"There's nothing quite like teacher tired", I recall a colleague saying several years ago. I imagine there's a long line of people ready to take umbridge with this, and whilst I don't have the wide-ranging experience to support this statement, I can say that teaching is very tiring.
Over the last 17 years, I've worked in challenging schools across Leeds, and a couple of years ago left a school where we had 100-minute lessons. I was surprised to find that I was more tired at the end of a 5-lesson day than I was when we had a 3-lesson day. The same amount of breaks, the same amount of time spent teaching, but 'double lessons' bringing together two 50-minute lessons - so, 3 lots of 100 minutes rather than 5 lots of 60 minutes or 6 lots of 50 minutes.
I gave this some thought, and I eventually decided that this was due to a greater number of transitions and the increased number of beginnings and ends of lessons. I don't find the teaching part of teaching tiring. Once the kids are in, settled and getting on, standing at the front directing attention and circulating in periods of independent study doesn't take much energy... But getting them out and getting them in... Eesh!
I am also very aware that on Monday, I start at a school where the timetable is six lots of 50 minutes - the largest number of transitions, with more beginnings and ends than other timetable plans!
To help me with preparing for these transitions, I have a silent alarm on my watch that alerts me when it's 3 minutes before the end of the timetabled lesson. Time to wrap up the activity that we're working on, or for me to stop talking. Then we're putting away equipment, collecting things together like protractors, books and the like, and making sure that there's no mess left around the classroom. An orderly dismissal, and then we're waiting for our next class. Somehow, without fail, they arrive ten seconds after the bell went, and we're at it again. Making sure that all the kids are coming in with the right attitude on display, having their equipment out, and starting on the activity on the board. Books need to be given out, there are likely to be issues with equipment, and the register needs to be done with detentions needing to be added for those who arrived late.
This 10-minute-ish period that typically happens twice with hour-long lessons and thrice with 50-minute lessons doesn't happen with 100-minute lessons.
Lesson 1 (1/2) can be set up before the school day starts properly. Books are out, and that's a job that doesn't need juggling. Equipment is ready, too. At the end of this lesson, we have a break, and the time to dismiss the class without the pressure of a new class waiting at the door. Lesson 2 (3/4) can be set up over break, and we run into lunch, and lesson 3 (5/6) can be set up over lunch with that class dismissed at the end of the day. There are other differences between 50-60m lessons and 100m lessons, but that's not for this blog. I've been considering my routines for the start of lessons as I embark upon another September in a new environment.
I think that the best way is to consider what I want to achieve and how I'm going to achieve it. So...
#1 Learners to enter the room in a calm and focused manner. Stand at the door to welcome each learner, directing them to the task on the board. This will be completed on mini whiteboards. MWBs are to be left on desks by the previous class, and I'm thinking that upon entering, learners take a dry-wipe pen from a box in my hands. This manages the flow of learners into the room and minimises the chances of any outside distractions continuing into the classroom.
#2 Books handed out in an efficient way. This will not involve learners - they're getting on with the task on the board, being impactful with their time. Books will be stored in boxes at the back of the room and given out/collected in the same way each time. I've done this well previously, and handing out books takes at most 20 seconds rather than the 3 minutes of a kid talking to their mates as they go, asking 'Where does _____ sit?' every third book. This is very easy to achieve, making sure that you have a route around the room that you follow, which puts the books in the same order each time.
#3 Register completed without disturbing the peace. I see doing the register in a traditional sense as a huge waste of time, and my go-to is to compare empty seats with the seating plan and make sure that the number of full seats and names on the register match. That said, I also believe that in the first few weeks it's a good way to learn names, and if norms go the wrong way it's a good way to settle a class. For the most part, I'm not interested in calling out names and waiting for a response when they could be thinking, and I could have it over and done with in 9.58 seconds.
In conclusion, I think that's the start of lessons. Stand by the door with a box of whiteboard pens, greeting learners and handing out (working) MWB pens. When everyone is in and settled, move to handing out books which have been collected following a specific route to support faster handing out. Complete the register with knowledge of who is and isn't in, considering books and gaps in the seating plan.
What are learners doing now? What will happen next? That's for the next blog.
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