thanks again. :)
I taught MS and HS English for 10 years. The first three years I brought work home and stayed late. I realized I would burn out and hate everything if I didn’t stop. I only graded on my prep, or office hours, set up phone appts before school, and left 15 minutes after the last bell. I was much happier. If you’re going to have any kind of lengthy career of teaching, you can’t eat, breathe, and sleep it. Separate your life and enjoy it.
I'm 4 semesters from retirement and I just learned a load from you young lady! Switching my to-do list to a Power List TODAY! The email habit, I'm not sure but I will try. I definitely need to schedule my grading. I'm also downloading Google Tasks TODAY! You're a rockstar!
I'm teacher from Ukraine and I LOVE this channel! Thank you for your work! And yeah I totally work over my contract hours so maybe your tips will help me))
I started planning my lesson plans in chunks and try and do two weeks of ela and two weeks of math at a time so I can alternate which I do each week. I teach special education elementary students. I still find it hard to get everything done in my 50 min planning time.
Thank you so much Michelle! As someone who will be coming back from maternity leave of a year to a grade 4/5 class online, I feel like I have so many more tools after watching your videos. I feel a lot better and more prepared. Thanks so much!!!!
Thank you for this video. I know the importance of routines in my personal life. Don’t know why it has not transferred into my profession like. I look forward to putting my positive pants on and start implementing these 5 things. Slowly of course because slow and steady wins the race. Blessings!
You are a God-sent! That power list tip is going to really help me stay on track. I’m really trying to get better with organization, but like you said, thinking about EVERYTHING you have to do makes you not want to tackle any of it because it’s overwhelming. So I’m definitely going to try the power list for each day.
Very inspirational video to get me organized - and possibly my team more so. My applications will be... 1) Choosing some times to use "Pause" on my email and NOT look at it 2) The power list 3) STOP being so distractified by other thoughts. I'm totally that person you described that starts one thing, but thinks of 16,000 other things as soon as I start working on it. Really appreciate this
Thanks! You've mentioned many of these tips in other videos in some fashion although not as many examples and between these and your Google and Nearpod tutorials you helped me rock at student teaching! I did have to.work past contract hours but really 1-2 nights a week. I don't mind that since I'm completely new and was adapting to someone else's classroom. This helped in my first placement which was sped/secondary just not as much as 4th grade/gen ed (2nd placement). I look forward to using these tips once I'm licensed and doing my first job. I also found that it's really important and you addressed this a bit with your power list to ask myself what are most essential for the students and I. I found planning shorter parts that are direct instruction and making sure there is always some form of discussion or collaboration time helped build connection. It took a few weeks to encourage students to be more active but once they realized it was a safe space they jumped on the chance to connect. I loved using Padlet for this since even when they were in breakout rooms I could still easily see everyone participating no matter which group I was with. Another thing I did which funnily enough helped keep to contract hours too was every other week we'd do "recess". We did a live session(we're fully remote) where we hopped on for recess together. This was about 20-30 minutes of lunch time. The students could talk about anything, connect, and we'd get a game going whether among us or something else. It guaranteed their focus Friday mornings since we didn't announce which Friday was a recess day until the end of our instructional sessions and it built great relationships. Something about killing their student teacher in Among Us brought them together lol and helped them feel more cohesive as a class. It was also great because students who normally weren't talkative happened to also be the best at games which encouraged them to talk up more in class.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING! During the past 2 weeks I've been trying to work on my habits regarding work because it usually consumes me a lot of time whether I have to plan, check assignments and prepare material! I'll definitely take into account these tips and I hope I get everything done on time in a better way. You're a great inspiration btw 🤩💜✨
I discovered your channel today and I´m fascinated with your wisdom and your kindness to share this with all of us! I love my job but I was looking for some tips and tricks for improve and........ Im so happy with your videos!!! I have sooooooo many material to review from! Lots of love for you😊🤗
THANK YOU! It's such a shock for every teacher when they enter the field just *HOW MUCH* we all do on the day-to-day. I might only be 23 years old but I feel like a mom to many of my middle schoolers. They see me more than their own families! I just posted a similar video, entitled #FirstYearTeacherAdvice. I learned so much in my first year teaching ESL Middle School Social Studies. *TEACHERS ROCK*
I wish I could get all my planning done during contract hours!! It's my goal to start reclaiming my weekends but with this being my second year only teaching the current levels of Spanish and French that I am teaching, I am essentially redoing my curriculum (last teacher was HEAVILY textbook for french).
Thank you so much for your videos! They're helpful because they're real and practical. I appreciate how you give us suggestions on what to do AND how to do it. One of the many reasons I love your channel and look forward to your Sunday videos to help me through the week!
I like how you put labels on your google keep notes. Definitely makes it more organized. I’ve been using it for years but it’s hard to quickly find the notes I need sometimes
So happy these things work for you. Wished it were that easy for us all. 1. How do you keep a power list to 3 items, when some days have 15 must do items? 2. Some email responses need to be answered immediately, either so the person knows an answer or so you can help fend off a parent or student crisis. 3. Grading only once a week? What if you give a quiz on Monday and need to know their understanding to adequately adjust plans for the rest of the week... some papers need immediate attention for RTI purposes... 4. Lesson planning schedule? Assuming our plan time has NOTHING else ever going on- meetings, parent phone calls, it’s party day, something urgent just came up... 5. Collaborative Planning- Would be AWESOME if all teachers on team were dedicated to quality plans (many I’ve worked with are not and i will not do what they planned anyway) and/or what if they aren’t synced perfectly with what you planned for other days- flow and structure are such an important part of quality plans. Not trying to be a Debbie downer, just realistic.
These are great tips, but as a high school teacher of almost 25 years, there’s still no way I could get my marking and prep done during contract hours.
While I think many of the ideas are good, I teach 5th grade and could not finish this during contract time. Additionally, it sounds like she has more planning time than I do.
I love her. She is so informative and has helped me master google classroom. I don’t know what I would have done without her. I think she is amazing and should be a teacher trainer in a teacher college. But, as a 6th grade reading teacher with a daily 50 minute prep time that realistically is 40 minutes and between 80 -100 students average (That’s 100 TDAs and most responses are written in lieu of MC.), there is just no way. I wish there was.
Is there any way you can cut the amount of grading you do? For instance, randomly choose which assignment to grade instead of grading every assignment? I find if I am more strategic with my grading it can save me a lot of time and mental energy so I can concentrate on my lessons.
How can we only work contract hours when we have a grade level meeting during conference time on Monday with a faculty meeting after school, planning meeting during conference time on Tuesday and a new teacher meeting after school, an RTI meeting during conference time on Wednesday and a planning meeting on Thursday during conference time?
Take into account your contract hours and the state requirement of breaks. With what is being asked of you by Admin is it realistic? If not, talk to your Admin with a an entire breakdown of time and the expectations. If you have a Union you can talk to them and they can take it to Admin. Others probably feel the same way and should be allowed to speak up for themselves. We have the same problem over here, so we are taking it to our Union.
Such good info. I'm a first year teacher, I'm the only teacher in my building teaching my curriculum and it's been tough. We have been doing virtual since the fall but are heading to hybrid Feb 9th...nervous!
I have taught high school math for 36 years. I always take work home each night and spend a good portion of the weekend grading. I teach 6 of 7 classes and it is essential that we look at the student work. Completion grades are discouraged since they often result in great daily grades and horrid test grades.
@@teachnthrive1014 I certainly agree, and I personally would not live that way, but one of my best teaching friends does. She's taught 35 years and works an hour and a half every day BEFORE school, and 4 hours after school EVERY DAY. She loves it. She would not know what to do with her time if she wasn't working like this. So, we all live our teaching lives differently
I love the idea of planning the planning time. I just experienced paralysis during this time again this week due to the lack of a plan. This is my 7th year, also.
1. Use a power list. (3-5 focused items)
2. Only RESPOND to emails once a day.
3. Batch your grading.
4. Create a lesson planning schedule.
5. Collaborate with other teachers.
Thank you. She yammers on too much and these 5 habits are not brain surgery.
3 and 4 are the hardest things for me as a first year. But going into second semester, I hope I’ll be better with both.
@@hazelrowan2604 She doesn’t owe you anything 🙄 Try being more grateful for the video instead of leaving mean comments.
@@hazelrowan2604 You are in your right to feel this way. Being overwhelmed by teaching responsibilities with life issues, hinders brain 🧠 from noticing the obvious. Hugs.
@@hazelrowan2604 I don't think that phrasing is necessary.' Thank you - great to have a condensed list' would suffice.
I'm a teacher in Sweden and I don't relate to this at al. We have 35,5 hours/ week when we have to work at the school. That time includes all lessons and interactions with students. After those hours we have around 10 hours/week to use how ever we please. What we dont get done in those 35 + 10 hours we simply do not do. The idéa of working unpayed outside "work hours" is crazy to me!
America is a cult that worships the owners. Teachers in particular are taught here that we're supposed to be selfless, that if we refuse to overwork, that we're being selfish.
This is crazy to most people. However it is expected of teachers in the uk.
I'm also a teacher in Sweden and the utopia you describe in far from reality for many of us!
On my two previous schools I "needed" to work late nights (at home) to get all done to the level i was comfortable with. A 50 hour week was a good/slow week!
Now at a school that have a 40 hour week and a more balanced workload.
Loved my work back then but love my life more now!
@@christianwiberg7204 Of course it's an utopic view, but it's not expected of teachers in Sweden to always work outside the 45 hours. Many teachers work more hours some weeks (around grading time and national testing) but other weeks we are usually able to work less. If you always worked more then 45 h/week, I would say you've been to ambitious!
@@TheDrewjameson well said.
I think the sooner teachers find ways work closer to contract hours, the longer they'll want to teach. My husband and I have been teacher 13+ years each and we commit to contract hours + maybe one committee. We have 3 kids and don't want to work when we're hone together. Teaching can't consume us or we'd quit.
I feel so bad for anatomy thank Spanish teachers because over Christmas break they spent over 30 hours just grading.
Teaching is currently assuming me. I am so exhausted and I am always working after work! Between the meetings, working all day, daily to do lists..
th-cam.com/video/hMO1kLY9gks/w-d-xo.html🙂
When districts learn to keep kids plugged into resources whether a teacher comes & goes out of a grade, that's when the magic will happen to stop all these crazy hours in teaching. No reason for kids not to keep momentum going with technology in the picture. They all have personal computers & should know the tools, apps, navigation.
I JUST WANT TO SAY, I watched you in high school and you made me so excited to become a teacher. Now I am a first year teacher and your love for the career inspires me and I appreciate all your videos!
I’m a teacher for over 20 years and the job plain sucks bc of admin and their directives. Most of what is taught is useless. Yea the truth and I’m a loved teacher in case you though I was at it too long and cranky. Your rose tinted specs will be tarnished soon enough
I'm in my third year of teaching and I JUST figured out how to do this. I'm SO GRATEFUL because now I can truly have a separation between work and home. My marriage and mental health is benefiting from it for sure. Praise God
It's absolutely bananas that the whole world just assumes that teachers should be working more than we're being paid to be and we just accept it.
Love your tips but I think this all depends on the district you teach in. I’ve been teaching primary for 30 years in the district I currently teach in and I’m going to tell you right now no power list is going to help during the 40 minute break I get a day. Unless I choose not to eat lunch. Then I get another 30 minutes! Of course, at some point I’m going to have to pee. My day runs from 8:15 to 3:30 with kids. 8:00 to 8:15 is free... wow a whole 15 minutes there. We don’t have aides for recess duty either. So that 40 minutes is all I get. I’m not getting anything other than teaching done when I have students in the room.
NAIL on THE HEAD!!!!!!!
@@jenniferziegler6983 you need a better teacher's union if you only get lunch without students. That said, the power list would still help you leave after school sooner. You could come in at 7:00 or stay until 4:30 and potentially get everything done if these tips worked. As a teacher known to have stayed at school until 11 pm before I think these things could help.
That's pretty much the definition of being salaried...
I'm a claims adjuster and I work more hours than I am paid for...
I just wanted to say THANK YOU!!! I have been teaching for 23 years. When we started distance learning it was like I was back to year one. I have not been able to get ahead on my planning since March 2020 until I watched this video. I pulled a couple of all nighters in order to catch up and now I am happy to say I am a week ahead on my planning and it feels AMAZING!!!!! THANK YOU!!!
When I was doing in person, it took five years to get this point. But since distance learning, I feel like a first year teacher and going over all the time.
It’s so insane that it takes so much planning and strategy to only work our contractual hours. Thank you for sharing these tips!
First year teacher over here like: tell me more 👀
Same😂
Right, I teach 5 different levels of math at a high school and I'm like what do I do next. I need to plan a day to grade to start. Just, I grade on this day, if it's late it will get put in on that day.
Congrats!
25 year teacher over here like: tell me more! Hahahaha!!🤣🤣
@@Mari-oy6ng same same hahaha
I started rewatching some of your old videos and this is SO refreshing to see. You used to work until 11pm at night - and in one video, you pulled an all-nighter! You seem so much less stressed.
Alright, veteran teacher here. I thought I was sooooooooo good at multi-tasking and dealing with multiple things at one time. I have ADD so it was a kind of easy and made things more exciting! However, I have been following you since the beginning of the school year and you have motivated me and gave me a positive center instead of all the toxicity around. So I decided to try. For the last week I did it. It was difficult. I turned off ALL of my notifications for the morning and chose a specific hour of the day to focus on emails. I had much more time for other tasks I was in awe of my own self! Thank you so much for even pushing me to try the email thing. I hate super-scheculing so it is difficult, but the habits always benefit me. So I am also trying the working only during contract times. Now I can't do this right now, but I am trying. When I do this I realize that I was dreaming about things I wanted to be doing during school time and undercutting my productivity. So, if I know that I'm going to give myself ALL those afterschool hours for myself, I am motivated so much more to stay on task and finish during the day. Thanks so much for your support Michelle! You helped this high school remote science teacher with over 150 students have some of her time back, be more productive, and most importantly, put her positive pants back on! Much love : )
This woman is a teaching wizard! These are so simple, but so helpful.
Wow!! Thanks for these amazing advices. I'm a ESL teacher in Guatemala. 💜 And I'm working at a public school where I have 320 students... I know.. That's a great huge number lol. But with your advices have given me a different and nice perspective of how I can improve in my organization. I'm a neat and organized person but you helped me to improve. Thanks and hugs from my beautiful country. 🇬🇹
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE videos like this! I am a veteran teacher and still have trouble with “putting my job in a box” and not letting it take over my life. ~ Time to recalibrate.
I teach English and Italian at a private language school and I'm currently teaching 18 different courses, some online and some at school, from primary school kids to adults. Google Keep really helps me when it comes to keeping track of all my lesson planning, but I'm lucky if I finish working before 10:30pm these days. Thank you for the tips and the positivity, Michelle! You're a ray of sunshine.
@@principalmurray3229 I know exactly what you mean. It's just difficult sometimes to explain our jobs to other people. They just don't get it. Being mentally and physically drained, having no time for ourselves. Let's do our best, as always, and keep up the good work. I wish you the best!
I have taught sped for 39 years and contract hours has never been a reality for me. I really wish I could do this especially now. I still have three years to teach and I am putting my all into it. I enjoy your insight.
Hi I am currently a senior and fixing to start my student teaching in Fall for SPED. Any advice for me? I always here more bad things than good things, scares me but will not let that get to me. I know it is a field highly needed and it makes me sad out hundreds of Gen ed teachers only 5 of us are choosing sped.
@@CiEsDe11 we need good teachers on sped. I have loved my years in the field for the most part. Often there can be a lack of administrative support so you need to create support systems for yourself. It will really depend on this aspect in your teaching career. It can make a big difference. The area you teach can also be very different. I have taught self contained, ED, inclusion, resource, life skills EMH and TMH 5 year olds to 21 over my years. Every area is different and has its positive aspects and a few not so pluses. I think the biggest plus are the kids. I love working with them and that is why I am still there even with all the extra learning I have had to do. Lol. Good luck on you student teaching.
Oh my gosh, 39 years! You are amazing. I made it only 14 years and then the behavior issues caused me to have PTSD at work. Thank you for your service! I teach Title now, and it still has the long hours, especially when we host the family nights. I know the night custodian very well!
@@jkirkwo2 I went through that with an autistic student who hit a lot. I had moved to a new school and the student moved with me so it was my 4 the year with her. She started have major hitting issues and the new admin just did not get it. I had been injured so I was struggling a lot. The next year I changed rooms.
39 years of teaching Special Ed and you have 3 more to go?! God Bless you! That is a LONG time to do any job, much less special ed! My Mom did it for almost 30 and I have no idea how she did! May your retirement be extra sweet!
You must be a great teacher and your students are so blessed to have a teacher like you!
I am a second year teacher and I only work contract hours too! Pre-plan for the whole month with a calendar that I send home, it is SO helpful.
I am doing my best to only work 7:30-4:30. Im a 3rd year 8th grade teacher. I’ve been pretty successful this year!
Thank YOU, Michelle! I have been seeing teachers that are always working till 7 PM! I am always feeling bad because they work so hard for so long! 💗
SO guilty of task switching in school AND home! Thank you for the great tips!!🎉🌟
I always have so much to do and never know where to start. I can see where task switching is hurting more than helping! Thanks for all your tips!
great tips thank you! I'm a first year teacher dealing with hybrid classes, as well as 2 grade levels, all while teaching all subjects! what a year it has been!
You literally just kept me in my job... thank you. I was so ready to go
I just finished my 27th year of teaching and I'm very excited to try out these habits! Our union is struggling with contract negotiations and we have decided to ONLY work our contract day...this gives me INCREDIBLE anxiety as I have never figured out how to only work my contract hours...Thanks for your video!
I need to learn to batch better. I task switch all the time and know that loses focus. Thank you for these ideas! I also like the Power List idea!!!
Wow! I used to watch you all the time.
Then I took a break from watching teacher related TH-cam videos and following teachers on social media because I realized it was contributing to my overworking (ie teaching was also my hobby and it was too much).
I just happened to come across this video after a long break and I’m surprised by all the changes. The last video I saw you were struggling with not sleeping and you were working all the time.
I’m so happy for you! Congratulations on your upcoming marriage.
I’m a first year HS English teacher, and these have helped me so much. Thank you! ❤️
Love this! Ive been in my job almost 14 years and needed some much needed tips and tough love. My favorite tips and the ones I use right now are a power list (game changer for me to keep me on track), batching my duties, and collaborating with others. Collaborating with my team has been a job saver for all of us. We allocate the duties for each location and we hold ourselves accountable when no one else does🤯! A great teacher told me “it takes teamwork to make the dream work”! Other rules I use are Gibbs from NCIS rule 11 (great rule for teachers in this day and time): “When the job is done, walk away! and Rule #15: “Always work as a team!”
Wow! I have been watching you for years and am so impressed that you've managed to find a work-life balance so you can spend more time with Billy and your two cats. Keep up the wonderful work! Kind Regards, Lisa ☺️
Thanks Michelle for making Sunday mornings feel productive. Your email templates are a big time saver.
Excellent video! You are so right about multitasking actually being “tasking switching.”
Collaboration is so key! Split those tasks and plans up! And simplify your grading. Google forms have been life changing!
These are great tips for everyone! Thank you! I left teaching to raise my children and get the fear about returning because of how overwhelming I found the workload. So pleased to have found you!
This was so helpful - thank you! I have 14 years of teaching experience, but worked in administration for the past 7 years and gave all my teaching stuff to the teacher who stepped into my 4th grade classroom. I'm back in the classroom this year a little rusty and starting from scratch. I appreciated the advice on collaboration as I have no teaching partner this year. If you know of any awesome 4th grade teachers who would like to share and collaborate, I would love it! Thanks again and I'll continue following you!
This is so helpful! This year, I started Batching my Grading and creating a daily Power List. I need to work on responding to emails once a day and I've already got a planning routine. Our district has already created a collaboration time for us on Wednesdays, which is great! As a Special Education Teacher, I've already gone from working 65 hours per week to 50. When I work more one day, I'll work less another. It's my commitment to myself this year :-)
I have retired twice (lol) and I’m about to go back again as a part-time online teacher. I taught full time over thirty years. It was only because my husband was also a teacher, that my care were and my marriage survived!
Thank you for all lol your tips!
Auto INcorrect… my CAREER survived 🙄
Wow, working only contracted hours sounds amazing! I enjoyed your "power list" tip. I usually use a planner but my list is often endless. Emails never end with online learning, I am going to give your tip of only responding to emails once a day. Collaboration with fellow educators is key, I am currently working on increasing my professional learning network and you have become a great resource.
This was really interesting. I’m not familiar with the term “contract hours”. Where I live here in 🇨🇦, the school day is 6.5 hours long and teachers are required to be in the building 15 minutes before and after the bell. An elementary teacher would get 3 or 4, 30-40 minute preps every 6 day cycle. Clearly you can’t get everything done in that time frame. I’m retired now, but early on in my career I decided that I was going to work the same hours as my friends in other professions, 8 to 8.5 hours. Whatever got done in those hours was what I did. Another thing that kept me sane was realizing that in education you can ALWAYS do more, and no administrator is ever going to tell you to do less. In 30 + years I was told ONCE that I had done enough. So, as a professional, you have to decide what limits you’re going to set on what you do.
In the US many teachers have school days of 7-7.5 hours long. Plus duties before and after school. There is almost always a meeting at least once a week that goes an hour and a half past the time school ends. Teachers are usually required to be in the building anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour outside of student times. So, teachers are already working the same time frame as other professions. Most people I know (outside of teaching) work an 8 hour shift and get a 30-60 minute lunch break in there. They are also free to use the restroom or take another short break whenever they want to. Often teachers in the US have students during their lunch break. One of my first jobs I had a 40 minute lunch but so did the students... so by time I walked them to the cafeteria it was 35 minutes and then I might have students in my room over recess so... often I got 15 minutes.
@@Lillybabe84 thanks for the insight. We hear frequently here that our US colleagues don’t fare nearly as well as we do in terms of wages, benefits, job security, etc. As far as working conditions go, I think that might be quite dependent on where you live, but I surely saw that deteriorate over the course of my career. I’ve often wondered why anybody would choose teaching as a profession in the US.
@@gnomealone350 Teachers are leaving the profession in droves. My school lost 5 teachers at the end of this school year. I teach at K-8 in Florida.
I am not a teacher but I have a friend who started teaching this year and I have been building him a list of videos to watch from your channel. I also have been enjoying your videos a lot so thank you. I tutor a student 5 days a week in math, and have used a number of your videos related to Google Classroom/Docs to get me into the world of lesson planning for my student.
I love your idea of Power List! There's a kazillion things to do each day.
There certainly isn't one way fits all scenarios - but I think this video is spot on in talking about the importance of managing and balancing work vs life. As Michelle reiterates, we need to find ways to do that and make it a habit. I teach in an independent school in Canada where I am required to do outdoor recess duty every day, teach all subjects for my grade 1 class and through it all, only receive one 40 minute planning break a week (5 years ago and prior we received none). Of course - with this type of a schedule, there is no way to get everything done during contract hours only. However, it is important to find ways that will help find your rhythm and balance in life. Thank you Michelle for encouraging this!
Thank you for this, Michelle. I really found the email tip helpful. You're so right about it leading down so many different rabbit holes!
I'm struggling with time management. And I think this video is really helpful. Wish me luck, everyone.
These are amazing tips, also I am a 5th grade student in Maryland too and I live pretty close. You are very creative and kind and my parents are teachers too and they take these tips, tricks to help them too! Thank you so much, love your vids !! 😁💕
Great tips! I grade papers as they turn them in, or as I collect them. My grade book is open on my computer, and I put them in immediately. Still have to work outside of contract hours. I only get 35 minutes of protected planning 3 times a week, but this helps getting more done in the day.
me too
@@valeriedynda2177 I teach elementary, and their tests/assignments must not be as long.
Michelle thank you so much for the power list suggestion!!! I used it last week and finally, I could finish my dissertation writing. 🙌🙌
Thanks Michelle. I always look forward to Sunday mornings. I know you have been fully remote. It helps with consistency. I have gone fully remote and hybrid (which always includes 6 fully remote learners) so many times. As soon as I get a routine things change again.I love my partner but she is a hot mess. (She said with love. ;)) She wants to do SO much so she is all over the place. She makes things then I have to clean them up because I can't put my name on it... I love her dearly, but we are very different.
Oh my goodness! Thank you Michelle, I am going to incorporate all of these into my "Teacher Life" when it begins. 7 more classes to go! 💗💗🙂
Thank you for this! Great ideas that are easy-ish to implement. I really like the idea of scheduling my prep time. I only get one prep a week so having a focus for that time really makes sense!
A work-life balance is so so important!
Sure it is but realistically unachievable.
Thank you and I am going to your podcast for the lesson planning. Awesome ideas.
REVOLUTIONARY!!!
I can use this in so many different ways... thankyou
I loved these tips! Working virtually has introduced me to the effectiveness of batch grading 💕
Thank you for your helpful advice. I enjoy listening to you explain things and I will definitely try your strategies. Keep making videos! You are a blessing to teachers.
Thanks for all yours ideas. Helps me to be better. I work in PR public system and we have a lot of task that the teacher needs complete.
Thank you for the great pointers! I truly believe we never stop learning no matter how old we are. 💖🤗
I love the idea of only responding to emails once a day - going to give that a try.
I’m on week two and I set those boundaries this week! This video solidifies my decision making 😅🎉
These are great tips! I use many of these and able to just work my contract hours. Collaboration is the key!!!!!! We share lesson planning !!
These are some great ideas, thank you. I like the idea of grading in batches. I’ve been doing the weekly to-do list for a few years and it has helped so much!
For those of you watching Michelle who appreciate all her videos please make sure you watch the ads if they pop up....it’s one way to compensate her for all her hard work!
These are great ideas and there is definitely some truth to all of these steps. I can tell you that many teachers will be able to cut down the work time SIGNIFICANTLY because of these steps. I’ve been batch planning for YEARS. It’s a time-saver.
Great ideas as always. I am a special education teacher so I do not get a planning period. My afternoons are when I get the most work done and I do still do a lot of work some evenings and weekends. I have gotten much better at not doing as much though. Like you I like having lists. I am old fashioned though I write my lists down either in my calendar or on a to do list. These past 2 weeks I have felt super productive because i have made myself a master list of items needed to get done everyday and on Fridays and it seems I am able to really knock the items out quickly that afternoon. I have it posted on my board above my desk area so i see it without going anywhere to look for it. ( I guess this is sorta my power list) Now when i have to start working on those iEP's that's a different story LOL. I love watching your videos and getting great ideas from you
Yes! I absolutely do my best to ONLY work contract hours. This is my 6th year teaching and I'm FINALLY getting the hang of writing lists and making sure I utilize my time the best way I can. Great video with wonderful tips! I wish I could have known all of this back in 2015 during my first year haha. :)
This was so great, thank you! Weirdly during hybrid teaching I had more time to mark and plan and so although it's great being back in the classroom full time, I'm now back to having 90 minutes of PPA a week (don't worry I also get a top up session each half term) so I really need to use my time before and after school to maximum effect. I am 100% a task switcher, it takes me ages to settle into my PPA time and I am Little Miss Last Minute so I really needed to hear some of this. I'm going to adapt my current ta da lists and create a lesson planning schedule to help reclaim my weekends. You're awesome, thanks again. :)
I taught MS and HS English for 10 years. The first three years I brought work home and stayed late. I realized I would burn out and hate everything if I didn’t stop. I only graded on my prep, or office hours, set up phone appts before school, and left 15 minutes after the last bell. I was much happier. If you’re going to have any kind of lengthy career of teaching, you can’t eat, breathe, and sleep it. Separate your life and enjoy it.
I'm 4 semesters from retirement and I just learned a load from you young lady! Switching my to-do list to a Power List TODAY! The email habit, I'm not sure but I will try. I definitely need to schedule my grading. I'm also downloading Google Tasks TODAY! You're a rockstar!
I'm teacher from Ukraine and I LOVE this channel! Thank you for your work!
And yeah I totally work over my contract hours so maybe your tips will help me))
As a geography instructor I love that you have a globe in the background.🌎🌍
Can you do a updated morning & night routine??
Yes!
I love your enthusiasm. I love that you are such 'the ultimate' optimist! Don't forget to put on your positive pants. LoL
I started planning my lesson plans in chunks and try and do two weeks of ela and two weeks of math at a time so I can alternate which I do each week.
I teach special education elementary students. I still find it hard to get everything done in my 50 min planning time.
Thank you so much Michelle! As someone who will be coming back from maternity leave of a year to a grade 4/5 class online, I feel like I have so many more tools after watching your videos. I feel a lot better and more prepared. Thanks so much!!!!
These are great tips. Many don't apply to my teaching situation, but the mindset ( efficiency and batching ) is very helpful.
I need to try these things for my teaching!! Thank you
Thank you for this video. I know the importance of routines in my personal life. Don’t know why it has not transferred into my profession like. I look forward to putting my positive pants on and start implementing these 5 things. Slowly of course because slow and steady wins the race. Blessings!
You are a God-sent! That power list tip is going to really help me stay on track. I’m really trying to get better with organization, but like you said, thinking about EVERYTHING you have to do makes you not want to tackle any of it because it’s overwhelming. So I’m definitely going to try the power list for each day.
Thank you so much for your tips.I'll start doing them all.
I like to use Microsoft To Do for my powerlist, they have the same tools and there is also a "Today" function so I can plan my day in the morning😊
Very inspirational video to get me organized - and possibly my team more so. My applications will be...
1) Choosing some times to use "Pause" on my email and NOT look at it
2) The power list
3) STOP being so distractified by other thoughts. I'm totally that person you described that starts one thing, but thinks of 16,000 other things as soon as I start working on it.
Really appreciate this
Thanks! You've mentioned many of these tips in other videos in some fashion although not as many examples and between these and your Google and Nearpod tutorials you helped me rock at student teaching! I did have to.work past contract hours but really 1-2 nights a week. I don't mind that since I'm completely new and was adapting to someone else's classroom. This helped in my first placement which was sped/secondary just not as much as 4th grade/gen ed (2nd placement). I look forward to using these tips once I'm licensed and doing my first job.
I also found that it's really important and you addressed this a bit with your power list to ask myself what are most essential for the students and I. I found planning shorter parts that are direct instruction and making sure there is always some form of discussion or collaboration time helped build connection. It took a few weeks to encourage students to be more active but once they realized it was a safe space they jumped on the chance to connect. I loved using Padlet for this since even when they were in breakout rooms I could still easily see everyone participating no matter which group I was with. Another thing I did which funnily enough helped keep to contract hours too was every other week we'd do "recess". We did a live session(we're fully remote) where we hopped on for recess together. This was about 20-30 minutes of lunch time. The students could talk about anything, connect, and we'd get a game going whether among us or something else. It guaranteed their focus Friday mornings since we didn't announce which Friday was a recess day until the end of our instructional sessions and it built great relationships. Something about killing their student teacher in Among Us brought them together lol and helped them feel more cohesive as a class. It was also great because students who normally weren't talkative happened to also be the best at games which encouraged them to talk up more in class.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING! During the past 2 weeks I've been trying to work on my habits regarding work because it usually consumes me a lot of time whether I have to plan, check assignments and prepare material! I'll definitely take into account these tips and I hope I get everything done on time in a better way. You're a great inspiration btw 🤩💜✨
Thank you, This will save me from a lot of lost time.
This is the key to longevity as a teacher. 👊🏻
I discovered your channel today and I´m fascinated with your wisdom and your kindness to share this with all of us! I love my job but I was looking for some tips and tricks for improve and........ Im so happy with your videos!!! I have sooooooo many material to review from! Lots of love for you😊🤗
I love the concept of the power list. This is definitely my go to productivity tool. Tfs
Very helpful tips! I will say batching is the best thing to do because I love to "task switch." That alone is tiring!!
Thanks!
THANK YOU! It's such a shock for every teacher when they enter the field just *HOW MUCH* we all do on the day-to-day. I might only be 23 years old but I feel like a mom to many of my middle schoolers. They see me more than their own families! I just posted a similar video, entitled #FirstYearTeacherAdvice. I learned so much in my first year teaching ESL Middle School Social Studies. *TEACHERS ROCK*
I wish I could get all my planning done during contract hours!! It's my goal to start reclaiming my weekends but with this being my second year only teaching the current levels of Spanish and French that I am teaching, I am essentially redoing my curriculum (last teacher was HEAVILY textbook for french).
These are SUCH great tips! I’m not in the classroom currently, but BOY would I have benefited from this knowledge way back when.🤩
Thank you so much for your videos! They're helpful because they're real and practical. I appreciate how you give us suggestions on what to do AND how to do it. One of the many reasons I love your channel and look forward to your Sunday videos to help me through the week!
I like how you put labels on your google keep notes. Definitely makes it more organized. I’ve been using it for years but it’s hard to quickly find the notes I need sometimes
So happy these things work for you. Wished it were that easy for us all.
1. How do you keep a power list to 3 items, when some days have 15 must do items?
2. Some email responses need to be answered immediately, either so the person knows an answer or so you can help fend off a parent or student crisis.
3. Grading only once a week? What if you give a quiz on Monday and need to know their understanding to adequately adjust plans for the rest of the week... some papers need immediate attention for RTI purposes...
4. Lesson planning schedule? Assuming our plan time has NOTHING else ever going on- meetings, parent phone calls, it’s party day, something urgent just came up...
5. Collaborative Planning- Would be AWESOME if all teachers on team were dedicated to quality plans (many I’ve worked with are not and i will not do what they planned anyway) and/or what if they aren’t synced perfectly with what you planned for other days- flow and structure are such an important part of quality plans.
Not trying to be a Debbie downer, just realistic.
These are great tips, but as a high school teacher of almost 25 years, there’s still no way I could get my marking and prep done during contract hours.
i agree. Im a high school special education teacher with 5 math classes.
Ditto
While I think many of the ideas are good, I teach 5th grade and could not finish this during contract time. Additionally, it sounds like she has more planning time than I do.
I love her. She is so informative and has helped me master google classroom. I don’t know what I would have done without her. I think she is amazing and should be a teacher trainer in a teacher college. But, as a 6th grade reading teacher with a daily 50 minute prep time that realistically is 40 minutes and between 80 -100 students average (That’s 100 TDAs and most responses are written in lieu of MC.), there is just no way. I wish there was.
Is there any way you can cut the amount of grading you do? For instance, randomly choose which assignment to grade instead of grading every assignment? I find if I am more strategic with my grading it can save me a lot of time and mental energy so I can concentrate on my lessons.
HI Michelle, hope this message finds you well. Big fan !!! Hope to see you on film/tv again. Kind regards
How can we only work contract hours when we have a grade level meeting during conference time on Monday with a faculty meeting after school, planning meeting during conference time on Tuesday and a new teacher meeting after school, an RTI meeting during conference time on Wednesday and a planning meeting on Thursday during conference time?
Take into account your contract hours and the state requirement of breaks. With what is being asked of you by Admin is it realistic? If not, talk to your Admin with a an entire breakdown of time and the expectations. If you have a Union you can talk to them and they can take it to Admin. Others probably feel the same way and should be allowed to speak up for themselves. We have the same problem over here, so we are taking it to our Union.
This! I have 80 minutes of plan time at the end of the day and I have meetings during every single one for the next two weeks!
Sounds like you need to contact your Teacher's union.
Such good info. I'm a first year teacher, I'm the only teacher in my building teaching my curriculum and it's been tough. We have been doing virtual since the fall but are heading to hybrid Feb 9th...nervous!
I have taught high school math for 36 years. I always take work home each night and spend a good portion of the weekend grading. I teach 6 of 7 classes and it is essential that we look at the student work. Completion grades are discouraged since they often result in great daily grades and horrid test grades.
Teaching for 36 years and working every night and weekend is not ok.
@@teachnthrive1014 I certainly agree, and I personally would not live that way, but one of my best teaching friends does. She's taught 35 years and works an hour and a half every day BEFORE school, and 4 hours after school EVERY DAY. She loves it. She would not know what to do with her time if she wasn't working like this. So, we all live our teaching lives differently
I love the idea of planning the planning time. I just experienced paralysis during this time again this week due to the lack of a plan. This is my 7th year, also.