The last chapter of Routman’s book, You Only Have So Much Time, really hit
home with me. Every year there seems to
be changes, new teaching programs, and more testing. It is very easy to get overwhelmed-I’ve been
there. However it’s important to put everything
in perspective. As Routman states in
this chapter, there is only so much time in the day and time in the year. Good teaching cannot happen when the teacher
is stressed, nitpicking every new program for the wrong, and complaining about
new testing. It is important to see what
you can change and what you can’t and only make time to stress about what you
can change.
At the end of the day my job is to
teach the seventy students in my classroom to the best of my ability. While I incorporate new ideas and try new strategies
in my lessons, I also stick with what I know works. As Routman stresses the importance of making
every minute count. Through her book
this year, as a grade level we have significantly cut out “less meaningful”
time. We have count transitions between
classes in half and cut out meaningless segments of our day.
Since we only have so much time in the
day-use it wisely!
Rachel, that is so awesome that your grade level has searched (and found!) time to use in more meaningful ways! That reclaimed time can allow more time for learning to take place!
ReplyDeleteTeacher stress can definitely affect your classrooms and have an impact on our students. I have always admired your running ethic and know that it must be a huge stress-reliever!
Hi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteI love this chapter because it reminds us that time is of the essence and while we can complain about it, we can't make more of it, and the most helpful thing we can do is to evaluate how we are currently using our time and to work to adjust it so that what we are doing and what students are doing with the time they are given is intentional and matches our beliefs and priorities. I am glad fifth grade has done this and carved out time for reading. Thanks, Dawn