Ah, the dreaded back to school feeling. Life goes from relatively quiet to full blown hectic chaos in a matter of one day. Meetings, classroom set up, labels, folders, back to school nights, professional developments, and a new set of 20+ little humans to get to know and love.
Back to school can be stressful, but if you take the time to set up systems and strategies in the first few weeks of school, they will work for you for the rest of the year.
Get organized
Before your students ever step foot into the classroom, have your systems in place. Organize your spaces and create systems for everything. Really think through how a day will go in your classroom. Set up desks in a way that allows space for walking through the room. Have supplies organized in a way that makes the most sense. Set up your workspace to work well for you. Make your copies and gather supplies needed for a lesson in advance. Having good organizational systems in place at the beginning of the year will save you time (and energy) all year.
Procedures, Procedures, Procedures
As a veteran teacher, I would argue that having and practicing procedures until they become second nature is one of the most effective classroom management tools and one that will pay dividends all year. I have procedures for everything-how to come in the room, how to sharpen pencils, how to line up, how to share an idea or ask a question, what to do if you finish an activity early, where to put supplies, how to pack up at the end of the day-you get the idea.
Start by thinking through each step of your day and writing out procedures that you want students to follow. On the first day, you will model every single procedure as it comes up. Model the correct way to do it. Then model how to do it incorrectly. Model it again and have students tell you what you did right or wrong. Have a student model the correct way. Have another student model it incorrectly (they love this!). Have all students practice and continue to practice until they do it perfectly. At first, they will need cues, frequent reminders and repeated practice. It is worth the time and energy that you will put in for the first few weeks because once your procedures are second nature, everything will run so much smoother for the remainder of the year. You will most likely need to revisit procedures-modeling and practicing as needed throughout the year-especially after holidays and breaks.
Have clear expectations and consistent consequences
When I was a young teacher, I often heard veteran teachers say “don’t let them see you smile for the first month” or “start out really strict and then you can relax as the year goes.” I have found that to be unnecessary. I want my students to feel safe. I want to smile and laugh and be silly with them because I think that’s a great way to bond with them and encourage a love of school. I have found that clearly laying out behavior expectations and consequences if those expectations are not met is so important in the beginning. Even more important, is enforcing those consequences with consistency.
To help students feel more ownership in their classroom, I like to have them help me come up with expectations and possible consequences. We talk through them, model and role play examples and non-examples. Students know exactly what is expected from them. I’m not saying behavior will be perfect for the rest of the year, but when students have a very clear, explicit understanding of what is expected, problem behaviors are drastically reduced.
Have positive interactions with parents early
Life is so much easier if you and your students’ parents work together as a team. While this is not always possible (for a variety of reasons), it is so helpful if you can build a positive relationship. Start within the first few days of the school year, before there is time for behavior issues to appear. Aim for one positive interaction with every family. It can be expressing your excitement to teach their child at Back to School night or a positive note home once school starts. Ideally, making a quick 2-3 minute phone call letting the parent know how much you enjoy their child can go a long way and if and when issues do arise, the parent will already know that you have their child’s best interest at heart.
Spend time creating a classroom community
Putting in the effort and energy to begin creating a sense of community from day one is vital for bringing out the best in your students all year. When each student feels like an important and valued part of their classroom, you are more likely to get their best. Allow students to have input in what they want their ideal classroom to feel like. Point out the behaviors that you want to see more of. Encourage students to build one another up, model healthy problem solving when issues arise, and make every student feel like an important contributor to their community.
Start the day with “Good Things”
This is one of my favorites. Once I started incorporating “Good Things” into our day first thing, I learned so much about my students’ lives and feel like I got to know them on a deeper level. We start each day with each student sharing one “good thing.” It can be something that they’re grateful for, something they’re looking forward to, or just something that makes them happy. In second grade, it often turned into students just simply sharing what they did the day before and sometimes the “good things” weren’t all that good. That’s okay. The point is that every student had a chance every day to feel heard, which was also a simple way to build community.
Incorporate mindfulness breaks
As teachers, we often get into “go mode”. We have so much to teach and manage and we can get stuck in the loop of doing. It’s so important for us and for our students to add small breaks into our day. Maybe it’s five minutes of mindful quietness, working with instrumental music in the background, a quick chat break or exercise break. Adding these small breaks in throughout the day, starting at the beginning, will help you and your students all year.
The first few weeks of school can really set the tone for the rest of the year. While content is important, it is worth your while to invest time and energy into the first few weeks focusing on truly getting to know your students, building a classroom community, laying out expectations, and mastering procedures. Doing the hard work in the beginning will be so worth it for the rest of the year.
Need some fun and engaging back to school ideas that will help you get to know your students and will start to build community in your classroom? Check out this Back To School Activities pack.
