Show 128 - Can Teachers Work Only Their Contract Hours?
In this episode, Ishare 5 practical strategies to work less outside of your contract hours.
8/19/20261 min read
Welcome back to another school year. As we are enthusiastic and ready to go, I want to remind you to avoid burnout! How? Stop working so much! Can we work only our contract hours? Perhaps not everyday, but we darn well should try! In today’s episode I give you 5 tips to work only your contract hours. Enjoy!
Show Notes
The Teacher's Roadmap to Financial Confidence — a free five-question worksheet for teachers who want greater financial confidence
Brisk — an AI tool for helping with grading and student writing
MagicSchool — a suite of AI tools for teachers
Flatland — an example of using engaging reading to teach mathematics (affiliate)
Recommended Books (Amazon Affiliate Links)
How to Adult: Personal Finance for the Real World
Key Ideas
You can reduce the amount of time you spend grading without abandoning meaningful feedback
You can use AI to save time on lesson planning, grading, repetitive tasks, and other teacher work
Doing more review can actually help students learn while reducing your planning workload
You can say no to committees, volunteering, and other responsibilities outside your contract
Leaving at the end of the workday is a commitment you have to make before you're ready
Being more intentional with your time can give you a richer life outside the classroom
You don't have to teach something new every single day to be an effective teacher
Bonus Tip
Here is a bonus tip I didn't get to in the episode.
If you are questioned about why you are working so little compared to your peers or saying no to requests, your answer is simple: I’m here for the long haul. I don’t want to abandon the profession I love and the students I care so much about. To do that, I need to avoid burnout and take care of myself. I will teach longer and better by staying within my contract hours!