"How do you do it all?"

Someone asked me, "How do you do all of this and have a young family?" I am used to hearing people say, "Do you ever sleep?" Yes, I sleep. In fact, I need at least 8 hours of sleep each night. Rest is important for me to function at full speed as well as for my recovering brain.

It's a fair question. When I was a beginning teacher, I would arrive at school early in the morning and stay there until past dinner. Then, most nights I was doing work at home before bed. It would've been really difficult for me to be an excellent teacher if I were just now starting with littles at home (not to say that others who are just starting and have littles at home can't be excellent teachers, just that it would've been hard for ME). But due to that hard (and likely unhealthy) work back then, I have a lot of strategies in my teacher tool kit and many resources to pull from. I also spend an hour each day in the summer working on resources that will help me during the school year. I work the entire time I'm at work, through plan time and lunch and avoid most social interactions that teachers can get sucked into (but also might help with work environment and collaboration) such as the teachers lounge and walking the halls. Also, I've learned how to say no. I also have learned that there are many tasks/routines in our class that I can ask students to do. For example, one student is in charge of changing the jobs each week by pulling names from the name jar. It not only frees me up to do other things or pull small groups, but makes students feel more connected to our class and gives them ownership.

But also, there are areas in my life that lose out. There's always more I can do for my students and my school, but sometimes those moments have to lose out to time with my kids, sleep, or keeping my house running. I have learned how to prioritize and I'm still not really great at it. I'm always multi-tasking. I've gotten better at making lists and trying to be organized. I try my best to surround myself with positive, helpful, and supportive people who I can lean on when my to-do list gets too long. In the last year, I've really learned how to ask for help (although it's still hard).

Teaching is demanding, rewarding, and hard. Most teachers feel like they are never 'done' with work. Many teachers struggling with finding a work-life balance. That balance will look different from teacher to teacher. Go easy on yourself and try not to compare your best to someone else's best. You, teacher friend, are a rock star.