Teachers: Job Stress Reduction
Teachers are often under the intense pressure of preparing lessons, grading papers, and doing other tasks that are part of the teaching job. This is a stressful situation for them as well as for their students and families. In order to help relieve some stress from its teachers, here is a list of some helpful techniques to implement in your class:
1) Give yourself a 30 minute break every 2 hours. This gives your brain a chance to replenish with oxygen while giving your students the opportunity to work on projects or work with another teacher or colleague on cooperative activities.
2) Take an organizational break at lunchtime or after school every day by spending 15 minutes organizing what you will do during your next class period.
3) Try avoiding distractions and unnecessary activities during your class time.
4) Try holding a mindful meditation session with your class before taking a new assignment (as in #1 above).
5) Make sure you have a good way to communicate with the parents of your students. Email, Notes on student planner, or phone calls.
6) Find the right way for you to communicate with other teachers about student's needs and other things that would help the child.
7) When you get home from work, make sure that you have time set aside to relax and unwind before going back out into the working world again.
8) To keep yourself organized try using white boards or Post-Its.
9) Find out about school support groups in your area. This can help you have some encouragement and support from other educators who are in the same position that you are in.
10) You can also try various journaling techniques to find peace and a release of stress and tension.
11) To stay sharp, try using a brain training program as a way to maintain long term memory and concentration skills.
12) If you want to be able to pick up where you left off with no difficulty, try using [[http://www.ocdla.org/home/the-tools|OCDLA's Finding Time Again Tool ]].
13) Find out what you can do to help your principal and other staff in the building. Most of the time, teachers are in a position where they can support their colleagues by being an additional pair of hands or helping out with a task that needs to be done.
14) You may want to try physical fitness as a way to relieve stress and gain energy for your day.
15) If it is possible, try using a tape recorder when you are giving instructions. Then the students can listen to it on the way home instead of having to stay after school for assistance in doing the assignment.
16) Decide how you can help the students with their work in a more efficient way that helps them learn and remember.
17) Ask for help from other teachers if needed. We all know how helpful it can be to get some extra hands and ears in the classroom.
18) To find an outlet for all of your creativity, try coming up with a student activity to put on display for all of your classes to see. And make sure it will be something that would benefit everybody so the students too feel good about their class project.
19) Try getting in touch with a teacher who is experienced or experienced at putting on such a show or show other teachers what you are doing so they can use it too.
20) Find a way to read or create something that will help you with your day.
21) Try getting 30 minutes of exercise every day. This can be as simple as walking the dog or riding a bike in place while reading a book. Just try to move your body without strain.
22) If the schedule allows it, try scheduling time for yourself and your colleagues to have a play day where you do something fun and forget about work for the time being.
23) Think about how you can help increase productivity and efficiency in the classroom. Use this list as a guide: http://www.teachersfirst.com/blog/tips-for-teachers/4610-time-saving-tips.html
24) Try setting up a system where you can help students who are having difficulty with assignments by giving them some extra one on one assistance if needed. This could be something that is scheduled in advance, or can be done as a last minute thing depending on how the student(s) need to be helped.
25) To help make math class more interesting for your students, try using technology that shows the applications of math to real world situations. Things like [[http://www.khanacademy.org/video#khanacademy-showcase.aspx|Khan Academy ]] and [[http://www.mathintagram.com/|Mathemagics]] are both great for example of how math can be used to apply everyday situations in real life.
26) Know how to set up a classroom that provides privacy, equality and respect for all students so the entire class can learn from one another and grow together into good citizens.
27) Help the students see the value in learning by doing things around your class such as setting up fun bulletin boards or giving them a lesson on something recreational (games, music, etc. )
28) To help make lessons into more of an interactive thing for your students, try using a product such as [[http://www.teachingunit.com/interactive-videos/|Education Toys Interactive Video Maker]] to help you make your lessons more interesting and interactive.
29) To keep your classroom from growing too much with the addition of computers, books, projects and other things that would take up space in the room, you may want to take away some things that are unnecessary in order to simplify the classroom so every student is able to focus on learning.
30) Even though you feel that you didn't get a lot done in your work day, try setting aside some time each night to pick up from where you left off and make sure all of your tasks are completed for the next day so you can be prepared.
31) Try getting things done before they become too large of a task. If something is bothering you or getting on your nerves, try taking care of it before it grows into something that is more difficult to handle.
32) Find out how to gain extra help on project and assignments with children who need extra help with subjects that are difficult for them.
33) When you feel like your job is too much and too big, remember that you are not alone. We all feel this way sometimes and there are many others who are also facing this problem.
34) Try creating a lot of excitement and enthusiasm in your class by being an example of someone who can handle things in a very positive manner. This will help to inspire your students to do the same thing for themselves.
35) To keep yourself motivated, try writing aspirations for the future down on paper so that you have something to look forward to when times get tough.
Conclusion
While some of these things may be a little difficult to handle at first, it is important to remember that we are all faced with tasks that are difficult but with some time and patience, all of these things can be overcome and worked through.
To help make lessons into more of an interactive thing for your students, try using a product like Education Toys Interactive Video Maker to help you make your lessons more interesting and interactive.
You can also consider [[http://www.teachingunit.