1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:04,000 Welcome to the Teachers Need Teachers Podcasts, the podcast for teachers who don't want 2 00:00:04,040 --> 00:00:08,279 to just survive teaching, but actually thrive. I'm your host, Kim Laprie, 3 00:00:08,279 --> 00:00:12,400 and I am so excited that you are here. So it's April, 4 00:00:12,439 --> 00:00:16,280 and you know what that means. The end of the school year is almost 5 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:21,320 upon us. We get to put this whole school year behind us and finally 6 00:00:21,359 --> 00:00:26,199 get that well deserved and much needed break. The finish line is in sight, 7 00:00:26,359 --> 00:00:31,199 but those last hundred meters can feel like an entire marathon right And for 8 00:00:31,280 --> 00:00:35,359 many years at this time of the year, I wondered how I was going 9 00:00:35,439 --> 00:00:38,479 to make it to that last day of school without losing my damn mind. 10 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:44,280 So in this episode, I'm diving into ten battle tested tips on how to 11 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:49,920 not just survive, but actually thrive during this final stretch of the school year. 12 00:00:50,119 --> 00:00:53,399 I'm going to be covering three different gearing up for the finish line, 13 00:00:53,759 --> 00:00:57,719 keeping your cool, and taming the tempest. So first things first, let's 14 00:00:57,719 --> 00:01:02,079 talk about how to prepare for what's ex expected of us, Because there are 15 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:04,480 things that you are going to be required to do at the end of the 16 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,840 year that if you're a new teacher you need to find out about and if 17 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:11,920 you're a seasoned teacher, you know that these are things that every year they 18 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:18,359 sneak up on us because we're not preparing for them. So first you need 19 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:22,959 to focus on the essentials. The last couple of months really aren't a great 20 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:26,840 time to teach new material. Your students aren't really in the mindset to absorb 21 00:01:27,079 --> 00:01:30,599 anything new, and can you really blame them. It's kind of like when 22 00:01:30,599 --> 00:01:34,920 you're in a training of some sort and it's towards the last hour or two 23 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:38,799 of that training and you've pretty much checked out if you didn't check out from 24 00:01:38,799 --> 00:01:45,599 the beginning. So it's important to understand that students are also in this mindset. 25 00:01:45,719 --> 00:01:49,079 They're also looking forward to the summer, well most of them are, 26 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:53,400 and so trying to teach them something new, especially if it's difficult, is 27 00:01:53,439 --> 00:01:56,760 going to be kind of an uphill battle. This is actually the best time 28 00:01:56,879 --> 00:02:01,319 to be reviewing core concepts, wrapping up any loose ends in terms of what 29 00:02:01,400 --> 00:02:07,439 you taught them, and preparing them for some upcoming and of course or final 30 00:02:07,599 --> 00:02:12,159 exam. So basically it's a really good time to just have them apply what 31 00:02:12,199 --> 00:02:16,159 they've already learned and to not try to bombard them with new things that they 32 00:02:16,199 --> 00:02:21,199 honestly won't remember after they leave you, since it's coming so late in the 33 00:02:21,280 --> 00:02:24,199 year. I also tend to not like to give projects. Don't get me 34 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:29,560 wrong, I've given projects before because it just seemed like a good time. 35 00:02:30,159 --> 00:02:32,759 It's just really like low barrier to entry because all I have to do is 36 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:37,159 just give them the instructions for the project and let them do it while I 37 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:40,520 get to just monitor them. However, I have found that this has actually 38 00:02:40,599 --> 00:02:45,159 been a nightmare scenario. A lot of times, the class time that you've 39 00:02:45,199 --> 00:02:51,680 allotted them for projects gets interrupted by things like ceremonies or maybe testing. Plus, 40 00:02:51,759 --> 00:02:53,280 because it's at the end of the school year, I don't have as 41 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:57,719 much time to grade it, so then I'm scrambling towards the end to try 42 00:02:57,719 --> 00:03:00,879 to finish it. The students want feedback or they're a grade on that project 43 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:05,240 that they work so hard on, and so it just tends to be a 44 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:07,360 little bit frustrating for me at the end of the year if I have all 45 00:03:07,439 --> 00:03:10,960 of these projects that I have to get graded and input it into my grade 46 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:15,240 book. Also, you might have found that if a project goes on too 47 00:03:15,319 --> 00:03:17,199 long, which a lot of times end of the year projects tend to do. 48 00:03:17,719 --> 00:03:23,560 Students lose focus and start to exhibit more off task behaviors. So your 49 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:29,439 plan to do something that was more engaging and easier on you actually ends up 50 00:03:29,520 --> 00:03:32,680 backfiring. And we think about it. If you have students who blaster the 51 00:03:32,719 --> 00:03:37,840 project quickly, what are they going to do while everybody else is finishing up. 52 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:39,919 You can give them extra work, but then they're still going to goof 53 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:45,080 off because now it's unfair that they get more work. They're basically being punished 54 00:03:45,120 --> 00:03:50,039 for getting done quickly. So you can just see that it can be difficult 55 00:03:50,120 --> 00:03:53,199 to manage if you give something like that towards the end of the year. 56 00:03:53,319 --> 00:03:54,719 So what types of things do I like to do at the end of the 57 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:59,520 year. Like I mentioned before, I do like to do reviews. I 58 00:03:59,599 --> 00:04:03,000 like to get something that involves less of me grading. So maybe these are 59 00:04:03,360 --> 00:04:08,800 multiple choice things, or maybe it's something like a cahout or just something fun 60 00:04:08,840 --> 00:04:13,719 for the students to do that doesn't involve me having to create a bunch of 61 00:04:13,759 --> 00:04:17,319 assignments. And then I do like group work because it keeps the kids engaged. 62 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:23,199 And again the students aren't necessarily learning something new, and they can be 63 00:04:23,319 --> 00:04:27,720 reviewing and it's just easier for me personally to manage. So the second tip 64 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:30,439 is to plan for the future. And it doesn't necessarily have to mean planning 65 00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:34,240 for like far out into the future. It could just be planning for the 66 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:39,040 summer. So we want to start thinking about things that need to be packed 67 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:42,639 up and put away for summer cleaning. Or maybe you're going to be switching 68 00:04:42,680 --> 00:04:46,279 schools. Maybe you'll be switching grades, so you have to pack up all 69 00:04:46,319 --> 00:04:49,439 of your fourth grade materials because you're being moved to sixth grade, or maybe 70 00:04:49,439 --> 00:04:53,800 you're being moved to another classroom. So it's a good time to start planning 71 00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:59,199 for that now instead of getting really stressed out, procrastinating, and even worse, 72 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:01,600 having to stay into your summer so that you can get that done. 73 00:05:01,800 --> 00:05:04,959 Actually, what's kind of cool is you can employ your students to help you 74 00:05:05,040 --> 00:05:09,600 out a little bit during those times when they start to get restless. It 75 00:05:09,639 --> 00:05:12,319 can be a good time to have them help you take things down the wall 76 00:05:12,439 --> 00:05:15,439 or have you put things into boxes, and it kind of gives them something 77 00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:19,759 to do take a little bit of a mental break during those review sessions. 78 00:05:19,920 --> 00:05:24,439 I also encourage you to put any repair or work orders that you'd like to 79 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:28,959 have completed over the summer. So maybe there's a leak somewhere that you want 80 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:31,040 them to take a look at, or there's a patch of carpet that they 81 00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:34,720 need to replace something like that. Maybe your desk is broken or the drawer 82 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:40,199 is broken and you'd like the custodians to fix it over the summer, then 83 00:05:40,319 --> 00:05:43,319 now would be a good time to start making a list of those so that 84 00:05:43,399 --> 00:05:46,360 you can give it to whoever's in charge of that. I also like to 85 00:05:46,399 --> 00:05:49,360 make sure that I gather all the work that I've collected and have forgotten to 86 00:05:49,399 --> 00:05:53,399 hand back to the students, and I make a plan for that. That's 87 00:05:53,439 --> 00:05:57,199 actually something that you can space out over time, so that during the last 88 00:05:57,240 --> 00:06:00,000 say, five ten minutes of class, when students are really losing their mind, 89 00:06:00,199 --> 00:06:03,079 it's a time when you can give back their papers and their work a 90 00:06:03,079 --> 00:06:06,319 little bit at a time, so you can kill those last few minutes. 91 00:06:06,560 --> 00:06:11,279 My next tip is to focus on what you can control. This is actually 92 00:06:11,319 --> 00:06:15,040 kind of hard even for someone like me, because we can tend to worry 93 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:18,000 about all of the things that are happening. Maybe students are getting more and 94 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:21,920 really maybe there are still parents that are hounding you. You could be worrying 95 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:27,319 about a notice of non renewal, things like that, and so we want 96 00:06:27,319 --> 00:06:30,519 to try to reframe and focus on the things that are within our control so 97 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:35,120 that again we don't lose our mind. So if you just had standardized testing 98 00:06:35,199 --> 00:06:39,519 and you were worried about their scores, it's out of your control. Now 99 00:06:39,560 --> 00:06:42,439 you're not going to find out, probably until the summer, how they did. 100 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:46,879 So there's just no use in worrying about that. And if you did 101 00:06:46,920 --> 00:06:49,920 get a notice of non renewal and you've already gone to the process of fighting 102 00:06:49,959 --> 00:06:54,399 it or discussing it with your union if you have one, and you're still 103 00:06:54,439 --> 00:06:58,480 going to get that, then it's time to start looking forward to the next 104 00:06:58,560 --> 00:07:01,160 adventure and the next opportunit community for you, instead of dwelling on the fact 105 00:07:01,199 --> 00:07:05,040 that you're not coming back. Now. I know that's a lot easier said 106 00:07:05,079 --> 00:07:09,319 than done. Just remember that if they don't want you there, there's going 107 00:07:09,399 --> 00:07:12,240 to be a school that does. And it just feels so much better to 108 00:07:12,240 --> 00:07:16,639 be somewhere where you're appreciated and not being criticized and hounded by your administration and 109 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:20,360 other colleagues. So there are definitely better things that you can look forward to. 110 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:25,720 And the same goes if you have a particularly difficult class, you know 111 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:29,000 they're difficult, they've been that way the whole year. That with me and 112 00:07:29,120 --> 00:07:31,920 one eighth grade class. What I can control is how I react to what 113 00:07:31,959 --> 00:07:35,680 they're doing and the way that I structure the class periods so that I can 114 00:07:35,759 --> 00:07:42,480 minimize how crazy they can become. So instead of dreading seeing them every single 115 00:07:42,560 --> 00:07:46,480 day, I just focus on how I can control and manipulate the situation to 116 00:07:46,560 --> 00:07:50,639 try to just keep the chaos contained as much as possible. Tip number four 117 00:07:51,000 --> 00:07:56,920 is to celebrate accomplishments. I personally like to take some time to acknowledge how 118 00:07:56,959 --> 00:08:00,720 far my students have come and how much they've grown. We think it's kind 119 00:08:00,759 --> 00:08:03,720 of fun to actually look back at their first piece of writing towards the beginning 120 00:08:03,759 --> 00:08:07,319 of the school year and just see how much better they are now. So 121 00:08:07,439 --> 00:08:11,480 you can do some kind of reflection piece like that, although I want to 122 00:08:11,519 --> 00:08:13,879 take too much time because kids can get really bored with that, but you 123 00:08:13,879 --> 00:08:18,800 could also have some kind of celebration in class or rays to recognize your students, 124 00:08:18,839 --> 00:08:22,079 and it's just something that kind of lightens the mood at the end of 125 00:08:22,079 --> 00:08:26,319 the year. I also wouldn't be afraid to show a movie. I know 126 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:28,639 this can be controversial, but it's the end of the year. Unless your 127 00:08:28,680 --> 00:08:33,519 school has some kind of school wide activity or maybe like a festival planned, 128 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:37,519 the last few days of school can actually just feel like you're there to get 129 00:08:37,559 --> 00:08:41,360 the federal funding. You know what I mean, You're just there. You're 130 00:08:41,399 --> 00:08:46,320 wondering why are we still here? There's literally nothing to do. So if 131 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:50,159 that's the case where there's nothing planned the last one, two three days of 132 00:08:50,159 --> 00:08:54,559 school, just show a movie. Just have them bring their own snacks or 133 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:58,279 provide them with popcorn or something like that. Let them sit on the ground 134 00:08:58,279 --> 00:09:01,679 and just show them a movie. So next, let's discuss how to keep 135 00:09:01,679 --> 00:09:05,240 your sanity in check, because let's be honest, the last few months can 136 00:09:05,279 --> 00:09:09,919 be pretty stressful. So tip number five is don't be a martyr. It's 137 00:09:09,039 --> 00:09:13,840 okay to take breaks. I would schedule at least one or two personal days 138 00:09:13,879 --> 00:09:18,000 during this time, just so that you can have some time to reset and 139 00:09:18,039 --> 00:09:22,399 so that you won't sit there freaking out and losing your mind. You're probably 140 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:26,080 going to need some time away from certain students, if not a whole class. 141 00:09:26,159 --> 00:09:30,799 I remember that I did that with that one class. I had to 142 00:09:30,799 --> 00:09:33,600 get away from that class just for a day because they were starting to become 143 00:09:33,639 --> 00:09:37,320 out of control. And even though I knew that it was really fair to 144 00:09:37,639 --> 00:09:43,000 do that to a substitute, I didn't want to be a mean teacher at 145 00:09:43,039 --> 00:09:46,080 the end of the school year and have them leave with that kind of impression 146 00:09:46,159 --> 00:09:48,679 of their experience with me. So taking a day off just made me a 147 00:09:48,720 --> 00:09:52,320 better teacher, and it just really helped with the vibe in my classroom towards 148 00:09:52,399 --> 00:09:56,679 the end of the year. Something that you can consider. There's a three 149 00:09:56,799 --> 00:10:01,000 day weekend usually for the Memorial Day weekend. Maybe make it a four day 150 00:10:01,039 --> 00:10:05,159 weekend and take that Friday off too. Plan for it now so that it 151 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:07,639 doesn't creep up on you and you can have a solid lesson planned for that. 152 00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:13,080 If you want to know more about how to create good lesson plans, 153 00:10:13,159 --> 00:10:15,799 I'll be sure to leave a link in the show notes so that you can 154 00:10:15,840 --> 00:10:20,799 listen to that episode. The next tip is to continue to prioritize yourself. 155 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:24,519 Yes, you can get bogged down with all of the things that you need 156 00:10:24,559 --> 00:10:26,679 to do towards the end of the school year, and just get bogged down 157 00:10:26,799 --> 00:10:31,759 with the stress of having to deal with these students who are just acting insane. 158 00:10:33,200 --> 00:10:37,960 So it's really important more than ever to prioritize your health, especially your 159 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:41,519 mental and physical health, and take time to disconnect. Plan activity so that 160 00:10:41,600 --> 00:10:46,799 you're not spending a lot of time thinking about school at home. Plan things 161 00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:50,919 that you can do so that once you walk out of that school every single 162 00:10:50,039 --> 00:10:54,440 day, you are leaving it all behind and you don't have to worry about 163 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:58,320 what's coming next. Make sure you're getting an adequate amount of sleep, you're 164 00:10:58,360 --> 00:11:01,120 freeding yourself well, you're moving your body, all the things that you know 165 00:11:01,159 --> 00:11:05,440 that you should be doing. But this is a time when the stress can 166 00:11:05,519 --> 00:11:07,759 make you sick. This is the time when the stress can make you want 167 00:11:07,799 --> 00:11:11,519 to quit, even though normally you weren't even really thinking about quitting. It's 168 00:11:11,559 --> 00:11:18,080 a time that can be really, really stressful. So prioritizing yourself is going 169 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:22,080 to go a long way. My next tip is to connect and commiserate with 170 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:26,879 your colleagues. Normally, I don't necessarily think it's good to just have a 171 00:11:26,879 --> 00:11:30,360 wine fest with your colleagues, because that could just lead to a lot of 172 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:35,200 negativity. But this is kind of the time when it's okay because you just 173 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:37,759 sometimes need to vent, right. You can try to vent to your family 174 00:11:37,799 --> 00:11:41,639 members and friends and they'll listen for a little bit, but I don't know 175 00:11:41,639 --> 00:11:43,200 about you. After a while, I kind of feel bad doing that because 176 00:11:43,279 --> 00:11:46,360 they don't really know what's going on. They don't really understand, and they 177 00:11:46,399 --> 00:11:52,919 can't relate unless there are fellow educators. So lean into talking to your colleagues 178 00:11:52,919 --> 00:11:56,039 if you have that kind of connection with some of them, or even if 179 00:11:56,080 --> 00:11:58,799 you don't, you can still in the copy room just say, oh, 180 00:11:58,799 --> 00:12:01,840 my goodness, this is so fresh, and it's just nice to get it 181 00:12:01,879 --> 00:12:05,600 out and talk about it with them, and then you can all share your 182 00:12:05,639 --> 00:12:09,240 frustrations and celebrate successes with each other, maybe bounce ideas off of each other 183 00:12:09,320 --> 00:12:13,000 in terms of how to keep the kids from becoming too restless. I remember 184 00:12:13,000 --> 00:12:18,519 one year where another colleague had some difficult students and I had some difficult students, 185 00:12:18,559 --> 00:12:22,960 and so we would send something with that student. It wasn't really anything 186 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:26,919 that was important. We'd make up some kind of paperwork to give to the 187 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:30,360 other teacher, and that would give the student time to walk over to that 188 00:12:30,399 --> 00:12:35,720 classroom and walk back and a lot of times that would redirect them or have 189 00:12:35,840 --> 00:12:39,679 them clear their head enough to where they weren't as difficult for the next block 190 00:12:39,720 --> 00:12:43,559 of time. So we've covered the essentials in terms of how to prepare and 191 00:12:43,639 --> 00:12:46,720 how to keep your cool, and now we're going to talk about taming the 192 00:12:46,799 --> 00:12:52,440 tempest, which is basically managing the classroom energy, especially when your students are 193 00:12:52,519 --> 00:12:56,720 a little restless or a lot restless. So it goes without saying that you 194 00:12:56,799 --> 00:13:01,600 need to plan some engaging activities. Isn't a time for your normal lectures. 195 00:13:01,639 --> 00:13:05,279 The kids just I don't care if they are in twelfth grade or in second 196 00:13:05,360 --> 00:13:11,039 grade. It is really hard for them to handle lectures at this point in 197 00:13:11,080 --> 00:13:13,799 the year. I mean, if you have to do traditional lectures, that's 198 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:18,440 fine, but just know that they are going to be more restless, less 199 00:13:18,519 --> 00:13:22,679 likely to absorb the information, and we'll probably get into more trouble and you 200 00:13:22,799 --> 00:13:26,720 have to be prepared for that, and you have to accept that. You 201 00:13:26,759 --> 00:13:31,039 can't actually get really mad at them about that because it's just their nature. 202 00:13:31,279 --> 00:13:35,120 I think it's better to plan something that's more interactive and more fun, maybe 203 00:13:35,159 --> 00:13:39,360 something like what I had discussed with the modern classroom project model in my previous 204 00:13:39,399 --> 00:13:45,320 episode, in terms of having videos. For whatever reason, students are more 205 00:13:45,320 --> 00:13:48,759 engaged with watching a video than they are listening to me. They follow the 206 00:13:48,799 --> 00:13:52,279 directions that I tell them via video than I tell them in person. It's 207 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:56,200 kind of interesting. So maybe you just mix it up during this time so 208 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:58,960 that it's not just the same old, same old. A different stimulus will 209 00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:03,320 get them to focus more. So this is a time for more hands on 210 00:14:03,639 --> 00:14:09,000 learning. Maybe some educational games that could be like a Daally thing that you 211 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:11,879 do as a warm up. Just find ways to keep them focused and motivated, 212 00:14:11,960 --> 00:14:16,519 something that is more relevant and fun for them that maybe you had been 213 00:14:16,519 --> 00:14:18,759 saving up all year. And this goes along with my next tip, which 214 00:14:18,799 --> 00:14:22,840 is to take movement breaks. If you're an elementary teacher, you already know 215 00:14:22,960 --> 00:14:26,879 about this. You know that you have to have the students move after a 216 00:14:26,879 --> 00:14:31,120 certain amount of time, or else they will move without your permission. So 217 00:14:31,559 --> 00:14:37,120 it's better to have them move in a structured way rather than when their bodies 218 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:41,759 just decided going to start gesticulating or whatever. So I would schedule short bursts 219 00:14:41,759 --> 00:14:46,720 of movement, whether it's a stretch. As I mentioned before that I did 220 00:14:46,759 --> 00:14:50,320 with some difficult students, sending them out on a fake errand maybe taking a 221 00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:54,679 fun brain break where they get to mix up their groups somehow, or mix 222 00:14:54,759 --> 00:14:58,480 up their seating chart with that eighth grade class. Sometimes you would take a 223 00:14:58,559 --> 00:15:03,200 five minute walk down to the library and back, just so I could provide 224 00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:05,879 them with time to talk, which is all they wanted to do to get 225 00:15:05,879 --> 00:15:09,960 that energy out. And I tell you, when we came back from that, 226 00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:13,799 they settled beautifully and got focused. So schedule things like that for your 227 00:15:13,799 --> 00:15:18,159 students, especially this time of year. Now. My next tip is to 228 00:15:18,440 --> 00:15:22,919 really embrace and understand why students are acting this way. I've alluded to it 229 00:15:24,159 --> 00:15:28,120 many times. That class that I had, they weren't bad kids, they 230 00:15:28,159 --> 00:15:33,320 really weren't. They just they were friends. And so no matter how I 231 00:15:33,480 --> 00:15:37,480 arranged the seats, there would be someone there for them to talk to and 232 00:15:37,879 --> 00:15:41,799 goof off with. Even if I put them near someone introverted. Even those 233 00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:46,039 introverts would sometimes get into trouble because they just couldn't help it. It was 234 00:15:46,159 --> 00:15:50,399 just that kind of energy in the classroom, and so they became obviously even 235 00:15:50,440 --> 00:15:52,000 more restless at the end of the year, and I had to remember why 236 00:15:52,039 --> 00:15:56,840 that was happening. They were eighth graders, they were about to promote and 237 00:15:56,879 --> 00:16:00,080 go off to high school, and there was definitely like a nerve business and 238 00:16:00,200 --> 00:16:06,679 this just elevated energy, this buzz in the school because they just knew that 239 00:16:06,759 --> 00:16:10,399 this was it. And some of them their mindset was, well, this 240 00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:14,879 is my last hurrah, So I'm gonna go and be stupid and do things 241 00:16:14,879 --> 00:16:17,440 that I know I shouldn't because what are they going to do to me? 242 00:16:17,519 --> 00:16:18,879 And let's be honest, what are they going to do to them? They're 243 00:16:19,080 --> 00:16:22,879 gonna not let them promote. They probably weren't going to promote anyway, so 244 00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:27,440 it didn't matter to them. And then there were other students who were really 245 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:30,919 anxious and they didn't know how to get that anxiety out, and so it 246 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:34,519 just came out in the form of like talking too much and not listening or 247 00:16:34,559 --> 00:16:37,799 not doing their work. And sometimes they were bored because, let's be honest, 248 00:16:37,840 --> 00:16:41,159 it's the end of the year. They worked really hard. Even if 249 00:16:41,159 --> 00:16:45,039 they didn't work really hard, it's been a long year for them and so 250 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:51,720 at this point, they just can't absorb anymore. Their brains are fully saturated 251 00:16:51,759 --> 00:16:55,759 with everything that you and their other teachers have taught them. So it's just 252 00:16:55,960 --> 00:16:59,840 really hard to get them to be productive. And you just have to understand 253 00:16:59,840 --> 00:17:03,799 that and embrace that and accept it, and finally you have to plan for 254 00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:08,119 it. I'm not making excuses for them, per se, but when you 255 00:17:08,200 --> 00:17:14,160 do understand and really plan for this, then you can minimize the amount of 256 00:17:14,279 --> 00:17:18,599 frustration that you're going to have because you know your students. You know when 257 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:21,440 that breaking point is for them, when they're going to start acting up, 258 00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:25,720 and you plan something for that as a preentive strike. Maybe you just plan 259 00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:29,480 things where every single day there's a fun routine that they could look forward to 260 00:17:30,039 --> 00:17:33,200 and they know that you're building in something fun, like a silly cahoot. 261 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:36,720 I know, I keep saying cahot and their other games, but you get 262 00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:41,680 the point. It doesn't necessarily always have to be an educational game. It 263 00:17:41,720 --> 00:17:45,240 could be a cahoot about cartoon care. It can be a cahoot about modern 264 00:17:45,359 --> 00:17:49,480 slang words that they help contribute to, something like that. So that was 265 00:17:49,519 --> 00:17:55,240 a lot to cover, but by following these tips, and really embracing them. 266 00:17:55,279 --> 00:17:59,720 You really can transform the end of the school year from this horrible slot 267 00:18:00,039 --> 00:18:04,079 to a time when you can really celebrate and have some closure with your students. 268 00:18:04,279 --> 00:18:08,160 I have to say that with that particular class, we really did end 269 00:18:08,200 --> 00:18:11,319 on a high note, and strangely enough, even though they stressed me out 270 00:18:11,400 --> 00:18:15,440 for the entire school year, I missed them. I was really sad to 271 00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:21,400 see them go. We had wrapped up that school year so well, so 272 00:18:21,599 --> 00:18:26,079 positively, with so much energy and on a high note that they also missed 273 00:18:26,079 --> 00:18:30,960 me. So just remember plan engaging activities, take care of yourself, focus 274 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:33,599 on the progress that you and your students have made together, and be as 275 00:18:33,599 --> 00:18:37,599 proactive as possible. I mean, summer break is right around the corner. 276 00:18:37,599 --> 00:18:41,519 If you're listening to this and it's not end of the year, doesn't mean 277 00:18:41,119 --> 00:18:45,160 that it's not relevant to you. You can actually keep all of these tips 278 00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:49,680 in mind because they apply anytime of the year, especially if you happen to 279 00:18:49,759 --> 00:18:55,799 have that class. You know what I mean, that class or those students. 280 00:18:56,039 --> 00:18:59,400 So I hope that this episode was really helpful for you and that you 281 00:18:59,519 --> 00:19:03,079 got some solid tips in terms of how to prepare if you are a new 282 00:19:03,119 --> 00:19:07,720 teacher, it's hard to know how to prepare for the end of the school 283 00:19:07,799 --> 00:19:11,400 year. It's really hard to know what you're supposed to be doing because the 284 00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:15,240 other teachers in your school, especially if you don't have a mentor, they're 285 00:19:15,279 --> 00:19:18,240 stressed out with their end of the school year, and sometimes we feel bad 286 00:19:18,319 --> 00:19:22,720 asking them for help. We feel bad for bugging them, but we don't 287 00:19:22,759 --> 00:19:25,039 know what we're supposed to be doing, and then all of a sudden, 288 00:19:25,079 --> 00:19:29,079 these school wide activities pop up or things that are expected of us, but 289 00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:33,039 nobody told us about them, so then we just feel inadequate. So I 290 00:19:33,079 --> 00:19:36,920 just wanted to help you out with that so that you can learn how to 291 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:41,200 be proactive. Now. It did create another episode that will be equally helpful 292 00:19:41,319 --> 00:19:44,880 about preparing for the end of the school year, and it's episode one nineteen, 293 00:19:45,279 --> 00:19:48,039 and I'll go ahead and link that in the show notes in case you 294 00:19:48,079 --> 00:19:49,640 haven't listened to that yet. Thanks for hanging out with me today, you 295 00:19:49,640 --> 00:19:52,960 guys, and I will talk to you next time.