What is a teacher warrior? Are you one?

The phrase “teacher warrior” came to us through a teacher with many years of experience.  She recognized that there is a need for good information for beginning and early career teachers, who have been the main focus on the Thriving Young Teachers Blog.  But she also expressed a desire and a need in the world for support for the experienced teacher who is in the trenches day after day, year after year, fighting the good fights, doing the difficult work and balancing the challenges of school and home for the long term.

“We’re teacher warriors,” she said, and thus named the experience. We’ve been talking about “teacher warriors” ever since.  We even created a workshop just for teacher warriors!

There will always be a need for information and support for early career teachers. We love this community and an important part of our mission is to help beginning teachers to succeed and to thrive in their new role.  We want them to fall in love with teaching as much as we did.

Being long-term teachers ourselves, we also understand the need to focus on the personal needs and challenges of experienced teachers who, because of rising demands and lack of support, risk burn-out. Teacher warriors face challenges from administrators, parents, and students themselves. They also face on-going criticism from the general public who often sees their job as glorified babysitting, an easy job with summers off.

We certainly can’t solve the problems of the teaching world with a post. But we can bring attention to some of the needs teachers have and highlight a few things teachers can do to strengthen themselves.  Every professional needs ongoing development, support and an environment where they can thrive. We can’t always control things, but we can learn to control what we can and minimize the negative effects of the things we can’t control.

It is a tall order. We get it. That said, here a few things that teacher can do to strengthen their inner teacher warrior:

Build a support network.

Teachers know the value of their support network. That’s why many teachers are very close with their teams and colleagues. Some teachers have supportive administrators, others don’t.

Every faculty has naysayers and negative people, and many times these people are the most vocal.  Teachers should try to avoid the negativity, whether that means avoiding the teacher’s workroom or reducing your contact to a very negative person.

Find your teaching soulmates. They are there somewhere in your building. They might be the ones with their door shut while they quietly do their own thing. They might teach a different subject or grade.  Your teaching soulmate might even teach in another building or district. We have formed a bond though we live in different states.

Wherever you find them, schedule time with your teaching supporters. Maybe it is drinks after work, regularly texting each other or a long conversation on the weekend. We often attend a conference together, giving us a day or two away from our busy lives. Teachers are busy, you will have to make time and attention to your support network a priority. That weekly early Friday AM coffee together might give you the strength you need to get through the week.

Don’t forget supporters at home.

The non-teaching people in our lives can be our supporters too. Sometimes you might need to ask for support, other times just recognize support when it happens. For example, when your three- year -old asks for a story, lean into the experience. Use the time as a place to breathe deeply and relax, spending quality time with your child, rather than as one more demand placed upon you.

Sometimes it is okay to have cereal for dinner. If you’ve had a rough day, give yourself a break. Order the pizza. Yes, it is not organic, home -cooked goodness. You can have that tomorrow. What would make your home life more supportive of you?  How could you get it?

Create an Environment Where You Can Thrive

Some people are very sensitive to sounds and smells. Some people love a lot of things; craft materials and books everywhere feel homey and comfortable for them. Others feel most comfortable in a minimalist space. Some people need more light than others. Many teachers loved to be highly organized with lots of matching containers. Others just shove things on the shelves and forget them.

Teachers usually don’t get to choose their rooms, but they can design those spaces. When planning how your students will experience the space, don’t forget to consider what makes you most comfortable in a space. You don’t need a Pinterest worthy space, but you do need a space where you can feel comfortable.

Creating a physical space where you can thrive doesn’t have to take a lot of time and money. We have outfitted spaces with lamps and tables from thrift stores. We’ve covered windows and bulletin boards in fabric remnants. We’ve begged, borrowed and repurposed furniture from the school basement repository. Whatever you choose, don’t spend your days in a space you dislike.

Learn to speak up.

This is a hard one for many teachers, who tend to want to please others and get along with everyone.  Speaking up sometimes means going against the grain. It might mean conflict. Many teachers don’t want to be seen as “difficult” or are afraid of being judged by others if they speak up about something that might not be a popular viewpoint. Even worse is when a group of teachers share a viewpoint and still no one speaks up against something they believe is wrong.

Experienced teachers are the ones who can often credibly express their ideas. Experience gives you knowledge and wisdom. You have something to say that the world needs to hear. If the ones who know the answers don’t speak up, decisions are often left to the ones who don’t know how to do it but are willing to make a decision anyway.  

Do your homework. Gather the facts. Speak respectfully in the appropriate time and place, but if it is an important issue, speak up.  Finding your voice is empowering. You’ll feel stronger for it.

Take charge of your own personal and professional development.

No one will care about your career development as much as you will. Once upon a time, districts gave hefty allowances for teacher to attend trainings based on their needs as a teacher. We even got professional magazine subscriptions and allowances for books for our own professional development.

In most districts, those things are long gone. Training has often evolved into a one-size-fits all day of in-service. Trainings tend to evolve around district priorities and often highlight how to use the newly purchased curriculum. These trainings may be necessary and helpful, but they don’t focus on your specific needs.

If you want to grow, you will likely have to take some initiative. Choose that new book on strategies to read over the summer. Watch Ted Talks about mindset or motivation. Choose trainings, college courses or degrees built around your needs as a teacher. You’ll be sacrificing your personal time and maybe money, but in exchange, you will be strengthening your skills.

As life-long learners, we believe that staying engaged in professional development is a key element to our success.  It invigorates us, gives us new ideas and allows us to spend time in the company of other like-minded educators. In the long run, it is worth it, and strengthens us both personally and professionally.

What do you do to strengthen your inner teacher warrior?  We would love to know. Drop us a comment in the comments section, send us an email or comment on Facebook.

Our best,

We are hosting a live workshop for teachers!  If you are within a few hours of Madison, Wisconsin, we would love to have you join us for our Find Your Inner Teacher Warrior Workshop. Get more information and register here.  We have designed a fabulous event with great speakers and we hope to see you!