Recharging over the Summer for Teachers
Summertime is finally here! Once Memorial Day weekend arrives, I officially feel like summer has begun. I know that some of you are still teaching, while others have been out for over a week already. But wherever you’re at, I’m hoping that summer sunshine has been shining bright, and you’re looking forward to a long break!
I always found myself in the same summer dilemma, and I’m wondering if you ever have had the same problem. I would go into summer, looking at the 8 glorious weeks ahead of me, and I would fill my head with all of the things I wanted to get done.
I wanted to grow my side-hustle. I wanted to get lots of pool time in. I wanted to take a trip. I wanted to read dozens of books.
And then, without fail, summer would come to an end, and I wouldn’t have done a fraction of the things on my list. Even worse: I wouldn’t feel rested. I would be stressed. Stressed that I didn’t get my summer to-do list done. Stressed that it was already back to school time, and I felt behind before I even had a chance to get started.
Does any of this sound familiar?
Believe it or not, it IS possible to have a productive summer that also refreshes you. You can start next school year feeling great-knowing that you had time to relax while also getting personal things done. You can even budget time to get ahead on school work if you want to! It’s your summer, and you get to choose how to spend it.
But, it all requires a plan. Today, I want to share three simple planning hacks that help me approach summer with intention, and allows me to recharge.
Plan Summer Blocks
You likely have some big time markers this summer. Holidays (think 4th of July, if you are in America), birthdays, travel that you’ve booked, etc. Rather than thinking of your summer as 8 consecutive weeks, break it up into bite-size chunks.
So, summer block number one may be your first two weeks of summer before you leave for a vacation.
Then, you may have a 3 week block before July 4th hits.
Then, you have 2 weeks before a week of PD.
When you look at summer in these smaller blocks, you can more realistically plan the things you want to get done. Maybe that big home project you wanted to get done makes the most sense to do at the end of June. Maybe the books you wanted to read will pair nicely with your beach vacation. The lesson planning may be best to save for the week of PD, so you’re brain is thinking only about school.
Plan out the blocks of time, and assign things from your to-do list to the different blocks. When we think of summer as eight, long weeks...we end up with an untouched list at the end of July. And that’s not good for anyone’s mental health!
Approach Your Bucket List with Intention
When you’re thinking through what you want to get done this summer, I have three tips for being more intentional!
Think efficiently. Does every single person in your house need a physical and a dentist’s appointment before summer is over? Do you have an appointment you’ve been putting off for months because you told yourself you’d get it done this summer? Rather than spreading them out throughout the summer, try to consolidate them into a single week. Do two appointments a day if your office has space! Take those similar tasks and group them together!
Tackle the things first that you know will bother you if you don’t get them done. Have a friend you feel like you’ve neglected all year? Have a closet you’ve been desperate to clean for months? Think about the things you know will make you feel the WORST if summer comes to an end and you don’t do them. Do those first! It’s amazing how it will make you feel like a weight has been lifted off of your shoulder, and you’ll be able to really enjoy the rest of your summer!
Don’t overplan. This is where the summer blocks can be helpful. Look realistically at how much time you have to play with. It’s easy to feel like we have endless time when we start our summer breaks, and make big plans for what we will get done. But, when it doesn’t happen, we mentally beat ourselves up. Think about what you can really get done within a single week, and make sure you’re giving yourself space to rest!
Take Care of Yourself
Speaking of ‘giving yourself space to rest’...let’s not forget to take care of ourselves! The previous tips really are designed to give you space to actually recharge this summer. We all know that no teacher ever has a summer of luxuriously laying by the pool for eight solid weeks. That would be lovely, but no. We have lives and families and obligations. But, in the midst of the things you *have* to do, make space for things that make you feel like yourself again.
Use summer blocks to also work in times that you know you won’t do anything but what you actually want to do.
Plan your summer to-do list intentionally so you don’t overcommit. Leave some margin for your own mental health.
Summer Self-Care Opt-In
To help us all actually recharge this summer, my friend Stephanie at The Simple Classroom created a FREE Summer Self-Care Bingo Challenge for me to share with you! Share with your team, or email to the staff at your school to encourage them to do some things just for themselves this summer!
Or, print it for yourself, and see how many boxes you can complete in the next couple of months! I promise, if you make time to take care of yourself, your teaching will be so much stronger next year!
Happy summer, teacher friends! I’m looking forward to a fantastic break with my family, and I hope the same for all of you! If you’re still teaching, and you’re looking for some tips on what you can do in your room now to get ahead for next year, check out THIS POST.