Gearing Up for Summer Break

Another school year is coming to a close - for some it’s the first, for some it’s the last. No matter how many school years you have achieved, we hope your school year was excellent. Pepper’s The Big Idea blog is taking the summer off. But, like many of you, “summer vacation” is more of a time for planning, preparing, and re-fueling. We will be back in the Fall with new ideas and encouragement for a new school year. Your Pepper team will be working over the summer to bring you new Courses and Workshops.
So, as you plan your summer, take some time for yourself and your family, sleep in, take a trip, indulge in a hobby, lay by the pool - or ocean or lake or river, or do nothing at all. But, just in case you have reading on your list of summer “to-do’s”, Education Closet provides a Summer Reading List for Teachers. The list of 40 books are divided into the following topics:

MINDSETS   |  CLASSROOM DESIGN  |  TEACHING RESOURCES & IDEAS  |  CLASSROOM LIBRARY  | JUST FOR FUN

No matter what your ideal summer looks likes - travel, rest, work, play, or even professional development - we hope you enjoy and come back rested and refreshed.

See you in the Fall!

Making it Through

We’re in the final stretch to summer vacation. The last weeks can be exhausting and seem to go on forever. The challenge for teachers can be pacing themselves to sustain their energy and creativity. Edutopia author, Nicholas Provenzano, provides some great tips for making it through. His recent article, Stop, Drop, and Roll With It: Teacher Burnout Prevention, gives some suggestions for approaching the end of the year:

• Hobby Time - Find a hobby or something to do that has nothing to do with education. It can be therapeutic to spend time doing things that you enjoy completely away from school.
• Find a Teammate - A friend who understands your struggle can be a true lifesaver. It’s even better if this person is an educator. Finding a confident who’s also an educator can provide empathy that others cannot.
• Write it Out - Journaling is a great way to manage stress. Thinking about the things that are weighing on you often makes them seem worse. However, writing them down is often compared to talking to a close friend. It can give a different perspective and can help alleviate stress.
• Laugh - We’ve all heard “laughter is the best medicine.” And, for teachers making it through the final weeks of school, laughter can really help. Watch a funny movie, read a humorous book, or surround yourself with witty people, but try to find some ways to get some laughs during this time.

Teaching is one of the most challenging professions out there and teachers are notorious for giving of themselves, their time, and their energy. Whatever it takes, hang in there. Summer is just around the corner.

Pepper hopes that you’ll spend some time with us this summer in the form of Professional Development Courses and Workshops. Pepper provides a wide range of courses for teachers that allow for growth and learning opportunities. As a member of the Pepper community you also have access to Pepper's online learning community where you can meet others who are teaching and engaging in schools across the country. We hope to “see” you this summer!

The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: Rest, Reflect, and RENEW

Focus on Online Learning

This is the last post in our series: The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: Rest, Reflect, and Renew. Today we will continue to focus on RENEW, this time talking about Online Professional Development. The face of professional development is changing - in a good way. Online Professional Development provides great opportunities for teachers to engage in meaningful professional growth at times that are convenient for their schedules. According to Edutopia’s article, Teacher Development and Leadership Review, “Research has shown that teaching quality is the strongest school-related factor that can improve student learning and achievement.” Online professional development is a great way for teachers to enhance their skills and learn new practices. The same reasons that 21st century teaching and learning is appealing to students make online professional development practical and engaging for educators. Dr. Denise Douglas-Faraci, with Kaplan University's School of Education, believes that online professional development is a great option for teachers to sharpen their skills.

Pepper provides many great options for teachers to build upon and diversify their skills. With Pepper, teachers can:

• Enjoy unlimited access to online self-paced professional development 24/7.
• Build a professional portfolio of work in each course to share with others.
• Find, collaborate, and join in discussions with other educators in a peer network.
• Put understanding into action with powerful resources for teachers and students.

Be sure to peruse Pepper’s Course Catalog. Check out the growing list of professional development offerings, covering topics from Language Arts and Mathematics to Writing and Special Education. 

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The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: Rest, Reflect, and RENEW

This is the third post in our series, The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: Rest, Reflect, RENEW. We’ve spent the past two posts talking about the importance of teachers taking time to “rest” from the school year and then to “reflect” on their previous year. As we move to “RENEW”, we have to think about rekindling our excitement for teaching and remembering why we chose to teach. Merriam-Webster defines renew as “to make something new, fresh, or strong again”. Each year as teachers, we are called to make learning fresh and exciting for our students. In order to do that, teachers must “feed” themselves so that they can grow and develop as professionals. One way to do that is through summer reading. It’s hard to find time to read professional books during the school year and summer is the perfect time to catch up on new strategies and resources. Edutopia’s article, Summer Reading List: 5 Books on Professional Development, encourages teachers to read a variety of books and recommends the 5 following topics: something fun, something practical, something research-based, something digital, and something connected. Diversifying your reading is a great way to get a wide variety of ideas to take back to your classroom in the fall.

For another great reading topic, be sure to peruse Pepper’s Course Catalog. Check out the growing list of professional development offerings, covering topics from Language Arts and Mathematics to Writing and Special Education. 

We’ll be talking more about online professional development later this week. Be sure to check back - OR sign up to receive "The Big Idea" directly to your email each time it's updated. To do this, simply add your email under "Follow PepperPCG Posts by E-mail!" to the right.

The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: Rest, REFLECT, and Renew

We’re talking summer...specifically, The 3R’s of Summer for Teachers: REST, REFLECT, and RENEW. Earlier this week we talked about the importance of rest for teachers during summer break. Today we move on to REFLECT. Reflection is equally important. According to Rachel Nobel, “You may even find that reflection can go hand-in-hand with relaxation — which, it goes without saying, should be an integral part of your summer routine.” You can read more about how reflecting on this year will help you plan for next on the United Federation for Teacher’s site. 

Synonyms for reflect include, “contemplate”, “consider” and “review”. John Dewey once stated, “We do not learn from experience...we learn from reflecting on experience.” So, what does “reflecting” on the experience of your previous school year look like? For some teachers it can be simply thinking back on what worked and what didn’t, for others it may be a more formal process, like journaling, or reviewing lesson plans and making notes.

Regardless of how you “reflect”, the process can help you recharge and prepare for the next school year. The State Department of Minnesota encourages teachers to use reflection to improve instruction and make plans for professional growth. See more about this at Teacher Centricity.

Reflection can help you remember why you chose teaching - and help you focus on the positive ways you influenced students throughout the year. Ross Morrison McGill gives “10 Reflection Questions to Ask Every Teacher”. There are two sets of 10 questions each - Pedagogy and Curriculum. Pedagogy questions include things like, “What makes you a good teacher?” and “What would your students say about you?” The Curriculum questions ask things such as, “What resources could you create, adapt, and refine?” and “What displays can you update?” See more of these questions at @TeacherToolkit.

Take time to reflect on your school year and remember, “Why I Teach”.

Here are some other great articles for your consideration:

For Whom the (School) Bell Tolls: What Calls You to Teaching? Use the Summertime to Rethink Teaching and Learning

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3R's of Summer for Teachers: Rest, Reflect, Renew

Our next several posts will focus on the 3R's of Summer for Teachers: How teachers Rest, Reflect, Renew over their break.

Today we will focus on REST. Like their students, before school is even out, teachers are thinking of summer. Did you know that “rest” is a verb? Google’s dictionary defines rest (v.) as “[to] cease work or movement in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength.” Yes! Teachers need this.

An important aspect of continuing to grow as an educator is taking time for yourself, resting, and doing non-school related things. Vicki Davis from CoolCatTeacher gives 12 Choices to Help You Step Back from Burnout. Summer rest is an important health choice for teachers who have just finished a 10-month marathon. Also check out this EdWeek article, “How Teachers Can Recharge This Summer.”

Play can also be an important aspect of "rest" for educators. Elena Aguilar, a Transformational Leadership Coach from Oakland, California, considers “Play” professional development for teachers. While teachers are often eager to learn new teaching practices and take PD courses over the summer, Aguilar believes that incorporating time for play into a teacher’s summer is just as important as professional learning.

Be sure to check out her recent article, Summer Professional Development: Play!

How will you rest - or play - this summer? We’d love to hear how you take time to recharge over the break. Share your comments below.

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