Rewriting the To-Do List
I am all over the place. My dining room table, otherwise known as my desk, is in a disastrous state. Strewn all around are tax folders, articles, and magazines containing important topics to be read one day soon, as well as lots of notepads and books from my graduate class from three different semesters.
This is the third time I'm teaching this 3-hour course on Thursdays. The first time I taught it, it was so much work to create a brand-new syllabus, but it seemed like everything made sense. Now, when I revisit what I taught on Week 7 last go-round, I'm not sure I want to include it. So what would seem easy, is almost harder than if I started from scratch. Each week, usually on Wednesday, I ruminate about what to include and what to add to my class for the next day. For some reason it's taking me a long time to commit to a plan and move on to my next task. I linger and procrastinate and come Thursday, I often still deliberate. What is wrong with me?
Other things need attention. We have a mini conference coming up for the LIWP. I need to send out some emails, call a bookstore, type up an entry for the digital anthology. Do I get these things done? No. I do Wordle. Then I play a word game on my phone.
I cross off some minor things from my to-do list that I have done, and then what do I do? I create a new to-do list that is usually not shorter, since new things have come up, but it looks neater. Well at least I can now cross off writing today's blog post.
I totally relate to your blog, Heidi. I remember each time I taught an ELA Intensive Summer Course for teachers at Molloy. I was wading in paperwork and ideas. I am a procrastinator. Last week for my last keynote address on Zoom, I was putting finishing touches on my Google Slides 15 minutes before showtime.
ReplyDelete"but it looks neater" haha I can totally relate to this. In fact, I talked about my own experience with to-do lists on my blog yesterday!! Have you ever heard of or tried the "done" list?
ReplyDeleteI love rewriting "to do" lists too! It's like doing laundry... you get something accomplished! This is such an honest and real slice of life. We always fool ourselves into thinking something we've done before is going to be easier the next time. I've taught the same grade for years and somehow, every year is a new challenge and never easy!
ReplyDeleteRestless ruminating... Yes, it can make messes and cause stresses, but the results can also occasionally be exhilarating. Enjoy the ride, one checklist at a time.
ReplyDeleteI love making and re-making to-do lists. Sometimes doing the smallest of things gives us the motivation to do something a little bit bigger.
ReplyDelete