I don’t know about you – but I HATE it when I don’t get everything done on my to do list for the day. It makes me feel like I failed the day. Today was one of those days for me – how about for you? Read on to find out my tips for days like this!
Stay out of Survival Mode in 2016
Teaching seems to always be synonymous with Busy. And Busy’s crazy cousins Stressed and Overwhelmed seem to never be too far behind either.
Enter Survival Mode where Busy, Stress, and Overwhelmed climb into the driver’s seat of life and we’re left hanging on to the bumper for dear life.
So – how do you get OUT of survival mode? Better yet – how do you stay out of survival mode by never going into survival mode?
Best Blogs of 2015
This is a really fun blog post to write because as I sit here, thinking back on the blogs I’ve written over the year, I can’t help but smile at how far this work has come. This work – through A Teacher’s Best Friend, has fundamentally changed me. I can never go back to the version of me that didn’t know my purpose in this world – to help teachers become their most wholehearted selves – and in the process become my most wholehearted self.
Best Wholehearted Teaching Reads of 2015
I love to read and this year has been a CRAZY BUSY reading year! I’ve read some of the most impactful books of my life this year, so I wanted to take the opportunity to share them with you!!
Taking Full Advantage of Your School Break
As teachers, we run ourselves ragged. We rarely take time for ourselves. We pour and pour and pour our heart and souls into our teaching, our students, our craft, our passion. But what do we do to fill ourselves back up?
School breaks are supposed to give us that chance, but my question to you is – are you taking full advantage of your school break? [Read more…]
A Thank You Note to Teachers
Teaching is a pretty thankless job. It’s difficult for anyone who is not a teacher to truly know how much work goes in to teaching. So here is my thank you note to teachers – my favorite group of people.
Tackle Your Teacher “To-Do” List
This is the time of year when my to-do list seems to double or triple each day! With the holidays around the corner, the end of the semester coming, and countless events and holiday happenings, this time of year can get overwhelming – quick! How do you tackle your teacher “to-do” list in a way that can be sane and still satisfying? [Read more…]
Reframing Negative Thoughts as a Teacher
Life with a three-year-old is never dull – to say the least. She is always watching and thus I’m always “on”. She is learning from me and those around her about what is acceptable and not acceptable. She is learning about the big things in life like fairness, justice, integrity and consequences.
Like every other parent out there, I worry that in the process of learning right from wrong and good from bad, that she will lose her spark and devalue her uniqueness. In the process of training her to be conscious of her actions and their consequences (conscious of her “self”), I am afraid of her becoming self-conscious.
In this world, we each have to learn to walk that tightrope – and for many of us it’s a constant struggle. [Read more…]
Cultivating Your Passion As a Teacher
We know, inherently, that passion is extremely important to having a fulfilling life. No one sets out in their day to “play small” as Nelson Mandela put it. The dream of our hearts is to make a deep impact on something we truly care about. We want to live on purpose and with passion.
What does that look like for a wholehearted teacher? [Read more…]
Fostering Your Learning Community
Most teachers by now are part of a professional learning community (PLC) – a community or team of teachers that encourage professional growth and reflection on your teaching practice. You may also be part of a professional learning network of your online colleagues from around the globe.
But have you ever thought about having a personal learning community? I submit that a personal learning community is just as important as your professional learning community. What is it, you ask? Let’s explore.