There are countless text-to-speech apps available online. A quick Google search will yield hundreds of results, but we’ve curated the top 5 for you.
Educating young minds is more challenging and time-consuming than many realize. From lesson planning and classroom organization to professional development and grading, a teacher’s day is filled with numerous tasks both in and out of the classroom. Staying on top of all these tasks can be daunting, but templates and productivity hacks can help. Thankfully, a variety of tips and tools are available to help teachers combat procrastination, prevent burnout, and achieve a better work-life balance. In this article, we’ll explore top productivity tips, apps, and free resources to help you maximize your efficiency this school year.
Stay Organized and Save Time with Tools
In the recipe for a productive day, organization and effective time management are key ingredients. Organizing your professional life and managing your time effectively starts within your mind and is a crucial part of adopting a growth mindset. However, several tools can assist you along the way. Project management platforms such as nTask and Trello can help you organize tasks with ease. When you don’t spend large chunks of time searching for documents or figuring out what needs to be done, you can be far more productive.
Along with these project management tools, utilizing teaching resources like BookWidget is another excellent way to free up more time. BookWidget allows you to create online exercises, quizzes, and exams for your students that are graded automatically, eliminating one of the most time-consuming tasks teachers face. Remind is another great app that helps teachers save time by improving communication with students and parents. With Remind, teachers can message entire groups or individuals, and it offers features like automatic translation and in-app notifications.
Many teachers also use text-to-speech software to save time and complete tasks more efficiently. With text-to-speech (TTS) software like Synthy, you can listen to student papers or other documents instead of reading them, allowing you to multitask while listening. Synthy also lets you adjust the listening speed, enabling you to power through your required reading more quickly.
Using Technology to Avoid Burnout
Teacher burnout can significantly disrupt your productivity if you push yourself too far. While multitasking and limited breaks characterize most teachers’ workdays, it’s crucial to avoid burnout. Establishing a healthy work-life balance and knowing when to take a short break are essential. Using technology can be a great way to prevent burnout. Time-saving apps like those mentioned can help reduce your workload, making it easier to avoid burnout.
Apps designed to help you take quick breaks and refresh your mind can also be beneficial. Headspace is a popular app that offers short, guided meditations to help you relax when feeling overworked or stressed. Calm provides similar activities, including guided stretching and sleep stories.
Text-to-speech software can also help teachers avoid burnout by easing classroom management. Most teachers spend a lot of time reading, and hours of pouring over papers or lesson plans can quickly exhaust your mind and eyes. TTS software allows you to listen to this material with the same ease as listening to a podcast. With Synthy, you can even scan print documents so that student papers and other printed materials can be listened to as well.
Common Reasons Teachers Use TTS Readers
The most common reason teachers use TTS software like Synthy is that it allows them to multitask and be more productive. Reading an important document while driving to class or doing chores isn’t possible, but listening to the text instead of reading it makes multitasking easy. TTS readers also help teachers avoid burnout and eye fatigue by reducing the time they spend reading. Reading printed text for hours can lead to tired eyes, blurred vision, and headaches. Listening, however, is much less intensive, and your ears won’t tire as long as you keep the volume reasonable.
Lastly, many teachers simply enjoy having their reading material read aloud. Listening to someone else read to you is an enjoyable and relaxing experience that can make even mundane material more interesting.
Synthy
If you want to enjoy the productivity-boosting benefits of TTS software, Synthy is the perfect app for you. With Synthy Premium, you can choose from dozens of AI voices that sound like real human narrators, adjust your listening speed for optimum productivity, utilize advanced highlighting and note-taking features, and much more. To see why so many teachers choose Synthy Premium as their favorite TTS software, sign up for a free trial of Synthy Premium today!