May 2023 – Happy Schools

Is It Time to Declutter?

May 25, 2023

Over the years, I, like many teachers, have collected a lot of “stuff”. I’m not sure if it is because budgets are tight and we are frugal or we always think we might be able to reuse that resource again “someday” but many teachers are loathe to throw things away. I recently culled a drawer in my filing cabinet and threw away spirit duplicator masters that I had saved from my beginning teacher days. (If you don’t know what a spirit duplicator is – google it!) This hoarding can contribute to cluttered classrooms. The environment in which we work can have a significant impact on our productivity, efficiency and overall well-being. This is especially true in the case of classrooms,…

The Impact of Positive Relationships

May 18, 2023

Stevef

Communication

Staff in schools spend a significant portion of their time interacting with students, colleagues and parents. The relationships you have with these individuals has a major impact on your well-being and your ability to perform your job effectively. Positive relationships can provide support, encouragement and most importantly, a sense of belonging. These traits contribute to better mental and emotional health. On the other hand, negative relationships are stressful, draining and can lead to burnout. One of the most important ways to cultivate positive relationships is through effective communication. This starts with actively listening to others. Often we are so busy in schools, rushing from one class to another, or one issue to the next, that we can be guilty of…

7 Day Sleep Prescription

May 11, 2023

Stevef

Resilience

Like eating, drinking and breathing, we need to sleep to survive. Sleep is just as important to our health, as diet and exercise. It is just as important in supporting life as food, water and oxygen. You can’t be at your best if you aren’t sleeping well. Unfortunately, many aspects of modern life work against us achieving quality sleep. Improving our sleep can lead to improvements in many other aspects of our life, including how we feel, what we eat, how we learn and how we react to others. Most of us realise the importance of getting a good night’s sleep however, the anxiety that we experience in trying to get to sleep makes the situation worse. In Dr Aric…

Do You Look After Yourself?

May 4, 2023

Stevef

Resilience

Recently I was suffering from “man flu”. Men are always the last to know that they have it. Luckily my gorgeous wife was able to point it out to me. Apparently, “man flu” is when a man has a slight cold but they think it is the end of the world! Now, I am not a believer in “soldiering on”. I believe that when my body is ill I need to rest and let it get better. Consequently, I cancelled several work and social appointments. Now, I could have gone along but it was just not worth it. There was a slight chance I could have infected the person I was meeting (and depending on their air-conditioning system, half of the…