Are You Ready for the New School Year?

Ready or not school is just around the corner!  I will begin my 35th year in education!  It seems like yesterday that I was setting up my first class room.  I still wonder if my students in that first class are productive members of society.  I made lots of mistakes, but learned a lot too.  As I reflect back on the years, I have seen many educational trends come and go and some come back again. Over the years, I have used and seen many classroom management tips and procedures.  I have reflected on what would be the best advice for a new or veteran teacher.  I believe one of the best pieces of advice for teachers is to have your procedures in place.  Begin teaching those procedures from the first bell on the first day and continue until the final bell on the last day of school. What are your procedures?  How should they enter the classroom, what do they do after they enter the classroom?  Will your procedures keep them engaged and out of trouble until you are ready to begin the morning? What is the procedure for sharpening pencils?  How do they hand in papers when they are finished? You will need to practice and model what that procedure looks like. Be prepared to reteach your procedures. Start making a list of procedures you want your students to follow.   What are your expectations?  Whatever they are will greatly influence your students achievement and success in your classroom.  Make sure your expectations are positive.  Look at the difference between "We are going to win the attendance award at the end of the year" and "We will be lucky if we get half the points needed to win the attendance award.  Which one motivates you more?  Make sure you tell your students on day one how happy your are to have them in your class and what a great year it is going to be.  Many first day of school ideas can be found on Pinterest. Harry Wong's book, The First Days of School is what every teacher should read and have as a handy reference.