Spring Survival Tips

I started writing a post in another section and found that I had gotten on my soapbox, so I thought I would move the conversation over here. If you, like me, start to feel overwhelmed and exhausted this time of year, here are my best tips for making it through these last (if your school year runs like mine) six weeks. 

1. Dress for your day. If you are going to be packing up your classroom or spending the day walking around during a test, wear comfortable clothes. I'm not saying you should wear your gym clothes to work, but be nice to yourself.

2. Be aware of how you are feeling and respond. You're about to have 2 months (kinda) to recover from the year, but that doesn't mean you should go into the summer completely spent. If you are feeling worn out, maybe think about giving yourself more recovery time. Maybe scale back your social calendar (just until you feel rested). Maybe don't plan to redecorate your whole house during the last 2 weeks of school. Maybe encourage friends to come visit during the summer instead of over Memorial Day weekend. I'm not saying you have to do this, but give yourself a break. It's been a long year; you've spent so much of your energy caring for others; know your body and what you need to be able to finish the year well. You don't want to be hobbling to the end of the year unable to really finish the year well because you didn't give yourself the space and time you needed. 

3. Have some easy outfit options that you can throw on when you don't have the energy to put together a cute look you got from Pinterest. A few cute summer dresses and some casual sandals will make those last few Mondays so much better. 

4. Start making your list of things you'd like to work on over the summer. It's easy to see all of the things that didn't turn out how you hoped or things you didn't get to, but instead of judging yourself for not being "Super Teacher", think about what you really want to change for next year. Are there lessons you'd like to develop, ways you'd like to arrange your room, or books you think you want to add to your reading list? Make your list and then think about when in the summer you want to tackle those projects. Maybe you are going to spend one day each week doing school stuff. Maybe you're going to not touch anything school related for the first month. You decide. But having a plan always keeps me from being too hard on myself at this point in the year.