{"id":148476,"date":"2022-06-15T12:00:08","date_gmt":"2022-06-15T17:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/truthforteachers.com\/?p=148476"},"modified":"2022-06-13T20:47:15","modified_gmt":"2022-06-14T01:47:15","slug":"6-things-i-learned-in-the-40-hour-teacher-workweek-to-love-teaching-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/truthforteachers.com\/6-things-i-learned-in-the-40-hour-teacher-workweek-to-love-teaching-again\/","title":{"rendered":"6 things I learned in the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek that helped me love teaching again"},"content":{"rendered":"

I loved the way my classroom functioned. My students executed our routines and their classroom jobs efficiently.\u00a0 I did school work on the weekends about once a quarter, but other than that, my weeknights and weekends were work-free.<\/h3>\n

So when the Virginia governor closed all public schools in March 2020, to say I was devastated would be a huge understatement.<\/p>\n

Throughout the virtual, concurrent, and then in-person learning that followed, I strayed from many of the things I learned in the 40 Hour Workweek program<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many of my routines couldn\u2019t be carried out with social distancing. For several years, I\u2019ve handed out report cards and that\u2019s it!\u00a0 Every time I passed out a paper this year, I thought, \u201cThis should be a student job.\u201d<\/p>\n

I was pretty unhappy in my classroom and was struggling through hoping next year things would be more student-centered.<\/p>\n

Overwhelmed, I decided I had to try something different. I started getting back to some of the smaller changes I learned through the 40 Hour Club.\u00a0 These little changes in mindset and routine saved me time and that gave me a better attitude about my classroom.<\/b><\/p>\n

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1. Establish routines and coach them to perfection.<\/h3>\n

My students know that when they come into the room, they have two minutes to write down the homework assignment in their planner. As soon as this is done, they start their warm-up, which is some sort of review or skill-building activity designed to take anywhere from three to five minutes.<\/p>\n

When the timer goes off, I come around with a stamp to confirm that what they wrote in their planner is accurate. When the timer goes off again, we start class together. This routine gives me time to take attendance and gives me a few minutes to collect my thoughts between classes.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, we had a security guard that would come to classes in the morning and when she came into my room she\u2019d whisper, \u201cOh, are they taking a quiz?\u201d when the students were simply doing their warm-up. The first few weeks of the year, I recognize students who are following the routine by saying things like, \u201cI see Shaun remembers the routine. Thank you, Shaun,\u201d etc. It doesn\u2019t take long to get everybody on task, and I rarely get that email reminding me to submit attendance!<\/b><\/p>\n

2. Create the habit of putting roster numbers on assignments.<\/h3>\n

Our learning management system automatically alphabetizes digital assignments. I had forgotten just how much time it takes to enter scores of paper assignments when I have to scroll to different parts of the roster.<\/p>\n

Getting back in roster number mode made a huge difference. I can get any paper-based assignment in alphabetical order very quickly and directly into the online gradebook with minimal scrolling and clicking.\u00a0 I have to remind students of their number for the first few times but after a week or so of consistently hearing me say, \u201cname, bell, date, roster number at the top of your paper,\u201d everybody gets the hang of it.<\/p>\n

This seems like a tiny change, but it makes record keeping so much easier.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

3. Simplify grading by using rubrics or a checkmark system.<\/h3>\n

I used to think rubrics were just too much trouble. They were hard to make and even harder to arrive at a grade because they were so subjective.\u00a0 But with practice, this has become my preferred method of grading, for large and small assignments.<\/p>\n

I really like Angela\u2019s one-trait rubric for ideas and content. Other aspects of writing are important but not within my social studies standards to grade. I just need students to communicate what they know about my content.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

For homework or classwork, I use a simple checkmark system which is really just shorthand for a very basic rubric.\u00a0 I had plans to make a nice poster, but for now, I simply wrote it out on chart paper and stuck it to my board. For these assignments, I\u2019m looking for a few key ideas or the response to just one higher-level thinking question in order to determine the score.<\/p>\n

Students are familiar with using rubrics to craft their answers and will often ask what they need to do on a future assignment to score higher or a student will bring me a work in progress and ask, \u201cIs this at \u2018meets standards\u2019 or do I need to add more?\u201d<\/p>\n

4. Batch anything and everything.<\/h3>\n

My district recently adopted document-based assessments for social studies and I found these particularly challenging to grade until I started batching them. For example, halfway through the year, students have to write their own claim and support it with evidence and reasoning from the documents provided.<\/p>\n

The grading moves much more quickly if I grade everyone\u2019s claim first instead of grading an individual student\u2019s claim, evidence, and reasoning, and then going on to the next student. Mentally shifting to different parts of the rubric slows down grading.<\/p>\n

At home, I batch pack a week of lunches on Sunday night. I know the apple slicer is going to be clean and I can wash and slice multiple apples, sprinkle them with a fruit protector, and fill multiple little containers with peanut butter.<\/p>\n

I make and freeze sandwiches because by my 1 PM lunch break they will be thawed and I won\u2019t be super concerned about taste anyway! In the summer, I even fill and freeze multiple food-dispensing toys for my dog about once a week. Everyone\u2019s happier when the food they need is ready at a moment\u2019s notice!<\/p>\n

12 secrets of teachers who trimmed 10+ hours off their workweeks<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n