Stress Less? Let's.

Near the end of this afternoon's faculty meeting, our principal offered some advice. He spent a few minutes reflecting, in what appeared to be a completely spontaneous manner, about the stress he observes on the faces of teachers who feel overwhelmed with so many tasks and so little time, urging everyone to prioritize. He reminded us of our successes in state testing. He reminded us that June is a long way off and we need to pace ourselves. And he recommended we ask ourselves whether something would be important "five years down the road." If it is going to be important, then do it well, he said. If it isn't, then don't stress about it.

I decided to use today's blog entry to look back at the things I have done over the last two days at work and apply his question, will it matter in five years?

First and foremost, I taught six class periods each day. During that time, I told my English 10 students about a new, more challenging format for our vocabulary quizzes that will start this Friday. We learned the words for this week, and spent time talking about each word's definition and coming up with mnemonic devices to commit the words and their meanings to long-term memory. Will this matter in five years? I believe vocabulary is power. I spend an inordinate amount of time each week working with the words because I believe a good vocabulary is the passport students will need to gain access to many of the things they want to do in their lives. I say YES.

We also reviewed some grammar/usage/conventions concepts to prepare for the upcoming midterm exams. We discussed tone, purpose, independent vs. dependent clauses, adverbial clauses, and parallel structure. Will this matter in five years? Almost every student will be in college or working, and will need to communicate effectively through writing (anyone ever email professors or bosses?). Emphatically, I say YES.

We read and discussed chapters from The Catcher in the Rye. Students will need to know about this novel to write their critical papers next month and to pass the tests and quizzes related to the novel, but will they need to know this in five years? Maybe not, at least not specifically the details we discussed. However, the students participated in a literary discussion using higher level critical thinking skills. I believe this experience will transfer over to other areas where they will need to read, interpret, form opinions, make decisions, synthesize thoughts and discuss. Besides, I want them to be in the know when someone mentions old Holden Caulfield five years from now. YES!

I collected homework. I handed out messages that came from school clubs and organizations to students in my first period class. I handed out PSAT booklets and answered questions about college applications. I wrote a letter of recommendation. I helped a student in her quest to figure out if she wanted to go to college right away or work for a year first. I took attendance. I urged sleeping students to wake up and talkative students to quiet down. I collected work for absent students and gave it to them when they returned to class. I even attempted to convince a student that parallel structure will be important to him later in life. All of the side discussions, impromptu dialogues, and administrative duties that go into managing a class -- will they matter in five years? It's hard to be certain which ones, but some certainly will. YES.

But as I remember back to what I've done at work over the last few days, it was way more than just class time. I also have a lunch period and a prep period, as well as 30 minutes after school. Looking at the way I prioritized that time might shed some light on what areas of stress I could cut back a little. I wouldn't necessarily say it all stressed me out, but it has been a whirlwind of fast-paced decision making, to say the least. Let's look back at some of the things that have occupied my time on Monday and Tuesday...

I listened to a voicemail from a parent concerned about her son's grade. I reviewed his performance, made some notes, and called her back. No answer. I left a message. I filled out a student evaluation for the school psychologist. I compiled 10 days of homework and classwork for a student who will be suspended for the next 10 days. I did the same for one student who will be in in-school suspension on Wednesday. I received, read, and filed revised IEP and 504 agreements for three students. I filled out a survey about one student's behavior and classroom participation for her case manager. I clarified my answers to that student's home office assistant principal in an email. I posted every lesson for every class this week on my web page. I revised, printed and copied handouts for the grammar excercises for the English classes. I wrote a chapter of my character's story in the online collaborative writing project in which my Creative Writing students and I are currently engaged. I emailed the teacher of a student in Virtual High School, which I coordinate for our school, with a concern he had about his grades. I received a reply the next day and discussed it with the student. I logged on to get the grades for all the VHS students from their teachers and entered them into our school's online grade book. I updated the application for next year's VHS program at the request of an assistant principal. I donated money for an upcoming department celebration for a colleague. I gave four students make-up quizzes from their absences. I emailed administrators to get permission to use the district credit card to pay for the ski club lock-in, called the company hosting the event, made the payment, and wrote a reimbursement to the district from the club's account. I spoke with the manager of the company that is hosting the event, and reviewed the list of 63 students who will be attending this Friday night. I had cafeteria duty. I emailed faculty members looking for one more chaperone for an upcoming ski trip I will be running for the ski club. I prepared a presentation and a six-page handout for Wednesday's meeting with parents of students going on another ski trip. I collected money and permission forms from dozens of students who popped in to my room at random intervals throughout each day, logged them in our records, and submitted the payments for deposit. I did a blog post.

Which of these tasks will truly matter in five years? I can't always say. 11 years into a teaching career, so many students have come back and told me how so many things that may have seemed trivial at the time made a difference to them, that I can't know for sure which actions will have lasting effects. I try to put my all into all of them before collapsing in exhaustion at the end of the week. :)

On the homefront, I helped my son with his homework. I exchanged a Christmas gift of his that wasn't working. I danced with my daughter. I gave baths and read books. I woke both kids up each morning so they could wave goodbye out the window as I drove to work. I took our car in for brake work and picked it up the next day. I ate dinner with my family. I spent a sleepless, cold Monday night when the furnace in our house stopped working, and laughed about it on Tuesday when we were told it was just a reset button that we needed to push. I read a few pages (and that's it) from the current novel I am reading for enjoyment. I dropped my skis off to be tuned for the season because I am chaperoning a ski trip to New York for three days next week. I went over the plans for the rest of the week with my wife, wondering how we were going to fit it all in, but knowing we somehow always do! I talked to one friend who just had a new baby, and one friend who took his father off of the respirator yesterday. I gave thanks that the four of us in my family are all healthy and together this week. I ... don't know that any of this could be classified as more important or less important. Some of it gave me great stress, and some of it gave me pure joy. All of it needed to be done.

There is no nice little bow to wrap up this week's thoughts. While it helps to prioritize and to think about what is truly important in life, and to remember not to sweat the small stuff, it seems life is inherently comprised of the stringing together of small stuff that leads to a complete and important whole. I will make a conscious effort not to let the trivial things add unnecessary stress to my life, but if they do, well, I'm not going to stress about that, either.