Taking Care of Ourselves as Teachers

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Teachers work hard. It's not unusual for teachers to put in long hours, to have teaching constantly on our minds and to put our work before other things. That's not always a good thing, though. Overwork can lead to exhaustion, illness and burnout - leaving us as less effective teachers.

So what can we do to combat the 'work yourself to the bone' attitude? How can we take care of ourselves as teachers?

1. Eat Proper Meals and Stay Hydrated

As a constant visitor to that box of fundraising chocolates, I'm the last person to tell you to cut out all chocolate. However, eating proper meals and staying well hydrated can definitely help when you're trying to avoid burnout. Think about scheduling time into your week to plan meals, cook ahead and freeze if you can, even planning what you're going to take for lunch each day can make the meal time planning easier. If you're bringing food to school for lunch, invest in a lunchbox that makes you happy - you're more likely to use it if you like looking at it!

A water bottle which makes you happy can also help you drink enough water - especially if you remember to use it. Use your break times to refill it, take it out on playground duties or supervisions, keep it in a place in your classroom where you're sure to remember it!

2.  Find Moments of Positivity

When you're feeling worn out with work, it can be easy to fall back on more negative thoughts - especially when the news of the world isn't terribly happy. This can have the result of making you feel more worn out. Find the places where you can get a positivity fill - it might be an Instagram feed with beautiful photos (a friend once suggested following florists!), affirmation cards you keep on your desk or in your planner, positive quotes to share with your students, a beautiful picture to look at, or a positivity podcast. 

You might also like to undertake a challenge to be a source of positivity in the world. Look for the times when you can compliment the people around you, play a beautiful or funny piece of music for your students, bring in a treat to share with colleagues or take your family on an outing to a place which is uplifting to you all (we love our local coast town around here - instant mood lift!)

3. Use Your Time At School Effectively

Time at school is so precious, so make sure you use it! Try not to get distracted by side subjects or talking about non-related stuff with colleagues. Use your planning, marking and organising time to plan, mark, organise, talk with parents, answering emails - things that help you do your work better!

To do this, you might need to find out what helps you focus when you're at school. You might need to spend 30 seconds tidying your workspace or 30 seconds writing a list of things to work on. You might need to invest in a pair of headphones and some music without words (I have a classical music playlist that works for productivity every time!). You might need to close the door to your classroom to let your colleagues and/or students know that you're working. You might need to break big projects down into smaller ones or use a timer to keep yourself on track. 

The more you can get done in school time, the less you bring home. Plus you get those warm fuzzies because you've worked hard in the time given to you for working hard!

4. Don't Become Too Focused on School

It is possible to become too entranced with school, but it's so important to maintain a life outside of being a teacher. Make time for yourself and the people around you - even if you need to officially schedule it into your phone, planner or calendar. 

One of my former colleagues used to schedule an outing with her young son after school on Fridays. It was the day she'd leave the building right on time, making sure that they got the most of an afternoon treat. Your schedule might include coffee or a walk with friends, an exercise class which leaves you happy, a subscription to the theatre or the ballet, or making time each week to enjoy a hobby or favourite television show. These are the things which bring joy into your life - and they make you a better teacher for it.


You can save time with Back to School and other resources from Galarious Goods. You might not want to spend the time you save with the copier, but it's good to know you'll have the time there when you need it!

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Helping Our Students With Goal Setting

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Setting goals can help students take charge of their own learning and move them towards being more independent learners. It's also something which fits in nicely with back to school or new year activities - giving students a chance to make a fresh start. So, how can we help them set effective goals?

Talk With Our Students About What Goals Are

When we talk about goals and goal setting, it can become easy for our students to fall onto vague wishes or desires - to be a sports star or to 'do better'. Learning about what a goal is - and what it isn't - can help students to become more thoughtful and focused when they're setting their goals.

Goals are specific things to work towards, often with deadlines and objectives to reach. They can be big things - working towards getting top marks in all subjects - or smaller things - working towards learning certain mathematical facts. They can be aspirational, but should be realistic - for example, most Australian kids can't aim to be the President of the United States since they were not born there!

Encourage Reflection

It's easier to set effective goals when we know where we have strengths and where we can show improvement. Asking students to reflect on their own learning and their past experiences can help them have better success with goal setting. They can look at which subjects they'd like to improve in, but they could also look at their learning habits or how they go with challenging situations. Knowing more about themselves will also allow them to see improvement in the future - to be able to measure how successful their goal setting has been.

Model Goal Setting

There will always be students who learn better when they see what they should be doing. Set goals in front of your students. Go through the processes you might go through to set goals. Make the goals real and achievable - you might want to read certain books through the year or learn more about a specific topic. Allow students to check back in with your goals, let them know if you've been actively working on them or if you think you'll need to alter your goals. The more they see goals being set by other people, the easier it will be for them to set their own goals.

Brainstorm Ideas for Achieving Goals

Don't stop at just setting the goals - help students develop the skills they need to achieve them! I know I've set lots of goals that just end up as pretty little statements hidden in notebooks or tucked away on nice pieces of paper, but that doesn't help me achieve them! Goals are living things which often need feeding and watering to survive! 

Students can work together to brainstorm how they are going to achieve their goals and what steps they'll need to take to get there. Often working on goals can become a little boring or monotonous, so they might like to brainstorm strategies to deal with that as well. The more prepared they are, the easier it will be to achieve those goals.

Revisit Goals

Allow students time to come back on their goals. Show them that goals can be altered if they need to be or that students can come up with new ideas to approach them. Give them time to reflect on what has and hasn't worked as they try to achieve their goal and to think about whether they were too ambitious or not ambitious enough.

By revisiting goals, we also show students that goals don't have to be perfect to work for us. We show students how we can work on them, make them better, learn from our past experiences and grow into better goal setters.

By giving our students tools, time and examples, we can help them become better goal setters - a skill which will serve them well beyond their time at school.


Looking at goal setting at the beginning of the school year? The Back to School Goal Setting Kit from Galarious Goods is perfect for Grade 5 and 6 students - allowing them to set goals across multiple subject areas.

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Addressing Controversial Topics in the Classroom

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There's been a fair amount of media attention lately about whether teachers should discuss controversial topics in the classroom - and whether they should bring their own opinions into it. The intensity of the media focus can make teachers feel like they should avoid those topics altogether. However, sometimes those topics are unavoidable and many times those discussions are invaluable. The key to successfully discussing controversial or difficult topics is using tactics and guidelines which make it safe and useful for everyone involved - including you as the teacher.

1. Create a Caring, Compassionate Classroom

A classroom environment which promotes care and compassion for each other will make it easier when you approach difficult topics. It's easier for students to express different views and be open to listening to each other when they are being mindful of each other. 

2. Let Parents Know What's Happening (When You Can)

Although some topics come up because of something on the news or because a student introduces it through a question or statement, other topics are part of the curriculum or planned lessons. Keeping parents and caregivers in touch with what is happening in the classroom (whether it is controversial or not) allows them to have a full understanding of the situation, rather than getting bits and pieces home through their children or the work in their books. It also establishes trust between you and them and is generally good practice.

3. Set Guidelines for Discussions

Having strong guidelines for discussions allows students to express themselves in a safe place. When students know what is and what isn't acceptable, they learn to consider their thoughts and frame them in a way which is less likely to cause harm to others. They may not always get it right - learning to say things in a considered way is something that even adults can struggle with! - but with time and consistency it will become easier for them. Guidelines can also apply to listening.

4. Encourage Students to Collect Both Facts and Opinions - And to Know the Difference Between Them

It can be very easy for discussions to become very opinion focused, but by encouraging students to collect facts - and opinions from other people - you can create a broader, more informed discussion. In a discussion on refugees, for example, students might research opinions from politicians, academics and activists. They might also look at the reasons why there are refugees and the movement of refugees throughout history. Historical opinions could also be discussed. The more students know, question and discuss, the more informed and thoughtful their own opinions will be.

5. It's OK to Have A View. It's OK to Share It. It's OK Not to Share It.

Some commentators believe that teachers shouldn't have a view on anything and should just 'get back to the teaching!' But that's not necessarily fair on students who should be exposed to a range of views from the people in their lives - including teachers - and should be able to see how people develop their views. My letting students know what your view is, and how you came to that point of view, you're providing them with more information as they make their way through their decision making processes to developing their own views. 

It's also ok not to share your view. Sometimes it's not relevant or asked for. Sometimes you need to protect yourself. Sometimes you need to give the space to your students instead.

6. Protect Yourself

Unfortunately, some people thrive on controversy and they're only too happy to 'report' a controversial discussion to your administration, district, or worse - the media. Many times they do not have the full story and it can be a scramble to make sure that you and your actions are protected.

If a controversial discussion happens or topic comes up, it can be worthwhile to let your administration know. It lets them be prepared if someone approaches them and leaves them in a better position to assist you. It's also worth keeping notes in your planner or diary to refer back to if required.

If lessons around a controversial issue are planned, it might be worth working with another teacher to deliver material to the classes together. Having another informed adult working on the same material (or even in the same classroom) can let people outside the classroom know that this is a planned, organised event - not you just sharing your opinions willy nilly.

Finally, if you're in the position to join a teachers union, they're well worth joining. Many are created to look after your rights in the workforce, including your rights to teach material others might find controversial. Unions become stronger with their members, and many have other benefits beyond the protection element.

The Boy Overboard Whole Novel Study allows students to look at how an author has presented a sometimes controversial subject. You can find it, along with more Boy Overboard resources at the Galarious Goods shop.

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Exploring Author Intention

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Boy Overboard is a fabulous fast-paced read, but it also covers the complex and sometimes controversial topic of refugees. While it might be tempting to stay far away from this - you don't always want extra controversy in the classroom - the topic can help to frame a deeper exploration of the book and the intentions of the author.

Who is Telling the Story?

In Boy Overboard, the narrator is Jamal, a young boy from Afghanistan who becomes a refugee on a boat to Australia.

The choice of Jamal as a first-person narrator is interesting for both the narrative and the message it gives the reader. We see the world through Jamal's eyes - the things he considers to be ordinary and the misunderstandings he has. We begin to understand why he and his family make the choices they make - we're given the opportunity to step into his shoes for a little while.

We can also explore why the author made Jamal the narrator. Was it to provoke empathy or sympathy for his situation? To make us wonder what decisions we might make in the same situation? Or is it a convention that the author has used repeatedly in his other books? How would it be different if he'd made a different choice? If he'd chosen another character to tell the story or had a separate narrator altogether?

How Do the Characters Respond to Events in the Story?

There are several different types of characters in Boy Overboard - named and nameless - and they respond to events in a wide variety of ways. Some are helpful, some make life more difficult and some are downright dangerous to our main character.

By offering a range of characters, what is the author telling us? Which of the responses does he want us to sympathise with? Which of the supporting characters does he want us to agree with? How does he want us to feel about all of his characters, not just the main ones?

Looking at the characters our protagonist interacts with can be a powerful insight into the intentions of the author. We are given a more complete view of the world in which they live and begin to assess if the author is being fair to the characters or not.

What messages is the author sending us - and should we trust them?

This is an important question for students to ask whenever they come across text which tackles complex issues. When students learn to question the intentions of the author, they begin to read more critically.

With Boy Overboard, the author is asking us to feel empathy for Jamal and the other refugees. But we should encourage students to read more on the topic - both fiction and non-fiction. This allows them to better understand the actions of those in the book - even if they don't agree with them - and to have a greater understanding of the messages the author is sending.

Students are facing a different media landscape to the one that existed when Boy Overboard was first published. These days it can be very easy to only engage with media which reinforces your view of the world. By encouraging students to explore the intentions of the author and how that might influence the reader, we can better prepare students to think about and form informed opinions on complex issues in the future.

Should Children's Authors Write About Controversial Topics?

When authors publish books including controversial topics, there are some people who feel that they have overstepped the mark, that they are introducing children to topics that are 'above them'. But what do your students think?

The latest freebie in the Galarious Goods shop allows students to explore this question through a persuasive writing task. This is a great opportunity to discuss books which might be seen as controversial - and why they are seen that way - and is the perfect accompaniment to a novel or book study or for banned book week.

Interested in Teaching Boy Overboard?

You can find the Boy Overboard Sample Pack here -  this free resource gives you activities you can use in your classroom and an introduction to the other Boy Overboard resources available at the Galarious Goods shop.

Other resources available include:
Boy Overboard Comprehension and Vocabulary
Boy Overboard Comprehension (the comprehension activities without the vocabulary)
Boy Overboard Research Activities
Boy Overboard Character Activities
Boy Overboard Whole Novel Activities
Boy Overboard Complete Bundle - All resources for a special discounted price!

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Introducing Boy Overboard

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Finding novels for small groups or whole classes to read can be a difficult exercise. Here I'd like to introduce a classroom favourite - a Morris Gleitzman book which tackles a difficult topic with a little side of humour.

Boy Overboard is the story of Jamal, a football (soccer) mad boy who lives in Afghanistan in the early 2000s. After his family fall in trouble with the Taliban, they are forced to flee - first to a refugee camp and then around the world. They're aiming to get to Australia - where Jamal hopes he and his sister will become famous football stars who will be able to return to Afghanistan as heroes one day.

Although this book deals with the refugee crisis while the Taliban was controlling most of Afghanistan, elements of this book apply to refugee situations across the world and across different times. No one in Jamal's family are happy to leave their home and they sacrifice many things to find safety and peace. People take advantage of them and other refugees along the way. And governments make decisions which can be hard to understand - especially when we get to know the individuals involved.

This is truly a great classroom read, either as a read aloud, for a whole class read or for small group work. The characters are interesting and worth exploring, the events of the story allow for exploration, the choices of the author can be discussed. It tackles a serious topic, but maintains the soft humour Morris Gleitzman is well known for.

Interested in Teaching Boy Overboard?

You can find the Boy Overboard Sample Pack here -  this free resource gives you activities you can use in your classroom and an introduction to the other Boy Overboard resources available at the Galarious Goods shop.

Other resources available include:
Boy Overboard Comprehension and Vocabulary
Boy Overboard Comprehension (the comprehension activities without the vocabulary)
Boy Overboard Research Activities
Boy Overboard Character Activities
Boy Overboard Whole Novel Activities
Boy Overboard Complete Bundle - All resources for a special discounted price!

Looking for more?

• Follow the Galarious Goods TpT shop (click on the green star)
• Follow Galarious Goods on Facebook
• Follow Galarious Goods on Pinterest
• Follow Galarious Goods on Instagram