Breaking Free from Stress

My daily planner is full of dates to remember, deadlines to beat, appointments, tasks and of course reminders for things to accomplish within the day, weeks and months. I never thought that my school year will start like this. SO HECTIC! Well I know that stress is part of our daily life; we can never hide from it, especially if you are a teacher. Perhaps, even the best teachers in town, if inundated by tons and loads of paper works, will also feel a nerve-racked. Graduate schooling also adds pressures, class reporting and research works overwhelm me every weekend.

Wait! I am not complaining about the complexities of my profession… it is just that, I feel the need to break free from stress), learn how to enjoy while working and live a more satisfying life.  There are so many techniques on how we can live a stress free life, self-help books, websites and stress management programs are prevalent nowadays (it just shows that many are in need of help on how to beat stress). In this post I want to share some of my personal strategies in beating stress, perhaps some of them may also work for you.

1. Set priorities
• Setting priorities in work is one of the sure-fire ways to avoid stress. Always remind yourself of the old adage that time is gold. Have a clear short-term and long-term plans. Be sure that you are spending your time with what you considers significant for your personal or professional growth. If a paper work will be due by tomorrow, will you still consider watching your favorite movie overnight?
2. Make the most of your breaks
• I consider my breaks or vacant time as equally important as my working time. It is a time for me to temporarily detach myself from my work routines and enjoy a casual conversation with my co-teachers. Also, I will never miss to take my "power lunch" and to indulge myself with some snacks. 
3. Enjoy a mental vacation 
• Because my schedule is always compromised, it is seldom that I travel for pleasure. But, through visualization, we can enjoy the power of mental vacation. There are so many ways to do this: 
• Read your favorite book in bed. I suggest that you should read books aside from the subject matter you teach. Try reading novels, it will divert your attention and help you refocus your thoughts.
• Listen to relaxing music. Put on your earphones and indulge yourself with relaxing music, while visualizing a green field or a beautiful beach scene during a calm morning.
• Take a walk. We are all aware that walking is a form of cardiovascular exercise. Find a quite place in your school or a peaceful park in your community and savor this relaxing moment.
4. Enough sleep, balance diet and exercise
• One of the most crucial factors for a staying power of an in-service teacher is her health. Have a healthy lifestyle. Eat to beat stress. It also pays off to take multivitamins. 
• Exercise is really a challenge for most teachers. Honestly, at first, I really find it hard to include this in my daily routine. But discipline is the key to achieve a healthy physique. 
• For adults like us, 7-9 hours of sleep is considered healthy. 
5. Create a happy environment
• This is my favorite best practice in beating stress. My school head always tells us that we should create our own good weather to feel good. This becomes my credo. I usually surround myself with things that will remind me that I am happy with my job and confident with my self. Place a picture frame of your loved ones in your table. Post your favorite moving quotations in your message board. Most importantly, surround yourself with colleagues that are full of positive energies. 

The Confession of a Happy Bibliophile

My busy and hectic schedule as a teacher can't stop me to indulge myself with reading any books that sparked my interest. I am a self-confessed bibliophile and I don't regret a single moment being such a voracious reader. 

Since I am a computer teacher, my bookshelves and table tops and drawers are full of tutorial guides, easy steps modules, teach-yourself, application bibles and other textbooks related to Information Technology. It really pays to invest to them, since they are my ultimate source of knowledge and techniques in my day to day teaching. 

Professional and personal development books have also their place in my bookshelves. John Maxwell is my most favorite author, when it comes to self-empowering books.  I also  have books that will improve my speaking and writing skills. Andrew Matthews's books about happiness are really inspiring. Books for positive change and gaining confidence are some of the common theme. I even have some books on how to achieve a millionaire's mind. T. Harv Ecker's "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind" is a great read! Gladwell Malcolm's "Outliers", "The Tipping Point" and "Blink" are some of my favorite non-fiction books. 

Every year, I see to it that I have read at least three to five classic novels. It is always part of my yearly goal. The works of Victor Hugo like "Les' Miserables" and "Hunchback of Notre-Dame" are some of my fave. "Canterbury Tales" by Geoffrey Chaucer is indeed a challenge but the passengers' stories are entertaining. The autobiography of Helen Keller always inspires me. "The Story of My Life" shows me that nothing is impossible for someone who is willing to learn, with her family and friends, her limitations were turned into beautiful privileges. I could never be more fascinated how William Golding in his "Lord of the Flies" tells a story about school boys stranded in an uncharted island, and proves how ethical nature shapes our society. Before this year ends, classic novels like Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray", Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" and Alexander Dumas's "The Count of Montecristo" are topping my list. I'm done with TPDG, two to go! 

Bob Ong is one of my favorite Filipino authors. I have all of his nine books. I am always fascinated on his wit and humor in discussing issues that involved social, political and cultural issues. Books that will really make you proud as a Filipino like the works of Lualhati Bautista and Ambeth Ocampo, have also earned their place in my bookshelf. 

As S.I. Hayakawa said:

“It is not true we have only one life to love, if we can read, we can live as many lives and as many kinds of lives as we wish.” 

I'm grabbing every opportunity I have to read those books that charmed me and suited my taste. Every time I pamper myself into reading, it is as if I am into trance playing different roles, or into astral projection going into different places. Bring me to mall, and my first destination will always be bookstore. Give a book as a gift, then I will be forever thankful. 

Nutrition Month 2013

Our school celebrates Nutrition Month 2013 with the theme: "Gutom at Malnutrisyon, Sama-sama Nating Wakasan." The TLE Department, in cooperation with the TLE-Student Technologists and Entrepreneurs of the Philippines Club and Junior Computer Club, is organizing different contests and events like Poster and Slogan contest, Nutri-Quiz Bee, Essay Writing contest, Jingle contest and Innovative Cooking contest. We believe that these different contests will not only showcase the talents of our students but it will also make them aware about the hunger and malnutrition issues and how we can realistically address them. 

As our culminating activity, this July 31, we will hold our most anticipated event- OPLAN 3M (Masarap, Masustansya at Mura). This program is an innovative cooking demonstration. Some selected parents will be invited to attend. Oplan 3M aimed to promote among these parents the importance of preparing nutritious meals, inspite of the family's financial constraints. 

This year's Nutrition Month theme is an attempt of the National Nutrition Council (NCC) to promote healthy living and to involve everyone in the attainment of Millennium Development Goal No. 1, which is eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. 

Our official banner in celebration of Nutrition Month 2013

Philippines Independence Day

Wow! Today is a very special day for our country. Today, we are celebrating the  115^th Independence Day. Although, celebrating it is not really as festive as the USA’s fourth of July, deep in our hearts, we could never be more thankful to all our national heroes, who sacrificed their lives for our rights and freedom as Filipinos.

When I opened the Google today, I am amazed to see this logo that shows President Emilio Aguinaldo (the first and the youngest president of our country) waving our national flag on the momentous event when he declared our Independence Day in Kawit, Cavite. 

The First Five Days of S.Y. 2013-2014

Oh my! It’s been a long time since I posted here. If there is something that I am so eager to share about my brave journey, it is all about my new special assignment.

I was assigned by our principal to hold the Basic Education Information System (BEIS) Office. To tell you honestly, the idea of being a BEIS officer never crossed my mind. Although I know that this special assignment requires information technology skills, it also demands a lot of specific knowledge and technicalities, prompt data collection and presentation, and most specially holding this office requires me to improve my people skill. I directly deal with the teachers in data collection for our enrolment and attendance monitor. To give you an idea on what I went through as a BEIS officer for the first five days of this school year, here are my journal entries:

Day 1 (June 3)

• Opening of classes
• My mentor, Mrs. Caunte, told me to start the attendance and enrolment monitor
• I started meeting the class advisers. There are 114 sections and 57 classrooms   organized (34 section in grade 7; 30 sections in grade 8; 26 sections in third year; and 24 sections in fourth year)
• There are no grade/year level coordinators. Data gathering is my sole assignment.
•  I also met my senior students (IV-Dominique).
• I swear this day is really exhausting!

Day 2 (June 4)

• Same tasks: enrolment and attendance update
•   Retrieval of age profile as of June 3
•  We sent report to the Division Office. I felt like I was ambushed every time the D.O. would call and demand for the enrolment update.
• Short orientation and lecture discussion with my IV-St. Dominique and IV-St. Joseph
• Still, exhausting… Will I survive this?!

Day 3 (June 5)

• Same tasks: enrolment and attendance update
• Mr. Tony Luz, the Division Office head for planning, visited the school. He told us to submit the enrolment monitor form, specifying the number of classes and classrooms organized and data on transferees
• I am overwhelmed by these paper works!

Day 4 (June 6)

• Same tasks: enrolment and attendance update
• Retrieval of age profile as of June 3 [I hate when teachers suddenly become invisible when I rove around to collect this]
• Sent the enrolment monitor form to D.O.
• Had a talk with the assistant principal and told me about some of my data inconsistencies [the inconsistencies are not yet crimes, i just have to learn from them ]

 Day 5 (June 7)

• Last day for enrolment and attendance update!
• 97% of age profile collected [I missed a few of them.. will deal with them on Monday]
• Sent the enrolment and attendance monitor to D.O.
• I can’t believe it, the first five days are through and I am still alive!

Reading my journal, I realize how sweet it is to become just a plain classroom teacher. Being a full-time teacher, your concern is just about you and your students: devoting your time for your learning plans and instructional materials preparation, dealing with classroom management and effective teaching strategies. With a special assignment, prioritizing is indeed a big challenge. You still need to prepare for your teaching, because you will also have teaching loads (although lesser, I am handling 3 computer classes), but at the same time you are also required to think and respond to the demands of your office.