After a long semester of shaping the minds of the next generation, teachers certainly deserve some time to relax and unwind over the winter break. So, just how much do educators love this time off? And how do they spend it?
Here are 50 reasons why teachers love winter break and how they spend this precious time:
- Holiday break!!! Need we say more?
- Receiving holiday cards from students—especially ones they wrote and drew themselves!
- Sleep! Sleep! Sleep! Take advantage of the opportunity to sleep in and recharge your batteries.
- De-stress from the EOY rush—check out our stress buster blog for tips.
- A chance to take a trip—go skiing, visit somewhere warm, or enjoy a "staycation" closer to home.
- Don’t grade homework!
- Or take the opportunity to grade homework and get caught up.
- Watch lots of bad TV (ahhhh…Netflix!).
- Plan and set goals for the rest of the year.
- Give yourself a break from caffeine—your body will thank you!
- Plenty of time to curl up with a good book.
- Not in the mood for reading when you’re off the clock? Try an audiobook while driving or walking!
- Turn off any work-related app notifications.
- Get crafty to satisfy your creative side. You may even find something you can incorporate into your lesson plan!
- No meetings!
- Catching up with friends and family.
- The perfect time of year to plan activities and lessons that are just for fun. Check out our blog for inspiration and recommendations!
- Bake some holiday treats or try a new recipe.
- You can live in your pajamas!!!
- Use the time off to try something new—take up knitting, get into yoga, or start learning a new language.
- Go to the movies in the middle of the day when it’s nice and quiet.
- Get a head start on lesson plans for the upcoming semester.
- Enjoy the outdoors!
- Catch up on the appointments you hate doing or don’t have time for during the school year—doctor, dentist, haircut, etc.
- Take a nap whenever you want.
- De-clutter your home, office, desk, or anywhere else that could use a refresh.
- Try out the latest educational tech tools.
- Take a class—enjoy being the student rather than the teacher!
- Enjoy a glass of wine (or two!) in the evening without worrying about having to get up early.
- Write a blog article or journal—getting your feelings down in writing can be very therapeutic!
- Make a to-do list, but don’t look at it for at least the first week.
- Make your New Year’s resolutions and try to stick with them—at least until classes start back up again!
- Catch up on professional development with our MimioTraining™ Quick Learn series.
- Pamper yourself with a hot bath, manicure, or massage. You’ve earned it!
- Test new experiments at home so you know what to expect when your students tackle them.
- Go shopping and treat yourself to some new clothes—it’ll give you something to look forward to when classes are back in session.
- Set up an out of office automatic response for your email and don’t check it (at least not too often!).
- Drive past school without having to turn into the parking lot. It’ll feel great!
- Go to the beach. Even if it’s chilly, there’s something very tranquil about the sound of the waves.
- Enjoy simply spending time at home.
- Plan ahead for summer break.
- Cuddle your pet(s). They miss you while you’re at school!
- Reconnect with friends on social media.
- Play games—whether you prefer board games, video games, card games, or computer games, it’s a great way to unwind and have fun!
- Do whatever makes you happiest as much as you can.
- Find a new band to listen to.
- Use any gift cards you’ve been saving.
- Decorate a room that’s not your classroom.
- Visit a museum—a field trip without kids!
- No alarm clocks!
All teachers deserve a break, and should be sure to use it wisely. This is the opportunity to recharge and prepare—professionally and mentally—for the next semester. Check out this poem to help you get into full break mode and be sure to tell us how you spend your break in the comments below!
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