It's a straightforward premise:
Well teachers teach well.
There are lots of different things that affect teacher wellbeing. And it can get complex.
So in a bid to convert thinking into action, this page outlines the four key pieces of the teacher wellbeing puzzle that I find to be uniquely significant for teachers.
If you enjoy grappling with these ideas, building on them and/or turning them into tangible ways we can improve teacher wellbeing, I'd love to chat.
I've found these four pieces of the wellbeing puzzle to be uniquely significant for teachers:
Values
The ability to speak of your four core elements in a succinct way. The ability to do this without shyness or shame.
Rest
Can you identify what guilt free rest means to you, on your own terms? Can you create space for it?
Moolah
Having your money foundations established. Having enough to fuel your personal hobbies and knowing you have enough to give you the mental peace to take the rest you need.
Hobbies
The pursuit of a hobby that lights you up yet also puts you in the learner seat, challenges you and provides a chance for you to meet new people and make new friends.
Of course, there are more pieces to the wellbeing puzzle.
It's not that the four above are the only ones.
It's just that over time, I've found them to be practical enough, and very impactful, for teachers to get started with right away.
And it is in taking action on finding - and seeing - the various pieces of your own wellbeing puzzle of that you can really start to feel well.
Here are some more pieces:
Health
Being in good physical & mental health, knowing how to sustain and nourish your body & mind and understanding the kind of exercise you enjoy and can do on a regular basis. This is a uniquely complex piece all by itself, for everyone, regardless of profession.
Identity
Recognising your roots and reconciling this with the local and global systems of our world. Understanding how and when racism shows up, and how to proactively counter it. Identifying your own various aspects of privilege and leveraging it.
Friendship
Intentionally building lasting connection with those who share your values and principles. A wide and varied group of friends is vital for our wellbeing.
Boundaries
Bullying: we're all going to experience this at some point or another. Do we have adequate support pieces in place to help us navigate the choppy waters this throws us into?
Skills Mastery
Having ways to sustainably work on mastery and development of facilitation, teaching and professional skills. It's so important to help you feel confident at work and in what you do.
Politics
We can't escape it: it's a part of our lives, and ultimately, affects our wellbeing. This is about having the tools and strategies to negotiate organisational politics and/or workplace bullying in a school-setting.
Family
Having a stable family dynamic and feeling safe and comfortable in your home. This piece alone can negatively affect so much of one's sense of wellbeing if there are issues here.
See another piece?
This is a work in progress, and it is the kind of thing I'd love to talk about, analyse and discuss in our private forum.
Bring your ideas!
All communities need a kind of 'well' to gather round, meet and greet each other.
That's what Well Teachers is, so to speak: a well.
A place where we can gather, feel nourished, exchange ideas, and be assured we are among others who share our values and principles.
This video by Aketch Joy Winnie helps convey the purpose of a well perfectly, in which she shares:
"The well is a place where people come together, we get to know how the other is doing. We don't just come here to fetch water. Community involves sacrifice and people coming together intentionally to meet one another - in places like... the well."
What you'll receive in Well Teachers:
Here are six things you'll get:
#1: Your own login access to a non-meta based platform
You'll receive login access to a private non-Meta hosted community platform (so you can post without fear of losing your job for liking a 'Free Palestine' post.).
Why? Because there are lots of problems with Social Media.
I do not use it by choice, or happily, but begrudgingly. One problem with social media is that it is owned by what we understand to be a pro-Zionist entity: Meta.
This means information you share there is tagged, censored and inherently biased.
Even if it is the truth. It also means you can feel unsafe to share your views and your contributions in case it jeopardises your reputation.
Further, Social Media platforms are designed to steal your attention and keep you hooked.
They are there to keep you hooked and addicted to a constant feed of sensational content. You have little to no control over what the algorithm decides you will see, even if you indicate your preferences.
That's why you'll have a private login to a non-meta based site.
It will be a site where we curate thoughtfully and carefully what is shared.
A private forum more focused on ‘we we we’ and not ‘me me me’.
The platform we'll use will allow for a safer space within which to communicate, share, learn and build a sense of connectedness together, rather than feeling the pressure of posting on a public platform like LinkedIn.
#2: A full time Community Lead
You'll have someone there (me!) who is *actually* there to respond to you personally (especially if you're shy to ask something in the group).
Many membership sites make it seem like the owner of the site is replying...
But it's really just a member of their team replying on their behalf. This can make you feel really short-changed, when you’d signed up and paid specially to work with a specific facilitator.
It can also be anxiety-inducing to post in groups online sometimes.
I understand this well. I have often felt the same in the past. And some people are just introverted and not people-people.
In this membership, you can contact me one-on-one if you wish, instead of in the group.
We can find a format that works for you. And the replies to your requests are 100% from me, Sumbella, and if not, they're not signed as being from me.
In sum: the captain of a boat you're about to get onto is actually on board.
In this case, not just on board, but part of the crew. Hopefully that gives a sense of calm.
And yes, I wrote every single word of this page with you in mind, oh introvert.
#3: Personalised reviews of your work
Inside the forum, you can post something you're working on and get bespoke, personalised feedback on it (workshops, presentations, lesson plans, trainings, CVs, cover letters).
It can be so daunting to deliver a workshop to your colleagues. Or to amend your own CV.
Where do you even start?
What's more, everyone is usually too busy to look over your work for you.
For example, when you’re asked to deliver a workshop on Classroom Management for your team... you freeze. You’ve never facilitated for adults before, only for children. And the stakes are high because these are your peers. Your reputation is on the line. If you deliver a poor workshop, will they think you're a bad teacher? Where do you start? What is the difference? How can you make sure it goes smoothly? What kind of activities should you do? Who can you ask to help?
In the membership, you'll get an extra pair of eyes.
My pair of eyes, to be exact. (And possibly the other members' too, if you post your work in the group). I can help review workshops, PPTs, and CVs. And I can give you some ideas for how to make tweaks and improvements based on your personal objectives.
#4: Complimentary sessions with a coach/therapist
You'll receive access to a growing directory of school-specialist coaches and counsellors - and the opportunity to book complimentary sessions with them.
Nothing is ever confidential at work.
If you share something that's troubling you with HR at work, it's almost impossible for it to remain confidential. And when you’re facing a tricky situation at work, particularly in school settings, there is usually nobody to talk to who is independent and fully confidential.
You could share with your family, but family dynamics are also often tricky...
...and you also don’t want to burden them. What's more, they are not always best placed to advise or understand the problem well enough to help you.
It can feel like a burden. And it affects the quality of your teaching.
Shouldering the burden of navigating politically difficult and challenging situations affects your ability to teach well.
You could try to find a therapist, but it might take a while.
And will they understand schools related 'stuff'?
Maybe not.
As a member, you'll be able to book a complimentary coaching/counselling session.
What's more, is that you'll be talking to a coach who has worked in schools, and understand well the dynamics. Being able to easily book a virtual session and safely talk through a situation that is bothering you - without having it affect your workplace politics or family dynamic - can be a huge support during tricky phases.
#5: Invitations to teacher training workshops
You'll receive invitations to virtual workshops focused on sharing practical teaching or facilitation tips.
High quality training is surprisingly difficult to access and engage with regularly.
And when it is available, it is often connected to sales of a product that can sometimes detract from the core learning experience.
And then, a 'one-off' or a 'one size fits all' training deck doesn’t always meet your particular needs.
And it's not always possible to reconnect with the same trainer to follow through after applying the ideas they share to your particular context.
Then too, often teacher training is sporadic and not sustained or regular.
This is so vital for deeper learning and application of ideas to take hold in your classroom - and in your life.
You'll be able to join virtual (and live) workshops that really allow for connection, learning and fun.
In these gatherings, which are designed to actually engage you (this is not a 'talking head' situation), we can raise topics pertinent to your teaching practice, learn, apply - and crucially, return to share progress.
#6: Invitations to wellbeing and community gatherings
You'll also receive invitations to join my personal-care gatherings.
Emails pile up, WhatsApp messages are overflowing with replies you need to give, and maybe your desk its just a mess.
But when do you ever get around to clearing it up?
It's not so easy to just 'get on with it' and tidy up.
It takes a kind of focus and energy that you often just don't have.
That's why you need a nudge.
Just the same way you monitor your learners and nudge them if you see them losing the thread of the thing a bit. We'll do the same here.
We'll hold monthly and bi-monthly gatherings just to help us get back on track.
These are a different kind of virtual 'coming together' that really allow for connection and 'getting things sorted'. These workshops are special: despite it being online, most of us joining really do have a chance to meet, connect, and get that thing done you've been saying you need to do for weeks.
Regular time to refresh our intentions, declutter, and pause are vital.
These have been a regular part of my life for years now and so help me to keep on track. I'm delighted to be able to share this time and method of personal-care with members of Well Teachers.
#7: Access to my resource bank
You'll also get access to my resource bank of both wellness tools and teacher training resources (yes, all my editable workshop PPTs, plans, lesson worksheets - everything I can share, I will be pooling for teachers in the membership to access).
Finding practical tools to help you navigate your own wellbeing is actually very tricky.
It's partly because there is no one-size-fits-all. So where do you start? Especially if you are already feeling burnt out and too tired to get quiet with yourself and figure out where you need to start.
Finding just the right materials for a workshop is also tricky - and when you do, they're not editable.
It's taken me a long time to put together a set of ideas and tools around wellbeing. But also around teacher training topics.
I will be sharing my favourite resources, processes and worksheets with members.
You will have full access to these resources, plus support from me and the community.
You can use these as a base that may inspire you to know what to begin with.
I will make accessible many of my own resources for members to download and use as needed.
But... all this talk about wellbeing...
Where does one start?
I see Teacher Wellbeing as a bit of a puzzle. Each teacher's is unique. And sometimes we've got pieces missing. Sometimes the base is unsteady. And sometimes the pieces keep falling off.
Over time, I drew some conclusions that there a few pieces of the wellbeing puzzle that are uniquely significant for teachers. I share them here:
These four are uniquely significant for teachers:
Values
The ability to speak of your four core elements in a succinct way. The ability to do this without shyness or shame.
Rest
Can you identify what clean rest means to you, on your own terms? Can you create space for rest?
Moolah
Having your money foundations established. Having enough to fuel your personal hobbies and knowing you have enough to give you the mental peace to take the rest you need.
Hobbies
The pursuit of a hobby that lights you up yet also puts you in the learner seat, challenges you and provides a chance for you to meet new people and make new friends.
Of course, there are more pieces to wellbeing.
It's not that the four above are the only ones.
It's just that I find them to be practical enough for teachers to get started with right away. And it is in taking action on reclaiming the pieces of your personal wellbeing that you find clarity, and a sense of wellbeing.
Health
Being in good physical health, knowing how to sustain and nourish your body and understanding the kind of exercise you enjoy and can do on a regular basis.
Identity
Recognising your roots and reconciling this with the local and global systems of our world. Understanding how and when racism shows up, and how to proactively counter it. Identifying your own various aspects of privilege and leveraging it.
Friendship
Intentionally building lasting connection with those who share your values and principles. A wide and varied group of friends is vital for our wellbeing.
Teaching Skills
Having ways to sustainably work on mastery and development of facilitation, teaching and professional skills. It's so important to help you feel confident at work and in what you do.
Boundaries
Bullying: we're all going to experience this at some point or another. Do we have adequate support pieces in place to help us navigate the choppy waters this throws us into?
Politics
We can't escape it: it's a part of our lives, and ultimately, affects our wellbeing. This is about having the tools and strategies to negotiate organisational politics and/or workplace bullying in a school-setting.
Let's summarise:
Here's what's inside the Well Teachers' membership:
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Private membership login not hosted on social media
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1-1 /access to community lead and community members
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Personalised reviews of work
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Complimentary coaching sessions
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Invitations to live monthly wellbeing & training workshops
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Downloadable, editable, personalisable wellbeing tools and resources
But that's not all.
Here's what else:
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Join up with kind, inclusive members
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Find common ground with those interested in decolonising the way we teach and learn
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Become a founding member who helps co-create this community
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Lock in this price for life - as long as you retain your membership
There's more?!
Yes! Here's what:
You'll get priority access to everything we do at Well Teachers.
Members will receive first dibs and early access to reserve places on any future workshops, courses, retreats or related events. If there's news or announcements, you'll hear it first.
Examples of courses and in person retreats I have circling in the works:
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Learn Mandarin Chinese
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Learn Cartooning
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Learn to heal your vision naturally
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Learn to Ski in Pakistan!
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Teachers & family Summer Retreat in Chitral!
So what makes being part of the Well Teachers membership unique?
It's in the way we gather.
A sense of belonging, being included and connected helps you fulfill one of the conditions of being able to learn, grow and thrive.
And intentionally gathering together is a vital part of wellbeing.
To have someone consistently bringing people together to share bespoke learning experiences - this is a unique and important part of wellbeing.
We all need a chance to meet, learn and get to know one another - without the focus being on selling or promotions of products or services.
There are various kinds of gatherings I will facilitate for us in real time. And yes, that means you'll have a chance to actually meet others.
Wellbeing and personal care workshops
+ These are centred around gently nudging you to declutter an area that needs attention. Along the way, we play some music, we set our goals, we catch up. I also do guided meditations in many of these gatherings.
Training skills workshops
+ These are where we'll have dedicated time to actually meet and reflect with other members on the session about a key teaching skill. We'll focus on practical areas of facilitation, whether for teaching online or in person.
In person gatherings
+ These will be subject to practicality and logistics, wherever possible, we will make in person gatherings happen.
It is well understood that regular meet-ups, gatherings and learning-centred events are key to long-term learning, and serve as anchor points for communities.
These events will help us cover aspects of wellbeing and training, and also help give us time and space to really get to know one another.
When we know each other, we build trust. And when we can trust and rely on each other, we can effect lasting positive change, now and into the future. We can make that an inevitability.
Just like the African motto goes:
Alone we can go fast, together we can go far.
A note on decolonisation:
We cannot wait to be shown how to teach this.
Perhaps, like me, you are feeling horrified that Israel has not been sanctioned by the world's economic superpowers for inflicting a genocide on the Palestinian people.
Perhaps you are concerned about Somalia, the Congo, Southern Lebanon and the disparity of the Global South at large too.
In the absence of anyone imposing punitive measures on Israel, as teachers, what do we do?
I asked a colleague who was involved in activism around dismantling apartheid in South Africa. And she said: community led initiatives were the next most vital thing to do after sanctions.
So I believe the next best thing we can do is to find each other.
We need to feel safe enough to start tackling this, one thought, one conversation, and one lesson at a time.
We know one of the solutions to prevent and stop genocide is rooted in the way we teach and learn.
We also know that to go together means we can go far.
I believe the decolonisation of our world largely starts in the classroom.
We need to be assured we are growing together with others those who stand in principled solidarity against genocide, racism and colonisation.
It will not do for us to wait to be told how to do this.
We are already at a crisis point. There are multiple genocides taking place, and educational institutes have shown us that they will remain silent in these cases. The genocide in Gaza should be a wake-up call to us, one that calls us to review how we decolonise a curriculum. We must proactively ensure we teach in a way that prevents apartheid from being allowed to exist.
Such endeavours demand that we join up with others on this path.
A part of our coming together in the membership will be about doing that: joining up.
Many of us have been compiling some initial resources around this.
And as a sub-focus, we can start to add these and start collating thoughts and ideas around teaching an inclusive and anti-racist curriculum.
I have questions!
How will you make sure this doesn't become a group dominated by one religion or ideology?
By focusing on the moral values and principles that connect us all together: justice, freedom, truth. You do not have to follow any particular religion to believe and stand for these things. We invite any teacher who is in pursuit of justice, freedom and truth.
I’m not a teacher right now, but I want to be (or am looking for work), can I still join?
Yes.
I’m a facilitator/aspiring facilitator, can I join?
Yes, yet be mindful that the focus will be on education, school settings and teacher focused training.
I used to teach, but am retired now / in leadership. Can I still join?
Yes! Please do! You are most welcome if you are an experienced teacher no longer actively teaching. You no doubt have vital experience to share and contribute to other teachers in the group.
I’m based in (name a country here), can I still join?
Yes! This is a global, international initiative. All are welcome. As long as the payment works for you, you are most welcome.
What if the time zones don’t work for me?
We will work with the founding members to find the best times, and find solutions that work for everyone.
What if I struggle with tech?
You will have onboarding support with every step. Onboarding initiatives, WhatsApp groups, email, call - we’ll sort it out.
Does it matter what curriculum I teach?
Well Teachers is for all teachers, regardless of curriculum, school, location.
You can be teaching any curriculum, even a home-schooling one.
Can I cancel anytime? Yes. Anytime. You are not locked in to pay all year.
Is this right for me?
Should you get involved?
I’m not a teacher, is this going to be right for me?
This membership is for teachers, educators and facilitators who work in education. It is also for former teachers or school leaders who may be in a period of their career where being part of a community may be an ideal time to share and support teachers earlier on in theirs. If you aren’t working in or interested in contributing to the field of education at all, it may not be the right space for you.
I’ve not much time and fear I won’t be able to contribute actively or attend the events... but I still want to join and be a founding member...
Events aside, there are other ways to show up and benefit from being in the community too. At this early stage, if you simply wanted to show your support and commit to a membership fee, this is also so appreciated. You would then be considered a founding member and would still be able to dip in to whatever part of the community membership you have time to dabble in when you can.
I am an introvert and don’t feel comfortable on video calls or in groups...I *hate* group work
If you feel more comfortable on text format only, the private platform is always there for this purpose. The calls can be joined and observed if you don’t wish to interact. There will always be an option to opt-out if you don’t want to be seen on video or heard on audio.
Well, teachers:
Would you like to know more?
Good things are on the way.
Circle back to this page for more details soon.
Bonus Gift
A Special Gift for Founding Members:
Access to the private half-day 1-1 workshop:
"Find Your Four Elements"
If you have heard me talk about the foundational importance of knowing your values, this workshop is how I got deep clarity around mine.
I affectionately call this the “Find Your Four Elements” workshop. In it, I will guide you through a journey of self-reflection and exploring yourself through language that ultimately helps you understand and communicate clearly your four unique elements.
There is no one in the world who can tell you what these words are apart from you. This is why I feel this is a wonderful opportunity for you to establish this clarity as Founding Members of a wellbeing focused initiative.
This is a one-to-one workshop with me that requires some focused attention over a half day period.
As a Founding Member, I would be honoured to do this work with you at the start of this journey.
But... all this talk about wellbeing...
Where does one start?
I see Teacher Wellbeing as a bit of a puzzle. Each person's is unique. And sometimes we've got pieces missing. Sometimes the base is unsteady. And sometimes the pieces keep falling off.
Over time, I drew some conclusions that there a few pieces of the wellbeing puzzle that are uniquely significant for teachers. I share them here:
Join the Well Teachers waitlist:
Contact
Have a question? Want to meet?
Reach out here:
Email: sumbella@protonmail.com
WhatsApp: +971509225888