My Seven Steps of Semester Prep

So I was thinking about how to make the preparation for teaching easier and Goblin Tools is definitely a useful AI tool that helps breaking complex tasks into smaller achievable steps, besides having a whole host of other useful functions!

And there is also something to be said about experiencing our very own structures

1. VLE
   1. Maybe counterintuitive to begin with the virtual learning environment. I start here because it helps me to literally see, how things fit together, if areas need updating, if last years updates and reflections on teaching have change the directions things should go.
   2. Also setting up the mundane admin tasks, deadlines, tick the right boxes, click the appropriate settings, is something The Brain loathes! So as a treat I add happy photos I took during the year to beautify the page, because aesthetic is key. And developing content is a treat for after doing the hard bit.
2. Mapping out Regular Tasks
   1. Such as scheduling emails or other communication to students, put holidays into the calendar, teaching times and places, exam board times, assessment and marking deadlines so all the standing semester or annual appointments that need to go in
   2. There! Another weight of my mind we are getting closer to the fun
3. Reading Lists
   1. That is already going towards fun, I have bookmarked reading throughout the year.
      1. and I need a better system to add the meta data for which course I have actually bookmarked which paper, book, blog, YouTube video
   2. Then update reading lists
4. Play! Aka Content Development
   1. During the mundane tasks gaps usually emerge, areas that seem too dense, aspects that need more attention this is the space for thinking about the Didaktik of the whole course and how it fits into the program, chat with course co-lead and develop further material
5. Projects
   1. For me teaching is the red thread goes through the academic year, the skeleton that holds everything up. Now that is out of the way, I focus on planning the other stuff around.
   2. First, projects, as these come with deadlines, collaborators, stages.
6. Scholarship
   1. I plan writing, from collating ideas for blogposts, podcasts, other social media texts, to writing on academic publications
   2. I sketch these out in mindmaps or sometimes literally in drawings
7. Play!
   1. Look through last years journals, pick up ideas I want to carry forward or fold into any of the above, teaching ideas, writing, project
   2. Prepare my new journals, one for messy thoughts and notes, one for tidy thoughts
   3. Meet with that colleague, or several of them, with whom I tried to meet for a while and we never managed, bounce ideas
   4. Create space, plan in spaces for pause and reflection

How do you approach the new academic year? What are your steps or top tips?