Scarlett Foti
8 Jan 2026
Dealing with Start-Of-Year Anxiety
The beginning of the school year carries a particular kind of weight for teachers. New classes. New expectations. New policies layered over old workloads. Even experienced educators can feel a familiar tightening as Term 1 approaches.
Start-of-the-year anxiety is not a sign of unpreparedness. It’s a response to responsibility.
Name the Pressure
Much of teacher anxiety comes from invisible expectations. Be everything to everyone. Set the tone perfectly. Build relationships instantly. Cover content while managing behaviour, wellbeing, documentation, and parent communication. Naming this pressure matters. Anxiety intensifies when it’s perceived as a personal failure rather than a predictable response to a demanding role.
Focus on Controllables
Not everything needs to be solved in Week 1.
What can be controlled:
• Classroom routines and boundaries
• The emotional climate you model
• How you respond, not how students arrive
What cannot:
• Every behaviour, learning gap, or systemic issue
Prioritising controllables creates stability without demanding perfection.
Build Safety Before Curriculum
Students learn best when they feel safe, seen, and regulated. Teachers are no different.
In the early weeks:
• Repetition of routines matters more than content coverage
• Calm, consistent responses reduce both student and teacher stress
• Relationship-building is not “lost time”; it is instructional groundwork
When safety is established, learning accelerates later.
Lower the Bar on “Extra”
Early-year energy often comes with pressure to overperform.
Decorated rooms. Perfect lessons. Immediate differentiation.
Sustainability matters more than spectacle.
A steady, prepared teacher is more valuable than an exhausted one by Week 3.
Regulate Yourself First
Students co-regulate with their teachers. When you slow your breathing, soften your voice, and pause before reacting, you create nervous system safety in the room.
Simple practices help:
• Brief grounding between classes
• Letting one imperfect lesson go
• Ending the day without replaying every interaction
You do not need to carry the whole year in your body.
Remember: Anxiety Means You Care
The teachers who feel anxious at the start of the year are rarely the ones doing a poor job. They’re the ones invested in doing it well. Start-of-the-year anxiety doesn’t mean you’re behind.
It means you’re human in a system that asks a lot. And you don’t have to meet every demand at once. The year unfolds one lesson, one relationship, one day at a time.