I’m an introvert. I don’t like big parties or crazy amounts of noise. I love the quiet of my house, and I think there’s nothing better than reading a book with a chai latte next to me and a cat on my lap. Bliss! One would think that teaching would not be a good fit for me. I taught kindergarten, which is about as far as one can get from reading in a quiet house. But I found that the key to surviving was as easy as creating balance in my life and teaching my kids to do stretching exercises.
I’ll explain, but before I do, let me clarify that I’m not a quiet introvert. I’m the one standing in front of my students leading a song and dance about the life cycle of a frog. But I only have so many song-and-dance routines in me before I long for some quiet. So I had to create balance. Once my students were out the door at the end of the day, silence would descend on my room and my introvert self would breathe a big sigh of relief. In addition, I would go home to a quiet apartment and a cat. The balance would rejuvenate me so I could get up the next morning and do another song and dance.
I also found that I could carve out moments of extreme relaxation and quiet in the classroom with stretching. Several times throughout the day, my students and I would stand and breathe and stretch. We would feel the stretches throughout all our muscles and bend down to touch the floor to feel the texture of the carpet. Those peaceful moments were like little sips of caffeine. They gave me energy to get through the day.
Are you an introvert? How do you get through your school day?