Feeling stuck in that mid-November limbo? This episode kicks off our Smooth December Series so that you can head into January feeling calm and confident. We break down four core focus areas (pockets of prep, classroom reset, student engagement hook, and a teacher comfort plan) along with simple ways to find small windows of time, organize materials with easy systems, and plan meaningful activities that help students return refreshed. You’ll learn how small steps, from prepping welcome slides to stocking your snack drawer, can make your first week back feel lighter. Next week, we're talking all about planning December lessons that work with the chaos, so make sure you’re subscribed!

Prefer to read? Grab the episode transcript and resources in the show notes here: https://www.secondstorywindow.net/podcast/teacher-prep-for-december/

Resources:

• December Teacher Survival Kit
• Podcast Playlist: Teaching in December
• Hero Cheese and Herb Croissant Rolls
• Woobles
• Join the Teacher Approved Club!
• Connect with us on Instagram @2ndstorywindow.
• Shop our teacher-approved resources.
• Join our Facebook group, Teacher Approved
• Leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
• Leave a comment or rating on Spotify.

Related Episodes to Enjoy:

• Episode 17, 5 Tried and True Tips For Teaching in December
• Episode 107, Get Ahead For January Now With 4 Easy Steps
• Episode 105, Festive Fun in December: Engaging Holiday Activities to Do With Your Class
• Episode 169, Our Best Teacher Tips for Finding Pockets of Prep Time To Get Ahead For January

This is episode 233 of Teacher Approved.

You're listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping

educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I'm

Heidi.

And I'm Emily. We're the creators behind Second Story

Window, where we give research based and teacher approved

strategies that make teaching less stressful and more

effective. You can check out the show notes and resources from

each episode at secondstorywindow.net.

We're so glad you're tuning in today. Let's get to

the show.

Hey there. Thanks for joining us today. In today's

episode, we are kicking off our five part series about how to

teach in December, and prepare for January without adding to

your overwhelm. And we're sharing a teacher approved tip

for how to manage all the details.

Let's start with a try it tomorrow, where we share a quick

win that you can try in your classroom right away. Emily,

what is our suggestion this week?

This week, set a timer for the last five minutes of

your planning time. Use it to clear one surface in your

classroom—your desk, a table, the counter by the sink. Just

pick one and you will feel so much better walking in tomorrow.

Oh, I love that. You could even do this as a five

minute wrap up before you walk out the door at the end of the

day. Sometimes it's the smallest resets that make the biggest

difference.

Right? I'm always so surprised what a difference it

makes when I can get a surface clean in my house or in my

classroom. My classroom surfaces were always a trouble spot for

me, and it's just amazing how everything feels easier to

manage when your environment feels calm, so you can just

tackle it a little bit at a time.

If you like this idea or anything else we share here on

the podcast, would you mind giving us a five star rating?

Ratings and reviews are one way that new listeners find us. So

every rating and review really is a huge help for us.

Okay, you know how in the middle of November, it sort of

feels like you're in two places at once.

Yes, like half of you is still dealing with fall stuff.

You're grading assessments and prepping for conferences and

managing the upcoming Thanksgiving chaos, but the

other half of you is already stressing about December and

wondering how you're possibly going to be ready for January.

It's teacher limbo. You're exhausted from everything

that's already happened, but you can also see what's coming, and

what's coming feels big.

So we try to manage that anxiety, but we don't always do

that in helpful ways. Either we try to do everything, stay late,

work through weekends, plan everything in detail, so nothing

is left to chance. And the thing is, you do get ahead that way,

but you are completely burned out before your break even

starts.

Or we are not over functioning. We manage that

anxiety by ignoring it. This is how I tend to be. We do nothing

in advance and tell ourselves that we will deal with it over

break, and then the whole vacation is either spent feeling

resentful because you're working during your break, or feeling

terrible that you're not.

I have been that teacher so many times, just so drained

by December that even thinking about January had me sitting on

the foot of my bed and crying. So I would pack my teacher bag

with materials and good intentions, and then I would

either ignore it completely or work through my days off and

resent every minute of it.

Oh, yeah, I think we all know the feeling, but we do not

want that for you. So the good news is that with some strategy,

you can know exactly what to prep for January and have the

time to do it before your break actually starts.

And that is what we're talking about today. This

episode kicks off our smooth December series. I feel like we

need some Kenny G or something. Over the next few weeks, we will

help you plan meaningful December content, manage

behavior effortlessly, and reset for a strong January.

Next week in Episode 234 we will be talking about how to

plan December lessons that work in spite of the chaos. But today

we're going to start at the foundation, how to get ahead

without adding to your stress.

And before you panic about not having time for any of

this, don't worry. We are going to show you how to find time

inside of the schedule that you already have.

Yeah, time hacking. This is where our smooth December

framework comes in. You need a system to categorize the dozens

of tasks ahead of you so you can get them done. Let's focus on

four specific things, your pockets of prep, your classroom

reset plan, your student engagement hook, and your

teacher comfort plan. These four areas will get you ready for

January, and they're all things that you can start now in

November.

Now, don't let that sound overwhelming. We've got plenty

of time still to sort out the details, and we will be talking

about this on the podcast for four more weeks.

Plus, we built a resource to help you work through this

step by step. It is our December teacher survival kit. It's a

digital editable planner that walks you through planning your

December content, identifying what you need to prep for

January, and creating a system to get it all done without

losing your mind.

We will link to that in the show notes, but basically it

has calendars and checklists and all of the tools that you need

to make preparing in advance for January as smooth as possible.

Now, before you can get to any of the actual prep, you

need to find time to do it. The thing about getting ahead is

that most of us don't need more motivation. We need more

minutes.

But unfortunately, no one is handing out extra planning

time in November, no matter how often we ask, you have got the

same schedule, the same responsibilities and the same

endless list of things to do.

So since we can't give you a longer prep period, you

need to get better at spotting the tiny windows of time that

already exist. Those in between moments that usually get lost in

transition are what we call pockets of prep. We talked about

this in more detail in episode 169 so you can go back and check

that out if you want all of our best tips for identifying and

utilizing pockets of prep.

But if you need a refresher, pockets of prep are

small, 10 or 15 minute windows that hide inside your regular

school day. They don't look like real prep time, but when you

start noticing and protecting them, they add up fast.

So you kind of think of it like gathering loose change.

One nickel is not much, but a handful of nickels turns into

real money. 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there, and that is how

you are going to buy yourself a real winter break.

To find your pockets of prep, start by paying attention

to your day. Are there any tiny pauses in your schedule that you

could claim? Maybe you don't have recess duty on Tuesdays, or

you tend to spend the first 10 minutes of planning time

scrolling your phone. No judgment. Write those down.

We're not going to do anything with them yet. We're just

finding the loose change.

Now, hopefully this time audit uncovers 60 spare minutes

hidden in your day, but it just is not, probably very likely, so

you're going to have to get creative with making your own

pockets of prep. Anytime students are working

independently is a potential pocket of prep.

So consider if you could swap out one science or social

studies lesson a week for a video. Could you stretch morning

work time, silent reading time, or independent work time five

minutes longer? Once a week could you have students rotate

through centers without doing a work with the teacher rotation?

How about having students play phonics games when you'd

normally teach a lesson, or cutting a couple minutes off

your small group times? Maybe you could put on an audiobook

instead of reading aloud. It takes some finessing, but

there's a lot you can do to scrape up five minutes here and

there across several days.

Think of it like digging spare change out of the couch

cushions. It's not glamorous, but it gets the job done. If you

can capture even two or three pockets of prep a day, that's 20

to 30 minutes that you didn't have before. You multiply that

by a week, and you found two extra hours.

Now obviously this is not a long term strategy. We are not

saying that any of these tweaks should be permanent, but unless

they're going to start paying you to prep during winter break,

don't feel bad about using your work time to complete work

tasks.

Yeah, as long as your students are engaged in

meaningful tasks, you are not shortchanging them. You're just

repurposing their work time for some of your work time.

Once you identify those gaps in your schedule, protect

them, put them on your calendar, just like a meeting. 10:15 to

25, pocket of prep. Maybe there's not a lot you can do yet

to prepare for January during that time, but right now, the

main goal is creating awareness of the time that's available.

And by the time you do have your December and January

to do list ready, you will already have this system built.

You'll know exactly when those pockets happen and be ready to

slide tasks right into them, instead of having to work on

your weekends.

So your homework this week is simple, track your time

for a few days and then circle the gaps and label them pockets

of prep, or maybe you want to label them pop, P-O-P.

There you go. And you don't have to fill these yet.

Just find them. Future you is going to be so grateful.

And that's the first piece of getting ahead without

getting overwhelmed, learning to use time you already have. And

just remind yourself that this isn't forever.

Yeah, we're not suggesting that you have to

optimize every second of the day so that you are always at peak

efficiency. That will burn you out really fast. But as a short

term solution, maximizing your pockets of prep can be exactly

what you need to get your first January materials prepared

before winter break starts.

Next, we're moving on to one of our favorite strategies

for a calm January, prepping your classroom so it feels fresh

and ready before you even leave for break.

So the goal here is for you to walk back into your

classroom in January and feel like your room has already had

its coffee.

Oh yeah, that is the best feeling. Now, since we're still

in November, there is not a ton we can do at the moment to get

our rooms ready for the new year. Any decluttering you do

now will probably just get recluttered before winter break.

Yeah, and your kids would be a bit confused if you

suddenly switch over the calendar to 2026, just so you

can get ahead. But there are two steps we can take now to set us

up for success later. The first step is to set up a system for

collecting everything you will need in January.

This is so simple. All you need is two bins. Label one

After The Break for things you can wait to deal with in

January. Label the other January Ready, for things you're

prepping in advance. You'll probably have way less in the

after the break bin than the January ready bin. So take that

into account when you're choosing your bin sizes.

And I know the wheels are turning already. Don't make

these cute. A cardboard box works, a plastic tub works, even

just two different colored folders. The system is what

matters, not the supplies.

And it's so important to have these done early on. As

you're prepping for January, you need a home for everything.

Imagine how sad you'd be if you lost that stack of math papers

that you worked so hard to get copied in advance.

in your after the break bin, put everything you need to

deal with that is not time sensitive. If your literacy

coach hands you a stack of papers for the assessment that

you need to give on January 14, put it in that bin.

Yeah, that is a 2026 problem. It can wait. Stick it

in the after the break bin. Use your January ready bin for

things like a pack of newly sharpened pencils, copies ready

to go, prepped centers, anything you want to have waiting for you

when you get back.

Once you have your bins prepped, you can look at the

second classroom reset task, and make a list of everything your

room needs before you walk out the door in December. Write down

tasks like taking down your December bulletin board,

organizing your supply closet, switching out seasonal books,

assigning class jobs, maybe even adjusting your seating chart if

you want to start the year with a new desk arrangement.

In the December teacher survival kit, there's a

checklist with 35 classroom reset tasks. Of course, you

don't have to do all of them, but it can help you think

through what your space needs. Having this list made early

means you can start chipping away at things now.

Right, it is probably too early for tasks like swapping

out your seasonal books, but there are odds and ends that you

can take care of early, like sharpening that batch of pencils

and stashing them in your January ready bin.

These are the sorts of tasks that fit perfectly in your

pockets of prep. We'll be talking more about pockets of

prep in next week's episode. But if the suspense is killing you,

just go back and listen to episode 169 for a deep dive

while you wait.

The third piece of our smooth December framework is

your student engagement hook. This is one fun low prep

activity that makes the first week back engaging.

Yeah. The idea is to give kids a sense of a new beginning.

Coming back from a break can feel kind of like a big letdown.

All the sparkle is over and now it's just regular, boring school

in the middle of winter, but if you've got something engaging

planned, it will help shift that energy.

This could be goal setting for the new year, a time

capsule, a class challenge, or a vision board with goals for the

second half of the year. This really doesn't have to be

complicated. Sometimes the simplest activities are the most

meaningful.

The key is you're looking for something that's low prep

for you and high interest for them. Think, little spark of

fun, not Fourth of July fireworks.

And if your engagement hook is something that makes you

excited to come back too well, that's even better. Lean into

what you enjoy about teaching to make crawling out of your cozy

bed a little bit easier.

And that leads us right to the fourth piece of the

smooth December framework, your teacher comfort plan. This is

all about setting future you up for success.

We spend so much time thinking about what students

need, but coming back from winter break is hard for

teachers too. It's dark, it's cold, and spring break feels

like it's in another lifetime. So what can you do now to make

that first week back easier?

This might look like having your welcome slides ready

to open on that first morning, or having your sub plans updated

so if you get sick, you're not scrambling, or restocking your

favorite pens or coffee pods.

A pro tip is to buy a box of protein bars or another snack

that you like and stash it in a cabinet. Walking in and finding

those waiting is like getting a little care package from past

you.

Bonus points if you add some chocolate into that stash

too. It sounds small, but it matters, because when you walk

in that first day and your slides are done, your copies are

made, your pencils are sharpened, and there's a snack

in your drawer, you're going to feel so much more ready to

tackle the day.

So take a few minutes to think through what would make

your first week back feel a little smoother. Write it down,

and there's a page for this in the December teacher survival

kit, if that is helpful. And then make sure those things

happen before you leave for break.

Okay, let's pause for a second, because that probably

felt like a lot, but remember, you have four weeks to work on

this. We're not going to do it all today. Over the next few

weeks, we will break down exactly how to make each piece

of this framework happen.

Right. This whole series is designed to walk you through

this step by step. Today, we're just introducing the framework,

and except for finding bins, all of this is mostly just thinking.

And you can find bins, that's not so hard. November is

your setup month for a December calm and January readiness.

Think about how you can sneak in some extra pockets of prep, how

to reset your room before break, how to excite your students when

you come back, and think about what you need to do to take care

of yourself in January. Then start a few lists, and then

you'll feel like you are a productivity champ.

And of course, if you want help walking through all of

this, grab that December teacher survival kit. It's got

checklists and calendars and all of the tools that we could think

of that will help make this process smooth and doable. And

there's a link to that in the show notes.

So we've dropped a lot on you today. If you're feeling

overwhelmed, start with your classroom reset plan. Get two

bins and label one After The Break and label the other

January Ready, and you have made a great start.

And then you can start on your list of everything your

room needs before you walk out the door in December. Even if

you don't have much to add to it, yet, at least having a place

to write ideas down as they come to you will be such a relief.

And see, that's not so bad, right? You can do this in

five minutes, small steps, and then we're going to help you get

this done.

You deserve a winter break that is actually a break.

The work you do now as a gift to the teacher that you'll be in

January. Imagine walking into your classroom in January

realizing that you are ready. Slides are done, your copies are

made, all those pencils are sharpened. Everything is calm

and prepared,

And that's the real holiday miracle.

Yeah, why doesn't Hallmark have a movie for that

one?

We'll write it.

Yes. In next week's episode, we are talking about

how to plan December lessons that work with the chaos. We

will cover how to balance structure and spark, how to keep

students engaged, and protect your sanity.

So make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss

that episode or any of the rest of this series. We are going to

walk you through this whole season together.

But in the meantime, get started on those bins.

We'd love to hear any tips you have for preparing in

advance. Come join the conversation in our Teacher

Approved Facebook group.

Now for our Teacher Approved Tip of the Week, where we share an

actionable tip to help you elevate what matters and

simplify the rest. This week's teacher approved tip is check

out our playlist. Tell us about it, Heidi.

Oh, I would love to. You know we love to share tips for

planning ahead so that you can enjoy your winter break.

Obviously, we've been doing it since, what 2022?

Yeah.

And since then we have amassed quite a catalog of

episodes addressing all of the ins and outs of teaching in

December. We've got episodes on classroom management,

strategies, lesson planning tips, ways to manage your

energy, ideas for meaningful activities, basically everything

you need to survive and thrive during the holiday ramp up

season. We will be revisiting a lot of that information this

year, but if you don't want to wait for our new episodes, our

back catalog has lots of helpful takeaways to get you started on

your planning. It's like having a whole library of teacher

coaching sessions ready whenever you need them.

If you need some place to start, episode 107 goes along

really well with today's episode. It's all about how to

prepare in advance for your return in January. So make sure

to visit the show notes for this episode to find a link to our

December teaching podcast playlist.

To wrap up the show, we're sharing what we're giving

extra credit to. Emily, what gets your extra credit this

week?

I'm giving extra credit to the Woobles crochet kits. So

first of all, these are adorable, and they are the

perfect kits for beginners, because they come with videos to

walk you through every step. And I think this is like, maybe the

best part, the kit is pre started, which is so helpful,

because anyone who's crocheted before knows that starting is

the hardest part of crocheting, especially for a beginner. And

then they also have their own easy peasy yarn, which is

designed for beginners so it doesn't fray or snag. And I feel

like it's, I don't know how to describe it, because it's not

textured, but it almost feels like grippy on your hook, in a

good way, not too grippy.

Oh, so it doesn't slip.

It doesn't slip, and so I find it so much easier to use.

Now, they're not cheap, for sure, but I've been really

impressed with the quality and everything you get in the kit.

So my kids have gotten these before, and a couple of them are

getting new kits for Christmas. So I thought I would mention

them here, in case you want to keep this idea handy for gifts.

And yes, they are great for kids, but there are tons of fun

for anyone who likes cute things and wants to learn crocheting.

They are very, very cute. And the nice thing is, you don't

have to buy a ton of supplies just to get started with one

thing. It's all right there for you.

And the kids have levels so you can get into harder

projects too. It's not just they're all one easy beginner

level, they get harder and harder if you want to increase

your skill.

Well, that's cool. Your kids will love it.

Yeah, Neil's getting a cute little Snoopy and Addie

wants the Elise Myers collaboration, it's like this

really cute little frog with a backpack, because she's recently

discovered Elise Myers. Oddly enough, she discovered her on

Spotify. She, like didn't even know, she because she's not on

social media, she didn't know she, like, has the whole thing

of videos. So I had to introduce her to those. Anyway, so fun.

What are you giving extra credit to, Heidi?

Well, my extra credit goes to the Hero Bread herb and

cheese croissant rolls. If you aren't familiar, Hero bread is a

high fiber bread. But the thing is, it actually tastes good.

Yeah, like, shockingly, it really does.

They have regular sliced bread, which is awesome, but I

recently tried these croissant rolls, and they're so good.

They are so good.

Each one has 13 grams of fiber and 8 grams of protein.

But you honestly could never guess it from the taste, because

they are so light and fluffy, and I found they go great with a

bowl of soup, which is what you want in the fall. So there is a

link in the show notes if you want to check this out. I think

you have to get most of it online. You can get the regular

bread, and I think like hamburger buns in the grocery

store here. But the other stuff, I think you have to order

online. And it is kind of hit or miss about what's available. It

goes out of stock really fast, because everyone wants it. So if

you see something, jump on it. The nice thing is that

everything I've tried so far freezes really well. So check

that out.

I think I saw that Thrive Market has some of these now

too. So that could be potentially a little bit of a

cheaper way to get them than directly from the Hero website,

because you have to order things in multiples of two, and it can

get kind of expensive. So you could check out that if you use

Thrive Market.

And also sometimes on their website, you have to get a

subscription, like some things are only available by

subscription. Yes, so I just sign up for the subscription and

then cancel it once the thing ships.

Always.

But it's worth it.

Alright, that is it for today's episode. Next week, we are

tackling the big question, what do you actually teach in

December, and we'll talk about how to manage your chaotic

December schedule and how to keep kids engaged without

sending them into orbit.

So make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss an

episode. We're walking you through this whole season

together.

But in the meantime, get started on those bins.

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I'm Heidi.

And I'm Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow

or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an

episode.

You can connect with us and other teachers in the

Teacher Approved Facebook group. We'll see you here next week.

Bye for now.

Bye.