Staff Meetings? Yes!

Wednesday. Hump Day. The middle of the work week. However, in my county every other Wednesday is an early release day. Loved by students yet dreaded by teachers.

As I sat in my early release training today I glanced down at my agenda. A representative from the National Teacher's Association speaking to us about benefits, beefing up our writing instruction to earn better standardized test scores, training on an online data collection system and last but not least, doing focus walks through each other's classrooms to see what we need to work on as a school. To a seasoned teacher, these meetings are just another Wednesday. However, I remember how stressful meetings like these were when I was a new teacher. So much information, so little time to think about it and actually implement it. No one ever thinks about the new teachers when planning these meetings.

Don't get me wrong, veteran teachers feel the same way about trainings. Just think about all of the trainings we have been through in our many years of teaching. Each one trying to tell us a new method or program to use or a new way we will be evaluated. Things change so often in education that it's hard to stay up-to-date with everything. However, veteran teachers know the secret to handling these types of trainings - think about what really matters.

I don't know any teacher who got into teaching for the money. If you ask any teacher why they chose this profession they will give you the same answer - the kids. When you become frustrated with all of the new information you are getting thrown at you, just remember that the only thing that really matters is the students.

I'm not saying that you don't need to listen during the trainings. However, instead of trying to do everything you discussed right away, prioritize all the new information based on how it will help your children and work down the list. I've mentioned my marathon story before. You can't decide you want to run a marathon and then just do it the next day. You need to take small steps. And don't worry if you choose the wrong thing to focus on. That's the beauty of being a new teacher - you can always blame it on your newness and ask for more training.

So the next time you are sitting at a staff meeting stressing out, just take a big breath and think about your students. Remember they are the reason you became a teacher.