Quiet time for teachers? It’s very possible and absolutely necessary…

I’ve been talking for a few weeks about a teacher self-care framework, and I wanted to share it with you: bite by bite, instead of all at once. 

Some of these practices will resonate, some you may not want to worry about right now.  In any event, they may get you thinking about where self-care could “squeeze” into your day.  Try prioritizing these five minutes and see if things begin to fall into place.

What is Quiet Time?

Take five minutes each morning to bring some focus and clarity to your day.  This is the time to just sit quietly, focus on your breathing or sound…not time to be planning and making mental to-do lists.  Just take five minutes for quiet each morning and see how your days start to shift.

How do I create Quiet Time when I feel like I have no time?

-Wake up five minutes earlier and within your morning routine, fit the five minutes in somewhere that makes sense for you.  For me, I do this right after I brush my teeth.  I have a rule that I don’t check anything on my cell phone until after I do this exercise.  

-Figure out one thing in your morning routine that is a “time sucker” and replace this activity with your Quiet Time exercise.  The biggest time sucker in my life (morning, noon or night) is my phone.  It was fairly easy to see how spending five minutes implementing the Quiet Time exercise was a far better use of my time then checking in on social media or reading my emails and already getting sucked into my work day.

What are some helpful hints for continuing the Quiet Time routine?

• Be consistent.  Go to the same chair or room each day so that you start to create a habit
• Set a timer or use an app like The Insight Timer that will help you stay consistent.
• Determine something to focus on each day…maybe it’s your breathing, sound or body sensations.  When you get distracted, come back to your focus area.
• Just show up each day whether you think you need to or not.  Taking five minutes of quiet at the beginning of your day has proven to be very positive, but you have to do it in order to get the benefits.
  
  

You get the idea. 
Take at least five minutes that are devoted to you. 
Semi-quiet is a bonus.
Mornings seem to be a good place to start.

What are some resources to  incorporate Quiet Time?

1. Here’s a mindfulness practice to get you started with Quiet Time specifically for teachers.

2. Here’s a one-page Daily Journal to download with the whole Teaching Well Self-Care framework.

3. Interested in a full course for your self-care routine?  Here’s one that uses these four components as the framework.

 
That’s enough to get us started on our teacher self-care journey.  If you have any Quiet Time questions, let me know.  I’d love to support you as you build this practice into your life and your schedule.

Ready for a little more? If you’d like a LITTLE more space and want to be in community with other teachers during these unprecedented times,   get on the contact list to learn more.