Managing Your Time as an Online Educator

Whether you are a seasoned online educator or just now transitioning to the online environment, it is important to make a plan to manage your time. When working from home, it is easy for time to fly by without accomplishing the goals you set out for yourself. The best way to address this and to minimize feelings of overwhelm is to create a daily schedule and plan. Here are some steps to ensure you create a successful plan.

1. List out all assignments for the semester along with their due dates- this will be used to create a schedule for grading
2. List out all additional tasks related to teaching including recording lectures, putting assignments online, communicating with students, etc.
3. Use a planner or scheduler to create a plan for each week
4. Map out your grading and other teaching related tasks on the planner. It would be ideal to map this out for the entire semester if possible.
5. Be sure to also include additional activities like self-care, cooking, laundry, helping kids with homework, research-related activities etc. Try to be as detailed as possible. 
6. Set a daily/weekly schedule that you can stick to 

Here is a sample time management sheet that lists teaching related tasks shared by Lynette Savage, a member in The Online Educator Facebook group:

If you're like me and a big fan of digital products, you will be happy to know that there are many digital applications you can use to maintain a weekly schedule. I typically use a project management software called Trello to create my weekly plan. Here is an example of what a sample weekly layout might look like:

It's never too late to start a plan for time management, so if you don't already have one, get started today.

Want some more ideas? Sign up for The Online Educator newsletter to receive a daily planner template that can be used to create your time management schedule.

What might your time management schedule look like?  Take a screenshot and share it in The Online Educator Facebook Group by clicking the link HERE. Also, as a treat don’t forget to GRAB YOUR FREE GUIDE to the 3 Secrets to Teaching Online Successfully.