Feeling buried under grading, lesson planning, and endless to-dos as a secondary teacher with multiple preps this October?

You’re definitely not alone—I’ve been there too, and research backs up just how overwhelming this time of year can be. In this episode of The Secondary Teacher Podcast, I’m sharing the top three strategies that helped me survive the chaos: learning to prioritize what matters most (anchor tasks vs. bonus tasks), batching lessons and grading (instead of scatter-braining your day), and giving yourself permission to “rinse and repeat” tried-and-true routines.

If you’re searching for tips on reducing teacher overwhelm, streamlining multi-prep workflows, or ways to actually leave school without a ton of work to take home, this episode is for you. Let’s breathe easier and get through October together!

Too many preps and not enough time? Let’s make your planning period actually work for you.

Get the Planning Period Reset Toolkit—a free set of quick-start tools to help you protect your time, focus faster, and finally finish something… even during chaotic school days. https://khristenmassic.com/reset

Ready to stop doing it all yourself? Grab the free Make AI Your Teaching Assistant PD and see how AI can actually help. https://khristenmassic.com/ta

Take the overwhelm out of multi-prep teaching—your free support system, the Simplify Your Preps Collective, is waiting: https://khristenmassic.com/collective

Shop my Teachers Pay Teachers store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Khristen-Massic-Cte-Teacher-Coach