The Importance of Slowing Down
Well, as I write this post while sick in bed, it is a good reminder that I can't do everything nor should I try to. One of the hardest things to learn while being a first year teacher and teaching at a high pressure school--academically--is when to say that something is "good enough" and close the door to your classroom for the night.
As many of you know, I have a strong work ethic, OCD tendencies, and a tendency to be a perfectionist, especially when I feel the need or pressure to perform at a high level. While I have known this about myself for years and have worked to bring them into balance, the pressures of being a new teacher have started to corrode this balance in my life. I am not saying that I would want to teach anywhere else because with each school comes its own unique stresses and I could not imagine working with a better group of teachers. That being said, I think it is time to reevaluate how much I do and think about the necessity of being content with a lesson just being "okay" sometimes. This doesn't mean creating mediocre lessons or not using good teaching methods and material, but learning to step back and realize that my health is more important than making every lesson perfect.
One of my fellow teachers in the English department has been reminding me for weeks the importance of slowing down and designating a Sabbath and though, I have still plunged ahead into my lesson planning, I am seeing the validity of his argument far clearer now while feeling miserable with the flu than I did when I was healthy. This colleague and I were talking about it this morning before I went back to my apartment because of my fever and he mentioned that sometimes God uses bizarre ways to get our attention and teach us. In my case, showing me that my body is not invincible and that I should take more time to rest in His presence even if that means just lying on my bed listening to worship music. The Lord teaches very clearly about the need to slow down and rest and yet in this production obsessed world and feeling pressure to perform at a high level as a teacher, I tend to forego this command and think more about productivity and making the most use of my day.
For those of you have heard Jungle Jam and Friends before and listened to the episode "P-P-Peaceful", I am reminded of Millard the Monkey's line, "Make lists, Gruffy. Take it from time efficiency expert Millard. Make lists and prioritize. It is the only way to get things done and make the best use of your day." (I know that I have the line wrong). But while the Jungle Jam animals try harder and harder to be more productive, they eventually ware themselves out and accomplish nothing for days.
Another thing that I am forced to reflect on during this forced time of rest is if as teachers can we become so consumed with teaching students and helping them to produce the grades they want that we do not focus on building relationships with them? I know of course that you are not to be your students' best friend, but shouldn't teaching be more than just content? This is an especially important question for me to reflect on as ministering to young teens was the very reason that I went into teaching. While learning is so important and helping students to succeed in academics is vital, I also wonder if there needs to be some time spent in just getting to know my students better.
As many of you know, I have a strong work ethic, OCD tendencies, and a tendency to be a perfectionist, especially when I feel the need or pressure to perform at a high level. While I have known this about myself for years and have worked to bring them into balance, the pressures of being a new teacher have started to corrode this balance in my life. I am not saying that I would want to teach anywhere else because with each school comes its own unique stresses and I could not imagine working with a better group of teachers. That being said, I think it is time to reevaluate how much I do and think about the necessity of being content with a lesson just being "okay" sometimes. This doesn't mean creating mediocre lessons or not using good teaching methods and material, but learning to step back and realize that my health is more important than making every lesson perfect.
One of my fellow teachers in the English department has been reminding me for weeks the importance of slowing down and designating a Sabbath and though, I have still plunged ahead into my lesson planning, I am seeing the validity of his argument far clearer now while feeling miserable with the flu than I did when I was healthy. This colleague and I were talking about it this morning before I went back to my apartment because of my fever and he mentioned that sometimes God uses bizarre ways to get our attention and teach us. In my case, showing me that my body is not invincible and that I should take more time to rest in His presence even if that means just lying on my bed listening to worship music. The Lord teaches very clearly about the need to slow down and rest and yet in this production obsessed world and feeling pressure to perform at a high level as a teacher, I tend to forego this command and think more about productivity and making the most use of my day.
For those of you have heard Jungle Jam and Friends before and listened to the episode "P-P-Peaceful", I am reminded of Millard the Monkey's line, "Make lists, Gruffy. Take it from time efficiency expert Millard. Make lists and prioritize. It is the only way to get things done and make the best use of your day." (I know that I have the line wrong). But while the Jungle Jam animals try harder and harder to be more productive, they eventually ware themselves out and accomplish nothing for days.
Another thing that I am forced to reflect on during this forced time of rest is if as teachers can we become so consumed with teaching students and helping them to produce the grades they want that we do not focus on building relationships with them? I know of course that you are not to be your students' best friend, but shouldn't teaching be more than just content? This is an especially important question for me to reflect on as ministering to young teens was the very reason that I went into teaching. While learning is so important and helping students to succeed in academics is vital, I also wonder if there needs to be some time spent in just getting to know my students better.
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