Let’s face it: there is an incredible amount of work expected of classroom teachers of all ages and grade levels. But would you rather put the work in before “race day” or recovering from it? Because you either put the work in on the front end or you feel it on the back end.
School is a team sport. And your tribe is counting on you.
The way I see it, my students, their families, and my administrators are my teammates — and by completing the work we assign, entrusting us with the care of their children, and providing as many physical or digital resources that they can afford, they have absolutely held up their leg of the race.
It’s our job to make sure that the participants in our courses are safe, supported, cheered for, and never too far from a proverbial water break or a word of encouragement when they need one. That’s why I flood my Twitter feed and YouTube page with daily updates of the incredible stuff that my students are doing, and I fire off a fully-illustrated course newsletter every Friday to let families know how their students are crushing it in the classroom. I’m crazy proud of all the work that they’re putting in! And so I use social media whenever possible to celebrate their triumphs and make them feel like the academic super athletes they deserve to be.
Feel free to grab an enewsletter template to do the same in your classroom!