If you asked any teacher what their favorite teacher tool was, you might hear flair pens or a great read-aloud. What would you hear teachers say the most? Coffee. We love coffee.
K CUPS DON’T CUT IT
I used to have a terrible habit of running late to school on Fridays and getting a nonfat, triple-shot latte on the way. Naturally, the errand made me caffeinated but very flustered. I would stroll in mere minutes before my kiddos came into my classroom.
The cycle had to stop, but I was not about to drink K Cups. In this post-pandemic world, I needed ESPRESSO and lots of it. I was not going to put my faith in a tiny pod to keep my sanity and my class together on a Friday.
WHY DIDN’T I THINK OF THIS SOONER?
Then I came up with a genius plan and the ultimate teacher hack. Enter “The Coffee Rotation”. I asked three teacher friends if they could commit to going to Starbucks one Friday a month and getting coffee for the group. Each Friday, a different teacher in the group would get our orders and bring them to school. We would rotate every week.
This meant, each of us only had to wake up early one Friday a month. We would be less frazzled, and we could rest easy knowing a friend would have coffee waiting for us. There would be no K Cups, and the kiddos would have a happy teacher.
DON’T BITE OFF MORE THAN YOU CAN CHEW
One year, I tried to go big. I thought, why have a group of 4 when you could recruit 6? Learn from my mistake. That year was rough. I couldn’t carry all the coffee and had to ask for someone to meet me in the parking lot every. single. time.
My car also constantly had spilled coffee, because there is no drink carrier for 6 cups. Do you know what’s worse than a coffee-covered car? Unhappy teachers who depend on full cups of caffeine to get them through Fridays. Trust me. 4 is the magic number. Drink carriers have four compartments.
NICE TEACHERS DON’T GATEKEEP
I am most likely not the only one who has thought of this, but at the time, I felt like someone may interview me for the cover of Forbes or Oprah may knock on my door. “How do you feel knowing you have saved the sanity of teachers everywhere?” she would ask with her eyes wide in bewilderment.
Do you know this trick? Have you done it before? Are you going to try it? Let me know in the comments your favorite coffee order and how the rotation helps you. Follow my blog for more teacher hacks so you can work smarter, not harder.
