Stealing

A Note to Educators

When a person takes something that belongs to somebody else without permission, it is stealing. The stolen object could be as small as a piece of candy, or a big as a car. It could even be somebody else's words or ideas.

People steal for various reasons: A young child may not understand that taking something that they "want" is wrong. School-aged children understand the concept of right and wrong, but may not have the maturity or self-control needed to conquer the temptation. Older children may choose to steal because of peer pressure in an attempt to "fit in." People may choose to steal because they are trying to fill the void of something that is missing in their lives, making them sad, angry, neglected or jealous. Some people steal because they feel they are "entitled." Others may not have enough respect for the rules and rights of others, they may steal simply for the thrill of getting away with it, or they may have developed some type of addiction.

Regardless of the reason, stealing can have serious consequences because it hurts everyone involved. To coutneract this problem, stealing must be addressed in a proactive manner. Here are a few tips:

• When a young child steals, parents need to do everything they can to help that child understand that stealing is wrong. (i.e. have the child return the stolen item, offer an apology for taking the item, use empathy to explain how stealing makes other feel, etc.)

• If you do not know who stole the item, but you have a strong suspicion, it may help to blame the item: i.e., "Class, Dominic's ninja work up from his nap and escaped from my special box," Miss Rabon said, "Everyone start looking for him. Make sure he isn't trying to hide out in one of your pockets."

• With a school-aged child, it is important for that child to return the stolen item and offer to make amends. Explain to the child how and why stealing is wrong, and develop a consequence for a poor behavior choice.

• When teens steal, it's recommended that parents and educators follow through with stricter consequences. The embarrassment of having to return the stolen items and answering to authority can make for an everlasting lesson on why stealing is wrong.

• Further punishment, particulary physical punishment, is unnecessary and could make the child angry and more likely to engage in ever more destructive and/or reactive behavior.

If a child has stolen on more than one occasion, there may be a deeper reason for this behavior, and professional help may be needed. If this happens, contact your family therapist, counselor, family physican, and/or your school counselor (Ms. Bryant).

(Cook, 2012)

Simple yet Powerful Self-Care Tips for Teachers

We’ve all got days when we just feel like walking away. The overwhelm of daily life, the latest news crisis for the world or the monotonous banter of social media is enough to send anyone into self-inflicted isolation.

But when you’re an educator, in charge of an entire classroom of students, walking away just isn’t an option.

And that’s why self-care, while often overlooked, is so important for teachers, counselors, and students.

What’s more, as someone who teaches and cares for others, it’s often easy to dismiss your own self-care routines and rituals, which should be kept as a priority.

Because if you can’t help yourself, you can’t help anyone.

So read on to learn how you can easily implement self-care into you life, every day.

6 Ways to Incorporate Self-Care for Educators

Setting Aside Time for Self-Care

Time for yourself should be kept sacred, so it’s important to choose a time of day when distractions are at an all-time low and you can intentionally set aside some time for yourself. It can be as little as 5-15 minutes per day, so no more excuses for not filling your bucket!

And when you take this special time, do whatever you want to do…meditate, read, workout, etc. It doesn’t really matter what you decide to do during your time, always chose something intentional for yourself.

After a while, these rituals will become habit, and it’ll get easier and easier to incorporate “you-time” into your busy days.

Take Some time To Meditate

If you’re feeling especially overwhelmed with life, feelings, and you’re finding it difficult to manage your emotions, taking a quick time-out to reflect, meditate, and bring yourself back to the present moment can be hugely beneficial.

You can do this formally by listening to a guided meditation, or you can meditate on the fly by repeating a helpful mantra or reviewing an uplifting poster. You can find apps for your phone for guided meditation like Calm or Headspace. There are also tons of free guided videos on youtube. (My favorite calming videos are by The Honest Guys.)

If you’re in the middle of class and chaos takes over, it can be helpful to incorporate a moment of mindfulness for everyone. Consider keeping coloring books on hand to give everyone a few moments of quiet reflection.

Environmental Reminders to Improve Self-Care for Educators

Place self-love or empowering posters in your environment to brighten the room, and the emotional atmosphere. Put posters, or thought bubbles, in an office, a classroom, or teachers’ lounge so they are there whenever you need a mindful moment throughout the day.

These little reminders will help you find peace as well as anyone else passing by.

Get Organized

Sometimes overwhelm can come from lack of organization and planning. You’d be surprised how a few minutes of decluttering can lighten your life.

Similarly, setting goals or creating bucket lists also give you something to look forward to. Keep a notebook filled with goals and bucket lists.

So if you’ve ever found yourself feeling completely aimless in life, it’s time to start making some plans!

Important Checklists and Trackers

Speaking of organization, checklists and trackers can also help you plan, take stock, and track your habits and feelings (yes, this also includes journaling).

Use water intake trackers, budget tracking, gratitude journals, and habit trackers to stay on track toward goals or just to remain organized.

This can cut down the feeling of scatter-brain and give you more bandwidth to teach students and focus on other important facets of your life…like relationships and career, for example. You can simply keep track of your progress in a notebook or you can splurge on pre-made trackers like these.

Take a Self-Care for Educators Inventory Assessment

When it comes to self-care, the following facets are the most important things to consider. Ensure you’re keeping a balanced routine…and putting your best self forward by addressing each of these.

• Mental self-care

• Physical self-care

• Emotional self-care

• Practical self-care

• Relationship self-care

• Spiritual self-care

You can assess yourself independently, or look for online assessments to see how you’re doing.

So whenever you take time for yourself, make sure you’re balancing all of these components in your self-care routines.