SoL Challenge Day #10

Spring break is here. Big exhale. 

On my drive home today I started to think to the last chunk of the year, and what I can do over my week away to make the remainder of the year more enjoyable for myself and my students. I'm sure I will add to this as the week progresses, but this is a start:

1. Eat lunch, for goodness sake. A real one.

My stomach rumbled at me as I walked out of school. I had packed yogurt and an apple for the third day in a row. A handful of students had stayed after school in my classroom today to watch spoken word poetry, and I could not focus or keep a conversation going at all. I need to fuel my body with real food every single day. 

2. Stagger due dates for longer pieces of writing. 

There was a stretch of two weeks last month where I gave feedback until 10:00 every single night. I felt grouchy and sleepy when I woke up, which was only moderately cured by my second cup of coffee.

3. Carve out time to work out.

I am a happier and more energetic human when I've spent time running the trails or treadmill. The past few weeks I have not prioritized this.

4. Trust yourself to change the plan.

Some of the best lessons I've taught this year happened when I felt comfortable enough to shift away from the original plan. I'm getting better at reading the room and adjusting, and I need to trust myself more with this.

5. Spend more time with colleagues.

I work with pretty awesome people, and I want to actually get to know them past brief hallway exchanges. This one will be easy if I treat it as a daily goal instead of a long-term goal.

Tonight though, my only goal is to sleep for eight hours and have a glass of wine. Yay!