What Keeps this Teacher up at Night

A few times this past week I have found myself wide awake and thinking about my classroom at hours when I am normally sleeping . Yes, contrary to some people's beliefs about my work hours, I don't often "clock out" out once the students are gone. What has been weighing on my mind? My students and their progress.  I know. Totally nerdy. Let's face it. I am a teacher. It is how I am wired.

After giving a recent common assessment to my students and completing my typical data analysis on it, I realized that many of my students didn't perform as well as I had expected. I was frustrated, but determined to figure out what happened and fix it.  I began a question-by-question and class-by-class analysis.

I quickly determined that one question was poorly written and needed to be tossed out. Students across all five classes struggled with that question. Then I realized that one particular class did more poorly than the others. I thought back through my lesson planning and teaching and realized that the day I introduced one particular skill was the same day (and I am not kidding) we had an earthquake drill, the yearly mandatory suicide prevention talk, and school pictures all within one 90 minute block. I plowed through with the lesson because I didn't want this class to get behind. I needed to go back and start over with them.

Then I started thinking about each individual student and what I could do to re-teach those skills since what I had done the first time didn't work for them. What did they need? How could I teach these concepts differently? Now you see where the sleepless nights have come in.

Now, dear reader, I am not an anomaly. My colleagues have these moments, too. We spend hours crafting lessons and when they don't turn out as we expected, we adjust. We worry about our students' progress, their financial situations, and home lives. We buy cheese and sausage, wrapping paper, and t-shirts to help our students raise money for their after-school organizations. We stay late and come early to help students who need it. And, yes, sometimes we stay awake at night and think about school.

Busyness of Teaching

Today is National Writing Day, so I must write. Thank goodness I have an excuse to take a break and write. I have missed it, but I have felt guilty if I found myself daydreaming about composing my next blog. After all, there are papers to grade, lessons to plan, meetings to attend, and many forms to complete. I am sad to say that it has been a few weeks since I have blogged. The busyness of teaching has caught up to me. It happens.

Usually by October I am in full consumed-by-teaching mode. Coming early and staying late to grade, meeting with parents or students, planning lessons, and completing paperwork. This gives me very little time to interact meaningfully with my colleagues. During the past two weeks, I have found myself more and more isolated --very typical at a high school where "teams" are not the norm.  If it weren't for the various mandatory meetings on Tuesdays, I am sure I would not see most of the teachers in my building until graduation. Sad, but true.

This past week several of my colleagues' personal situations have reminded me that I need to slow down and take care of myself and my colleagues. We cannot get so busy with the day-to-day teaching that we don't recognize a colleague in need of kindness and support--personally or professionally. We need to come out of our rooms and check on one another. We need to send notes of encouragement, offer to help in their classrooms, laugh with them, and eat lunch with them. If we don't, some of those colleagues will not return to teaching next year. Our profession cannot afford to lose great teachers.

So, reader, I challenge us to find moments to reach out and connect with a colleague these next few weeks. Likewise, let's take care of ourselves. If, like me, you have fallen off of the exercise wagon. Get back on.  Take a break from the busyness of teaching and do something you enjoy: write, read a book, shop, or do yard work.

After this post, I am going to snuggle up with my kids and watch cartoons. I am not going to grade a paper or check an e-mail. At least, not today. 

Teaching is a difficult job, we need to take care of one another. Our students need us. We need us.