Ready, Steady.... GO!
Christmas came and went. January rolled around and like many teachers around NZ I could feel the clock ticking. I had SO much to do before school started back. The list was growing by the day, things I had been putting off all year, waiting for the blessed summer holidays when I finally would have some time on my hands. So in between trips to the beach, and afternoons swimming in the river, I cleaned and sorted, I water-blasted and painted, I rearranged and then rearranged some more. I even cleaned my oven! (can you believe it?!) and defrosted my freezer (a small miracle!). I stood back and admired my work...
I was ready. Bring it on.
...OK, so I thought I was ready!
This week I have been attending the teacher only days at the school I have been placed at on practicum (a gorgeous wee rural school, who are punching well above their weight with some really innovative practise -I'm super stoked!), and although my house is looking spectacular and I felt in control. I had forgotten about me!
I was not work ready. I was not work fit.
Work fit is a term I heard a colleague using last year when she was increasing her hours at work. Being work fit is not about being physically fit (although that would help!). It's about being mentally fit. It seems people are starting to think a lot more about teacher well-being and their mental health. I recently joined a Facebook group called Empowering Energetic Educators. It's a "closed group for female teachers, teacher aids and support staff to become the healthiest & happiest version of themselves and role model for the children they teach". I think it's pretty great that we are talking about taking care of educators (the most important job in the world!).
Taking care of myself first and foremost it involves getting enough sleep. I function so much better when I have had a good night's sleep. Bedtime routines in our house get so screwed up in the holidays, because I know we can sleep in (HA!). So we have all been going to bed so much later (and two year olds really do not understand "sleeping in"!) and now I'm back learning new things and planning for the weeks to come, my brain very quickly turns to mush. My goal this week: get to bed early! This goal is not as easy as it sounds. As a working mother, it means being super organised getting dinner on early and getting kids showered and into bed earlier too (so hard when "it's still daytime Mum!"). It also means cutting out my late afternoon coffee. My late afternoon pick-me-up. Possibly the hardest step of them all!
OK I'm off to bed. A full day of PD awaits tomorrow. No time for mushy brains!
I was ready. Bring it on.
...OK, so I thought I was ready!
This week I have been attending the teacher only days at the school I have been placed at on practicum (a gorgeous wee rural school, who are punching well above their weight with some really innovative practise -I'm super stoked!), and although my house is looking spectacular and I felt in control. I had forgotten about me!
I was not work ready. I was not work fit.
Work fit is a term I heard a colleague using last year when she was increasing her hours at work. Being work fit is not about being physically fit (although that would help!). It's about being mentally fit. It seems people are starting to think a lot more about teacher well-being and their mental health. I recently joined a Facebook group called Empowering Energetic Educators. It's a "closed group for female teachers, teacher aids and support staff to become the healthiest & happiest version of themselves and role model for the children they teach". I think it's pretty great that we are talking about taking care of educators (the most important job in the world!).
Taking care of myself first and foremost it involves getting enough sleep. I function so much better when I have had a good night's sleep. Bedtime routines in our house get so screwed up in the holidays, because I know we can sleep in (HA!). So we have all been going to bed so much later (and two year olds really do not understand "sleeping in"!) and now I'm back learning new things and planning for the weeks to come, my brain very quickly turns to mush. My goal this week: get to bed early! This goal is not as easy as it sounds. As a working mother, it means being super organised getting dinner on early and getting kids showered and into bed earlier too (so hard when "it's still daytime Mum!"). It also means cutting out my late afternoon coffee. My late afternoon pick-me-up. Possibly the hardest step of them all!
OK I'm off to bed. A full day of PD awaits tomorrow. No time for mushy brains!
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