Before School Starts

Active Listening: What the Ontario Curriculum Actually Says

In elementary, we spend time during the beginning of the year setting expectations and norms to build a healthy and welcoming classroom community. Best practice tells us to continue to reinforce these norms throughout the year—not just in September.

We often focus on oral communication early on, particularly active listening, as a means to ensure all voices are heard and valued. But did you know that the Ontario Language Curriculum doesn’t actually define “active listening”?

Here’s what it does say:

Effective Listening Skills
B1.1 use effective listening skills, including listening attentively and asking relevant questions, in formal and informal contexts, including conversations and classroom activities
— Grade 1, Ontario Language Curriculum (2023)

It does not define “active listening” as eyes on the speaker, mouth closed, hands in lap, sitting criss-cross with a calm body. Yet, the number of posters, anchor charts, classroom displays, and behaviour expectations across classrooms that frame it this way.

Some Considerations — Thinking Critically About Listening Norms

Let’s consider a few things. Are the ways we define and assess listening in our classrooms actually inclusive? Are they developmentally appropriate? Are they culturally responsive?

Here are a few questions to reflect on:

1. Do students need to look at the speaker to listen?

2. How are students sitting?

3. How are we measuring listening?

4. Are we privileging dominant cultural norms?

Instead of teaching a one-size-fits-all version of active listening, we can:

Model and co-create with students what listening looks like, sounds like, and feels like—acknowledging that it may vary by person
Encourage self-awareness: “What helps you listen and focus best?”
Prioritize authentic communication over performative behaviour.

Final Thoughts
As educators, our role is not just to teach curriculum, but to teach it in a way that honours identity, culture, and individual needs. Let’s move beyond posters and routines, and into a more inclusive, responsive approach to oral communication and classroom participation.

August 18, 2025 Geeta Kumar Celebrating Success, wellness

3 Lessons this Year

This school year, I felt a lot.

It was like bowling. I showed up each day and gave it my all. I aimed for that perfect strike each time.

As I reflect on my experiences this year, I know not every bowling ball hit its mark. Some days felt like a solid spare. Others? A complete gutterball.

Still, I kept going – frame by frame, day by day.

As I wrap up this year and reflect on what truly mattered, I’m walking away with three powerful lessons:

Boundaries Matter … so I can be sustainable.

With each year, I am getting better at setting boundaries between work and personal life. It is a practice I will continue to grow with. Setting boundaries allows me to be present for my students and team each day.

2. Progress Matters … so I can keep being my best for students.

Some mistakes were made. But the beauty of teaching is that there is always another frame, another day, to try again. Each “miss” forced me to learn how to better reach and support students.

3. The Arts Matters … so I can spark creativity in my students and myself.

Whether it was planning a themed literacy day, facilitating student projects, or simply rethinking a lesson through an equity lens—those creative sparks made the hard days brighter.

No, this year was not a perfect game.

But it was real, meaningful, and full of growth.

And for me, that’s more than enough.

What are your three lessons from this year? What matters to you the most?

August 1, 2025 Colleen Elep wellness

Why You Need to Celebrate your Work as an Educator

As elementary educators, it can get easy to forget about the amazing things we achieve every year. Our work is cyclical: we finish the year in June and re-start in September, which can sometimes feel as though we are starting from the beginning every time. It doesn’t help that the days can feel like a blur, with the hectic rush of marking, lesson planning, setup, and classroom management.

I went to a meeting recently in which every staff member seemed to be recognized for an achievement except me. It was a difficult experience to endure – I felt embarrassed, as though a whole school year had slipped through my fingers.

When the emotions passed and I finally had a moment to reflect, I started to look back at the previous 7-8 months, and what I had been able to achieve in that time. I realized I had a lot to celebrate – even though it may not have been visible to the team that I work with. And without getting into the specifics, the biggest discovery I made was that I needed to celebrate my wins more.

Why? Let’s take a quick look at why our professional achievements – big and small – are important to celebrate.

1. If you don’t honour yourself, who will?

Being an educator entails a lot of “behind the scenes” work of planning, marking, researching, and connecting with families and colleagues. Few people will know how much of yourself and your own resources you have put into the job but you. You are in fact the best person to remind yourself about the great things you have done and are doing.

Self-love is something I tend to struggle with, but I believe it is the first step towards feeling more confident and empowered personally and professionally. Don’t wait for others to notice your hard work – you may never get the recognition you seek.

2. Celebrating Your Achievements Supports your Mental Wellness.

Simply stated, it feels GREAT to take stock of what you have done throughout the school year. Did you build strong relationships and connections? Did you show up for work on days you were tired or stressed and still manage to provide students with a great day of learning? Have you seen growth in yourself and the students you work with?

Take a moment to think about and write down the amazing things you have done. Chances are, you have done much more than you realize in the time between September and June. And take a good, long moment to soak up that feeling of accomplishment. That “pat on the back” can do wonders for your self-esteem and drive your sense of self-worth through the roof.

3. Build Resilience.

Teaching is demanding work: days can be hectic, and we spend hours listening to others, managing classroom dynamics, and taking on different roles throughout our schools and boards to support its success. Moments of recognition fuel your ability to bounce back and keep going, particularly when we start to feel drained and depleted. Celebrating what’s working reminds you of your strengths, and also helps us to hone in on areas of improvement.

4. Reinforce Your Sense of Purpose as an Educator.

In the rush of routines, expectation-setting, and responsibilities, it’s easy to forget the “why”. Celebrating reminds you of the value you bring and the lives you’re impacting in your day-to-day work.

When you reflect on your work and celebrate your achievements, try to also remember why you became a teacher in the first place, and how your sense of purpose has evolved in your years of service. Through your achievements, you are fulfilling that purpose and affirming your commitment to your “why”.

August 1, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani Anti-bullying, Anti-Racism, Building Inclusion, Communication with Parents and Guardians, English As Second Language (ESL), English Language Learners (ELLs), Equity, Faculties of Ed, Language Learning, Learning About Your Students, Learning in a Real Life Context, Learning to learn, Making a Difference Through Education, Media Literacy, Wellbeing, Women at Work

Where in Mumbai?

The Places

We go from here and there through our day. Sometimes, we go to new places around our usual work location, whose address we enter into our devices so that we arrive promptly with time to spare, even. So one day recently, I thought I was just going to work.

The Context

Since December 2024, two colleagues and I have been collaborating with consultants in another department to work on a key resource that has helped many and will continue to help more students and educators as we move forward. Sometimes in March, just before a series of professional learning sessions, we met again. We had to get through a lot.

The Necklace Started It

I have always loved necklaces and I always wear one when I’m not in classrooms. This was one such piece.

A necklace with two double strands of flat turquoise beads and a large oval turquoise pendant set in silver. The back piece is made of small silver beads, silver fastening and black lava beads and round yellow beads. The necklace is set against a black background. — **My Necklace From Mumbai**

As colleagues from the other department came into the meeting room one of them complimented me on my choice. I thanked her and added, “It’s from Mumbai. Like me”.

A dear friend with whom I’d attended school (Grades 9-10) had gifted it to me from her collection when she visited last summer. But I didn’t have time to share that as we were at work, you know. We had a lot to do.

My colleague smiled warmly and asked, “Where in Mumbai?”

Where in Mumbai?

At the end of that long and busy week, my heart skipped a beat: In 21 years of working in education and 23 years living “here”, no one had ever asked me “Where in Mumbai?”

“Dadar”, I said.

My colleague told me where she grew up and I reminisced that I used to go shopping in that neighbourhood and had fond memories of some beautiful silver jewelry pieces I had bought there. I had also worked nearby to where she’d grown up. We talked about these places we both knew from what seems like another lifetime.

The glow of that conversation stayed with me and now we talk about books and authors and other things when we are in the same place, warming lunch.

Why This Question?

I have many friends in many spaces at work. We have lots of conversations and have many fond memories over the years. We talk about books, family (ours), pets (theirs), dreams and many other things.

Yet, just one question “Where in Mumbai?” has stayed with me differently. It is as if a locked door has sprung open.

Some points that come into view for me that I want to share with you, my fellow traveller.

I think about how we, as educators, recognize intellectually that the whole child comes to school.
Yet many of of us aren’t able to bring our whole selves to work.
I/we don’t talk about everything that makes me/us complete because either there’s too much to do, or more often, I/we don’t think anyone else knows of that place, that food, that fragrance and so on
I am sure there are many more meanings that will come to the surface for you and me when you read this. Do share.

There’s A Ghazal (Poem) For That

So here are some lines from a ghazal written by Gulzar and sung by Jagjit Singh that explain that feeling of perhaps being The Only One in a space. These lines explains the feeling of a solitude that I couldn’t put into words until that question “Where in Mumbai?

“Aainaa dekh karr tass-allee hui

Humko iss ghar mein jaan-taa hai koi”

The Translation Goes Like This

I was reassured when I looked in the mirror

That someone knows me in this house.

Thank you, dear colleague- friend who has memories of Mumbai. Not identical ones, but just like I do.

I can’t wait to see you again.

Fellow Travellers, I wish you such unexpected and pleasant encounters in your work spaces.

And if you know Mumbai, or Goa, please write back.

With You, In Solidarity

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

June 15, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani Anti-Racism, Building Inclusion, Celebrating Success, Climate Change, English Language Learners (ELLs), Equity, Learning About Your Students, Report Cards, Student wellbeing, Weather, wellness, Year End Reflection

Let Us Take The Time To Reach Out

The pages of the calendar turn relentlessly. June is here and we’re busy in a different way. The weather is cool one day and warm on another. Some days, the skies are filled with smoke and those of us far away from the site from where this smoke comes, are mindful that not everyone is.

We have one home, this beautiful planet.

How Did I Do?

One writing from me had the words, “How did I do?” We’ve all gone through it: being assessed and evaluated. Now, our jobs require this work of reporting and evaluation to be done. Students at different times of the year receive institutional texts and then may come back to us the next day after sharing that text with people in their lives. Those are other report cards and those are other times.

This One Is Different

The June report card is different. Students leave at that last bell of the last day of school. In the Fall, they will go down the hall to another classroom, to another school in the neighbourhood, to another province or to another country. The lives of children are so directed by the fortunes of their families that over these life events they have limited control.

This we know, though in the busyness of life, I/we may not always remember.

Goodbye and See-You-Later

I was listening to a podcast by a gardener whose work I follow and something he said stays with me, relatable to various stages and aspects of life: When you move on and someone else is gardening now, you have no say in what they do in the space that you loved.

So in my role or yours next year, when you see our students in someone else’s classroom down the hall, we need to walk on. We are here if someone reaches out to collaborate. That’s it.

You can only reassure yourself that when you were there, you did your best and the people and plants thrived. When you have taken care of the classroom or learning space or garden and given your best, when you’ve done due diligence to your professional judgement, it’s time to pull the door behind you and walk on.

From that thought shared by the celebrity gardener, I added in this my reminder to self and to you, my fellow travellers: Whether in a classroom or a supportive role, you have, just like in life, finite time. Finite seasons. How can I/you make the best of each one?

A Special Message

In these busy times we may have different ways in which we take time to care for ourselves. For me it is precipitation: rainy days always make me happy because in my heart I remember the monsoon of the home I left behind. The Monsoon in Mumbai always came on June 13th, so right about now, my heart calls me to a place I feel in my cells and in my soul.

Is there something that you remember deeply? Do share.

Nostalgia: is the pain of remembering. It’s a sweet pain especially on days when a dear friend, here, pops into my phone with something they remember from a previous conversation. Neither Hindi nor Urdu are their home languages which is why I am touched that they remember this conversation, and this memory

I am sharing the exchange below.

3 text messages from a phone screen that read 1. Hi Rashmee, how are you doing? 2. The air smells of wet earth today and I am thinking of you. 3. Saundhi Khushboo — My friend’s message on a rainy day

Saundhi Khushboo (saun-dhee khoosh-boo) the post-rain fragrance of the soil.

I smile on this Monday in June and I watch the raindrops .

Wishing you peace and calm in the midst of the busyness

With You, In Solidarity

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

P.S: Saundhi Khushboo is now added to my dictionary in my spell check – that felt good.

June 2, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani AQ-rofessional development, Before School Starts, Celebrating Success, Classroom Layouts, Combined Grade Classes, Curriculum Planning, Differentiated Instruction, Inspiring Teachers, Language Learning, Learning About Your Students, Learning to learn, Math, Student teachers, The Daily 5

The Corner Cafe: Part 1

Remember When?

Times flies, doesn’t it?

It is 5 years this June since I was hired for a centrally assigned position that I started that September. Fortunately, as my role in this school district is designed in a way that I can co-plan, co-teach, co-debrief and co-reflect with my colleagues, I am not distanced from students. Yet, I feel a twinge on my heartstrings when I pick up a picture book or find something exciting to share as I do not always have a classroom to take this back to right away, the next day.

So I rely on a quiet activity called “Remember When?” to keep alive the fond memories that keep the 21 years in this work as a teacher well irrigated so that they can continue to bring me joy. I am sharing one such memory below, deeply rooted in intentional planning and pedagogy.

The Corner Cafe

I have taught in 2 schools in my 21 year career.

At the school with the gorgeous sunrise, I was a Grade 7-8 science teacher then a Special Education Resource Teacher in an Intermediate Student Support Centre. Our core focus was literacy and mathematics, social skills and advocacy skills among others.

With the deep commitment to support my students, I had planned and intentionally set up the CAFE Bulletin Board based on the the skills development focus on Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Expand Vocabulary outlined in the CAFE Book.

What Does CAFE Mean ?

In the book mentioned above and in the pedagogical process planned around it, CAFE means

Comprehension
Accuracy
Fluency
Expand Vocabulary

It Is Not “Just A SERT Thing”

Some colleagues with whom I partnered and co-taught also used this template to set up similar CAFE boards in their classrooms. Students, when integrated in subject areas saw the same skill building supports. They did not see this board as “Just something we do in the SSC”. My colleagues and I participated in authentic partnerships incorporating Tier 1 practices for the benefit of all students (and occasional teachers who worked alongside when we were away as the classroom was the 3rd teacher). Such partnerships are possible and work well when it is acknowledged that SERTs also have subject specialities.

It was not “Just A SERT thing” or something some students needed. We all used it. As a cricket and basketball fan, I would ask my students to recommend readings for me to demonstrate my understanding. We would use this space to document my wonderings around hockey and baseball, two sports with which I am not as familiar and students saw me as a comprehension constructor and fluency builder as well. They could give me feedback about what they saw me doing and bridged over to what they would like to try. Deconstructing my comprehension challenges and examining how I made meaning opened up space for students’ learning journeys.

And Then I Moved…

After 2004-2018, I decided to move to another school, after much thought and soul searching. When I got there, my 3-4 SSC was in a much smaller space. Students at this school did not know me and their previous teacher had left the school so they were not comfortable with change, I learned.

To support them as much as me, I set up another CAFE space at my 2nd school.

Here with the added emphasis on critical thinking but with younger students and a smaller space, I also incorporated individualized Q Charts where students could ask questions from their everyday lives. We moved to other topics through the year that aligned with their science and social studies classes so the pre-teaching of content vocabulary and comprehension access happened before and side by side with their subject classes. We CAFE’d everything.

A student placing sticky notes on a Question Matrix

Students Remember

The Corner Cafe became a beloved and effective Literacy Hub at 2 schools in The East in a large publicly funded school board in Ontario. You did not need an IEP to work in the CAFE. We worked together so that students felt stronger to transfer their literacy and mathematics skills in other settings. Our walls were rich and instructionally strategies were intentionally planned and implemented.

I attended the Grade 8 graduation ceremony last year at School 1 and 2 and plan to go again this year as my then-Grade 3s are graduating.

Soon after I left School 2 to take up my centrally assigned work, I would get emails from The Cafe Students. They set up their own “Cafe Classroom” and emailed me to invite. So, we organized a virtual visit through their teacher and I got to hear all the wonderful things they were learning and doing.

“We remember The Corner Cafe”, they said. Then after some “tell her, tell her” whispers, they added “And we practice CAFE”. That was a warm cuppa joy for me.

Some Guiding Questions

How am I using the CAFE framework to strengthen student learning?
How am I using resources connected to Culturally Responsive and Relevant Pedagogy to support my learning and professional judgement?
How am I supporting content areas in leveraging CAFE in subject-based comprehension for all students?
How am I using ETFO resources to support my work?
Any others you may come up with as you continue your work through your career.

If you decide to or have already set up a CAFE in your school, please take a peek at the instructional areas highlighted above.

Things Change: Please Engage Professionally and Responsibly

Although research and practice have changed in Ontario and elsewhere over the years, when I did this work, some things were different. Now, there are new resources and conversations that guide our work as ETFO members and different school districts will likely have their own supported initiatives.

I therefore invite readers to see this writing and sharing as a window into that classroom where students and I strengthened our practices. We used this board and this mindset to strengthen content literacy as well because as a J/I teacher first and foremost, I was also mindful of the importance of being able to read and comprehend subject areas like science, social studies, history, geography and mathematics.

The concept of CAFE is not my creation.
I applied it to my classroom programme and students ad have shared the sources I used to develop this learning space in two schools.
If you choose to set up a CAFE in your school, do reach out.
If you have already set up a CAFE at your school, and want to discuss ideas, please connect.

With You, In Solidarity

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

May 5, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani Advocacy for change, agency, Anti-bullying, Anti-Racism, Building Inclusion, Classroom Management, Communication with Parents and Guardians, Constant Learning, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Language Learning, Learning About Your Students, Learning in a Real Life Context

Sweet Moments, Different Names

Hello Fellow Travellers,

I’ve written in previous posts about the wonderful opportunity of learning from and with students when I’m invited to collaborate with educators who work with students from kindergarten to age 21.

This past week as we approached the end of a cooler-than-usual April, the sun shone warmer and a long awaited Spring peeped out from behind grey clouds that had greeted us in previous months. One Friday afternoon before the long weekend, I was in a Grade 7 classroom. I arrived during lunch and went upstairs as pre-decided with the teacher. I found a corner to work until lunch time was over and the teacher came back.

Soon, the students came in also and the two nearest to me asked who I was and as always, I respectfully mentioned that I’d introduce myself when their teacher invited me to. As always students had questions – my name, where am I from, what’s my favourite food and so on. I usually stay with 10 questions so the teacher’s planned lesson can continue and we review classroom expectations prior so that students remember that every person who enters their class deserves respect.

Something To Think About

One student asked me what is the most important thing about my job and I said that I get to experience hope and joy when I interact with students. They asked me if I was part of their history lesson and while I was not co-teaching it, I could be. Our lives as people are interconnected after all. I enjoyed the interaction among students during their history lesson that was about the fur trade in this land now known as Canada. There were many deep questions they asked their teacher.

Moving On To Other Topics

Then it was time for their reading buddies to come in. There was a bustle of activity as everyone was excited. Their teacher reviewed the expectations for them and students prepared to welcome the younger students. One student whose ancestral heritage was different from mine at first glance to them, approached me and said, “I have one more question: Do you like sooji ka halwa?”

I replied “Yes, I do. But I don’t call it sooji ka halwa”

“Really? What do you call it then?”, they asked.

In my mother tongue, we call it sheeraa” I said.

“It is cool that sooji ka halwa has another name. I have heard some people call it just sooji then?” the student said. “Yes”, I said. “Why is that?” the student asked.

I replied from a knowledge I had received over the years, and which has grown stronger since travelling far and learning from many. “Languages are beautiful. They grow and change over time and become richer also. The same thing can have many names and be experienced in many different ways by different people”

“Sooji Ka Halwa has many names then!”, the student remarked with a smile.

“And you know, sooji is semolina, so sooji ka halwa is “halwa/dessert made from sooji. Sometimes it’s called sooji also”, I said.

This was an unexpected sweet moment in my day and that evening, to commemorate that day, I made some sheera (or sooji ka halwa) following the recipe I learned from my Amma. I am sharing it here.

Perhaps if we meet sometime, we can connect over conversation about food that we know and love, even if they have different names. I am looking forward to those times.

Rashmee’s Amma’s Sheeraa Recipe

Ingredients

2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)

1 cup sooji (semolina)

2 cups milk

1 cup sugar

1 tsp elaichi (cardamom) powder

Method

In a kadhai (thick bottomed pan or wok), add ghee and let it melt

Turn the heat down and add sooji gently

Keep stirring until the sooji changes to a pinkish colour and becomes fragrant.

After 3-4 minutes add two cups of milk and keep stirring until the mixture cooks well

Add sugar and elaichi powder and keep stirring

Put the pan on a frying pan for indirect heat (so it’s not directly on the stove)

Cover it

In a few minutes remove the lid and stir again.

The sheera is ready to share and enjoy!

I wish you many sweet experiences and special interactions in your travels…

With you, in solidarity

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

P.S: Before I left, the student smiled and said “I also like your shoes”

red and white sneakers against a white classroom floor. — My Earned Shoes

April 7, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani Advocacy for change, Anti-bullying, Before School Starts, Building Inclusion, Equity, General, Inclusion, Mentorship, Professional Learning and Growth

The Importance of Questions (Part 2)

Noticing The Questions

As I composed this piece in the last weeks of December, I was aware that it has the potential of being more than a 2 part piece. I continue to notice questions in everyday professional spaces. Questions asked around me stand out because the language that goes from seemingly innocuous talk to formal texts that in turn guide trajectories of educational work and the outcomes for students.

If those outcomes unfold on paths of equity and social justice, I always look deeper for the driving gear: who is the person – parent, family friend, educational worker or combination of all three or more who have made it their mission to ensure that that student achieves their fullest potential.

Also, sometimes the topics I write about invite readers to take a deep and honest look around so that we can be authentically inclusive in our professional practice towards all with whom we interact. A twinge here and there is therefore okay, it helps us sharpen out growth mindset as ETFO members.

Some Spaces Are Special

A black metal park bench beside a walking track with three red-leafed trees behind it. The grass around it glows in the sunshine — A Special Park Bench (Karnad-Jani, 2024)

Notice this beautiful bench situated along the walking track around the cricket pitch beside the school with the gorgeous sunrise where I worked for 14 years. In 2018, after considering many factors, mostly around breathing room and well being, I had decided to move to another school. But I still walk here every season as long as the paths are ice-free. So it was that one late summer in the last week of August, shall we say, I met up with a former student now an educator who wanted to talk through some career decisions.

Such walks are mutually supportive as I can give back to the communities of practice that steady me and another educator can have an unconditional space to air their ideas and possibilities. We walked a few laps and sat down to take in the view. A warm breeze was blowing and I was thinking of 6 students in my last three years at this school with whom our team used to walk this track daily for our observation skills, social skills, and conversational and communication goals with our flip and talk books etc. One student had clearly described this very bench as “A park bench is like a chair that’s outside. It is longer than the chair inside our class and you can’t pick it up.” How delighted we were at this description! It is one of the special memories of that time

What are YOU doing here?

Just then, someone I knew from years ago stopped in front of me and demanded, “What are you doing here?” and without waiting for a response, walked on. My walking companion was as startled as I was at this interaction if one could call it that. “What was that, Ms. Karnad-Jani? They did not even wait for a response.”

My heart beat quickened from past memories of having faced this question in various spaces.

Deep breath in. Look around. Exhale. I was glad I was in a beautiful space outside that helped me compose myself. We walked some more and that was that.

I have thought about this question often as it appears in our lives in many ways.

When one is asked “What are YOU doing here?” we can claim space individually and collectively to support one another when this question comes up that may challenge our very presence in some, many, any spaces.

I am sharing Claiming Space: Self-Identifying With My Union from 2018 which is always relevant. Also please read the Letter from the Editor highlighting the writing from the issue in which this article was published.

Also, always consult and implement the guidelines outlined in ETFO’s Terms of Use when using any published materials in professional learning and elsewhere because all of us who write academically and professionally work very diligently to think about the ideas we share with you.

"I am ETFO" button with the word "also" added in reads " I am also ETFO" — I wear my “I am ETFO ” button proudly.

With You, In Solidarity,

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

February 20, 2025February 20, 2025 Rashmee Karnad-Jani Constant Learning, First Nations, Indigenous Perspectives, Indigneous Ways of Knowing, Learning About Your Students, Play-Based Learning

Learning from the Land

It’s mid-February, almost March perhaps when we have this conversation.

As the school year and calendar year move on, we see the days getting longer. Our thoughts turn to warmer weather and with that, we continue to think of different ways in which we as ETFO members can continue to engage our students in learning.

Some schools that have access to open spaces and trees around their buildings are wonderful spaces for outdoor education activities. Some classes may visit outdoor education centres if accessible while others may create opportunities to take their students outside. A reader and colleague from our local who recently visited an outdoor education centre wrote to me to share that their students engaged in so much learning and were so welcomed there that the member wrote a letter to the centre staff to thank them for the interactions. How wonderful it is when we take the time to let people know how much their intentional and inclusive pedagogies matter to us.

In 2023 when I taught Science and Technology Methods to Primary/Junior Teacher Candidates at an Ontario university, it was wonderful to hear pre-service educators speak of how they would make the outdoors accessible to their students by making hats, mittens, snow pants available through donations at the school if needed or bringing learning opportunities into their school yard for all students to participate. It was indeed heart warming that many of the teacher candidates connected with the Science and Tech curriculum along with developing a deep understanding that families and students benefit from our sensitive understanding when we coordinate access. It is very important to widen the circle for multiple entry points. Disability Justice is also an important aspect that we can continue to speak of when we welcome pre-service teachers into our spaces.

I am sharing ETFO’s Indigenous Land Based Learning Resource so that we can continue to learn with and beside one another. Let’s also invite our centrally assigned colleagues who can guide us in this journey.

With You, In Solidarity

Rashmee Karnad-Jani

February 3, 2025 Colleen Elep General, Mentorship, wellness

Protecting your Energy: 4 Things I Wish I Had Done Differently in My First Years as a Teacher

Hindsight is a gift, and I have never appreciated it more than when I talk with newer teachers and share the things I wish I knew when I was in their position. So what advice would I give to a new teacher? The number one piece of advice I would give is to protect your energy. You will need your energy for yourself, your family, and for all the other demands that teaching can bring.

I have distinct memories of putting my head down at the end of the day and nearly falling asleep, taking bags of student work home that I inevitably would not mark that night because I was just too tired to face it. When I became a parent, it became clear that I needed to preserve my energy since there was no longer an option to take a break after school and a long commute.

I’m thankful when I consider how much experience has made my life easier. I spend less time stressing over things that I cannot change, working “smarter” instead of harder to be more efficient, and knowing when it is time to stop working and focus on what matters – health, family, and relationships.

Teaching a new class, and planning units and lessons is so much better when you know where to start. As a new teacher, it was overwhelming to face the realities of planning, classroom management, and school events every day.

Here are the top 4 things I would do to protect my energy if I were a new teacher – and even if you are not “new” to the profession, perhaps you will find something you can bring to your practice.

Rethink Classroom Management

When I started teaching, I foolishly believed that all my energy should be focused on creating great lessons and planning activities. Let’s be clear – this is all very important – but you’ll never get to implement those plans if you don’t have a well-managed class.

Classroom management is so much more than setting high expectations for achievement and behaviour and setting up routines and roles (though those are all important elements to have in place). It is also about determining which times of the day will be most conducive for teaching certain subjects and running certain activities.

For example, in my experience, mornings are usually the best time for teaching essential core subjects like literacy and numeracy. The later part of the morning and later afternoons are times well spent for independent or group work. These are great times to take your foot “off the pedal” and create space for collaboration, relationship-building, and student conferencing.

It can be exhausting when you feel like you are constantly trying to calm students down, or motivate students to self-regulate when you are in the middle of a lesson. Know when your lesson simply isn’t working, and when it is time to shift gears. A good “red flag” is when you can feel your own emotions – frustration, anger, or despair – bubbling up.

Focus on Time-Saving and Efficiency when Planning

When I started teaching, I found that resources were scarce, and my colleagues were rather protective of the content they had created. To be fair, the internet was nowhere near as useful as it is today and educators were deeply dependent on textbooks and blackline masters (no, we didn’t have Google Drive to keep all those documents close at hand). I spent endless hours trying to develop lessons and content, and naturally never had the time to get my lessons exactly the way I envisioned.

Avoid spending excessive time researching and creating content – this can be a drain on your valuable planning time minutes and after school time. Focus instead on building on the content that is already available to you – whether you find something great online that aligns with the Ontario curriculum (always be critical of what you discover on the internet), at a professional learning session, a teacher resource, or content a colleague has shared.

As an experienced teacher, I now know that most, if not all of my energy on the job should be spent teaching, working with and managing my class, and adapting content for neurodiverse and multilingual learners. Sure, it can be fun and even rewarding to develop a brand new lesson – but if you are teaching multiple subjects avoid doing this for everything all the time.

Another great energy-saving strategy is to co-teach a unit or lesson with a teacher whose schedule aligns with yours, or that knows your class. Swap classrooms to implement a lesson you know well. For example, I had a colleague who was great at teaching podcasting, so I’d teach his class a lesson in news article writing while he’d teach a podcasting lesson to my class.

Get Connected with the Right People and their Resources

It’s amazing how much time and energy you’ll save by networking with the right people and leveraging their resources, knowledge, and experience. There are so many other educators in your school and board that have expertise and can share their “tried and true” strategies, tools, and resources.

For example, you may have teachers who have a role where their purpose is to share resources and consult in areas like educational technology, literacy, mathematics, the arts, or or social studies. They may have the title of coach, itinerant, or resource teacher – it can vary from one board to another.

You may have people you work with that are particularly passionate or skilled in an area like math or reading. They can tell you exactly what practices are most effective, which will save you a lot of research and time spent on trial and error.

Optimize Assessment

I remember being a teacher that gathered piles and piles of student work, only to be overwhelmed when reporting time came near. Save yourself a lot of marking time by taking a triangulated approach where you are not only collecting products, but frequently gathering evidence from conversations and observations.

It is important for students to be assessed through multiple means, so gather assessment as much as possible through activities like group work, presentations, and media creation. Assess students in the moment, and focus on providing 2-3 pieces of feedback at a time (and share it in the moment, if possible). Use an tablet or mobile device to gather assessment data quickly and take photos of student work and collaboration for your records.

Final thoughts

Your time and energy is precious. Protecting your energy as a teacher is critical for work-life balance – ensuring that you are investing your efforts wisely is key to longevity in the job and maintaining your mental wellness.