How To Cut Your Preparation Time And Lower Stress

Smart Classroom Management: How To Cut Your Preparation Time And Lower Stress

Because of Covid-19 and the staggering amount of preparation time required to start the new school year—whether online or in person—teachers are under enormous stress.

There is so much to do, and not enough hours in the day to do it.

There is, however, a helpful solution.

In the late 1980s, an Italian software developer named Francesco Cirillo created a way to shorten work-related tasks while producing better results.

And it’s remarkably effective. It’s called the Pomodoro Technique.

The way it works is simple.

Step#1

Decide on the work you need to accomplish. Make a list if you wish.

Step #2

Set a timer for 25 minutes. This block of time is called a pomodoro.

Step #3

Start the timer and then focus without distraction until the time is up.

Step #4

Take a 5-minute break.

Step #5

Repeat.

Step #6

After four pomodoros, if you need that many, take a break for at least 30 minutes.

Pro Tips

1. During each pomodoro, do not get bogged down. Keep the momentum going.

2. Do not work during your break under any circumstances. You need to recharge.

3. Go for a short walk, eat a snack, or do some light stretching between pomorodos.

3. It’s okay if your break lasts longer than five minutes, up to ten minutes is fine.

4. Protect your pomodoros at all costs. Let nothing short of emergency interrupt you.

Why it Works

The Pomodoro Technique works because it creates a powerful sense of urgency that is both highly motivating and maximally efficient. It keeps you sharp, fresh, and clear-headed.

It also guards against a phenomenon known as Parkinson’s Law.

Parkinson’s Law is the tendency to expand a task in complexity in relation to the time given for its completion. It’s the chief reason why we work harder and become more stressed than we ever need to.

Finally, because the Pomodoro Technique ensures that you’re at your best, and relying on your natural genius instead of ruminating over every decision, the product is much better.

You’ll find the technique tremendously helpful right off the bat.

Over time, however, and what is so cool about it is that it actually trains you to become smarter, faster, and more focused.

It trains you to devour the buffet of tasks that keep piling up on your plate, so that you can put them out of sight and mind and get on with your life.

PS – If there is a topic you’d like me to cover, please leave your suggestion in the comments below or email me and I’ll put it on the list.

Also, if you haven’t done so already, please join us. It’s free! Click here and begin receiving classroom management articles like this one in your email box every week.

32 thoughts on “How To Cut Your Preparation Time And Lower Stress”

  1. Thank you Michael! I have an article suggestion. I am concerned about the amount of hours my students are spending staring at screens. It was bad enough before distance learning, but now many of my students spend the entire school day on a computer and then spend their entire evening playing video games before going to bed and repeating the next day.

    I’ve been imploring them to go outside, get exercise, play non-screen games, but I wonder if there are more effective ways to accomplish this. An article about how to inspire your students to put away their screens after school would be useful!

    Thanks as always for the great work you do!

    Reply
    • Great question, David. My own children are also stuck in that cycle. I am really curious what Michael Linsin has to suggest. Thanks for the quesiton!

      Reply
  2. I really like this technique. I am so bad at making a task longer and finished because I get distracted by sidebars and looking up largely irrelevant things which interest me when referred to in an article (e.g I just looked up the worst teacher stress one instead of focussing on this one!)
    I am going to start the Tomato Technique TODAY!

    Reply
  3. What a super simple strategy…and it made me smile because ‘pomodoro’ means tomato in Italian, which just makes it a bit fun too!

    Reply
  4. Hi Michael,

    I love your work as always (and get kudos from my admin about my great classroom management)! I love the Pomodoro technique, and I can recommend Cal Newport’s work as well, particularly time blocking. I think all of these things fit together beautifully and will make people more productive and happy. 🙂

    I wonder if you might write a post soon for those of us teaching remotely for the long-term future due to health reasons and how to maintain a separation from work and life besides just turning off at the end of contract hours. I will have to teach from my small bedroom and I know I will especially miss and need some form of the rituals and routines of my commute and morning start before teaching.

    Reply
  5. Thank for sharing the pomodoro framework for breaking up work. I really needed this post. My ADHD brain is making life even harder than normal with the extra long hours I’m putting in. I truly appreciate your insightful and realistic posts.

    Reply
    • Carrie, I feel exactly the same way! I have big things I need to do today. I am going to try this method to get them done.

      Reply
  6. If I have something I’ve been avoiding I use a five minute version of this technique. Five minutes on, five or more minutes off. You can do anything for five minutes, right? Sometimes I find out the chore isn’t so bad and am able to increase the time working on it.

    Reply
  7. Yes….very good! Also, prioritize!: If today is Monday, and an item is due on Wednesday, don’t try to get an unrelated item that is due next week done before you’ve gotten Wednesday’s item done. Also, beware of fitting-in unrelated two-minute “filler jobs” that will sabotage the Pomodoro— thirty two-minute “filler jobs” is 60 minutes of lost time.

    Reply
  8. Love this idea. Thank you fir sharing! It made me think this might be wise to do with students! 25-30 focused lesson, 10 minute break (with students logging off or turning off camera & mic so they can walk away) .

    Reply
  9. Michael,
    I look forward to a brief moment of peace each Saturday morning while I read and meditate on your weekly articles before beginning my day. Know that I praise your work each week and thank you for making my professional career so successful.

    I have been following your work for about six years now and I am still yearning for strategies aimed towards helping our most challenging students I.E those with ADHD, operant defiance, technology addiction (and those with a 504 that protects them from recourse).

    With the knowledge I have gained from SCM strategies addressing the above would fine tune my practice and strengthen my classroom community.

    Thank you as always!

    Reply
  10. Thanks Michael,

    This is definitely something I needed to hear. I’ve been pretty weighed down by all the extra work I’ve been asked to do and things I have volunteered to do as well. This technique seems simple enough to try out. I will give it a shot.

    I know you covered this in the past, but the situation is a bit different. A while back, you spoke about the importance of giving presumably “tough” kids a chance to turn over a new leaf at the beginning of the school year. I agree completely with this, but the sped teachers at my school want me to start giving two of my students a self and match to manage their behavior. I haven’t even met these kids yet. What should I do?

    Reply
  11. I was reading back over your articles and I saw you mentioned a few times that you were planning on addressing CM as a substitute teacher. I searched your archive, but couldn’t find it. Did you ever write that? I would like to read an article on it. I would also like to hear your thoughts on behavioural management in a small group/one-on-one setting, as I find that this can be more difficult than managing a mainstream classroom due to the informality of the setting.
    Regards,
    S

    Reply
  12. Hi Michael,

    I have a suggestion for a topic to cover that would certainly help me. I’ve never typed so much in my life. My right hand is in pain and my back isn’t feeling great, either. Mostly, it’s my hand. Others are probably feeling this, too.

    Thanks,

    Teresa Francis

    Reply
  13. Simple strategies are the best. I think not forgetting the 1st step, what do I want to accomplish?, will be critical to actually realizing success w this technique. Thank u from someone who’s stressing about not feeling ready at all for Day 1 on Monday! 🙂

    Reply
  14. Hi, 1st thank u , it’s really useful tips.
    My question that i need to read and Kniset more about ,”how to control a class via online sessions?”
    Thanks

    Reply
  15. Hi Michael!

    I really needed to read this. My level of mental exhaustion and lack of sleep since my school year started on the 20th is through the roof. After teaching 30+ years, I feel like I’m a brand new teacher being pelted with a million things from our administration, and expected to be an instant expert in all of them. I need to work smarter, not harder, and the pomodoro method is exactly what I need to stay focused. Thank you for this!!

    Reply
  16. I don’t normally comment, but this article really helped me get a grip on my overthinking and overdoing! The fact that it has a name, Parkinson’s Law, somehow makes me feel better that I go down that rabbit hole of planning and gives me hope I can change my ways and save my sanity. (I say as I have been sitting here working on 1st day powerpoint and lesson for 5 hours, ugh).

    Tomorrow I try the possible solution to my affliction! Thank you! I have shared your article with my coworkers and administration! We all need to hear this!

    Reply
  17. As a 5th grade teacher who, up until this fall had been teaching one subject, to one who teaches EVERYTHING this year, I will definitely implement this suggestion. While I’ve been fortunate to be on site for school, the workload has been truly overwhelming thus far. Thanks for honing in on a practical topic pertinent to teachers’ workloads.

    Reply
  18. I am always up in the middle of the night doing work. I wake to go to the bathroom and them can’t get back to sleep because I begin thinking of things I need to do and am afraid that if I go back to sleep without doing them I will forget the next day. What can I do to alleviate this?

    Reply
  19. Thank you for the timely articles! I have a suggestion. Like many others, I am currently working with 3 groups of students each day: The hybrid learners who are in my classroom, the hybrid group who are at home that day, and the fully remote students who learn virtually every day. I am struggling to balance the needs of these 3 groups. I teach 6th grade so my students are NOT self-motivated to learn or to complete their tasks on their virtual learning days.
    The stress of all of this is pulling me down.
    Thanks for considering this!

    Reply
  20. I can’t say I find much comfort in the prospect of doing 4 pomodoros to get ready for the next day of teaching. Including the break time, that’s 2 hours. I’m hoping this occurs at school after students leave and before teachers go home, and not from, say, 7-9 pm in addition to the hours after school. No quality of life in there. One other danger–watch out for “time confetti”: 20 minutes of leisure time here broken up into 5 minute pieces.

    I think pomodoro could help people struggling to get motivated and purposeful in their teaching prep habits but it’s not an answer to the huge problem of teacher workload. 26 years in the profession, and I’m still striving to find the balance!

    Reply
  21. Thank you for the pomodoro technique. I tried it and it works.

    A topic that I hope you can help me tackle is separation anxiety for new children below 3-4 years. At the school gate, they may scream and cry if the teacher ushers them into their new classroom. Is there a way to handle such situations?

    Thank you! This website is very good.

    Reply
  22. I liken it to Interval Training when I’m teaching swimming. Once students have the stroke mechanics down, I have them work on their endurance. This is done, not by two grueling 8 – hours swims, but rather, by increasing their “work load” with periodic rests, or breaks.
    It goes like down-and- back once – rest. Down and back twice – rest. Down and back thrice – rest. Repeat cycle starting from one and building to three, with no more than three.
    I firmly believe the Pomodoro Technique mirrors this and would be great for me as a teacher, in the classroom.
    Thanks, Michael!

    Reply
  23. Hi, Mike – I am loving using your classroom management plan – I wondered if you might have a solution for my scheduling issue – I meet with one of my classes 5 days a week. The other four classes rotate between meeting 2x a week or 3x a week. Any suggestions on how to fairly distribute points?

    Reply

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