The Director's Planner: Week of April 7th, 2025
More on teacher appreciation week, the importance of playful leadership, and the intersection of conflict and innovation.
WELCOME to all the new subscribers—I’m so glad you found your way to The Collective (aka your new favorite inbox ritual).
Every Monday, you’ll get one challenge, two thoughts to consider, and three action items—all crafted with you in mind. Expect fresh blog posts, practical tools, and real-talk support for every season of ECE leadership (with a touch of sass and sarcasm.)
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Now let’s dive in—and keep the Teacher Appreciation Week planning train rolling!
1 Monthly Focus
Plan Teacher Appreciation Week (TAW)
Each week in April, we’re tackling one step of planning Teacher Appreciation Week together so you’re ready to celebrate your amazing team—without the last-minute scramble.
Last week, we kicked things off by downloading the Teacher Appreciation Week Planner, passing out the My Favorite Things sheets to staff, and reaching out to a few local businesses for donations using this email template. (If you missed it, it’s not too late to catch up!)
This week’s focus:
🎨 Pick your daily themes and gift ideas.
Whether it’s “A Very Muffin Monday” or “Wellness Wednesday,” now’s the time to lock in your plans. Need inspiration? Check out my newest post: How to Use ChatGPT to Plan the Perfect Teacher Appreciation Week (Even If You’re Brand New to AI)
📝 Create your supply list.
Once your theme ideas are locked in, jot down the materials you’ll need for each day. This helps you plan for what can be prepped and ordered now (and what you can delegate).
💖Compile your team’s “Favorite Things” binder
By now, you should have received your team’s “favorite things” sheets back. This week put them all into a binder for easy parent access! Use dividers to sort them by classroom and don’t forget to include the floats, kitchen staff, and yourself!
2 Thoughts to Consider
I. “Remain playful as your responsibilities increase. It’s easy to become serious when people and results depend on you, but nearly everyone’s performance improves when they proceed lightly through the world” – James Clear
Think for a second—when’s the last time you actually had fun in your role? Not a moment of relief between chaos, but the kind of fun that made you laugh out loud. When did you last crack a joke with your team, play with the toddlers (without being needed in ratio), or join a game of tag because you wanted to?
It’s easy to feel guilty stepping away from your desk, but this is part of the job too. Joy isn’t a distraction—it’s a reminder of why you do this work. It reconnects you to your purpose. So this week, I am challenging you to find at least 3 opportunities to be playful with your team, families, or children. And then give yourself permission to make space for this important job responsibility every week!
II. “Without conflict, there will be no innovation.”
In early childhood education, many of us are wired to avoid conflict—we’re caretakers by nature. We want harmony, not confrontation. But it is important to remember that conflict doesn’t always mean chaos. Most of the time, it is sign that something needs attention, or that there’s an opportunity to do things differently.
Innovation rarely comes from comfort zones. It comes from tension—of ideas, perspectives, and needs rubbing up against each other. That discomfort might just be the spark that leads to your next great solution. So the next time conflict shows up, don’t shut the door. Get curious. Listen closely. You might be standing at the edge of something better.
3 Action Items
I. Schedule Spring Carpet Cleaning
Winter grime adds up! If your center uses a cleaning service, now is a great time to book a deep clean for carpets and high-touch areas. And don’t forget to give your team a heads up so they aren’t scrambling to move shelves at the last minute… (definitely have never done that before…)
II. Inspect your exterior spaces
As the seasons change, it is a perfect time to focus on cleaning up those exterior spaces. You will likely need to check the depth of your woodchips/sand, inspect the playground equipment, and clean up rogue branches or debris.
💡 Pro Tip: Be sure to download my updated Facilities Focus: Exterior Spaces Checklist to ensure you don’t miss anything! It also includes a page to document the follow-ups needed so you can stay on schedule with fixing things.
III. Update allergy and medical information
Spring is here, and while we’re all excited for warmer weather, it also means allergy season is coming in full force. Now is a great time to:
✅ Remind families to update allergy & medication info for their child.
✅ Check your supply of tissues, hand soap, and allergy-friendly snacks.
✅ Touch base with staff about cleaning routines to keep pollen and dust under control.
As always, I am SO thankful when my followers share these free resources with other Directors. The more we grow our community, the more we can uplift and support each other in this challenging (and rewarding) role. Thank you for being here!
And that’s it for this week! Easy as A, B, C, 1, 2, 3.
