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Time management for teachers can feel almost impossible when there is always more to do than there are hours in the school day. More time to plan. More time to teach. More time to make copies, respond to emails, grade assignments, meet with students—and maybe even have a little more fun with your class.
If you regularly leave school wondering where the day went or find yourself saying, I wish I had more time, this Listen Again episode is worth revisiting.
We’re bringing it back because teachers’ plates aren’t getting any less full, and the strategies in this conversation can help you rethink how you’re using the limited time you have.
You might not be able to add more hours to your school day, but you can become more intentional about where your time and energy go.
In this episode of The Stellar Teacher Podcast, Sara shares three practical shifts that can help you gain some time back, simplify your workload, and free up valuable brain space.
Start by Getting Clear on Your Priorities
One of the biggest challenges with time management for teachers is that everything can feel important.
Your lesson plans matter. Responding to parents matters. Preparing materials matters. Supporting your students matters. Updating the bulletin board might feel important too.
But everything can’t be your top priority.
When your to do list is overflowing, identifying what actually matters most can help you decide where to put your limited time and energy.
Instead of asking, How can I get everything done? start asking, What actually needs my attention right now?
That shift can help you stop treating every task with the same level of urgency.
Look for Ways to Simplify Your Workload
Effective time management for teachers isn’t about learning how to work faster so you can squeeze even more onto your plate.
Sometimes, it’s about doing less.
There are probably tasks you complete every week simply because you’ve always done them that way. This episode will encourage you to take a closer look at those routines and decide whether they’re actually worth the time they require.
Can something be simplified? Can you create a repeatable routine? Can you reuse something you’ve already created? Can you stop doing a task altogether?
Small changes can make a surprisingly big difference over the course of a school week.
And when you simplify recurring tasks, you aren’t just saving minutes—you are reducing the number of decisions your brain has to make each day.
If you’ve been wishing for more hours in the day, this episode will help you approach time management for teachers a little differently. You might not be able to create more time—but you can be more intentional with the time you have.
In This Episode, You’ll Learn:
- Three practical strategies for getting more time back during your school year
- How to identify what deserves your time and attention
- Why everything on your teacher to do list isn’t equally important
- How simplifying recurring tasks can reduce your workload
Ultimately, supporting struggling readers isn’t about doing more or trying to create the perfect small group schedule. It’s about identifying what students actually need and using your instructional time intentionally.
Resources to Support Time Management for Teachers:
- Join The Stellar Literacy Collective – If time management for teachers feels impossible when your to do list never seems to end, the Stellar Literacy Collective can help give you some of that time back. Get access to ready to use, research based literacy resources that simplify your planning, reduce your prep time, and help you deliver meaningful literacy instruction—without spending hours creating everything from scratch.
- Check out my Free Literacy Workshop. For more information click here.
Connect with me:
- Join my newsletter
- Shop my TPT store here
- Instagram: @thestellarteachercompany
- Facebook: The Stellar Teacher Company
The Stellar Literacy Collective (SLC) is a membership designed for upper elementary teachers who want strong, effective literacy instruction… without spending hours planning every week.
Inside SLC, you’ll find ready to use, research aligned lessons for reading, writing, and word study that make time management for teachers easier. From whole group comprehension lessons and vocabulary routines to small group supports and writing instruction, everything is built around consistent, research backed systems—so you can spend less time planning and more time focused on meaningful instruction.
Click HERE to learn more!
The Stellar Teacher Podcast is here to help make time management for teachers feel more doable. Each episode is filled with practical strategies for upper elementary teachers who want to simplify their planning, strengthen their literacy instruction, and spend less time trying to do it all. From ready to use routines and instructional strategies to ideas that help reduce your workload, you’ll find actionable ways to make the most of the time you have. Be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode designed to improve time management for teachers, free up valuable brain space, and help you focus your energy on what matters most.
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