Episode 46: The SUNSATIONAL SUMMER Challenge!

I cannot WAIT for this year's FOURTH annual #SunSationalSummerChallenge

Don't forget I'll be sharing details to my email list 5 days early but to the world of social media on the first of July! Don't miss out on some MANDATORY Summer Rest, JOY, and FUN!

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Transcript

Welcome!

Welcome to Teaching la vida loca, a podcast for World Language Teachers seeking inspiration, unapologetic authenticity and guidance in centering joy, and facilitating language acquisition for the people who matter most our students. I'm your host, Annabelle. Most people call me la maestra loca, and I'm an educator just like you and inspiring teachers is what I do. Welcome to Episode 46 of teaching la Vida Loca. So glad you're here for I believe, what will be my shortest episode yet? Woo woo, yay for that, right? I mean, like, this is a teacher podcast, and you should be summering, but I'm also really grateful for you listening during your summer. So, there's that.

Summer

Okay, let me get straight down to it. I am about to tell you about one of my absolute favorite parts of summer. Okay, and I want to invite you to join me to take part in this year's epic SunSational summer challenge 2023. Can we get a little umph umph music? Yeah, yeah, yeah, if I had the time, and if I was fancy, I would probably find some really cool music to mix in there. But we know it all. It's just those same sounds every time. Oh, this is the fourth annual sensational summer challenge. I encourage you to go and look up hashtag SunSational summer challenge. And then the year 2020 or 2021, or 2022. Because, again, this has happened for three years. And this is the fourth year, and it is going to be the best year yet.

Social Media Fun!

If you have Instagram that's where I've always done it. However, it automatically posts to Facebook. And there are some people who don't have Instagram who participate just on Facebook. I have had people, especially last year, who participated just via email, and they sent me fun things via email that they were doing based on the challenge. But this year, I'm going to do it on Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok, and Facebook, and email. So, like all five all the places, I want all the people possible to be able to participate this year, in this SunSational summer challenge. It is free to participate. And basically, it's just a way to hold you accountable to rest, relaxation and so much freaking joyous fun this summer. Like it's also a way to connect with other teachers who are doing the same. Some of you may want it for that, others are literally just going to do it for the sake of having a fun or relaxing thing to do every day. 

Summer Fun Tasks

Now, most of the tasks are free, or very cheap, some might cost you five bucks if you want to do it fancy. But the idea is how can we focus on a not working, not planning, and not allowing our teacher brain to do anything teachery whatsoever for a solid two-week period, because the SunSational summer challenge is for two whole weeks. On each day, I give you a task, the task might be go for a walk and take pictures of 10 random things that you find beautiful. Post one of them or post all 10 with the hashtag SunSational summer challenge 2023. Or it might be, and you don't have to post right, you literally don't have to, but if you want to and you want to see all the other beautiful things people are posting, it's so much freaking fun. You search up that hashtag every day and it's like, oh my God, look at their walk. Where do they live? Oh my God, I want to go there. One day, it might be go and buy something cold and delicious. And that's really fun because you never know what people are going to buy. You know, sometimes it's a snowball, and then other people are posting snow cones. And then we have these epic debates on which one is which and how they are different and if they are different, they are definitely different. I used to not say that but now I live in the south and I'm like, Oh my God, they're totally different things. I'm sure you can hear the rain on my metal roof. Sounds so beautiful. One day it might be go play in water. That looks like a lake for some people. It looks like a swimming pool in your backyard. If you use like the blow-up ones, the five feet by five feet, like you use the hose you know, it could be splashing and muddy puddles. Like it looks different for everybody. And that is the magic of social media, bringing us together and sharing in the joy of summer break as teachers.

When It Starts

Now I made the mistake. I can't remember whether it was the first year or second year or both of doing this challenge too early in the summer. We get out here in the south, usually end of May of last year at the school I'm at and then it goes really late. No, not really late, but it goes into June. And I did it in early June and then learned, oh my god, there are so many people still in the in this country teaching through June like through the end of June. So, this year SunSational summer challenge is not starting in June, it is starting in July, because that is a month that we pretty consistently have off together, because some of us start at the end of July. Others of you don't even start until after Labor Day. So, July is pretty consistent. We have it together. So, on the first of July, I will be emailing out the art or like posting out on social media, the sensational summer challenge. If you're on my email list, you'll be getting it about five days early. So, you'll be getting the preview of the sensational summer challenge. So, I know some of you are planners, so you can plan out participating if you want to. So, if you're not on my email list, make sure you get on my email list, link in bio, what the heck do I call it show notes, get on my email list or email me and I'll put you on my email list Annabelle at La maestra loca.com. So, you'll get it a little bit early. But otherwise, on the first of July, I will be sharing out the sensational summer challenge.

All the Details

What it looks like, when it starts, what each day is, detailing each day. I'll also be going live that day to share about it. But it officially will start on the third of July. So, the third of July, our SunSational summer two-week challenge will start and it will end on the 16th of July. So, from the third to the 16th and I really don't want to give you too many more details than that. I just want you to say oh my God, that sounds freaking epic. I'm all in and then decide what platform you're gonna be all in on or do you want to be like me and pick a couple platforms and share it in multiple places. I think you're gonna be really excited about the connections that you're going to make.

Make Friends

I made one of my closest friends through the sensational summer challenge. I met Professora Bennett, Morgan Bennett. When she introduced herself on the first day of the sensational summer challenge 2020, I believe it was the first time and she has since turned into a friend and one of my team loca members for la familia loca PLC. So yeah, you never know you might meet your new best friends. I am worried that this is going too long, so I better stop it. So, it's still the shortest episode ever, but I hope you are lavishing your summer and if you're not on summer yet, don't worry you will be soon and soon you'll be lavishing summer with tons of the rest of us during this sensational summer challenge 2023. Get pumped. Don't forget to get on my email list if you want a preview of what the days will look like. Okay, love you lots. Sending you crazy big hugs. Until next time, I will not be teaching la vida loca. Instead, I will be lavishing the sun and vacation with my family. We have a week in Jamaica, followed by, hopefully, moving into a new home while I'm home for two days and then off to Florida for a training in Polk County, followed by a week celebrating my amazing, beautiful mommy and supportive daddy. Mom's last day of chemo is today, that I'm recording this episode. So, we're celebrating. I'm taking the kids, and we're just having a week to be around her and love on her and celebrate in Orlando. But then I will be back to it in July. I love you teacher. And I hope you are well. I'll talk to you soon.

Share the Summer Fun

Can you predict what I'm going to ask? Go and send this podcast to somebody who you know needs some summer, needs to commit to two weeks of boundary setting and recap refilling with the sensational summer challenge whether they are social media people or not let them know that this is happening so that they can be intentional about their rest and joyful fun this summer. Send them this podcast recording, and I will be so grateful. Sending you crazy mad love. By teacher!