“So much time and so little to do. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it.” - Willy Wonka
I am in the midst of 3 weddings in an 8 day stretch (one of those being in Phoenix while I am from New Jersey). With only one day off from work, I would not say time is of the essence. However, I make it work and during this time I was inspired to share my tips with all of you about how to get the biggest bang for your buck with every minute you have each day!
I am in the midst of 3 weddings in an 8 day stretch (one of those being in Phoenix while I am from New Jersey). With only one day off from work, I would not say time is of the essence. However, I make it work and during this time I was inspired to share my tips with all of you about how to get the biggest bang for your buck with every minute you have each day!
1. Lock your classroom door.
Your little prep period is precious. You likely have an ongoing, never ending to do list you’d like to cross a few items off of during that time. Just as you are about to attack that list, one of your teacher friends moseys into your room and all of a sudden you guys are chatting about all of the weddings you just went to (ha ha!) and sharing your photos. Locking your door will let your colleagues know you are a busy lady or gentleman and allow you to put your mind to the tasks you need to complete with no distractions.
2. Make a friend (or a few).
“I’ll type up the Unit 5 Math plans and you type up the reading plans and we can swap!” Make a friend on your grade level or your department and share your work! Lesson planning is one example of work you can share because you are teaching the same curriculum. All you need to do it cut and paste into your schedule. Depending on how particular your administration is, you may need to tweak a few things, but in general sharing work is a big time saver and it’s fun!
3. Save everything!
When you are sharing all of these plans with your colleagues, copy them all into a safe and organized place. Your first year in teaching, or first year in a new grade is naturally going to be this hectic whirlwind of a time. However, if you put in that extra time up front, it will save you in years to come. If you’re making a game, take the extra time to laminate it and print it on cardstock so you’ll have it for years to come. You’ll be happy with yourself the next year when you realize how much you can reuse.
4. Get organized!
In an unorganized classroom you see little piles of “stuff” all around the room. You could spend your entire prep period cleaning up all of those little piles instead of making moves with that to do list. Use baskets, organizer drawers, color code and label until EVERYTHING has a place. And then make it a rule that you and the students cannot put anything down unless it is in that place. I promise this will not just save you time, but it will alleviate a bunch of stress.
5. Delegate!
As you are going through your typical school day, make a few mental notes about the things you are spending time doing that your students are capable of doing for you. Setting up the calendar, putting books back into the classroom library, getting the board ready for the next day, and filing papers are just a few examples of things that the kids should be doing for you. And let’s be real, we all know they absolutely love doing “teacher jobs”!
6. Get to school early.
You may already do this, but if you are, see tip #1 and do it! We are the freshest in the morning (even if you’re not a morning person) and you can get a lot done. You are also under a time constraint because like it or not, the kids are coming!
7. If you are going to stay after school, set a time you promise you’ll leave by.
This will help you keep your eye of the prize of getting stuff done. You have a personal life that is important, too, so get out and enjoy that. Be efficient and set goals for what you want to finish in that time constraint.
If you notice, none of the tips I gave involve taking work home. In all reality, there are going to be times you need to do that (tests, report cards, scoring writing, etc.), but these tips will help you get more work done during the actual school day. Teaching is your job and that is important, but so is your life outside of work. We have a lot going on there, too! If you have more time saving tips you’ve discovered throughout your teaching journey, please comment and share them because we are all in this together!
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