One of the perks of being a teacher is having week-long (or more) breaks for winter, spring and summer! While this is something that most of us really look forward to, there are a few things you can do to prevent your break from being ruined, or make your return to the classroom a bit easier on yourself. Planning ahead before you leave on a break can help alleviate some unwanted stress, here are some tips for you to consider before you leave on a break.
1. Make a to-do list
This is part of the planning ahead part. Make a running list of things you will need to do when you return from break. You don’t want to stress the night before returning from break, trying to think of everything you have to do upon returning. Odds are, you might even have a hard time remembering what you have to do.
2. Out-Of-Office
Set up an out-of-office email and/or voicemail. This is your time to spend not thinking about work. You’re not getting paid to work over the break, so why respond to any emails. Do everyone else a favor and let them know you won’t be responding until you return from break, most people are definitely willing to respect your time and will contact the school if it is really something urgent. That email can wait until you return from break.
3. Clean Up
Clean up your desk area and classroom – have your staff and students help the last day before break. Not only is this to prevent pests (and don’t be rude leaving a mess for the janitor), but most importantly it will be nice to return from break to a clear, clean and stress free space. Imagine coming back from break all relaxed and you have a huge mess on your desk. That would immediately put stress in my body if it were me.
4. Check your calendar
Another planning-ahead tip: Check your IEP calendar for after break to make sure you don’t have any surprise IEPS or due dates. Nothing worse than your first day back and you have an IEP meeting or you have to rush and complete one in one day.
5. Communicate with parents
This piggybacks with setting up an out-of-office message. Make sure to call or send an email to all of your parents about the exact dates of the break. Often times parents don’t receive or see the school newsletter or flyer. It doesn’t hurt to let them know in several different ways. Prevent the added stress of a parent possibly getting mad at you because they drove to drop off their child on a day there is no school (even though it’s totally not your fault), and cover your back by just letting them know this information ahead of time! This will also help frontload students on a huge change happening to their routine.
6. Prepare a lesson plan
Another planning-ahead tip. No one wants to lesson plan over break or the day they return from break. Do a little extra work before you take off for break, and prepare a few plans for the first day or week when you return. Help make your transition back to school seamless and ready to go.
Thanks for reading!
