When do you take care of your teacher workload? How do I manage all of my responsibilities as a teacher on top of actually teaching my students? If you have ever asked yourself those questions, I am right there with you. Trying to manage it all as a teacher within the few hours of a school day is nearly impossible. There are constant interruptions, last minute meetings, and talkative coworkers popping up that prevent you from utilizing your planning periods efficiently.
I am absolutely guilty of taking my entire prep period to walk around the halls, visit the teacher’s lounge, and return to my classroom with five minutes to spare wondering where all the time has gone. If you’re sitting there nodding your head, I hope I can offer you a solution.
I have been inspired to start batching weekly and daily tasks to help manage teacher workload. By creating specific tasks that are completed once a week and then four daily tasks, it will make your planning period more productive and efficient by giving you a set of jobs to complete every day.
These weekly and daily tasks are designed to allow you to complete important teacher tasks batched together by day to become more organized and effective so you don’t have to stress when you are going to get everything done. The daily tasks are designed to be done every day where the weekly tasks only need to be completed ONCE a week.
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| Planning Period Calendar to Tame Your Teacher Workload |
You will never have to wander around aimlessly during your planning period again! This calendar will help manage your teacher workload and therefore offer more of that work-life balance you have been craving. Before getting started, let’s remember some important factors while you’re planning. Make sure to close your door, turn off your phone, and get busy!
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So, what does managing your teacher workload look like with this calendar?
Here are your weekly tasks:
- Monday Messages: On Mondays, create all of your morning messages, anchor charts, and PowerPoint slides for the week. That way you do not have to worry about them until next Monday.
- Tuesday Check/Grade: Tame your pile of papers and check and record the grades for any major assignments for the week. Check any papers that have accumulated on your desk and return them to your students.
- Wednesday Lesson Plan: Lesson plan for the next week on Wednesday during your planning period so you don’t have to take any extra work home with you and you can use your classroom resources to help you prepare.
- Thursday Copy Papers: Now that your lesson plans are done, use Thursday planning periods as the time to get all of your papers copied for next week’s lessons. Organize them into weekly drawers or bins for safe keeping.
- Friday Room Prep: Now that your lessons are planning for next week, prep your room before you leave. Change your calendar, your objectives, your focus wall, throw out unused papers, change student jobs for next week, check your planner for assemblies and birthdays. Get yourself ready for when you walk in on Monday.
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| Tame Your Teacher Workload |
Your 4 daily tasks should be completed during each planning period to stay organized and on top of your workload. These tasks can be spread out to finish int he mornings before school or after school depending on the timing of your planning period, unforeseen interruptions, or if that is the only time you have to prep and manage your teacher workload.
Your Four Daily Tasks Include:
- Pass Out Papers: pass back graded or checked papers to student mailboxes or desks
- Clean Desk: organize your own work space and keep it clutter free. Put away materials or papers you are no longer using so that things don’t pile up.
- Check Email/Communicate with Parents: use your planning time to check and reply to emails from your admit or communicate with your students’ families.
- Gather Materials: quickly gather materials for any remaining lessons for that day or for the next. Keep them in a bin, drawer, or tray for easy access.
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| Tame Your Teacher Workload |
My hope is that this planning period calendar not only helps tame and mange your ever-growing teacher workload, but that it allows you to leave work at work and find a better work-life balance. Teachers are constantly overloaded with new responsibilities besides the most important one; teaching students. So, I hope that this planning period calendar offers you a way to plan more efficiently and use your time more wisely.
Copy these calendars and give them to your coworkers or paraprofessionals so you are all on the same schedule and are supporting each other.
Just remember to close your door, turn off your phone, and get busy! I can’t wait to hear from you to find out how this is working for you! Make sure to sign up for more updates and resources coming your way to help manage your teacher workload!
Want to make this EDITABLE to suit your individual classroom needs? I want to help! Find these EDITABLE calendar and checklist options to help you manage your teacher workload and create a work-life balance you have been searching for! You can find the EDITABLE versions here!
2 Comments
Thanks for this! I'm excited to try the weekly calendar.
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