E is for Energy

Energy. How is it that we all seem to have so much of the "E" word? Let's rule out Starbuck's and Tim Horton's, Keurig, and Mountain Dew, and examine the issues.

Eager to help our students, we work tirelessly to do the best job we can. It means we aren't likely to get things done between 8 AM and 5 PM. It also means if we are forced to work within those boundaries because of family responsibilities, we are often beset with guilt feelings. Guilt is a huge drain on energy. If you are indeed working at home and online, your job is a family affair and not something done in isolation. You can't isolate your office far enough to not let it overflow. Make healthy decisions for yourself and you will still get the job done. It's all about balance.

The moniker, "Energizer Bunny," is accurate for teachers. We just keep going and going. We don't know the meaning of quit or failure and are crushed when a student does just that: quits. You will

www.energizer.com

form relationships with your students no matter their age or the learning platform. They quickly move from a name to someone whose greetings or emails you recognize. How is that happening? The same way it happens in an on-the-ground classroom. We care so we work hard, tirelessly, to be connected and inevitably, happily, it happens.

Ecstatic. This is what we feel when everything flows as it should. Even under great pressure, teachers are professionals and while you may let off steam, you are steady in the classroom, happy to be helping students learn, and ecstatic when you find that one approach that works for the most reluctant learner in the room.

Echoing reassurance and enduring hope for success, we move our students forward daily. Virtually, we even do this on weekends when no one has that expectation for our time. You might face missing materials or intermittent connectivity, but you are Super Teacher to your students. You symbolize strength and stability, the person who can answer the questions because, well, you wrote most of the questions!

An effectual teacher creates striking responses. You do this every day in a thousand different ways. Your tone of voice, your email or text responsiveness, your phone or Skype demeanor, and yes, even your voice messages. They need to be welcoming so students who might otherwise disengage will be more likely to turn to you for assistance. Student success is why you do what you do, so any incoming contact should never be an intrusion, but instead, the deepest reason for why you and I teach.

Keep the energy flowing - from you and to you - and remember that even when you feel drained or don't see immediate results, everything you do for students, no matter how insignificant it seems to you, reaps long term results.

Reflection: When the energy wanes, what is your plan to regroup and re-energize? Studies show that planned action is much more likely to happen at the time you need it,  like practicing the family fire drill. So, are you ready?