As school returns from holiday break, teachers have just a few months left in the school year. Of course, it sounds shorter when you say it out loud compared to the actual amount of activity that is crammed into those remaining months. For your mental health and self-care to help you finish the school year strong, we want teachers to take the wellness oath: teacher wellness
Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Then, recite the following. teacher wellness
I will make sure that I am fit and well enough both mentally and physically to support my students effectively.
I am a great teacher. No matter how busy I get I will put my student’s well-being at the heart of my teaching.
I will seek support when my work-life balance is out of focus before the issue becomes serious.
I will support students where appropriate if they do not have emotional support from home.
I will take constructive criticism and feedback and let go what was not useful to my professional development.
I will continue to do things that I enjoy and make plans with friends, family, and nights out without feeling guilty.
I will look after my co-workers to check for signs of stress and be a support system for those who need it.
You’ve totally got this! Be sure to bookmark this page so you can come back and re-read this as much as needed. Know another teacher who could benefit from some words of self-care? Be sure to share this with them. Remember, summer break is approaching and you will make it. For more teacher mantras, visit here.
What encouraging words do you have for other teachers? Share with us below in the comments.
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
As you bustle about getting ready for the holidays, please be careful. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or the winter solstice, the season comes with an increased risk. Home fires peak this time of year and the joy of the holiday season can turn tragic if you don’t take these precautions. Here are some Fire Prevention Tips for the Holidays to keep you and your family safe.
In the Kitchen
The majority of home fires start in the kitchen. Whether you are frying a turkey or baking a pie, keep aware and be present. The majority of these fires were caused by leaving something on the stove, in the oven, and placing flammable material too close to a burner. More cooking fires occur during the holiday season than any other days of the year. Please observe these safe kitchen and cooking recommendations:
Never leave food on the stove or in the oven unattended
Always keep dishtowels, mitts and other flammables away from burners
Remove long sleeves or other loose clothing that could come in contact with burners or flames
Avoid consuming alcohol when cooking
Keep a fire extinguisher on hand
Have a lid nearby to smother small grease fires
Holiday Trees and Decorations
Fire departments across the country are warning about the increased danger as we bring in trees and light up our homes. The over the past few years, Christmas trees caused an average of 210 home structure fires, with most occurring during the month of December. The incidence of candles caused fires also escalates during the holidays.
Make sure real trees are fresh and needles don’t fall off when touched
Cut two inches from the base of the trunk and immediately put it in a stand with water
Add water every day
Keep trees at least three feet from any heat source (fireplaces, space heaters, candles, heat vents)
Check artificial trees for a “fire-resistant” label
Use lights that have the label of a recognized testing laboratory (UL)
Always turn off tree lights before going to bed or leaving home
Never use candles to decorate a tree
If you use real candles around the home, keep them 12 inches away from anything that can burn and always blow them out when you leave a room or go to bed
Don’t use frayed or damaged electrical cords
Never connect more than one extension cord and make sure they are not stretched
California Casualty wants everyone to have a safe and happy holiday.
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
You know the look. The one you get as you’re preparing to leave the house. You glance down and see those eyes silently asking you to come along. Maybe the look is also accompanied with a small but very hopeful wag of the tail. The subtle (or sometimes not so subtle) reminder of how much your dog loves being with you. And going along for car rides. Pet passenger safety
We love our pets and do our best to make sure they live long, happy and healthy lives. So, if you’re like most and simply can’t resist letting your faithful companion join you for the ride, be sure to keep your four-legged friend safe.
Pet Passenger Safety Tips:
Travel with Fido in a crash tested dog crate or safety harness
Put Peaches in the backseat, away from the front airbags
Take breaks every 2 to 3 hours to let Rover stretch and do his business
Turn off or lock power windows so Penny can’t open or close them on her own
Always have water on hand so Max has it when he needs it
Don’t let Rascal sit on your lap while you’re driving
We know how much your pets mean to you. That’s why California Casualty automatically includes free Pet Injury Coverage as part of your auto insurance policy. Get a free coverage comparison today and discover why educators, firefighters, police officers and nurses trust California Casualty for their auto and home or renters insurance needs. www.calcas.com
Having a working smoke detector can reduce your risk of dying in a home fire by half. That’s why the National Fire Protection Association asks us all to be alert this fall- late fall and winter are when the number of home fires spikes.
While we depend on firefighters to put out fires and save lives, we all need to do more to protect our families until they can get there.
Here’s what you can do to make your family and home safer:
Install smoke alarms on every level of your home and in all bedrooms
Test smoke alarms monthly and replace batteries once a year (normally the Sunday when Daylight Saving ends)
Replace smoke detectors every ten years
Practice fire drills and evacuations
Smoke alarms can cost as little as $15 for those that use batteries, hardwired models will cost more. Some fire departments offer low-cost or free smoke detectors for families with financial hardships.
There should be one placed in every bedroom, outside sleeping areas and on every floor of a home.
Here are some important things to remember about home fires:
Cooking is the leading cause of home fires, followed by heating equipment
Smoking materials are the leading cause of home fire deaths
Only one-third of Americans have developed and practiced a home fire escape plan
These safety tips can prevent a fire at your home:
Never leave food unattended on the stove or in the oven
Avoid using candles and if you do make sure they are away from flammable materials and extinguished when you leave the room
Don’t smoke in bed
Have your furnace inspected every year by a heating professional
Keep portable heaters three feet away from flammable materials
Don’t use frayed cords and don’t overload outlets
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
‘Tis the season of joy, shopping, and unfortunately cyber thievery. While millions of Americans will be looking online for Cyber Monday bargains, crooks will be trying to steal their money, personal information, and identity. It’s estimated that a person’s identity is stolen online every three seconds, in the United States.
So, how do you avoid the “bad Santa’s” lurking on the internet? To help keep this the most wonderful time of year, we’ve assembled these 10 tips from the Better Business Bureauand our identity theft prevention partner,CyberScout, to add to your holiday list:
Only shop on secure sites – look for “https” in the URL and a locked padlock symbol and avoid doing so on public WiFi
Install the latest security software to block the crooks
Never give personal information, especially social security numbers or passwords
Use a credit card, not a debit card, for payment (you might consider purchasing a prepaid gift card to use for online shopping)
Click out of suspicious links immediately (AVG has a free LinkScannerthat checks sites legitimacy for you)
Beware of Santa scammers who promise to send a letter to your child; often they are collecting personal data for ID theft
Don’t buy used electronics; many are preloaded with malware that can steal personal information and passwords
Avoid downloading online coupons sent to your email or from websites you are not sure of
Use unique passwords for every site
Don’t buy that cute puppy via the Internet – scammers use the holidays to take money for puppies that don’t exist, often using the ruse to get banking and personal information
The quicker you catch a possible breach, the better. Credit experts like CyberScout advise consumers to check their credit card and bank statements weekly, request a receipt for any purchase you make and run a free credit check annually.
California Casualty wants to make sure your identity stays safe from online Grinches; every auto and home/renters insurance policy comes with Free ID theft protection and resolution services from CyberScout. Make sure to protect your property and identity this holiday, call a California Casualty advisor today at 1.800.800.9410, or visit www.calcas.com/identity-theft.
For more information visit:
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This article furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.800.800.9410 or www.calcas.com.
As school returns from holiday break, teachers have just a few months left in the school year. Of course, it sounds shorter when you say it out loud compared to the actual amount of activity that is crammed into those remaining months. For your mental health and self-care to help you finish the school year strong, we want teachers to take the wellness oath: teacher wellness
You know the look. The one you get as you’re preparing to leave the house. You glance down and see those eyes silently asking you to come along. Maybe the look is also accompanied with a small but very hopeful wag of the tail. The subtle (or sometimes not so subtle) reminder of how much your dog loves being with you. And going along for car rides. 
