Letter to my 16-year-old self

This week, we secondary school teachers, are saying goodbye to another group of students. We'll attempt to say something poignant in the final lesson, maybe pose for photographs - then they'll be gone, walking out into the sunlight, towards the school gates, as they have a thousand times over the last five years. From the …

Protecting your mental health as a teacher

#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek Mental health is something that affects everyone. Some people are more resilient, some cope better, but everyone needs to be aware of their own mental health and the mental health of others. Teaching can be draining, tiring, fatiguing and knackering - it's important to know how to deal with stress, anxiety and exhaustion when …

How to relax as a teacher

It's Christmas eve 2017 as I write this and we've made it to the holiday! What a long term. But, walking back to my car through the school car park on Friday I noticed colleagues loading box upon box of work into their cars - as if they're not taking time off, just working from …