A teacher’s summer is, among other things, for rebuilding capacity that she can use during the busy months with no time to slow down. (Though that is increasingly hard as more and more teacher spend their summers in second jobs, extra professional development/training, or working their social media side hustles to make ends meet.)
Just as important, though, is the chance to reset habits. Starting now, teachers have the chance to put a little of their time into resetting bad habits and replacing them with healthier ones. Build a sustainable habit for meditation, yoga, running, reading, home-cooked meals, family game night, or any number of other desirable goals. The days between now and the first day of teacher prep are few enough to be countable, and long enough to really establish a new good habit.
Take the time this summer to focus on resetting – you’ll be thankful next school year that you built healthier practices when you had the time.