Mid – term at last, I think that was the longest term for this year. I think everyone was exhausted the last week – both children and teachers! I had a hectic last week as I was moving rooms but I think that is nearly sorted now! I suppose I’m writing this post to talk about ‘switching off’ and actually taking the break over the next few days. Lots of teachers are good at forgetting about school and work and taking the time to relax and enjoy themselves. However, I also know that some teachers (myself included) find it very difficult to switch off completely from school.
Teaching
Teaching is a fantastic profession but it is a job that is difficult to switch off from. I’m constantly thinking of new ideas, how best to approach a situation, how best to support a child, classroom management strategies, classroom layouts and ways to organise resources, planning, what happened that day and whether I managed it well or what I could have done better.
Blog
Irish Primary Teacher is also a massive part of my life and I love it! It’s one of the first things I look at in the morning and one of the last things I look at before I go to sleep. But as it is teaching related it can sometimes feel like work when it really is a hobby.
Tips for Switching Off
- Have a cut off point
- Do something to relax every day – watch netflix, go for a walk/swim/run/to the gym, go for a spin, meet up with friends/family
- Have a notebook – write down worries/thoughts/ to do lists – I often find that once I have written something down my mind stops going back over it
- Keep a notebook close to your bed – if you can’t sleep because you are worrying about something or if you wake up in the night panicking about something – write it down.
- Try to keep on top of planning/organisation etc. so you don’t have to catch up during the weekend/during holidays (I know – easier said than done!)
- During midterms/ holidays – don’t take on big projects relating to school – you don’t need to spend a day in school redecorating/ reorganising your classroom/ planning. If you have some work to do restrict yourself to 1/2 days only!
My plan for this week
I’m heading to Italy tomorrow for the week so I won’t be thinking about school or the blog! I think it will be the longest time I have spent without doing any blogging/ updating social media accounts. I hope lots of people will do the same and really take the break away from school!
