Monday Thoughts: Goals for 2017

I'm spending today anxiously awaiting the start of school again tomorrow.  I'm excited to be back and into a routine, but wishing that my routine included sleeping in and only working about 5 hours a day.  Alas, the life of a teacher isn't so.

I have been trying to find ways to make my teaching life balance out with my family and personal life.  In the past year or so I have lost track of finding time to do things that are for myself and for my family.  Teaching takes up such a large part of my life that it's difficult to separate school work from family time, reading, writing, and taking care of myself.

Here are a few of my plans to make things easier on myself in 2017.

1) Start a new workout program.  
I know this sounds like I'm adding in something else to my schedule--and it is.  But I started off the school year working out every day with 21 Day Fit and I felt amazing.  I felt like I had energy to do everything I wanted to do.  Of course, this trickled off around October when everything began to pick up at school.  I'm making a plan to stick to it.  I'm also breaking my health goals up into months.  So for January, my goal is to complete 21 Day Fit, then finish off the month with T25.  I know that it will make me feel so much better overall.

2) Giving kids more work time in class.

I don't assign a lot of homework, so I don't really give worktime in class that often.  However, I think I'll start doing this so I can use that time to grade or plan.  I've always been a "teach bell to bell" teacher.  Kids start with 15 minutes of silent reading, during which I'm meeting with kids, checking in work (not grading, just checking), having one-on-one conferences, or modeling reading.  So I don't get anything done in that 15 minutes that helps me have less work at home.  At least every two weeks I'll have a work day/catch up day in which I can grade or plan.  I'm not crazy about this idea, because I feel like it's a waste of class time, but I'm tired of spending every weekend up at school and putting in an hour or two each evening of grading.

3) Not worrying too much about the blog.
That's not really a big surprise after the 2nd half of last year, I know.  But I'm going to give myself permission to not worry about it too much.  Last year I just felt incredibly guilty during the 2.5 months where I didn't post anything.  I still feel a little guilty about it, but I'm trying not to do so.

4) Organize my TBR on Goodreads.
It's out of control.  I just need to go and take some of those things off.  The ones I'm not going to read--ever!

5) Take Facebook off my phone.
It's a time sucker and I need to remove myself from it.  I just haven't worked up the courage to do so.  I did for about two weeks around the election, but added it back on so I would have something to check.  Instead I'm reading a book.  I can get more reading time in that way.  Check in with me next week and ask if I actually did this or not!


There we go.  Not goals so much as plans to make myself better in 2017.

What are you planning on doing to make 2017 your year?  Are you looking forward to a big event?  Share you goals or plans below!