Ms. Bracken are you okay?

Image result for water bottleThis past week was a huge challenge for me. I don't usually get sick, and if I do get sick I NEVER have to take time off of school. Well, I did get sick and it was bad enough I had to take two days off school to be able to focus on me, to be able to get better. I felt bad about doing this to my students, I left them high and dry I felt because I wasn't able to be there for them.

I now feel as though I am behind, just because I did miss two days of school. I know that they still gained a lot of material when I was out. It just isn't the same as it would have been if I would have been there.

When I was no longer contagious I did come back to school (not my best decision). Let me just say that I think I coughed for 90% of the time, I also ran out of water at the end of each period. I was NOT my best self for me or for my students. I learned my lesson, wait until you can go at least 20 minutes without coughing uncontrollably. My students would look at me, and ask "Ms. Bracken are you okay?" my response would be me nodding my head yes.

Did I learn my lesson, YES. Will I do this again sometime within my career, probably.

When you are sick, how do you know you are well enough to be back in the classroom?

Comments

  1. Becky HaddadFebruary 24, 2020 at 2:23 PM

    I missed the answer to the title question, so I'll ask it: Ms. Bracken, are you okay?

    You're spot on; being out of the classroom is never fun. Whether you're out for school related events, vacation time, or personal illness/mental health days, it can often feel like more work to be gone than to just tough it out. You already observed that it's hard to bring your best when you're not feeling all that great. And you're also right that it will probably happen again. So my bigger question is: What checks can you put in place for yourself so you know it's okay to take a day or two so you're ready to bring your best self back?

    I think the conversation is less about knowing we're well enough (you probably know when you shouldn't actually go back yet) and knowing it will be okay if we're gone. Will the students get as much out of our class period if we're not there? No. Will they get something? Yes. Will they get something we can't give them? Probably. Sometimes we own our classes a little too much. Ownership is a wonderful, beautiful part of being a teacher, but (as you've recently observed) it's a lot of pressure. You're going to have tough days. You're going to get sick. You're going to go on FFA trips and PD. You're going to be out of the classroom, and you shouldn't feel guilty about it. Sometimes your time outside the classroom makes you a better teacher.

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