Overcoming the October Slump
CTC Newsletter
The October slump is for real! As Connected Communicators have been building relationships and trust with their students, kids are starting to feel comfortable and the "behavior honeymoon" is coming to an end. After all, students save their most unexpected behaviors for those they love the most! Meanwhile, the committees are now in full swing, grading demands are increasing, benchmark assessment results are in, and that summer glow is long gone. The road ahead looks real bumpy, full of demands, and like it goes on forever! So, how do we get through?
It may seem impossible to take a moment to take care of ourselves during this busy time. When we are feeling disillusioned or overwhelmed, it is the most important time to do just that! We have to remind ourselves, when we pause to care for our own body, mind and emotions, we are less stressed, have more energy, and are more creative. That means we can be even more awesome and effective for kids!
This is also a critical time of year to pay attention to the people you are surrounding yourself with. Remember, emotions are contagious! If you are spending your time with colleagues that are overwhelmingly negative, you are going to catch their negativity. The good news is the opposite is also true - positivity breeds positivity. So spend your time with educators who understand the challenges, and are still sharing their joy of the work. Do your best to be that person for others! We are not suggesting that venting is bad or recommending that you ignore the incredibly hard parts of this job. We all need an opportunity to get it out. At the same time, if it feels like venting and complaining is all that is happening, you may want to find a different seat at the lunch table.
This is also a good time of year to examine your calendar and routines. Now that these are mostly established, what is working for you? What are some challenges? Have you been able to schedule the time needed to take care of yourself? If you are overcommitted at school, are there some things you might be able to say no to? Find your people, and find your flow. Throw out what's not working, and intentionally schedule what is.
October is full of beautiful fall leaves, Friday Football games, homecoming parades, and field trips to the pumpkin patch. Sink in and appreciate all the special things you have learned about the amazing humans in your charge. Don't forget to smell the foliage and reflect on the many gifts this time of year brings. Make sure you are intentional in looking for those moments of joy in every day. If you are spending your day with kids -we know it is everywhere. We just have to look for it a little harder in October.
Media!
We have so much fun chatting with some of our favorite Educational Podcasters! We have highlighted our conversation with Dr. Brandon Beck in this newsletter (click on the image to listen), and you can check out any of our media interviews from our website here.
Rogue River School District PD Day!
Erika and Tiffany had an amazing time connecting with the educators in the Rogue River School District who are engaged in a district-wide book study. Participants provided some awesome feedback!
- "You are real active educators grounded in reality. . .I can really see how to apply this on Monday."
- "The instructors were awesome. Very informative."
- "Very real moments and real examples."
- "The book is written extremely well and contains a great amount of useable information."
- "Honestly, y'all surpassed my hopes."
We would love to bring this professional development to your school. Connect with us today at hello@connectingthroughconversation.com.
