Need something to look forward to in the final weeks of school? This new Wednesday morning podcast series will provide 5 minutes of audio encouragement and sound therapy instruments. It's designed for you to listen mid-week to get re-energized. If you'd also like a written version/transcript, sign up for the 6-week email series of free bonus teaching support + encouragement here. In my experience as a teacher, this time of the school year always felt uniquely challenging. It’s like the finish line is in sight, but not close enough to feel motivating yet. Student engagement drops off drastically, and it’s right at the point where you’re panicking that there’s still a ton of content you didn’t teach yet and you need your students to ramp UP, not DOWN. I can only imagine how that feeling is magnified for the 2020-2021 school year.  My intuition is telling me that for educators, the next few weeks are going to be about powering through and making the very best of a difficult situation until the school year is complete. And to do that, I thought it might help to have a realistic + regular pep talk from someone who’s rooting for you. That’s where this series comes into play.  For each of the next 6 Wednesday mornings, I'm going to release a mini episode of encouragement to help you power through the end of the school year. They’re going to be super short: around 5 minutes each, and will be perfect to listen to just before class starts for a bit of encouragement and practical mindset shifts. I’ll also be incorporating some sound therapy instruments periodically in the episodes: you’ll hear short segments of the words accompanied by me playing the koshi chimes, a few different kalimbas, and a hang drum.  As I started producing this series, I realized that each week’s focus was centering on a word that starts with “r”, so I decided to go with that: Rest. Reconnecting in relationships. Resilience. Reframing. Reflecting. Release of regrets. I’m calling this series “Power Through”, because I think that’s probably the most realistic approach for most folks. Powering through means “to continue in a strong and determined way until the end of something, even when it’s difficult.”  That’s the task ahead of us in the next few weeks, and I hope this mid-week encouragement will give you a boost of energy and help equip you for whatever challenges come your way. Now I know that your time alone for listening to podcasts can be limited right now, and I know you probably have teacher friends who would benefit from this, but they’re just not into podcasts, or maybe they are hearing impaired. I’m also offering this Power Through series in written form, and it can show in your inbox each Wednesday morning if you’d like. Just click the link in the show notes to enter your email address, and you’ll automatically receive a message of support each Wednesday morning for the next 6 weeks.  Your first “Power Through” message will come right to your inbox immediately so you’ll know you’re signed up and can get some helpful advice and resources right away. That email includes links to ways you can cultivate engagement in remote/hybrid learning, reduce grading and simplify assessment for digital assignments, teach students time management skills for online learning, and more.  Sometimes just a small shift in the way you approach your workload can help you feel less stressed and overwhelmed. See if you can choose just one idea to try out — whatever seems easiest at the moment. And of course, you can unsubscribe from anything, anytime, using the link provided at the bottom of every email. So that’s what you get if you also sign up for the email version of the Power Through series. But know that the weekly 5 minute audio encouragement is not about giving you more things to do or learn. I’m just offering a few short, kind words each week to help clear away overwhelm and shift your perspective so you feel more energized. This series will carry you through the spring h