Maxed Out Energy

Energy comes from these core factors:

• nutrition
• exercise
• sleep
• breaks

The more we prioritise these, the more mentally and physically alert we are.

Ironically, the trend I’ve noticed in schools (especially low-socioeconomic) is that students will be sleep-deprived, have their first meal be recess (or an energy drink), and of course exercise only in their spare time or the occasional P.E class.

How do we expect students to concentrate when they’re already maxed out? As much as the teacher would like to help the kid dozing off in the corner, there is a strict curriculum to follow. If they aren’t swamped by meetings, grading, report writing… they might see them after class.

The standardised curriculum doesn’t care that you have a part time job to support your family. It doesn’t care that you need to pack your own food, or that you stayed up until 12am because you had an emergency. It moves on, and here you are, disengaged and confused in class, convinced that not understanding the material means you’re ‘dumb’.