December is a stressful month in schools.
It’s report card season. All told, from beginning to end, teachers probably spend four weeks working on report cards. Is it worth it?
In December there’s an unusual charge in the air and although it’s the same every year, it still catches us by surprise. The children sense it, but can’t control it so they let it control them.
Everyone is stressed out.
The office lights are dimmed.
Holiday shopping may cause anxiety for some who’ve lost jobs or are experiencing hardship.
Interruptions to classroom routines increase as more children leave early or come late. There are planned and unplanned rehearsals for winter concerts and plays.
The halls are full of charitable collections of canned food and clothing for those in need.
And, we can’t seem to slow down. In fact, it seems as if in December we intentionally speed up to get to the finish line faster.
And, when we finally slide into our own end-of-year celebrations, we do so with eyes wide open: this winter break is just a quick stop and then we’re off again in January.
Here’s to the seventh inning stretch!
Crossposted to the Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life Tuesday Challenge.
Elisa Waingort 
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