Even Good Teachers Get the Sunday Night Blues

Are you a bad teacher if you don’t want your weekend to end? Do you feel guilty when you take a weekend to your self to recharge and do nothing teaching related? I’m here to tell you that it’s perfectly ok to love your weekends and to be a bit sad when they end. It doesn’t make you a bad teacher, it makes you human. Just because I don’t like Mondays doesn’t make me any less of a teacher. I’m an awesome teacher who just happens to really love sleeping in and adventurous weekends.

Guest Article by Kristen Walker from Easy Teaching Tools

To be very clear, teaching can be tough. After a week of teaching, advocating for students who aren’t being supported by administration, replying to irate e-mails from parents annoyed with “new math,” attending staff meetings and IEPs, and figuring out accommodations for my friends with special needs, I’m wiped out. My brain is constantly going a million miles per minute during the school day, so it’s no wonder I go home exhausted every. single. day. But here’s the thing…I wouldn’t give it up. I chose this profession, one that I love and am extremely dedicated to. So when I have crummy days that test my patience and sanity, I remind myself that I can do this.

Teachers are never caught up!!! I don’t think it’s actually possible to have everything checked off my list. Or is it just me? When I first started teaching ten years ago, I would feel so guilty for having a great weekend because in the back of my mind I knew how much I still had to get done in my classroom.

Eventually, I realized that the weekend is my time to do what I want. I can stay up late watching all of the reality TV I can handle, sleep as late as I want without an alarm rudely waking me up, and spend time catching up and loving on my family. That’s what weekends are about. Ungraded tests, a disorganized supply closet, and parent e-mails will be there Monday. Spend your weekends making memories.

Allow yourself to relax and rest because you’ve worked so hard for the last 5 days; it’s perfectly ok to do absolutely nothing that involves your classroom. If you don’t let yourself recharge over the weekend, you won’t be at your best for your students or your family. Trust me, I know. A few years ago, I was working so hard, staying up way too late laminating and creating resources for my class, that my body started to shut down and I ended up in the ER. Don’t make the same mistake I did. Make your health a priority.

Teachers are so accustomed to putting everyone else first, it becomes difficult to make ourselves a priority. But do it anyways. Your health, well-being, and sanity will thank you.

No matter how much you love your job, whether it’s teaching or something else, it’s hard to go back to work after a few days of rest and doing what you want. Don’t let anyone ever make you feel bad about getting the Sunday blues. Teachers are human and we are entitled to feel like any other person in any other career on Sunday. It’s normal and we all get the blues. But like me, I’m sure once you’re back in your class on Monday morning (after your latte has kicked in), you’re happy to be there. You have an awesome week planned and you’re an awesome teacher who has students just outside dying to see you and tell you all about their weekend. So this weekend, just relax and make time for you. And when Sunday rolls around, remember that we all feel your struggle and that doesn’t make us any less of a teacher.

What do you think?

Kristen is a 2nd grade teacher and Reading Specialist in San Diego who blogs at Easy Teaching Tools and is a teacher author on Teachers Pay Teachers. According to her Instagram, she’s a big believer in balance and always encourages others to “do something fun” when she signs off of her Periscopes. You can connect with Kristen on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.