Overlooked Literacy Tools for Sustenance and Well-being in Teachers and their Students: Reading, Writing and Poetry

Recent studies have shown that educators are stressed at double the levels of other professions During the COVID-19 Pandemic, mental health disorders itself became its own epidemic among teachers While well-meaning administrators and health advocates encourage mental health and selfcare training for educators, beyond the well-known practices of adequate sleep, eating right, and meditation, is a body of research untapped. Poets, authors and philosophers remind us that literacy, through reading, writing and poetry, can also be a balm in times of uncertainty and traumatic experiences. Reading, writing and poetry can prompt us to slow down, change ourselves, bring a sense of connection and discover meaning -all of this leading to increased well-being [3], [4], The findings in this two year collaboration suggest that we make shifts from extraction, product-centered and analysis driven literacy practices and also emphasize literacy as a way for hearing and speaking our truths, savoring moments, for finding meaning in our chaotic lives and for our personal well-being. When teachers embody these literate ways of well-being, they can then be a model for their students, who need these well-being life supports as well.