As teachers you make a promise to show up everyday for your students, regardless of the storm brewing underneath the surface. Every year more gets added to your plate without relieving some of the pressure or responsibilities to make room for the new policies and procedures. But what happens when the weight becomes too much? What happens when the plate falls and shatters into a million pieces? 

Teaching can be an incredibly rewarding profession, but it can also be challenging and stressful. Teachers are responsible for the education and well-being of their students, which can be a heavy burden to carry. As a result, teachers often experience high levels of stress and burnout, which can have a negative impact on their mental health. In this blog post, we will explore some ways that school systems can support teachers' mental health.

Teaching students under normal circumstances is challenging. Teachers juggle many roles as they motivate, engage and develop personal connections with their students to keep their students’ minds open to learning and developing. But what happens when the students and teachers alike are going through an overwhelming stressor as with the current pandemic? How does the situation affect student behavior, motivation and academic achievement? Here is a brief explanation of the mechanisms of stressors leading to trauma, as well as strategies to navigate the road ahead.

To my dear teachers and school staff,

There are so many things about this school year that are different. Dealing with rampant behavioral issues among your students. Dealing with administrators who may be short fused as they deal with a plethora of Covid related issues. Dealing with expectations from staff and parents that are not realistically achievable. These are some of the issues that have been arising. In all of this, you have received minimal training and have no previous experience with this. This is not what you signed up for!

Hectic schedules can be quite distressing and intimidating. Sometimes it can feel like we have a million things to do and no time to do it, or it may feel like we have so many things we want to do but are unsure when to fit it in. Having strong and reliable time management skills is very important for reducing the stress associated with situations like this. Time management skills can be beneficial in a variety of settings such as college, graduate school, parenting, careers, social activities, and engaging in self care. Strong time management skills can help to make sure you complete the things you have to do, and find time to do the things you want to do.