Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Ending the Day {Slice of Life Story Challenge}


I LOVE this time of day.  There's a sense of peace and calm.  The students are at their special area class which is usually earlier in the day but due to standardized testing we are now the last time slot.  This new time slot is much more relaxing.  The students pack up before going to their special area and we leave directly from that location in the building to go home.  I'm getting some big projects done or I'm thinking and mapping out things that require a bit more time.  I think I'm more productive because I don't have to think any more about this particular day.  Today I had a flashback to my first seven years of teaching.  I taught in a different district and our schedule was to arrive 10 minutes before the students and stay an hour and ten minutes after the students were dismissed.  The school day was 8:10am to 4pm.  My day now is 8:20 to 4pm but my students dismiss at 3:45 and by the time the last bus rolls in I might have 7 minutes to get my things, pick up the room, and I might look at email before I switch gears to motherhood.  I know I could stay after the scheduled day but most days I'm needed at home.  There's something to be said for quality time at the end of the day for teachers, productivity, and a piece of mind.  

Thank you Two Writing Teachers for organizing the Slice of Life Story Challenge.

4 comments:

  1. "There's something to be said for quality time at the end of the day for teachers..." This is so true! I feel so much better leaving school when I've had some peaceful time at the end of the day to get ready for the next day. I'm glad you're getting some of that quality time!

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  2. How true! There IS something to be said for the long block of time where we can collect our thoughts, try out some new ones, and dabble a little bit. Right now I feel like that is so tricky, too, because my schedule is very similar to yours. And, when I do switch gears to motherhood, maybe I end up "helping" my little to sleep by jumping in bed with him -- or like tonight, laying down "just for 10 minutes" after they both go to bed. The 10 minutes turned into two hours and poof...the thinking time goes out the window. Cheers to time, productivity, and a peace of mind. b

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  3. It's an exhausting day when there's no plan time before the end of the say, but that ending time is perfect for gathering thoughts for the future teaching.

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  4. I agree Mandy! The more we work, the more work we produce. At some point, we need to just call it quits and shift gears. Home is important and we need to put things in their place. Priorities are important and family must come first.

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