Sometimes, it’s really important for things the be perfect- student test results, tax information and the placement of the decimal in my paycheck (it still needs to move to the right!) are examples of times that things need to be exact.

There are other times, lots of times, that we add a lot of stress by trying to make things perfect.  One of the ways you can find a little balance in your life is by adopting a “good enough” attitude in certain areas.  This means that you give up something being done perfectly in exchange for someone else doing it!  For me, laundry is one of those areas.  When my son was too young to help, I had a perfect system.  I have a laundry sorter so one side has lights, one side has darks and the middle had reds/pinks/purples.  When one side got full, I dumped it in the wash.  When I hang clothes in my closet, they go in rainbow order so I can pick clothes out easily.

My ten year old?  He doesn’t give two hoots about my systems. So now he’s in charge of his own laundry.  He washes it, dries it, folds it and hangs it.  Is it a nice organized system? 🤣Absolutely not!  However, its also not my problem.  At first it stressed me out but I found a little more in my life because I’m doing HALF the laundry I used to do.  It’s not perfect, but it’s GOOD ENOUGH.

How can this translate into the classroom?
First, think of some basic tasks you do that you could assign to a student.
Second, spend some time TEACHING students how to handle those tasks.  DO NOT skip this step.  Taking the time to teach students how to perform these tasks may sound like more work, but it really isn’t.  Once you have taught them how, you can sit down and watch them. 🤣handle one of the other 20394230948 things happening in your room at the time!  Third, repeat the process!

Do you grade/mark EVERYTHING?  Is it necessary or could students do some of it?  I used to check morning work, but now every Friday morning is grading time.  Students who have finished all their morning work get to help check it.  I check the one on the top and they check the rest.

Who passes papers and materials out?  Not me!  Invest some time into teaching students to “Take one and pass the rest.”

Cleaning up the classroom- teach students how to clean up the floor.  It may not be perfect, but you don’t have to do it.

Allowing others to take control of things helps you find balance because it frees up some of your time that you can spend doing other things!

This is the third post in my Finding Balance series.  You can learn more about finding balance in your life by clicking on the images or signing up for my newsletter!