We’re just over halfway through the longest term in the school year, certainly in terms of the emotional load being carried. Returning to the frontline ( yes, sometimes it feeks like a military campaign) after October Half Term is perhaps the most difficult time of all so I thought, this week I’d pop up some tiny ways to keep you thriving, if you are a dedicated teacher who is already in survival mode.
Full disclosure. I have been that teacher who answered emails at 10pm, laminated everything, hessian-backed all noticeboards and said yes to every request going. But hear this! That isn’t dedication; that is a very tired person who has less capacity to hold the emotions of thirty or more teenagers on a wet Wednesday afternoon and even less time for those even more important people - family and friends. And so, when I started mentoring ECTs I gave myself a good talking to.
If that sounds familiar, you're in good company. Teaching is one of the most rewarding jobs there is, and one of the easiest in which to lose yourself. So here's what I've learnt along the way, from my own mistakes and from the many, many brilliant teachers I've been lucky enough to work alongside.
Draw the line and hold it: Boundaries are not selfish. You can't pour from an empty cup, and a teacher running on fumes helps nobody, least of all the children. Pick a time to stop answering emails and stick to it. Almost nothing in a school is a genuine emergency. Decide what 'good enough' looks like because it doesn't have to be perfect to be effective. And learn the grown-up art of 'not right now'. A polite 'I can take that on after half term' is a perfectly professional answer. The teachers who last aren't the ones who never say no. They're the ones who say yes on purpose.
Find your person: Nobody becomes a great teacher alone. When I was newly qualified, a wonderfully capable colleague (Jan Cutler, thank you) let me wander into her classroom with a mug of coffee and a whole heap of questions most weeks. She never made me feel stupid. She listened, shared what had worked for her and reminded me that yes, she'd had a Year 9 class like that too. Find someone whose practice you admire and ask for twenty minutes. You'll be surprised how flattered they are. And when you've got a few years under your belt, pass it on. Explaining why you do what you do sharpens your own thinking no end.
Have a life, a proper one: This is the one teachers find hardest. Keep something in your week that has NOTHING to do with school, whether that's a choir, a long walk, a Sunday league team or an allotment you never quite get on top of. Take your holidays properly. Yes, the first few days will go on recovering, and that's fine. Look after the basics too: sleep, decent food, a glass of water that isn't left on your desk until 4pm. If your workload is consistently unmanageable, that's not a personal failing. Speak up, and know that other settings and ways of working exist if the one you're in isn't right.
Mind the relationships: Teaching is a people business, and you know what? It's the people who make it worthwhile. Learn the children's names quickly. Greet them at the door. Be the calm, fair, consistent adult, especially for the ones who find school hardest. But don't forget your colleagues: the teaching assistant who knows every child's triggers, the site manager who can fix anything, the friend who turns up with biscuits on a bad Thursday. A staffroom where people look out for each other is a place where people stay. And make a positive phone call home before there's a problem. It's worth ten difficult conversations later.
Be kind, and that includes to yourself: Kindness in a school isn't soft. It takes energy, and it changes the weather in a room. Say thank you. Notice good work and say so out loud. Be generous but firm and consustent with the child who tests you, because they usually need you most. Then turn that same kindness inwards. You will have lessons that flop. You will say something you wish you hadn't. Talk to yourself as you would to a trainee having exactly the same day, with patience, perspective and a little humour. And NEVER beat yourself up for being human.
Steer your own ship: Choose just one of these suggestions and try it for a fortnight. A firm finish time, a coffee with a mentor, a proper night off. You don't have to overhaul everything at once. Teaching is a long voyage, and you'll hit calm seas and stormy ones. The trick is knowing where your safe harbour is, whether that's a mentor, a friend, a family or a team that has your back, and making sure you head for it when you need to.
Good luck, everyone. You're doing a better job than you think.