Irish teachers are stretched. A 2025 DCU study found 86% of teachers report moderate to high burnout, and most have never had any training in looking after their own wellbeing.
You can’t fix workload with a bubble bath. But small, repeatable habits do add up. Here are six that fit into a real school week.
1. Plan the week on Sunday, in ten minutes
Not a full plan. Just the three things that have to happen, and one thing you’re looking forward to. Our free Weekly Planner is laid out for exactly this.
2. Leave one thing at school
Pick one task each day that stays in the building: the corrections, the planning folder, the emails. Not everything. Just one.
3. Use the first two minutes of yard
Before you check your phone or start tidying, stand still and take five slow breaths. It’s the same strategy you teach the children, and it works for adults too.
4. Name one thing that went well
At the end of each day, before you leave, name one thing that went well. It trains your attention away from the one child or the one email that went wrong.
5. Protect one evening a week
One evening with no schoolwork at all. Tell someone about it so you’re more likely to keep it.
6. Check in with a colleague
The staffroom matters. A two-minute “how are you really?” with one colleague is one of the simplest supports there is.
Why it matters for your class too
Children notice a calm adult. The strategies that help you regulate are the same ones you model for your class every day.
“An excellent course full of practical resources and ideas. Really clearly showed and emphasised the importance of looking after out own mental health fitness as well as the children’s.”
Sarah, teacher, on Mental Health Fitness
Go deeper
Mental Health Fitness is our online EPV summer course on emotional wellbeing for Irish primary teachers, for you and your class. See Mental Health Fitness or browse all our EPV summer courses.
Free download in this post: Weekly Planner
Source for the burnout figure: DCU research reported by RTÉ Brainstorm, April 2025
Over 10,000 Irish primary teachers have taken an Anokha course
Summer 2027 Course Updates
We're planning our Summer 2027 courses. The course lineup, Department of Education approval and booking dates are not yet confirmed. Join our email list for useful teaching ideas, free resources and updates about our summer courses.
Get Anokha UpdatesUnsubscribe at any time.