Sometimes we feel that there aren’t enough hours in the day to do all that needs to be done. When you are a teacher, lessons, marking, prep work, eating, even going to the loo are all done under the ticking hands of the clock. Having good time management skills is imperative. Here are a few tips that will hopefully help those looking to improve their time management.

 

 

Stop the lesson 10 minutes before the bell rings. This will leave enough time to tidy up and to get that plenary in!

Create a to-do list for the day. Prioritise the tasks which need to be done first. Tick off the ones you have completed. This will give you a feeling of satisfaction and what is left to be done will be clear.

Keep a clean and tidy desk. Now this one is a hard one for me! Sometimes my desk looks as if it has been hit by a bomb but, on the days that it is tidy, less time is wasted looking for things. A cluttered desk may sometimes be unavoidable during the day however, always leave some time at the end to make sure it is organised for the next day.

Stick to the lesson plan. It is easy to get sidetracked during the lesson by pupils’ contributions. This can sometimes be a good thing, as it is important for children to share their ideas and for productive discussions to take place. However, always try to bring the lesson back to the plan making sure your teaching objectives and learning outcomes have been covered. Then go on to adjust the next lesson accordingly, if you need to.

Use timers for independent activities and group work. This is an effective strategy to keep children on task and on time. A visual aid helps them to manage their time effectively and learn to work under time constraints. Click HERE for some great timers we love to use in class!

I hope you found this post helpful.

Click here to view this post featured in Issue 50 of UkEd Magazine!

Leave a comment below if you have any other time management tips you would like to share!

Till next time…