Preparing Your Classroom for the First Day of School

I know some of you might not want to think about this yet, but I have seen other's gearing up to go back to school. Someone asked me if I had any tips for first year teachers and I thought, you know what- I will just put it in a blog post so everyone can take from it what they need.

Now I absolutely love the first day/week of school. There isn't as much pressure with a schedule, the excitement of coming back to school is in the air, and the smell of copy jams and teacher lounge coffee always brings a smile to my face. Here are 5 tips to follow when going back to school.

*Affiliate links are in this blog post. Simply purchasing something from a link supports my work!

Get to know your class.

The first week of school, take. your. time. Don't rush through lessons or instructions. Show where things are in the classroom. Go over rules in the classroom. Better yet, include the students in making rules for the classroom. Have students introduce themselves. I used to send home a parent interview (I was a special education teacher and had a lot of student's still working on communicating their needs) to get to know my students and their family.

I would ask fun questions like, what is your favorite food, color, or activity to do with the family. Who is in your family/who lives with you? Do you have any pets? And I would ask questions that would help me in the classroom, what do you do when you're happy? frustrated? silly?

These questions gave me a general idea-that isn't from a boring legal document (*cough* IEP *cough*)- and got the family involved too. It is important to get families involved as they do know their child the best.

I also strongly suggest social stories (click for free examples). Having one prepared for the first week of school can be so beneficial for your sanity and your student's to have clear expectations. In my first week of school social stories, I would literally type one up as a word doc or on pages and then add pictures. I would introduce myself, the staff, things we like, the principal, the secretary, the nurse, the janitor. I would show pictures of the playground, the bathroom, our classroom, whatever information I wanted my students to know.

Bonus: You can even add your rules you decided on as a class to the social story :)

2. Tentatively set up your classroom (desks/stations)

I say tentatively because you most likely will need to move stuff around again. It takes time to see how your new students are going to respond to their environment. You might notice they love all working in a big group, you might notice the computers are too big of a distraction and need to be hidden when not in use, you may notice that some students shouldn't sit next to each other. All of that is fine and part of the process.

When you notice something isn't working, change it.

3. Have multiple activities that can be pulled out (super teacher worksheets)

Sensory bins, coloring sheets, books, PE activities, or just fun worksheets are all items that can be easily taken out for moments you don't have anything planned. I had sensory bins that were filled with beans, rice, playdough, fluff balls, and I would put toys or fidgets inside of them for students to find. You can have them match the items to a picture, have them write down the name, or just collect all the cars inside and count them all. Some students might just want to relax and play with the bins.

I also had items, such as, sequin pillows, squishy mats, & bean bags for students to enjoy.

One of my favorite resources was superteacherworksheets.com. They do cost $25 a year which is extremely affordable based off of what you get. Plus, a lot of schools are happy to pay for this.

4. Start on some early grunt work that will make your life easier.

Talk to teachers about inclusive practices. Understand where you administrator is on the matter. Talk about opening up your classroom for them and encouraging them to do the same for you. Finding times to work together is also huge. Maybe you can run an art activity with their whole class or go outside and do a fun PE hula hoop contest. Preferably, pick an activity you know your students like so they also are more engaged with the other classroom.

And make time to read over student's ieps. I know if can be so boring to read but I would skim over some present levels, goals, and accommodations sections. I have a hard time not setting expectations based off of poorly written IEPs but It can still give you an idea of what to expect. You can have prepared some interested or strengths to start building that trusted relationship with your student.

Lastly for number 4, know the emergency drills for your school! I overlooked this one my first year teaching and when we had our first fire drill I had no idea where to go. I didn't have a plan for my students and felt absolutely lost. Every school should have plans written out of where every classroom should go. Make sure your students are a part of this practice. Know how you will get them all out to safety and who is incharge of what!

5. Lastly, lower your expectations

I don't usually like saying this because I feel like people usually take it too far and start having low expectations and that is not what I want you to do. Just be prepared that it takes time. We are all human and are learning how to respond to each other. And your entire classroom won't be set up perfectly on the first day, week, or month of school. Really, it usually takes longer than a year.

You are shifting into a new classroom, possibly new staff, or a new school and change takes time to adjust to it. Embrace imperfectness because that is the only way to start the first day of school. We are all learning. Isn't that just beautiful? You got this!