Wellness – Page 5

January 19, 2012 Erin.Grewar Learning About Your Students, Planning, Wellness

Refreshed, Rejuvenated and Replenished

The beginning of the year is obviously a great time for fresh starts in all areas. With regards to teaching, I find that a break of two weeks does wonders to clear the mind and soul (not to over exaggerate or anything) from any built up negativity, grouchiness or even lackadaisical behaviour on the part of the teacher once the holiday countdown begins.

Coming back to school rested and refreshed allows me to regain a more centered sense of objectivity and balance. I always take this opportunity to switch up the seating plan, reorganize the classroom layout and generally try to freshen up the environment. In addition, I also use this window of opportunity when students come back with hopefully some of the same mindset to resolve any lingering and ongoing issues around behaviour, attitude or work ethic. I find that approaching them at this point, right at after the break, allows for a frank and productive conversation without the build up of aggravation, tiredness and downright animosity on the part of both parties.

In other words, now is a great time to reinvent or tackle anything that had previously been unsettling you before the onslaught of marking, report cards, form collecting, winter activity days, committee meetings, extra-curricular activities…brace yourselves!

January 16, 2012January 16, 2012 Samantha.Perrin Communication with Parents and Guardians, Learning in a Real Life Context, Wellness

New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year!!!

The New Year is a great time to reflect on the previous year and to set goals and resolutions for the year ahead. I spoke to my students about New Year’s resolutions and shared some of my personal goals for school and for myself at home. I felt it was important for the students to see that setting goals help to make a person ‘better’ and that it is no different than the practice and work that they put in every day into their learning. The message was not lost on them, and they were enthusiastic to prove that you’re never too young to start goal setting. In fact, I think that my young students really understood the purpose and value of goal setting because they grow, learn and improve so quickly (for example, in learning how to read).

Together the students came up with their own definitions of resolutions and we discussed the purpose and value of articulating a goal and coming up with a plan for meeting that goal. Then, we all took turns sharing one resolution that pertains to school and one that pertains to home life. The students then wrote about their goals for display in the school. This week I will be sending a copy of the students’ resolutions home with them to serve as a reminder and a discussion point for parents in helping their children achieve their goals.

Click here to see some pictures of this activity from my classroom.

It’s important to strive for improvement, whether it is for the benefit of work or school, but also as busy teachers, for achieving health and balance, which I will be working on myself in 2012.

December 5, 2011December 5, 2011 Alison.Board Mentorship, Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

Relationships

Reading through the previous posts, I see a common thread; the value of relationships. Building relationships are an integral part of our success as teachers and require initiative, consistency, and care. I often feel drained at the end of a school day, and need a quiet space and time to recharge (usually this is limited to my car and the time it takes to drive home!). When you think of how many children, parents, teachers, and support staff that you engage with in a day, it is understandable that teaching can take a lot out of you. On the flip side, it is also stimulating and energizing. It is the rewarding relationships with students and colleagues that motivate us and support us as professionals to keep doing what we do.

A new teacher has many things to keep in mind, but building positive relationships with a network of people will have lasting effects. A mentor may be a teacher that you are paired with based on a commonality recognized by administration, or simply by the willingness of the mentor to take on the role. It is an excellent opportunity to have a “go-to” person for your questions throughout the year. Often, there are other teachers that you meet that become unofficial mentors or supporters. In my first year of teaching I got to know the teacher that was the closest in physical proximity (the classroom next to mine) and although she taught a different grade and left the school a year later, she continues today to be an unofficial mentor for me, always receptive as a sounding board for my concerns and offers thoughtful guidance. Exchanging ideas with a colleague is another way to support your practice in a less formal way. There is a teacher at the other end of the hall at my school that I have connected with and we often cover an array of topics from instructional practices to field trip ideas to incorporating technology, all within a five or 10 minute conversation. It has become a routine that we walk to the parking lot (it’s a long walk) together once or twice a week as an opportunity for exchanging ideas and sharing information.

Build relationships and build a network to sustain your growth as a teacher. Be willing to ask questions and be willing to share your knowledge and experiences with others.

November 15, 2011 Samantha.Perrin Mentorship, Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

Using Release Time….

In my last blog post ‘ The Power of Partnership’, I discussed the powerful impact that partnering with a grade team member/mentor has had on my teaching. I related that my mentor and I have been using common planning time and regular check-ins to align what is going on in both our classrooms and share our resources and reflections.

Mentorship and co-planning has been wonderful for me, however for some teachers, establishing a common planning time with a colleague can be challenging for many reasons such as differences in scheduling or teachers’ responsibilities. There can also be school or board-wide initiatives that might require more of a teacher than time that they set aside for classroom planning. Fortunately the New Teacher Induction Program enables Ontario school boards to provide beginning teachers (and their mentor teachers) release time that allows for such planning. The school board that I teach in has a Job Embedded Learning Initiative that allows beginning teachers and newly hired Long Term Occasional teachers release time for activities such as attending workshops, visiting a model classroom or working with a mentor, and I have found it to be helpful in the past and intend to use it again this year.

In my case, our school is adopting some new initiatives that are intended to improve upon the way we have been typically teaching in the past. My mentor and I feel that we could use some time for long-range planning and to effectively wrap our heads around what these initiatives look like in our classrooms ( with respect to the materials that we already have and the curriculum). We are going to utilize my board allocated release time for planning and we plan to find ways to combine the resources and materials that we already have with the school’s learning goals. We hope to try out our new ideas and then share our successes and strategies with the other teachers in our division.

For beginning teachers that don’t have a close mentoring relationship or someone to take planning time with, there are options to visit other classrooms in the board or attend workshops. In the past, I have found that using release time has really allowed me to spend a block of focused time on classroom planning. It has also been beneficial to visit other schools and look at the best practices of other teachers. I am thankful that my school board recognizes the huge learning curve that beginning teachers face and provides opportunities and choice for how teachers can best use their time for learning.

So, if you haven’t thought of it already, mentors and beginning teachers, consider looking into what kind of support your board is able to provide you with, and consider the many options that will enhance your teaching!

November 4, 2011November 4, 2011 Tina.Ginglo Wellness

Sleep

Like Roz, since September, I have been up really late most nights planning, organizing, assessing, and trying to keep up with board and school initiatives. Most nights, I go to bed t feeling good about the engaging activities I have planned for my students. Then the alarm rings 5 – 6 hours later…

I find myself driving to school feeling beat. What a terrible way to start a day. I have come to realize that my great lessons turn out to be “not so great” when I can’t get myself out of second gear all day long. I have decided to pack it in earlier most nights. I may go to bed a little less planned, but I am getting 8 hours sleep. Now, more often than not, my lessons turn out the way they were planned because I have more energy to move and think…and most importantly, I enjoy my students and their abundant energy so much more!

October 31, 2011 Samantha.Perrin Mentorship, Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

The Power of Partnership

Like Roz and Sangeeta, I too am figuring out ways to strike a balance between work and life amidst the organized chaos of teaching. Teaching a different grade each year is a challenge. Every day, the joy of teaching is a juggling act: IEP’s, managing behaviour, integrating lessons, preparing materials and assessments, chasing down assignments, reporting, communicating with parents… It has been said that it takes a village to raise a child, and I believe us teachers are doing our students and ourselves a disservice if we try to do it in the isolation of a single classroom.

Being new to a school can be a little isolating at first because one hasn’t had the time to develop the strong collegial relations that an established staff already has. Though every school I have taught at has welcomed me warmly, I have found that it takes some time to learn who your ‘go to people’ can be which can be complicated further if you’re using your lunch hour for work and others are busy making the most out of their time as well. Over time, I have learned that to start building collegiality and partnership is to start by asking. I ask questions. I ask if teachers are interested in collaborating. I ask if they can share. I ask if we can meet. And I offer too. I offer what I have and the skills that I bring. After all, partnership is give and take. Through the power of collaboration I am learning that I able to be more attuned to the things that need to be done, while feeling less fragmented by all of the balls that are flying in the air.

This year, I have been collaborating closely with one of my colleagues who has inadvertently become my mentor. We meet on a common prep time once a week and map out what our week looks like, share materials and resources and brainstorm ideas together. We build on each other’s ideas, pull out books to read, make to do lists, refer each other to helpful information sites, pull what needs to be photocopied, divide the labour and regroup halfway through the following week to reflect on how the students are doing, what we found challenging and share with each other what we would do differently. It is a wonderful partnership.

I can’t even begin to share what a relief it is to be able to collaborate so closely with an experienced teacher on such a regular basis. For one, my thoughts aren’t going into overdrive figuring out ways to organize the multitude of information that I come across daily. Because we approach the teaching of our respective classrooms as a shared responsibility, I can worry a little less that I may not have certain materials in the classroom to do an art lesson, or that I am missing information that needs to be communicated in a newsletter or calendar to parents (which is likely to happen if you’re new to a school or a newly hired LTO). I have a ‘go-to-person’ that can come to my aid or fill in the blanks, and this has been so good for my peace of mind. I am sleeping better and have the energy to accomplish all of the things that I set out to do with my students , and I think it is making me a better teacher.

October 17, 2011October 17, 2011 Roz.Geridis Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

Taking Care of Me

IEPs, religious holidays, released professional learning, extra curricular, occasional teacher plans, parent meetings, and report cards in two weeks. I forgot to mention all the family obligations. Where do I find time for myself? Right about now is where heads are spinning and tension starts building. The school year has barely begun and I have to write report cards.

I have to remember to take care of myself and so do you. In my school, the cold bug has been going around the school the last three weeks. As much as I am fighting one off, I know it is coming and probably will hit me after report cards. I have seen the signs and realize it is time I begin to take care of myself. Since the school year began, I haven’t seen much of my friends. I also haven’t been able to get to the gym more than once during the school week — if I make it that many times.

In the past, I had a set routine which I need to think about again. My lunches, can be made and frozen on the weekend. Even dinners can be partially made on the weekend. This weekend, I took the time to cut up the vegetables to add to my salads and dinners. Some vegetables are not good to be pre-cut but many are great. I also made a soup which I have jarred to take to school for lunch. Making a little more of your weekend dinners can either be your weekday lunches or dinners.

I am also looking to make more personal commitments to stick to. Picking a time to leave the school and stick to it. At this point, I am going to aim to leave the school 30 minutes earlier. I am also going to commit to doing something for me twice a week; whether it is going to the gym, reading non educational book, meeting friends for dinner, or having a bath.

Teaching is a very demanding job, both physically and mentally. Whatever your goals are find some time for your interests and wants. We all need to take care of ourselves as our students (and families) will only benefit from it.