Hi friends! I thought it would be neat to take a day of my life and share it with y’all. Shay Shull does this from time to time, and I always find these types of posts so interesting, so I thought I’d do one.
A little background if you’re new around here and don’t know me. I’m a 5th grade ELA (reading) teacher in a small town in Alabama. I’m also a blogger/TpT author. I’m in my early 30’s, single and I have no kids (of my own! I have tons of kids that I’ve taught and claimed as my own 🙂 ). I sometimes get messages/comments/emails asking about being single in your 30’s and dealing with this fact. I am very happy with my life and being independent. I have never wanted kids, and while I’m not opposed to getting married, I haven’t found anyone that I would give up my single life for and if that never happens, that’s okay! I am a firm believer that you don’t need someone else to make you happy. You’re in charge of your own happiness. Yes, that might not be the “norm,” but it’s what makes me happy. 🙂
Now let’s get started with my day!
Every weekday morning I wake up at 4am. I realize this is extremely early. I like to wake up and have time to get some stuff done before having to go to work.
Every single day, the first thing I have to do is eat a pack of PB crackers and drink some diet coke. I consider this my breakfast during the workweek. You know how people say they can’t do anything before they have their coffee in the morning? Well I can’t do anything until I eat something when I wake up. Is this weird or normal? lol!
I sit and eat my PB crackers while I check email and visit a few blogs and catch up on Instagram. I usually give myself around 15 minutes or so to just sit down, eat breakfast, and wake up. After that, it’s time for coffee!
I’m a big coffee drinker. I usually have 3-4 cups a day, but the only the first one is caffeinated! I’m picky about my coffee. I only like a light, breakfast blend. Right now I’m really liking this one from the McCafe McDonalds brand.
I take my coffee with two creamers and nothing else. I love these individual servings of the Nestle Coffee Mate creamer. Two of these are perfect for how I take my coffee because there’s no guess work involved in pouring too much or too little. Keep in mind, I’m fixing my coffee at around 4:20am. I’m pretty much still a zombie, so I need as much easiness as I can get! 😉
When my coffee is ready to drink, I sit down and enjoy it while reading. Y’all know I’m a huge reader and everyone always asks how I’m able to read so much. Reading is my stress reliever, so I carve out as much time for it as I can, like right now. I usually sit and read for around 25-30 minutes.
By this time it’s around 5am and it’s time to start to work! Not my teaching job, but my other job. I go to my desk and work on whatever I have going on for my blog/TpT business at the time. On this particular morning, I was working on formatting my January Fluency Files and updating the January Comp Files to include the “more room to write” version. Since it’s still dark outside during this time of day, I can never do any photographs, so I stick to more of the computer based work for this work session.
If I don’t have any monthly resources that I’m working on or if nothing is coming to me creatively, I work on blog work or responding to Q&As on TpT or organizing future resources or scheduling things on Pinterest/Instagram/Facebook. There’s always something to be done!
After working on my second job for about 30 minutes (45 if it’s a dry shampoo day!), it’s time to start getting ready for work.
While I’m putting on my makeup, I log onto Netflix and watch an episode of something. I’m not a huge TV watcher, but I’m all about some Netflix. I use this time to multitask. (I cannot multi task with audio books…I can’t concentrate on an actual book unless I have the book in my hands and I’m looking at the words…anyone else??) I’m currently on season 3 of Gossip Girl. I mean, I’ve watched the entire series before, but it’s one of my favorites so I’m going back through for the second or third time. It’s a good way to start the day!
After I’ve fixed my hair and gotten dressed, it’s time to fix my second cup of coffee (now onto decaf) and leave for work.
My work day officially starts at 7:15am, but I try and get there before 7:10. This doesn’t always happen, but I try. Homeroom lasts until 7:45 and then my kids are off to PE. Yep, 5th grade has PE first thing. And yep. That means that for the rest of the day there are no breaks. 😳
During my plan time, I always try and quickly eat something because by this time, it’s by about 4 hours since I had those PB crackers!
***This is an old picture, as you can probably tell from the calendar. I completely forgot take a picture of my mid morning snack from this day!
I teach three classes of 5th grade ELA. My kids get back from PE at 8:40. The rest of the day is pretty much the same schedule everyday:
1st block: 8:40 to 10:00
Enrichment (intervention time): 10:00 to 10:30
2nd Block: 10:30 to 12:45
Lunch: 11:00 to 11:30
3rd Block: 12:45 to 2:15
Break: 2:25- 2:50
On this particular day, we were working on creating anchor charts for theme. The kids worked in groups to make their own anchor chart and then used that anchor chart to “teach” the rest of the class how to find the theme of a fiction text.
Once all the kids leave for the day, I come back to my classroom and try and straighten up a bit. I hate to leave with everything in a mess because I feel like that just starts the next day off on the wrong foot.
Once 3:15 rolls around, it’s time to leave. I admire people that stay after school for long periods of time every afternoon. I just cannot do it. My energy is gone at that period and I need to go home and recharge. I do much better at working on stuff for school at home after I’ve sat down and taken a little break. I used to try and stay until 4pm every afternoon, but I just found that to not be effective. It’s like my brain couldn’t process anything and I just sat at my desk looking around the room wondering what to do first. Going home and taking a short break helps me tremendously!
When I get home, I always give myself an hour to sit down and look online/read/eat supper before getting started with my blog/TpT work or any work I need to do to prepare for the next day’s lessons. For the past 4 months, this part of my day hasn’t gone as smoothly as it normally does because I’m building a house and there’s always something that needs to be done in the afternoons, which makes working a bit difficult. I can’t wait to be settled in my office and have everything in its place! February, hurry up!
Do y’all eat supper incredibly early? I have always eaten supper as soon as I get home from work. When I taught teach first grade, we would eat lunch at 10:30 so by the time I got home I would be famished. Now I eat lunch at 11:00, but I still like having an early supper.
On this particular day, I had spaghetti and a piece of garlic bread. I like my spaghetti plain…don’t judge! 🙂
After I’ve eaten supper and “detoxed” from work by mindlessly looking online or reading, it’s usually around 4:15/4:30 and it’s time to get to work on my TpT business and blog work! Now that the time has changed, it gets dark so early, so I make sure and do any photographing that needs to be done while I still have some natural light.
I try and photograph next to a low window so I can capture as much natural light as possible. I took the left picture so you could see what’s around the resource that I’m photographing and then on the right you can see what the actual photograph ends up looking like. Sometimes I use a big poster board or sheet or wrapping paper if I want a different background, but I also like the look of the wood floors for some pictures, too! Side note: that rolled up thing in the left picture is my rug for my office. I snagged it for $300 off on Black Friday! I LOVE Rugs USA!
I usually work on blog/TpT work for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours each night. Sometimes my day has just been too exhausting and I just can’t do it, but most of the time I try and get as much done as I can. While I work, I have some Broadway show tunes playing, so that makes it more fun. If you know me, you know I LOVE musicals and I love singing my favorite songs from my favorite musicals. I can’t carry a tune to save my life, but I love it! 🙂
Around 5:30 or 6pm, I usually have another cup of {decaf} coffee and I start preparing photos for Instagram/Facebook. I scroll through my phone to see what I want to share and then edit the pictures and write captions. On this particular night I was working on editing and posting my Christmas Around the World Comp Files unit. I also edited and posted a photo for my #lalalifebookclub December book club pick, One Day in December.
I used several different photo editing apps, but my favorite is Afterlight!
I always post on my teaching account around 7:30pm and my bookstagram account around 6pm. If I have a house update picture or fashion photo (oh y’all, I have been majorly slouching in the fashion department and I need to figure out a way to stop slobbing around! It’s time for a makeover 😉 ) I post that on my life+style account during this time, too. I post during these times because that’s my highest engagement times. Since Instagram changed their algorithms, it’s harder to figure out how/what/when to post in order for your followers to see your content. It’s a guessing game that you have to try and understand!
Around 7:30/7:45pm, I finally call it a day. I take a bath and change into my PJs and curl up with my book. Since I’m not a big TV fan, I usually read or look online until it’s time for bed. Annnnd since I get up at 4am every morning, bedtime is quite early for me! I’m doing good if I see 9pm most nights! HA!
So that’s a glimpse into my usual daily routine. It’s definitely busy and jam packed, but it’s a good life and I love it!
🙂 🙂 🙂
This was so interesting! Curious what you have for lunch. I teach also and am always looking for lunch ideas!
Thank you! I try and eat something that the lunchroom makes since that's easier and quicker (we only have a short time to eat!) but if they aren't having anything I like, I usually bring soup or mac and cheese or leftover pizza. If I go to Chick Fila the night before, I sometimes get an extra chicken nugget and then eat it the next day. That's really good! I'm a picky eater, so I'm sure other people have much better suggestions though! 🙂 🙂
I have been following you for quite some time but only started implementing some of your strategies and resources this year. I teach 5th ELA on Maryland and have the same schedule you do. Three MODS, specials at 7:45 am lunch 10:30 am, Reading Street curriculum, etc. I am really curious how you ensure required standards are taught and how do you progress monitor so many kids? 68 at my last count.
I love reading more about you! We have ALOT in common personality wise. I also don’t want children (but I am married), eat the school lunch, and teach 5th grade! I also love to read all the time.
I love how you start your day! I do that usually too. I like to get up and watch the news while drinking water and feeding my dogs. I have to get ready at 6 and leave at 630 to be at work by 7. I get home at 345 (30 minute drive to work) and have a snack, walk my dogs and decompress via social media, reality tv or a book. I usually get some stuff done for my craft business from 5-630 and then start cooking dinner. My guy gets home at 730, we eat, clean up, watch tv til 9 and start getting ready for bed. I am asleep at 10. =)