Motivation Tips for the Start of the School Year

School Time

Hey everyone! It is August and what does that mean? The start of school here in Texas! It is the time when teachers, students, and parents get out of the summertime mindset and back to the hustle of classrooms and school activities. I was so busy this summer that I swear I blinked and I missed it. I had a list of things I wanted to do (as usual), but I didn’t have time to do them. By the time August arrives, I’m usually ready to get back to school. That’s not the case this year because I feel like I needed at least one more month. So, how do we get out of the summer mindset and back to the hustle?

Last school year was tough for me, as it was for many other teachers. I felt like I needed extra motivation to go back to the classroom for the 2022-23 school year after a few of my coworkers quit teaching altogether over the summer. It is an uncertain time for education, but I am here for it and ready to embody my “Balancing Home and Work” blog. 

Here are some motivation tips for teachers this school year. I promise this will help with burnout and these tips can also be adapted for non-teachers:

Vision Board for this Coming School

1. Visualize how you want this year to go. Towards the end of the summer, I always start thinking about school so much that I have dreams about it. What do I want my classroom to look like? How do I want my classroom to be? What am I going to wear in the first week of school? What are we going to read this year? One of the best tips I can give someone is to make a vision board or make a vision list. Since my year runs August-July, this is the time of year that I start to make a vision board. If you are a visual person, a classroom vision board is a great motivator. We Are Teachers has some great ideas for your vision board.
2. Set goals for the year. This can go hand-in-hand with making a vision board. Ask yourself what the big picture is. What do you want your students to learn this year? What do you want to learn this year? Also, ask yourself how you can accomplish these goals. I like to set goals in two ways: I set them for the year as a whole, and I set them for each unit/lesson I will be teaching. I promise that being this organized will make your year go smoother. Check out my blog on SMART Goals for more ideas.
3. Set daily intentions. Now that you have a long-term idea of what you want to do, it’s time to look at the day-to-day. Ask yourself what you want to accomplish, and go into the day with an open mindset.
4. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Okay, your lesson plan went terribly. Don’t let it ruin your day. My mentor teacher in college told me that the first period is always the “practice period” because anything that would happen to off-put your lesson will usually happen during the first period. You have to shake it off and move on to the next class period. Your first-period students will be back and ready to learn tomorrow. Tomorrow is a new day.
5. Take time out for yourself. One of my past mistakes has been to work through lunch. Most teachers have just thirty minutes for lunch. Take that thirty minutes and get out of the classroom. If students know you are in your classroom at lunch, they will want to be in there with you. Take some alone time. Walk around. Go outside. Your classroom will still be there when you return.
6. Don’t be afraid to try something new. I am not one of those teachers that teaches the exact same thing every year. I may have a set of novels that I teach, but I am always researching and finding new ways to teach those novels, which keeps my job interesting. If I am bored with a novel or a lesson, I like to try something new. The same can be said with any aspect of teaching. If your class rules aren’t exactly working, try something new. Don’t get set in ways that don’t work. Be flexible.
7. Have fun. This one is big. If you are not having fun and enjoying yourself (at least a little), you are in the wrong job. Make friends. Do something creative. Turn your lesson into a game to get the kids motivated. Go somewhere after work to relax. Remember to have fun. As Eckhart Tolle would say, “live in the now.”

I want to hear from our readers. What motivates you? What are some tips you have for motivation? Let’s continue the conversation below or in our Facebook Group: MMC Chat.