Happy Teacher Revolution, Week 6

Happy Teacher Revolution Movement founder, Danna Thomas was inspired by Civil Rights activists and Women's Liberation leaders. She felt called to support educators at the grassroots level. 

You can review or catch up on previous weeks here:

Instead of measuring burnout from a deficit mindset, Danna wanted to clarify well-being principles from a scientific perspective. (p. 139) In video 12.1, Donna Fernandez shares how these principles literally saved her life: 

In the words of Maya Angelou, "When you know better, do better."  The principles of supporting and empowering mean: teachers need to stand for what we know is right.  Those of us who have been in education for a while have seen the curriculum pendulum swing to extremes. For example, every seven years, our district adopts a new language arts curriculum. Teacher guides are scripted, not necessarily taking into account individual student needs. (Or they've included every single possibility, each with its own set of guides and boxes of materials; very overwhelming and not user friendly). Some years these programs have mandated whole class instruction only, while other programs claim small groups are the only way to teach. However, it seems that districts often forget that teachers are trained and educated to know their students and to differentiate accordingly.  Depending on a school's administration, teachers may be forced to follow a teaching schedule lock-step, while others may be fortunate to be trusted to teach the standards in accordance with how students learn best.  Rely on your instinct and knowledge!


Thomas recognizes that self-care is not enough to help teachers manage their stress. Organizational change is needed. (p. 140)  Reading Chapter 12, Letting Yourself Be Autonomous had me repeatedly shouting, "Yesss!" while wanting to raise my fist in the air! 

Teachers need to speak up! We are so used to closing our classroom doors and teaching in isolation. The public needs to be educated on the reality of  student attention, behavior , and academics. Roles of parents, students, and teachers need to be clarified, and collaboration between school and home emphasized. During distance learning in 2020, teachers were being hailed as heroes, especially as parents (now home with their children), appreciated the time, care, and knowledge of teachers. However, once some schools began to go back in person while others did not, the public accused teachers of being lazy; getting paid to stay at home because they didn't want to go back to school. I never worked so hard in my entire career, as I did during the pandemic. All my "free time" was spent researching, reading, experimenting and learning how to make my lessons engaging and meaningful via a screen. Once we came back to school, we had to adapt to all the safety protocols, including not sharing materials or supplies or equipment, desks six feet apart, constant hand sanitizing, room disinfecting . . .   No wonder teachers were so stressed; all this on top of teaching curriculum to kids who were no longer used to attentively focusing or persevering through challenges. I remember being flabbergasted when a 10-year old threw himself to the ground and wailed, "This is hard! I don't want to do it!" then continued to flail around. We've all had to adapt to major changes in expectations and output.  

Give Yourself Filler Episode Days
According to Brie Schmidt at glam.com, "Filler episode days, just like filler episodes in TV series, are inconsequential days that put productivity on pause, aside from low-key tasks like running an easy errand or vacuuming your living room. And even if they sound pretty boring, your schedule probably needs more of them. Even if filler episode days might seem like a waste of precious time, especially when you have a vision board full of goals to work toward, the downtime may be just what you need to find inspiration." Give yourself the grace to take a day (or even an hour) to unwind, refuel, and nourish your soul.

I love this idea but in reality, it is really hard for me to slow down.  (My husband complains when we try to watch a movie at home because I feel the need to additionally do something while it is on. Hence, I like to rewatch old favorites that I know well so I don't miss anything while I'm not concentrating! LOL) Lately, I've been sitting in my backyard and forcing myself to be still, listen, and observe. I also have an easier time relaxing in nature. I was just on vacation and was surprised that I didn't finish all the books loaded onto my Kindle. Then I realized I kept putting down my reading due to being "distracted" by the beauty of the water and clouds. #relaxingforthewin
Start Resting
Have you ever been to a salt cave? According to Vally Salt Cave, "a salt cave is a controlled holistic environment that simulates the micro-climate of a naturally occurring salt cave. This micro-climate environment is ionized and saturated with a low vapor concentration of Himalayan salt. As the salt air is inhaled, it travels through your respiratory system providing relief for those with sinus and breathing ailments such as Asthma and Bronchitis. Dry Salt Therapy may also aid in strengthening the immune system, decreasing mental fatigue and reducing stress." I was initially skeptical, but after sitting still and breathing for 45 minutes, I felt calm, refreshed and relaxed!
In Tricia Hersey's book, Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto, she lists simple suggestions for resting. Resting can look like breaks from social media, a long shower in silence, daydreaming by staring out a window, sipping warm tea!  See Happy Teacher Revolution page 146 for more ideas for rest and fillers! 

Summer is the perfect time to "practice" filler episode days! Read more about how to keep that summer feeling! I love to use my happy place photos as my phone wallpaper. If any of these speak to you, there are several images for you to download HERE or click on the image below.
What do you plan to do (or not do) as filler episode days? How will you rest? Let us know in the comments!

See you next week!
  • Week 7: July 31 (p. 151-176; 25 pages)
    • Chapter 13 Focusing on What You Know is Right
    • Chapter 14 Addressing Vicarious Trauma

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