How to Rediscover Life Outside of the Classroom
Burnout drove me from the classroom. Rediscovery brought me back. Here’s how teachers can thrive by honoring life outside of teaching.
The teaching profession is undervalued, underfunded and under-supported.
Less people are choosing to pursue a career in education and more people are fleeing the profession than ever before.
According to the Education Week, the amount of people completing teacher-education programs declined by a third over recent years. And the National Education Association survey in 2022 found that 55% of teachers say they will leave the teaching profession sooner than originally planned and 90% said burnout is a serious problem.
I would wager a guess that most of us who enter the teaching profession don’t even intend on leaving. Myself included.
And yet, I left. After 10 years in the classroom I packed up two printer paper boxes of awards, student made ribbon roses and countless owl trinkets home to sit in my basement for the past three years.
I loved teaching. I was good at it. And that wasn’t enough to stay.
I had someone reach out to me on social media blaming me for giving up on something I loved. That was a good reminder that social media is just a highlight reel. That person didn’t see everything I was going through.
I would leave my house before 6 a.m. to get to school.
I wouldn’t see my kids or husband before I left.
I drove close to an hour each way.
My department forgot about me throughout the year for meetings and get-togethers.
My admin only came to my room once.
I was doing all the FFA things.
I had serious behavioral issues and they were brushed off.
I was getting paid less money than I was in my previous school district.
While I still loved teaching, I was at a breaking point as a person. As a human.
I needed a change and I am so thankful I was able to get connected to a company that allowed me to learn and grow with them while still being education adjacent.
I Left The Classroom, Then Came Back – Here’s How I Did It
The past three years I was able to rediscover who I was outside of being a teacher. I was no longer tied to the identity of being a teacher. . I was just me. With a job.
And after years of discovering who I was outside of the classroom I realized that being in the classroom is a part of who I am. So I returned with a new mindset about what being a teacher is to me. I asked myself this question…
How do we marry the fact that we LOVE being a teacher but it doesn’t define everything we are?
I used to only identify myself as a teacher. I used to pour all of my energy, my identity and my success into what happened in my classroom.
In my story, it wasn’t healthy. I became burned out. And yes, being burned out from teaching is a real thing. And leaving teaching is an acceptable action if you need that off ramp.
I took that liferaft and clung on to it harder than Rose did to that door on the Titanic.
It took years to be even open to the idea of heading back to the classroom. The one thing that allowed me to come back was working on who I was outside the classroom.
And I am not just talking about my other responsibilities in life like being a mom and wife.
I figured out who Sarah was and then started to honor the things that made me feel like myself again.
That led me to really examine what opportunities, events, I was saying “no” to when really all I wanted to do was say “yes.”
What are those things that are non-negotiables for you? What are those things that light you up?
If you need some guidance figuring this out for yourself, the e “A Simple Exercise To Redefine Your Identity as a Teacher” blog post that walks you through identifying the Three Circles Model of your life.
For me I realized that I needed the following things in my life. Not sparingly. But consistently.
Growth
Adventures
Relationships
Before I could ever entertain the idea of returning to the classroom, I needed to commit to honoring what makes me me. And not letting the craze of the school year impact that.
What I realized is that the way we can become the best teacher for our students is to live our life to honor who we are outside the classroom.
And to be honest, it’s not the easiest thing to do. And that takes time, intentionally and focus.
What “Always Learning” Really Means
But, here at G&G we live by the mantra of “Always learning”
Always learning is a simple reminder to live.
Always learning isn't about piling your desk with new ideas that most likely will never come to fruition. It's about always learning WHO YOU ARE and how you can better serve YOURSELF so you can serve others.
So, if you have connected with your three circle model of your life and identified those three areas that are the core of you being you, it’s time to make that commitment to lean into them.
And yes, we have a resource for that.
At the end of 2024, I was in a place I needed to lean into my three circle model. I saw some buzz on the internet about yearly BINGO cards. Some people decided against a word a year or a vision board to make a little bucket list for the year in a BINGO format.
So I did it. I made a BINGO board for 2024 that honored myself. Here are some of the items I have checked off this year so far
Growth
Run a half marathon
Join a club/community
Make a reading nook in my office
Adventures
Try a new Donut Shop
New Tattoo
See a favorite athlete play
Relationships
Overnight trip with my husband
See a play with a friend
See a favorite athlete play with my daughter
If you want to lean into who you are and challenge yourself to meet your needs this upcoming year, go ahead and grab the 2026 Bingo Board Template to make your own!
I am not saying that focusing on this three circle model and making a BINGO board is going to solve all of education’s issues. That is a much bigger problem that we need to be focusing on with our teacher’s unions, board of educations, and legislatures.
What I am saying is that focusing on you and honoring who you are outside of the classroom could be something that allows you to feel more fulfilled everyday you walk into the classroom.
End-of-Year Ag Teacher Awards: Superlatives That Say ‘We See You’
I was just watching (I mean re-watching for the fourth time) Ted Lasso. His charisma, positivity and down right hilarious quips keep me coming back for more.
One of my favorite moments in the seasons is when he sees that one of his players isn’t performing the best and finds out that he has really been missing his home and has a birthday coming up.
He works with the other coaches and team to surprise him with presents from home and a cake. It reminds me that celebration is an underused strategy to encourage and support others.
We don’t need to wait for a certain moment or day in the year to celebrate.
So, today we are celebrating you. If you’re reading this in real time, we are entering into the end of the school year (and yes teacher appreciation week) and it is time to celebrate.
Why don’t we do a little superlatives to celebrate! As you read I have a feeling some of you will be saying “wow, that is me!” And we know because we are right there with you. To be honest I am feeling very 1, 7 and 11 this year.
Most Likely to Hit a Curb in the Mini Bus
It may not have been a smooth ride, but you got everyone there in one piece (and probably had snacks, music, and a pep talk along the way). You’re the kind of leader who keeps it moving, curbs and all.
Most Likely to Have a Greenhouse That Feels Like a Second Home
Your students know it, your coworkers know it, your community knows it and the plants definitely know it. You’ve created a space where growth is more than just botanical—it's personal, too.
Most Likely to Know Everyone's Favorite Snack at CDE Practice
You’ve memorized the snack orders, pep talk routines, and who needs a joke before reasons. It’s not just food, it’s how you fuel your teams for connection.
Most Likely to Make the Shop Smell Like Sawdust and Success
Every project starts with chaos and ends with “Whoa, we built that?” You're showing students what it means to create something real with their own two hands.
Most Likely to Be a Legend at the County Fair
You can find the duct tape, wrangle three kids, fix a display, and still manage to smile for the group photo. Fair season would fall apart without you.
Most Likely to Have the Best Animal Selfies on Their Camera Roll
Goats, pigs, chickens—and somehow they’re all smiling. You bring the barn to life and capture the joy along the way.
Most Likely to Turn Any Moment into a Teachable One
Rain delays, broken tools, CDE team chaos and last-minute schedule changes don’t stop the learning. You see every moment as an opportunity to help kids grow.
Most Likely to Keep it Real with a Side of Sass
You say what needs to be said, with a smirk and a spark. You bring honesty, humor, and high expectations and we know your students are better for it.
Most Likely to Inspire the Next Generation of Ag Teachers
You’re the reason a student looked up and said, “I want to do this someday.” That’s impact, and it lasts longer than any lesson plan.
Most Likely to Cry at Graduation (and That’s Okay)
You’ve been in the trenches with these students, watched them grow, fail, and find their way for four years. When they walk across that stage, your heart walks right with them.
Most Likely to Take a Real Break This Summer
This year asked a lot, and you showed up anyway. Now it’s your turn to rest, recharge, and remember that doing nothing is doing something.
Most Likely to Grow Their Teaching Skills This Summer
You’re the kind of educator who’s always learning, always leveling up. Whether it’s your first Germinate Conference or your fifth, you show up ready to grow—and we’re cheering you on.
No matter which superlative made you smile (or made you say, “Yep, that’s me”), we hope you feel seen, valued, and celebrated.
Whether this year was your best yet or one you’re just proud to have survived, we’re so dang proud of you. You’ve made a difference, even on the hard days actually, especially on the hard days.
To keep that momentum going, we’ve pulled together some free resources to help you wrap up the year with intention, ease, and maybe even a little joy. Because you deserve support just as much as you give it.
Let’s finish strong—and then take that well-earned break.
Got a day to fill? Why not try a Wonder Day. Inspired by John Spencer’s Wonder Week. This resource gives you a Google Slide template for your students to dive deep into a topic of your choosing for the day.
Just last month we dropped a mega end of the year blog to help you get the most out of your students when they are still there! Check out the various free resources to gather feedback from your students to make next year the best yet.
The end of the year usually means it is time to see what those students have done on their SAEs this semester. Check out this short blog and accompany podcast on how to spice it up this year with an SAE Expo.
Paper plate awards are a fun, low prep way to recognize students in your classes or chapter members. This blog gives you a few suggestions and reasons why celebrating your students might be fun at the end of the year.
At the end of the year, the last things kids want is another Kahoot or Quizlet Live. Lori Sanderson (a Germinate Speaker LEGEND) gave you the Holy Grail of Review Activities in this Hall of Fame Germinate Session. With a TON of ready to use ideas and google drive resources to help you out before those final exams.
If you are loving the resources you are seeing here or the ag teacher focused content make sure you are subscribed to the monthly Gazette. The best place to get everything you need to know as an ag teacher in one place including new resources, teacher shout out and opportunities you don’t want to miss. You can join the fun here.
Leading when you aren’t in charge
As an agriculture teacher, you are the leader of your classroom, chaos coordinator, captain of the ship, and the CEO of learning to do.
But, what if you wanted to lead MORE than just your classroom? Now, there isn’t anything wrong with wanting to lead kids. HELLO THE YOUTH IS OUR FUTURE. And leading them to be productive citizens and exceptional employers/employees is paramount.
But, sometimes we want to be able to lead our peers at a professional level. Maybe that looks like moving to administration, supporting student teachers, being an adjunct education professor, leading on a committee/non-profit, or heck starting your own thing.
Unfortunately, we know that specifically in education, those leadership positions might be limited by specialized degrees, longevity in the system, and (hate to say it but it's true) favoritism sometimes weighs heavier than skill.
And you might find yourself in a situation where you wish you could do more but there isn’t a position available for you.
We get it and know that you have it in you to lead. And we also know that leadership isn’t bound by a position on your email signature. Leadership is determined by action and there are a few simple things you can do to lead even if you don’t have a Dr. Ph.D, EDS, Department Head or State Director as your title.
And the answers have been here all along. I just needed to reach into the interwebs, and dust off some digital dust from our Green & Growing values to help you find actionable ways to lead when you aren’t in charge.
While yes these are values for our organization, we want you to know as an agriculture teacher that our whole organization was created to help support and encourage agriculture teachers. Sounds like a leader right?
To be honest, this is what G&G did. We went rogue back in 2017. We decided there was a need for agriculture teacher support in a new and different way. Nothing to take away from other support organizations but to add in addition to because we believe there is space for everyone here. There was no position or place for an organization like us, we just did it anyway and stayed committed to our values every step of the way.
And if you are someone that feels that itch to lead but knows that based on zip code, school hierarchy or family dynamics that now isn’t the time or place to be in a leadership position know that 1. You ARE a leader already and 2. You CAN lead when you aren’t in charge.
4 Ways for you to Lead Even when you aren’t in charge
Share Abundantly
This might be the most obvious connection to leadership, sharing abundantly. This was one of the first values our team landed on. We knew that we couldn’t serve others well without being able to open our hands to share abundantly.
A lot of times this might be mistaken as “let’s give everything away” which is usually met with the statement “I worked hard for this, you should have to as well.”
And TBH I kinda hate that mentality although I sometimes catch myself in that trap.
In education we aren’t meant to do it alone. Heck in LIFE you aren’t meant to do it alone. You are made for community. And sharing abundantly is part of that community.
When sharing abundantly we don’t mean that you need just open up your Google Drive to the world. We mean lending your expertise to enrich the profession.
That might look like:
-Having coffee with a teacher who wants to learn the CDE you absolutely dominate
-Sending some example scripts or training materials to a fellow teacher
-Doing a joint-practice with a closeby school for the same CDE
-Having a phone call with a teacher who needs help with their lesson for tomorrow
-Sharing a teaching tip that has saved your butt multiple times via social media
-Being a speaker at a conference like Germinate
The list can go on and on and on because sharing abundantly doesn’t look the same in every situation.
I remember (tearfully) one day at a teachers conference that I was presenting at and my son (he was a couple months old) was not having it. And a few teachers took him so I could finish presenting. While you might not classify that as a “typical” sharing abundantly they selflessly gave me their time so I could lead others. And I will never forget that.
None of these examples are true leadership positions, just ways that you can take what is in your brain and lend a helping hand to others.
Observe Others
Being a leader means being at the top right?
Welllllll, I would like to say I don’t think so. There have been MANY times I have been in leadership positions and learned more from those I was leading and vice versa.
Being a leader means that you are willing to continue to learn so you can serve better. And one of the best ways is to observe others.
And I am not going to say the typical “be in a room with 5 people better than you.” While I think it is important to learn from those ahead of you, I think it is just as important to learn from those a few years behind you.
I can't even tell you how much I learned from the multiple student teachers I’ve had in my classroom or even interns we have had on the G&G team. While these 19-22 year olds might not know EvERyThiNg a veteran teacher knows they sure as heck have a different perspective and pulse on basically every situation you will be in. And learning what they see can open your eyes to new possibilities.
It is your responsibility, even if you aren’t in a leadership position, to learn from others. And that can be by attending conferences like NAAE or Germinate, auditing another teacher's class, doing some higher level courses/PD, attending tours/trips, meeting with community members etc.
Also, pro tip: learn from people OUTSIDE of your profession. While diving into content specific learning is valuable, sometimes you need to step outside of your day-to-day to see new realms of possibilities.
Keep connected and observe others with those who inspire you regardless of their age, title, experience, or position. You never know what you can learn from someone who doesn’t see the world exactly like you.
Unite Regularly
2020-2022 kinda screwed this up for us. Those years were trying and anyone who says the impacts are gone obviously aren’t spending 5 days a week in a classroom.
We know that things twisted and changed in the pandemic and now post pandemic world that is still trying to mend itself back together.
The biggest takeaway I’ve gotten from those two years is how vitally important uniting regularly with your people is.
And I am not just saying your ag teacher friends. I mean your family, your friends you have become family, your social groups, your book club buddies, your church small group, your workout besties, whoever. Being together doing things you love is crucial.
For you to be a leader you need to pour into yourself and part of that is uniting with people who light you up, encourage you and frankly can make you belly laugh.
If you haven’t found that group yet because of a wide variety of reasons let me direct you to this blog post about finding community in education and cultivating your own community (for entrepreneurs).
Train Daily
This morning I finished Run 2 of Week 11 in my “back to running” program. I decided back in the early summer that I wanted to be a runner again. I mean I was an athlete from a young age through college and continued to work on my fitness as an obsessed Pure Barre Junkie for years.
How hard could it be?
Freaking hard I’ll tell you. Mid (pushing late) 30’s me is not the same as 22 year old college lacrosse player me .
But, what I have learned is it just takes time to get comfortable again into the daily routine of running. Am I sore, tired, out of breath, red face rivaling that of a person with MAJOR road rage? Yes. Do I feel empowered, inspired and energized afterword? You bet.
The same thing goes for leadership. You gotta train daily. And just like working out, your training regimen will look different from others.
There might be a time when you spend a lot of time reading about leadership and learning about ways you can improve your craft.
There might be times where you are wholly invested in showing up in spaces that inspire you like a community leadership group.
There may be times where you go hard on a specific leadership skill like improving your speaking abilities with toastmasters or committing to writing everyday on your LinkedIn page.
There may be times when you are committed to self reflection and keep up with journaling and meditation.
YOU get to make the training regimen that works for YOU in this time of YOUR life and what YOUR goals are.
What I know about you just from the fact that you made it this far into a blog about growing your leadership skills is that you care deeply about supporting others and that makes you qualified to lead. It might not be in an official position today but that doesn't mean it can’t be tomorrow.
Marigolds
On the top left corner of my silver MacBook Air is a sticker that means more to me than a 2 dollar piece of sticky paper should.
It’s our original “be a marigold” sticker that we ordered back in 2021.
And being a marigold has become the lifeblood of Green & Growing Education ever since.
We send these stickers to each other when we need a pick me up. We send these stickers to teachers who we see doing amazing things in the agriculture education world. We send these stickers to our consulting clients who are movers and shakers of their industries.
But, we might have left out the reason why these silly little stickers mean so much to us.
It all started when we read this blog that Kindra sent to the team way back in 2020. The TLDR (to lazy didn’t read) version is that in education you can surround yourself with marigolds or walnut trees.
Marigolds are people who are encouraging, supportive, nurturing.
Walnut Trees are people who are negative nellies, discouraging, stuck in their ways.
Stick around marigolds and be one for others. Avoid walnut trees and don’t become one.
When we read that blog we knew that:
It passed the vibe check (I mean we are Green & Growing)
Gave us a simple visual reminder of what we believe as an organization for ourselves and our community.
So today is the day that we plant our marigold flag in the ground and say “this is us, this is what we believe, and here is how you can be a part of it”
Without further adieu, I present to you the three reasons why we preach being a marigold:
THREE REASONS WHY WE PREACH “BEING A MARIGOLD”
(and why it’s the Green and Growing Motto and Mission)
1️⃣ Marigolds are beneficial
If you are an agriculture teacher reading this (which is approximately 95% of you) you know about the benefits of marigolds in the garden.
You know that they repel unwanted pests, attract beneficial insects and can even suppress weed to all the surrounding plants. What they really do is elevate the longevity and success of the garden as a whole, right?
You might also know that there are non-beneficial plants to have around. I remember when we first heard about this concept from Kindra Callahan she talked about Black Walnut trees. If you didn’t know (like me at the time) these trees are poisonous to animals and can taint the soil surrounding it.
Not too great, right?
What we believe at G&G is to be a marigold is to be beneficial. When we make decisions we make them to make sure they are beneficial to the teachers we serve.
For example, we stopped offering a winter Germinate conference this year. You might be thinking “how does that help teachers?”
Good question!
After years of providing this conference and getting feedback from our community we realized that we could never find a good time in January to allow most teachers to attend and the timing put a huge strain on the speakers to curate their awesome sessions in October, November, and December since their calendars were slammed packed from National Convention to Winter Break.
So, for the longevity and success for not just the attendees but the speakers we decided to stop offering that and put more time and effort into summer Germinate.
(If you are reading this in real time, the Germinate 2025 Speaker Application is open and we are accepting on a rolling basis to allow you more time to work on your content!)
Something else that blossomed out of a discussion about being beneficial was providing MORE resources, which is why G&G has a small library of resources for teachers to freely download, edit and use.
What hasn’t happened in a while, however, is providing new resources. So to be beneficial and to use our expertise we polled our IG followers and are currently curating new resources MONTHLY for teachers to use.
Just recently we posted the Exit Directions, Email Home and Leadership Start-Ups resources for download.
Finally, we realize wholeheartedly that our team cannot solve all of the education or agriculture education industry issues. What we CAN do is help fill gaps!
Because we have all been in a situation sitting at our desk wishing we had a resource to help us in our next class hoping that someone out there has felt something similar and could provide wisdom. And we have been there when contemplating big life changes and how they will impact our careers.
We hope that the community built within G&G can help you fill those gaps with resources and people.
2️⃣ Marigolds are companions
Going back to our horticultural roots (pun intended) we know that marigolds are fantastic companion plants.
There are certain plants that marigolds enhance, tomatoes, basil, cucumbers and peppers to name a few. They work together like peanut butter and jelly, or national blue and corn gold.
And you know what, that is what G&G wants to be for you. A companion.
Now, companions cannot just give you stuff. A companion accompanies another on their journey.
That’s like hopping in the car, stopping by the gas station for the perfect treats (I’m a white cheddar popcorn and chocolate covered pretzels person), making the perfect playlist and sitting side by side through the weather, traffic, road closures, construction and smooth cruising on that trip.
We truly want that for you. And to be honest it might not be with one of the 6 of us on the G&G team, but we know that it could be with someone you encounter in the G&G world.
Someone who might be different from your background, live in a different state, like different foods, teach different classes, has differing views and yet you become connected through your career and commitment to growth.
You’ve probably heard it before but this community changed my life. I truly felt lonely in my career (especially those first few years in a brand new state). I didn’t know who to ask for help, I felt like I couldn’t ask more veteran teachers or state staff for fear of looking weak or silly, and many times I sat alone at state events waiting for my students to return because I had no one to talk to.
That is not a way to live. Especially in a career that takes up at a minimum 40 hours a week (and that is a very low estimate).
I found my teaching buddies through the internet. And what is crazy is we talk often, if not daily. And it’s not just about teaching ag anymore.
It’s about what cool things we thrifted this weekend
It’s about funny family stories that leave us cackling
It’s about sharing the highs of the day and venting about the lows
It’s about planning the next time we can get together to have fun
THAT is a true companion!
And we know that this is a HIGH goal for us who run a virtual community. We also know that companionship must be interactive. And we know that we have less opportunities to open rooms for these organic friendships to grow.
And so, our commitment in the next few months is to provide more opportunities for live interaction between agriculture teachers.
Why?
I can still remember the people that I was on trivia teams with at Germinate
I can still remember making smores in a mug at a Virtual Coffee with a handful of you
I can still remember Ohhhing and Ahhhhing at Keynote session and seeing your faces light up
I can still remember the first time I met some of you in person
I can still remember being able to share a meal with some of you at Conventions
And you can’t have those connections or memories without being in the same room, virtually or in person.
The best way to stay up to date on these happenings is making sure you’re subscribed to The Gazette, our monthly newsletter.
3️⃣ Marigolds provide beauty
Just last night at our team meeting, we did what we normally do by sharing a win from the week.
And they can be silly like me sharing I got new glasses that turned out were the same as Hannah’s (#lifetwins) to something more heartwarming like Cassidy sharing she was awarded Teacher of the Month and her student gave a beautiful introduction about the impact Cassidy has made that had us all wiping our eyes.
And LC mentioned that she was so thankful about the G&G community because just that day she needed to talk to someone who experienced that issue before and called up someone from a different state and that conversation was “life-giving” to her.
That is the kind of beauty we hope comes from G&G if you are truly immersed in it.
We have moments that bring beauty into our lives daily when it comes to the G&G community.
We want you to be able to walk through the halls at state contests, the expo at national convention, and the banquet halls at NAAE and you feel so much joy and excitement because you are going to see your G&G friends that you have spent days, weeks, months, years talking with and now you get to do life with them together!
Because when I started Ag Teacher How Tos in 2017 the goal was to just share some ideas and hope it helped a teacher or two.
What this has become since then is beyond my wildest dreams that brings me joy everyday when I sit down in the early morning or late at night to work. I have even made HUGE life decisions that allow me to stay committed to providing this community. And I wouldn't take back those decisions for a second because of what G&G means to the AgEd world and me.
We are invested in providing agriculture teachers need and deserve for the long haul.
We want to be a marigold in your life. We know we can’t be it for everyone and that you have more marigolds in your life like your state ag teachers association friends, the art teacher who is next door to you at school, or your National Ag Teacher Ambassador team.
We hope you have marigolds and that you are a marigold in others lives. We hope that G&G provides you an arena to GET from marigolds and also a place for you to GIVE as a marigold.
Overall, being a marigold is a true celebration of what and who G&G is.
G&G is a place that is beneficial, provides companionship and provides beauty in the lives of agriculture teachers. And we hope that you decide to join into the commitment of being a marigold!
Three R’s of Summer Break for Teachers
Welcome to summer ☀️ agriculture teachers!
While some of you may be in a great spot and are crossing the finish line with a lot of energy and excitement for what lies ahead, I also want to recognize that some of you aren’t feeling so great as you step into summer.
You might be feeling tired, worn out, and emotionally drained. Wherever you are on that spectrum, you did it.
Congratulations on finishing the school year!
As you enter into summer break, it can be easy to shut off until school starts in the fall, but what if there were a way to rest well while “getting your ducks in a row” for the next school year?
There is! This is your season of growth, renewal, and opportunity!
As the school year draws to a close and summer begins, it's time to shift gears, recharge, and prepare for the exciting journey ahead. Let’s explore three essential aspects for you to lean into this summer: rest, reflect, and get ready.
By embracing these elements, you can find the motivation and inspiration necessary to continue nurturing young minds and cultivating a thriving agricultural education community.
Three R’s of Summer Break for Teachers
1. Rest: Replenish Your Energy and Passion
After a demanding academic year, it's vital to prioritize self-care and recharge your batteries. Remember, you cannot pour from an empty cup. Embrace the beauty of this summer by taking time for yourself. Whether it's lounging in a hammock, exploring nature, or engaging in hobbies you love, allow yourself to unwind and rejuvenate.
Rest is not just about physical relaxation; it's about rekindling your passion. Take a step back from the daily routine, immerse yourself in the simplicity of life, and reconnect with who you are at your core.
Just the other day I was on a walk and I was pondering the concept of habit stacking. If you haven’t heard of it before, James Clear states: “habit stacking is a special form of an implementation intention. Rather than pairing your new habit with a particular time and location, you pair it with a current habit.” This can include listening to a podcast while going on a walk.
Now, I do think this has its benefits, but don’t put yourself in a mindset where you always have to be doing a thousand things to get better.
There is value in unplugging and just going on a walk without the distraction. Like we say rest IS productive. Or it is also okay to just read a book for fun while laying on the couch. Whatever you decide to do to rest this summer- do what works best for YOU. It’s okay to unplug for a little while!
2. Reflect: Grow Through Introspection
As an agriculture teacher, reflection is a powerful tool for growth and improvement. Use this summer as an opportunity to reflect on your teaching practices, your successes, and areas that may need refinement. Consider the lessons learned from the past year, both in the classroom and beyond, and how they can shape your future endeavors.
This might include implementing introspective practices such as journaling, meditation, or simply sitting in quiet contemplation.
By reflecting on your experiences, you can gain valuable insights, discover innovative teaching methods, and set new goals for the upcoming year.
Remember, growth is a continuous journey, and taking the time to reflect will help you evolve as an educator and mentor.
3. Get Ready: Harness the Power of Professional Development
Preparing for the next academic year begins with investing in your professional development.
Seek out opportunities to expand your knowledge, network with fellow educators, and stay up-to-date with the latest trends and advancements in agricultural education.
How can you do that?
Enroll in online courses
Attend conferences
Participate in workshops to sharpen your skills, learn innovative teaching strategies, and discover fresh perspectives.
Collaborate with other educators, share experiences, and foster a supportive community that will empower you throughout the year.
By investing in your professional development, you'll emerge from the summer break equipped with new tools and ideas to inspire your students and enhance their learning experience.
Green & Growing Education exists to offers a wide range of resources designed specifically for agriculture teachers like you.
One simple way you can build connections with other Ag teachers while intentionally preparing for the year ahead is by attending Germinate Conference.
This is a virtual conference created back in 2019 for Ag teachers so that you can immerse yourself in a virtual room with like-minded Ag teachers who are ready to encourage you and help you grow.
And feeling supported by other educators knowing that you aren’t alone in this career is what you want, right? If it is, be sure to register for Germinate today! If you still have questions, reach out to one of the team members and we can see if this conference is a good fit for you.
As an agriculture teacher, your dedication and passion are the driving forces behind the success of your students and the growth of your community.
This summer, prioritize rest, reflect on your journey, and get ready to embark on another transformative year in the classroom.
By embracing these three essential elements, you'll find the motivation, inspiration, and renewed energy to continue making a positive impact and shaping the future of agriculture.
Remember, this is your time to rejuvenate, learn, and grow. Embrace the summer's embrace the summer's opportunities, and lean into rest, reflection, and readiness. Your journey awaits!