Ending the School Year Stress Free

Did you catch that? Stress Free? Okay, I don’t quite believe it either. The life of a teacher is nothing remotely close to stress free, considering all of the end-of-year lessons, student assessments, cleaning our classrooms and putting our room in order for the end of the year. But I think there are a myriad of ways we can work towards lessening our frustrations and stress level with the end of the year upon us.

• Categorize your to do list. If you don’t already do so, consider breaking your to do list into categories. For instance, you can create a section labeled “To E-mail,” “To Copy,” “To Grade,” etc. Breaking down your tasks in this manner, especially at the end of the school year, allows you to see tasks in a new way at a glance. You can determine, in your busy day, what tasks can be done in a few minutes’ time (i.e. return an e-mail), versus those tasks that require a bit more work and effort (i.e. grading papers). Sometimes seeing tasks within these categories provides more immediate gratification, as you can cross off whole “sections” at a time, and focus on other tasks later on. And, the act of being able to cross off items on your to do list sometimes contributes to inspiring you to keep plugging along, helping you to stay energized to attend to your to do list each day.
• Grade projects, papers, and assessments in chunks, rather than all at once. There are times in my teaching life where I’ve worked countless hours at a time, completely exhausting myself in order to “get it all done” in one or two nights. But the reality is, I don’t always perform my best when working at this furious pace. Although the idea of “checking something off of a to do list” is extremely appealing, it is more costly to us in the long run because we sometimes sacrifice such qualities as accuracy and a sense of detail to the grading process. Grading just 4-5 projects, essays, or quizzes or tests at a time can take a few more days, but it provides you with a greater sense of pride in assessing in a quality manner, and allows you to participate in your own “downtime” activities outside of school. Thinking of grading in these “chunked” time frames provides better peace of mind and balance for you, both at school and at home.
• Carve out for yourself at least one activity per day for leisure. Even if it’s only for 20 or 30 minutes, determine to allow for some downtime. Read, cook, exercise, talk on the phone, write a letter, play with your dog. Some days, admittedly, I wake up, start my day off immediately thinking about all things school related. I continue through the day teaching, and then come home and work for several hours on school work. I then go right to bed. The whole day has been essentially all about teaching. No matter your profession or job, (or how much you love your profession or job), it’s important not to let it consume your thoughts or actions so that burnout will not ensue.
• Adopt a positive mindset. Sometimes when things get rough, it’s tempting to complain or allow negativity to rule. Instead, even when you do not feel as positive as you sound, you start to believe that which you profess. Saying, “It will all get done,” or “Tomorrow, I’ll finish a few more,” or ”I don’t need to do it all” will go a long way to allowing you to regroup and ready yourself for another day with a positive frame of mind.