This is me.
What will I be doing this weekend? Grading papers and then trying to write my paper for National Boards! Fun times. I have 2 papers that are barely even touched and tomorrow night I need to make a dent in it. This has to happen this weekend. I am running out of time.
This year has gone quicker than I thought it would. In the beginning of the year, I was very bad at time management. I thought that I needed someone to tell me what to do and what to teach and then that would have made me feel less stressed, but realistically, I just needed to get in the swing of how I was teaching and what I was teaching and that eliminated so much time I spent on my planning. In the beginning of the year I had been creating power points for my grammar, and after (too long) around November/December I stopped doing that because it was a waste of my time. But I did not realize that until I had already wasted enough time doing so!
I was really stressed out, more than I had ever been in the beginning of a school year, and it was because I was trying to fit too much in, when it didn’t need to be. I was bringing so much home and I just didn’t have enough time for anything.
Now, I try very hard not to bring anything home, but somethings when we have lots of different things come in at the same time, it is inevitable. For example, this weekend. Essays, Performance Tasks, new spelling groups, spelling test. All stuff that I don’t have to grade for Monday, but do I really want it to drag into next week for me to have to figure out when to grade them then? No.
So here I am, midnight on a Friday, grading papers, and inputting grades so that tomorrow night, I am ready to write.
Cheers to getting stuff done!
Thank you Slice of Life Challengers for setting this up, I enjoy it thoroughly!
Teach. Workout. Love 
I admire that you have the will-power and commitment to focus on work on Friday evening. I understand that sometimes it is easier to use a day off to get things done, because the long uninterrupted stretch of time allows to get in a flow.
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It took a lot haha I knew it needed to happen
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The life of a teacher never stops, does it! Kudos to you for tackling it and just getting it done!! 🙂
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Agreed. – thank you !
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It took me A LOT of years to figure out that I should stop bringing things home. I missed a lot of precious family time, read sleep doing that. Now I try to stay just a little later or go in earlier to organize my thinking in the place I’m doing it. I told one of my collaborators this week. It takes a while to know what’s important and what isn’t and to see the arc of the learning you want to get to each year.
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Yes you are so right !! I definitely missed a lot of time
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Your slice took me back to my days as a high school English teacher. Papers, papers, papers! After I retired, I had a recurring dream that I had a stack of essays I had forgotten to grade, I couldn’t find them, and it was the end of the term. I’d wake up in a panic. Your discipline to grade on Friday evening is admirable.
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Ugh what a terrible dream !
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I love your description of making yourself crazy with over-planning. Sometimes we all need reminders to not get so bogged down in the nitty gritty that we forget about what really matters.
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Right ?! As a teacher it’s so hard to remember that
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I remember the classroom/National Board balance! I couldn’t write mine at home–I had to find a work space every Saturday to disengage from everything else and focus. Hopefully your paper grading will go quickly and will support your NB writing!
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Ugh it’s so hard to write at my house like almost nearly impossible
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I agree…better to get it done and not have it hanging over your head. Good luck with your papers this weekend. 🙂
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Thank you !
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Sometimes we get more done when we are under pressure. Good luck with your tasks.
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Agreed. Thank you !
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I am impressed that you can do schoolwork on a Friday. Necessity gives us superpowers. I mis-timed some assignments and now have a stack of 60 information books, 60 writer’s notebooks and 60 book assessments to grade. I am chipping away at them.
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oh man – that sounds awful!!!!!!!!!!!!! my husband is away and daughter is sleeping so i feel like i just should bc i have nothing else to do lol
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I am so impressed that you are able to juggle so much, but at the same time admit that things went awry early. I am trying so hard to not be overwhelmed with all the tasks that need doing. Best wishes on your papers and grading. Hope you get to enjoy a walk or a cup of tea along the way.
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thank you! its definitely not an easy thing – in the beginning of the year – it was crazy overwhelming
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I completely relate to the life you’re describing. Some years it’s worse than others, depending upon whether I’m doing something new– like a school or grade change.
What’s your NBoard area?
That is one of the biggest time-management challenges EVER!!! I did it *way* back in the day as an Early Adolescent Generalist. It was mind-bogglingly challenging, but it was some of the best professional development I’ve ever had. My house had been robbed the year before I did it, and they took the computer that had my masters class work in progress stored on it. I lugged that NB stuff around EVERYWHERE. No WAY was I losing that. Because I’m a glutton for punishment (and because of a new stipend in my district) I did it again in EA English. I can’t say which was more challenging, but I can say they were both more than willing to suck away time like a black hole absorbs light.
Best of luck to you!
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I am doing 3-12 ela. I hope it goes well I feel like I haven’t spent enough time on it and that’s bad
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I can relate to your post, as I feel I tend to do best under pressure too. Time crunch… helps me focus and get it done. 🙂 Sounds like you were able to get a lot done late night, so hope you get some time to relax and enjoy your weekend.
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Thanks !
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Wow, I can so relate. I am sitting her writing my tenth comment with a stack of papers I need to grade, as well. I was going for 60 comments! Ha! I really need to get back to work on my school stuff, though. I am finding the Slice of Life a thoroughly delightful diversion and chance to ignore the things I don’t want to do.
Your post, however, has now sent me back to the other jobs I’ve been neglecting.
Regards,
Denise
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lol I was considering it too! lol we’ll see what I can get done
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Oh, I admire your resolve for tackling those papers on Friday night. Best of luck to you with your NB work tonight! Hopefully, you’ll enjoy some downtime with your daughter today.
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Thank you !!!
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As a NBCT myself, I am amazed that you are slicing on top of everything else piled on your plate! Make sure you take care of yourself…the process is intense, but you will learn more than you ever thought possible! Good luck…and be sure to sleep!
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Yeah I don’t know how to say no to all this extra stuff lol
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Oh gosh, that’s a terrible feeling when you’re feeling like you can’t get out from under the To Do list. I hope you feel satisfied that you got it done!
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I surely hope so too!
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