Join guest Rebecca from Smiling Students Lesson Plans as we talk about the importance of teacher wellness and relaxation. As our jobs and lives get more difficult, learning to care for ourselves becomes more important than ever.
R.E.L.A.X. Acronym
To make sure we have a well-rounded approach to our wellness as teachers, Rebecca shares the RELAX acronym. If we follow each letter of RELAX, we are bound to be more rested and able to be there for our students.
R for rest
The first letter, R, stands for rest. We all know how important it is to get 8 hours, but are we really doing this each week? If you are like me and always find getting enough rest challenging, Rebecca has a suggestion for us.
Pick a bedtime and work backwards from that time to create a routine. Maybe this means a half hour before we set a timer to put away our electronics.
E for Exercise
The next letter, E, stands for exercise. By exercising we can help not only manage our stress but use up our extra "go-go" energy.
Two great ways to get started with exercising is HIIT and WOW workouts. HIIT, or high intensity interval training, is an intense quick workout. WOW is a workout of the week that focuses on one type of exercise, like cardio, for the week and switching to a new workout the next week.
L for Laughter
Letter L stands for laughter. Whenever we can laugh with friends and family or a favorite TV show, laughter is that happiness cure that puts us in a better mood. Laughter is also a great tool for relaxation.
A for air
Next to last, the letter A stands for air. With air there are a few things to consider. First we want to make sure to have good air quality in our environment. If we have bad air quality, using plants or an air purify will help.
Adding essential oils to our air can be great for relaxation. Try using lavender or another relaxing scent. Taking deep breaths can also help get us into a relaxed state. Taking just 10 deep, cleansing breaths will help lower our heart rate and stress.
Try adding some deep breathing into the classroom. This would be an excellent way to start or end the day or release some anxiety before testing.
X for Extracurriculars
Last is X for extracurriculars, or hobbies that we like to do. Having something we look forward to and enjoy doing in our downtime can also help us relax and have better teacher wellness. For Rebecca, this is playing the piano. For others it might be listening to music.
Importance of Water
We can't talk about teacher wellness without bringing up how important it is to be drinking water to stay hydrated - especially during summer. Once we get dehydrated it becomes harder to hydrate. We can combat this by tracking our water consumption with a helpful app such as My Fitness Pal.
Water is also great not only internally but externally for our bodies. Using a wet washcloth can help cool us down. Taking a bath or having a foot bath are great ways to help us relax.