A Summer for Teachers: How to be Purposeful

As a fellow teacher, I understand the desire to kick up your feet and just RELAX. And what I'm about to share will still allow you to do that, as it is just as important to be well taken care of as it is to be purposeful. The summer before my first teaching job, I spent most of it looking for a job and then purchasing anything that I thought might make my classroom community-like. As a first year teacher, I think this is very necessary, but there are additional ways to start preparing for the new school year.

1. Relax- It's definitely your vacation as well, so take some time during your summer to do a few things that are both enjoying and revitalizing.

2. Read- Just like how we encourage our students to read, we should be demonstrating this. Whether it's new books for the following school year that you will be teaching, New York Times Bestsellers, or educational books, pick up something and get to it. It so rewarding to be able to read that book that's been on your nightstand for the past year waiting to be opened.

A few great reads to look at:

The Learning Habit

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Different Learners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADHD Does Not Exist

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Dylexia Empowerment Plan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Light We Cannot See

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rosie Project

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Professional Development- As I'm writing this I am listening to a webcast for  "Cool Ideas to Teach Independent Reading," put on by edWeb. There are a lot of different resources that are available to teachers that are free. Most won't allow you to get credit, but I find it's better to be ahead of the game and help others understand, then feel frustrated and overwhelmed when new ideas are being discussed. I also took the Google Education Conference over that summer that was wonderful! A few other places to look are

4. Start Planning- Purchase your Erin Condren Teacher Planner and start to it. Of course some of you teachers work in groups and may wait until the first few weeks of August to start planning. I still recommend working on classroom management ideas, book groups, and anything else that you can do. This will make those first few weeks a dream.

5. Remember how amazing this profession is- I understand that year after year of teaching can be physically and emotionally draining, take a few minutes each day to find something that you love about education. You never know, it just might spark change next year.

Hopefully we all relaxing and enjoying our summer, don't let the next school year sneak up on you.