How to Prevent First-Year Burnout

1. Have a hobby outside of school. (running, sports, working out, TV., reading)

2. Learn to leave work at school. ( This very hard to do, but it can be done. Try to plan for the whole week on the weekends. Don’t plan day to day because you will get no sleep. Print all worksheets and handouts a week before. I would print anything that I thought I might use for the upcoming unit. There will always be times when you have to hold classes, and you can use the extra worksheets for those occasions. I would grade on Sunday afternoons only.)

3. Hangout with friends who do not teach.

4. Try to have “Me” time every month. Do the things you enjoy doing.

5. Go site seeing in the Delta or in Jackson.

6. Find a lake or river to walk along or swim in. I find that a walk by the water relaxes me.

7. Do not add unnecessary stress to your life. You already have enough.

8. Have a good friend in the teacher corp who you can vent to. Always vent, never hold it in. Hangout with other teachers.

9. Go away for the weekends. It is not possible to do this every weekend but once every few months would be good.

10. Try to see your kids outside of school. (church, grocery store, etc.) It will allow your students to see that you are a real person. I find once I did this, the bad ones weren’t as bad. They didn’t give me as much trouble.

11. Take advantage of the vacations and take a vacation!!

Impact on My Life

This experience has changed my life. It has opened my eyes to so many things I had no idea still existed, such as generational poverty. I was clueless to the fact that towns like the Delta towns still exist. Another thing that has surprised me is the amount of education many of the students’ parents have. Many of them are uneducated. This experienced has opened my eyes to how many people live. It has made me thankful for all the things I have. It has also opened my eyes to how big of an impact one person can have on people or even a community. I also formed friendships that I hope will last a life time. I grew very close to my mentor teacher; in fact, we hung out together outside of school. I would go and watch my kids play recreational sports. This allowed my students to see me outside of school. I think, this made them realize that I was a real person. I am also less superficial. I am more understanding to the fact that many people sometimes go through hard times. Hard times are when you are unsure of where your next meal is coming from and unsure of where you will sleep from night to night. I found that hard times happen to many of my students and their families. No matter what I do in life I plan to somehow continue to be involved in education, whether it is through volunteering at a local library or school, donating money, or being a teacher. I truly can say that I know the importance and the value of an education. This experience has changed so many things about me. It has in some part, made me who I am today.