12 Things to Do to Survive Your First Year of Teaching
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Making it through your first year of teaching is exhausting. I’m hoping this article will give you some tips to help you survive your first year of teaching.
The days and nights seem never-ending. You begin to wonder, will I make it through? Are you beginning to doubt your decision to become a teacher?
WELL DON’T!
How to survive your first year of teaching!
What you need to do instead, is to create some time for yourself – some of “your OWN time.”
Here are the 12 things I suggest to help you survive the year:
1. Learn to plan a week ahead.
It might be too late for the current year, but you can get a start in August planning for the next year ahead. Have your first full week planned out before the first day of school, and during that week, work on the next week’s plans (with supplies and materials needed too).
This simple routine will take away AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF THE LAST MINUTE STRESS that comes with doing things at the last minute.
Read the article I’ve written here that details how to plan a week ahead. Teacher Organization – How to Prepare and Stay Focused.
2. Take at least a 15-minute lunch break.
Don’t get in the rut of eating at your desk so that you can just get one more thing done. Go to the lounge (if you enjoy the teachers who eat there). You need these daily breaks to survive your first year teaching. Take time for de-stress from the
3. Learn to let students help you with small tasks that you can assign to them.
I discuss getting students to help more in my Classroom Routines Checklist which you can down here for FREE.
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Have a student (rotate using different students) stay … if they want to, and their parents are OK with it …. for 15 minutes a few days each week to do little tasks, like, sharpening pencils, straightening the class library books, stapling papers for you, wiping down the marker board, etc.
4. Don’t take TONS of work home with you.
That huge bag or rolling crate will only add to your anxiety. Take no more than two things home; LEARN TO PRIORITIZE!
One thing I did when my own children were young and in after school activities was to take papers to grade with me to practices so that I could get through a stack quickly.
Later when they were older (in upper elementary), I would actually drop them off at practice, then run back to school to get another hour in of preparation; then drive back to get them. Twice a week practices gave me a bunch of extra time to squeeze in before heading home for the evening.
KEEP A RUNNING “TO DO” LIST
5. Learn to keep a running list of “things to do.”
I actually got to where I enjoyed being able to “scratch things off the list.” Every few days I would re-write the list (taking off what was already done) since by then it would have more scratched off than not. Place stars next to things that need to be done right away or first on the list.
Look at everything you need and then BREAK IT DOWN into each step (which is then listed separately on the “list.”
FOR EXAMPLE; Let’s say your primary students are going to make cute little flower cards for their moms for Mother’s Day. This is how your list might look for just one art activity.
- Buy paper plates
- cut green construction paper
- get out the color choices for petals (cut about 10 of each color)
- make sure you have enough glue
- cut lined paper for the poem
- find the tissue paper (buy more if needed).
- cut tissue paper into little squares.
- ETC.
As you can see, some of these tasks can easily be assigned to a parent volunteer (even ones who show up unexpectedly) since you will already have them on your “running list of TO
6. When a friend invites you for coffee or an after work get together, GO!
Everyone needs a break now and then. Take time to connect with old friends. Or take the initiative and invite one of your new teacher friend colleagues. There is nothing better than
7. Learn to delegate.
Have your kids at home finish making dinner (if they are old enough). Or ask your husband or roommate. Ask for help when you need it.
8. WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN
When you remember something, write it down right away. Take a post-it note out to recess and to lunch with you (or use the note section of your smart phone) so that when a thought comes to you, you can write it down right then and there.
This helps because the more we try to remember all the little things that go through our minds (both as teachers and busy moms – for those of you that are moms too) the more that we can become anxious.
Once it’s written down, if it’s something that needs doing, add it to the LIST you have (see #5 above), if it’s an idea about teaching or information about a student, add it where you keep that information.
As an added idea – make a separate “to do” list for your home. When I became a site principal I would often put a Post-it note on the dashboard of my car to remind me of a task after work. Because if I didn’t I would forget. Example; “go to the bank.”
9. Try your best to do things AHEAD OF TIME whenever possible.
Two weeks before parent teacher conferences, make a chart with time slots available craft your note to parents so that you have time to edit it and add cute graphics. Then when the day arrives to send it home it is ready, stacked and in the backpacks on time. ZIP off a quick email to parents letting them know to look for it and then VOILA! It is done!
10. Each Friday afternoon, before leaving for the weekend, do a quick comparison of your lessons plan book with the school calendar, the district calendar, your own (and your family’s) calendar.
Doing this quick comparison with all the calendars enables you to coordinate the important/crucial items. Add in school activities in
11. Take your family (or just yourself) to local events on the weekend at least once a month (twice is even better).
Everyone needs to have outside fun activities to add to life’s moments. Most cities and towns have free or inexpensive events taking place each month. If you aren’t sure what’s out there, go to your town’s website and look at the section for “Parks and Recreations,” that is usually the department that plans the free local events.
12. Begin working on report cards three weeks before they are due.
Do little things like giving the citizenship grades, or writing in some comments. For subjects that you’ve already completed all the testing for, calculate those grades and put them on the report cards ahead of time. That way when the time comes, a good portion is already completed.
Average grades without the final test, so that you can just add that in once they’ve had the test. As the years go by, you will find a system that works well for you; just don’t put it off to the last minute/day.
I’m sure there are probably 12 more “things” you can do to lessen the STRESS of being a beginning teacher. Find what works for you, and embrace it.
Let me know if you have something I should add to my list of 12.. I’m good with making this list longer and welcome you input.
JUST DON’T GIVE UP! You can survive your first year of teaching! I have faith in you!
You are making a difference to each of your students.
Your Teacher Buddy
