Midway through the school year is when it tends to hit.
The adrenaline of September is long gone. The routines are set. The novelty has worn off. Report cards are either behind you or looming again. Indoor recess feels endless. And somehow, the to-do list is just as long as it was in October.
If you are feeling more tired than usual, more irritable, less creative, or just… flat, you are not alone.
Let’s talk about teacher burnout. Not in a dramatic, throw-your-lanyard-on-the-desk way. But in the quiet, creeping way that shows up in February, March, or early spring.
And more importantly, let’s talk about what to do next.
What Teacher Burnout Actually Looks Like
Burnout does not always look like tears in the staffroom.
Sometimes it looks like:
- Dreading Monday by Saturday afternoon
- Feeling behind no matter how much you work
- Snapping at small behaviours that normally would not bother you
- Copying and pasting lessons just to get through the week
- Losing the joy you used to feel during read-aloud or math talks
- Thinking, “I cannot keep doing this pace”
It can also show up physically. Headaches. Trouble sleeping. That heavy, wired-but-exhausted feeling.
The hardest part is that many overwhelmed teachers blame themselves.
You tell yourself you just need to be more organized. More efficient. More disciplined. But burnout is rarely about laziness or lack of skill. It is usually about carrying too much for too long without enough support.
The Mid-Year Slump Is Real
There is something unique about the middle of the school year.
You have built relationships. You care deeply about your students. You know their needs. And that makes the emotional load heavier.
You are differentiating constantly. Managing behaviours. Tracking data. Adjusting small groups. Communicating with families. Planning engaging lessons. Meeting curriculum expectations.
And most of that work happens quietly. After hours. On weekends. In the margins of your life.
It adds up.
Burnout is often not about one big crisis. It is about hundreds of small decisions and responsibilities stacked on top of each other without pause.
The First Step: Recognize It Without Shame
If you are reading this and thinking, “This is me,” the first step is simple but powerful.
Name it.
Not dramatically. Not with guilt. Just honestly.
“I am tired.”
“I am overwhelmed.”
“I need support.”
There is nothing weak about recognizing your limits. In fact, it is one of the most responsible things you can do for yourself and your students.
Because teaching from depletion does not serve anyone.
The Second Step: Reduce the Cognitive Load
When teachers are burned out, the instinct is often to push harder. Stay later. Plan better. Try new classroom management systems.
But what most overwhelmed teachers actually need is fewer decisions.
Burnout thrives on decision fatigue.
Think about how many choices you make in a single day:
- What lesson structure to use
- How to differentiate
- What examples to model
- What to assess
- How to respond to that email
- How to adjust for that student
Now multiply that by five days. By months.
Reducing burnout often starts with reducing planning load.
Not lowering standards. Not lowering expectations.
Just removing the constant need to reinvent.
The Third Step: Protect One Block of Your Week
You do not need to overhaul your entire year to feel relief.
Instead, ask yourself:
What is one block that consistently drains me?
For many teachers, it is science or social studies. Not because they dislike it, but because it often gets squeezed in around literacy and math. It requires planning engaging inquiry. Gathering materials. Structuring investigations.
If planning those blocks feels heavy right now, it might be time to give yourself support.
That is exactly why the Ignited Lessons Club exists.
It is a growing library of ready-to-use, inquiry-based science and social studies lessons designed for Canadian classrooms. The lessons are structured, curriculum-aligned, and engaging. You can open them and teach.
No scrambling for last-minute worksheets.
No cobbling together Pinterest ideas at 9:00 pm.
No wondering if it meets expectations.
When one part of your week becomes predictable and supported, the ripple effect is real. You get mental space back. You feel prepared walking into that block. You stop carrying it around in your head at dinner.
And sometimes that is enough to shift everything.
Burnout Does Not Mean You Are Done
Feeling burned out does not mean you chose the wrong career.
It does not mean you are not good at what you do.
Often, it means you care deeply. You are trying to do this job well. You want your students to thrive.
But caring without boundaries leads to depletion.
The goal is not to become a teacher who cares less. It is to become a teacher who is supported more.
What to Do This Week
If you are in the thick of it, here is something practical:
- Identify one planning area to simplify.
- Give yourself permission to use structured, ready-to-go lessons.
- Stop apologizing for not doing everything from scratch.
You are allowed to teach excellent lessons that you did not personally design at midnight.
You are allowed to protect your energy.
You are allowed to build systems that make mid-year sustainable.
If science and social studies planning has been weighing on you, I gently invite you to explore the Ignited Lessons Club. It was built for this exact season of teaching. Not the shiny September version. The real, tired, mid-year version.
Because your students deserve your best.
And your best does not come from burnout. It comes from balance. 💛
Need more support? Check out this podcast episode where I talk about strategies to avoid teacher burnout.
