5 Tips for New Teachers Balancing Family and Work
Connie Terry is a second year Teaching Fellow, wife and mother of two children. When she’s not the Citizen Schools North Carolina State Data Captain, you can find her spending time with family as well as being active in her church and the community. She has been with Citizen Schools since 2008.
“Maintain a good balance. A personal life adds dimensions to your professional life and vice versa. It helps nurture creativity through a deeper understanding of yourself.” ~ Kathy Ireland
A new teacher has a great opportunity to have an energy level of excitement and motivation to help children advance in academics. Using the skills you have will help enhance your extended job description, but realize that the work can seem heavy at times. Find time to balance work and personal family life.
To do this:
- Set up a work plan on a weekly/monthly schedule- This helps eliminate having too many projects clutter together at the same time, and helps to set deadlines. Communicate with the Campus Director to go over campus and leadership priorities. Use the outlook calendar to set important dates and as a reminder. Don’t be too quick to say yes to every project; say, “I’ll get back with you.” This allows you to check your calendar and priorities you already have in place.
- Share the work load and share best practices- This will eliminate feeling too stressed.
- Take constructive feedback as a helpful tool to better your position as a teacher and never take it personal as criticism. It is important to have a balanced lifestyle between work and your personal life.
- After work, try not to take any work home with you. If you must, limit that to a short time and always record time worked.
- Use valuable time to relax and rejuvenate by getting proper rest, eating healthy, andhaving some fun time with family and friends. Your family is a great support, so keep the communications going, along with shared time. Have a personal calendar to keep up with a balance lifestyle.
“The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.” –Flora Whittemore