Teacher Wellbeing: Healthy Habits to Incorporate into Daily Life

Teacher wellbeing is a holistic concept that extends far beyond mere physical health. It encapsulates the mental, emotional, and social dimensions of health that are pivotal to your overall wellness. It encompasses everything from your psychological state and emotional equilibrium to your ability to foster and maintain positive relationships with colleagues, students, and parents.

Finding balance in this profession involves deftly juggling multiple roles and expectations, such as planning and delivering effective lessons, maintaining discipline, supporting students with diverse needs, liaising with parents, behaviour management, leadership responsibilities, Ofsted and staying abreast of curriculum changes - to name but a few! We could go on and on! The stress associated with these demands can be intense, making it crucial for teachers to develop strategies for effective stress management.

Nurturing personal growth is another essential aspect of teacher wellbeing. It means continually learning, developing professionally, and enhancing teaching skills. It also means maintaining your personal interests outside work, a healthy work-life balance, and seeking personal fulfilment.

Teacher wellbeing is about growing and evolving as an educator while maintaining a healthy balance between professional obligations and personal needs. This journey can be challenging, but ensuring that you can thrive in your roles is critical, leading to positive outcomes for yourselves and your students.

Why is Teacher Wellbeing Essential?

It's essential to remember that teachers are human beings first. You have personal lives, face challenges, carry burdens, and experience various emotions like everyone else. The person behind the role is as vital as the role itself. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to recognise and support the human side of teachers — your emotions, struggles, aspirations, and wellbeing.

When teachers feel good as individuals and are content, healthy, and at peace in your personal lives, it reflects positively in your professional demeanour. It leads to more passion, creativity, and patience — qualities that make a good teacher great.

Fundamentally, when you are in a state of wellbeing, they can perform at their best. It impacts your happiness and job satisfaction and radiates to every facet of your professional life. It influences teaching performance, shaping the environment in which students learn and nurturing productive relationships with students. Ultimately, it leads to improved learning outcomes.

The Link Between Teacher Wellbeing and Student Success

Research has shown a positive correlation between teacher wellbeing and student achievement. Happy, healthy teachers tend to be more effective in the classroom, fostering a positive learning environment and engaging students more successfully.

Prioritising teacher wellbeing is not just an act of compassion for those dedicated to the noble teaching profession. It's a strategic move that can contribute to the overall quality of education and the success of future generations. And that's something we should all get behind.

Healthy Habits for Enhanced Teacher Wellbeing

As a teacher, your wellbeing is a crucial factor in your effectiveness within the classroom, your relationships with students, and your own personal satisfaction. Here are some habits you can incorporate to bolster your wellbeing:

Regular Exercise and Physical Activity

Incorporating regular physical activity into your routine is beneficial not just for your physical health but also for your mental health. Exercise helps release endorphins, the body's natural mood lifters, which can keep stress and anxiety at bay, elements that are often prevalent in the teaching profession.

Regular exercise promotes better sleep and increases energy levels - critical factors when managing a busy classroom. Even a brisk walk during your lunch break can make a difference and provide a much-needed energy boost for the rest of the day.

Mindful Eating

As a teacher, it's easy to overlook personal dietary needs while managing classroom activities and marking work. However, mindful eating, which involves paying attention to what and how you eat, can significantly impact your wellbeing and your performance in the classroom.

Mindful eating involves eating slowly, savouring each bite, and listening to your body's hunger and fullness cues. It can help prevent overeating, promote a healthier relationship with food, and steady your energy levels throughout the teaching day.

Adequate Rest and Sleep

Teaching is an intellectually and emotionally demanding job. Getting sufficient sleep is a luxury and a necessity for overall health and wellbeing. The 'reset' button can help you maintain your patience, creativity, and enthusiasm in the classroom.

Quality sleep doesn't just happen; it requires intention. Maintain a regular sleep schedule, create a sleep-friendly environment, and limit screen time before bed. Quality sleep can help you wake up refreshed, alert, and ready to tackle another day of inspiring young minds.

Mindfulness and Meditation

Amid the whirlwind of planning, teaching, marking, and meetings, teachers often find little time to pause and connect with their feelings and needs. However, practising mindfulness, even in small doses, can help manage stress, improve focus, and promote mental wellbeing.

Whether taking a few minutes each day to focus on your breath, being fully present while sipping your morning coffee, or incorporating short meditation sessions into your routine, mindfulness can be a powerful tool for preserving and enhancing your wellbeing as a teacher. In doing so, you'll be caring for yourself and modelling essential self-care practices for your students.

Practising Gratitude

Embracing gratitude is a potent strategy for enhancing wellbeing, fostering positivity, and promoting happiness. As a teacher, you face numerous daily challenges, and it can be easy to focus on what went wrong or what could have been better. However, shifting your focus towards the positive aspects and things you are grateful for can significantly affect your outlook and wellbeing.

Research supports the power of gratitude in promoting happiness. A study found that individuals who kept gratitude journals, where they regularly noted down things they were grateful for, reported higher levels of life satisfaction and lower levels of negative emotions. They were also more likely to engage in healthy behaviours such as exercise.

How SLT Can Create A Supportive School Environment

Schools can support teacher wellbeing by creating a positive school culture, providing resources for self-care, and encouraging open communication about stress and wellbeing.

Sensible Marking Policies

One practical step schools can take is to implement sensible marking policies. It could involve using whole class feedback, offering strategies for efficient marking such as verbal feedback,r using self- and peer-assessment techniques and reviewing current policies. The goal is to help teachers manage their workload effectively and avoid the need to take marking home every evening, thus maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

Email Protocol

Another strategy could be setting up email protocols that respect teachers' personal time. For instance, an email policy could be put in place which stipulates that work-related emails should only be sent within designated working hours and not expected to be responded to outside of these hours. It helps establish boundaries and protect the personal time of teaching staff.

Well-structured Timetables

Timetabling is another aspect that can significantly influence teacher wellbeing. Schools should strive to ensure that timetables are structured to allow teachers sufficient time for breaks, allowing them to rest, grab a cup of tea, or even just visit the bathroom. These minor considerations can significantly enhance the daily work experience for teachers.

Creating a Culture of 'No'

Schools should foster a culture where teachers feel safe to say 'no' when asked to take on tasks that will adversely impact their workload or personal life. It means encouraging open communication about workload management and respecting teachers' decisions about what they can realistically handle.

Sensible Workload Policies

Workload policies should be realistic, considering the multifaceted nature of teaching roles. It includes lesson preparation, teaching, marking, administrative tasks, parent-teacher communications, and professional development. By setting reasonable expectations and providing necessary support, schools can reduce stress and burnout among teachers.

Regular Wellbeing Surveys

Schools could implement regular (for example, termly) anonymous wellbeing surveys. These surveys provide a platform for teachers to voice their thoughts, feelings, and experiences regarding wellbeing in the workplace. However, these surveys only contribute to positive change if the feedback is taken seriously and acted upon. Schools must be committed to analysing the feedback and implementing changes where needed, showing teachers that their wellbeing truly matters.

Professional Development Opportunities

Continuous learning and professional development can help teachers feel more confident and competent, leading to increased wellbeing.

Summing Up

Ensuring teacher wellbeing is essential not just for the teachers themselves but also for the students they educate. By adopting healthy habits and creating a supportive work environment, we can enhance teacher wellbeing and, in turn, positively impact our education system.

As a thank you for your endless dedication, we're offering a?20% discount?on our schools' programme if taken up by the end of September. This is our way of giving back to the community that passionately works to support our future leaders of tomorrow.?Interested? Get in touch for more details.