The Well That Refills Itself

A STRONG Teacher take on rest, engagement, and refilling the well.

Here’s a quote, a resource, a book, and an affirmation to help power you through the rest of the week.

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” — Maya Angelou

Resource

For some teachers, the first two to three weeks of school are about survival and routine. This is understandable. This week’s newsletter is a gentle nudge to remember your creative side.

The research on creative engagement backs this up. It doesn’t work like a tank. It works like a well. The more you draw from it, the more it refills — because the act of creating restores the very capacity it draws on. What actually empties you isn’t using your creativity. It’s not using it — going flat, going through the motions.

Keeping your creativity alive can put some fun into your teaching.

Every year I ebb and flow between high, mid, and low energy levels. It’s just the nature of teaching. When your energy is low, that “flat” feeling can creep in.

So the fix for feeling flat isn’t rest from creativity. It’s more of it — smaller, lower-stakes, but real. One unscripted question. One tangent you follow instead of shutting it down. One connection you make between what you're teaching and what you’re passionate about outside of school.

You’re not out of creativity. The well isn’t dry — it’s just been sitting still.

Book Recommendation

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert makes the same case as this week’s quote, just louder: creativity isn’t a rare gift you’re either born with or without; it’s a relationship you either tend to or neglect. Gilbert’s whole argument is that fear and depletion aren’t reasons to stop creating — they’re just part of showing up anyway. (As an affiliate, I may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)

Worth Your Time

How Schools Are Handling AI, Screen Time, and DOE Cuts — NPR's rundown of the three biggest forces shaping this school year.
Is Teacher Stress Declining? — RAND's latest numbers: stress is down slightly, burnout isn't moving. Worth a look if you want the data behind the "week three" feeling.
Are Schools Inadvertently Making Students More Stressed? — Author Cathy Vatterott argues schools keep treating the symptoms of student stress instead of the practices actually causing it.