Preparing for Meet the Teacher is like running a 5K. Backwards. And blindfolded. Ha! You run to your room in a mad dash in between training and school hoop jumping. I don’t know about you, but I always felt so “developed” that I couldn’t think straight. I was always wishing and hoping for the staff development called “Work in Your Room So You Don’t Lose Your Mind!”. Yeah, never happened. Instead, there was the “work in your room until the sun goes down and then almost comes back” situations. Either way, I was always ready, working on the perfect first impression. I want students to walk into my room and say Oooo and Ahhhh. I want them to feel the magic and not want to leave.
Meet the teacher is our first chance to get students (and parents) to buy into what we are selling. I’m selling a million hours of my heart and soul, invested in loving and teaching each sweet {and sometimes not so sweet} child that walks into my room. It’s as if God gives us a mom’s love for our students. We look at those babies and don’t see them for all of their flaws. We love them unconditionally. You know when you see your teaching partner’s kids on the playground and you think, I could never teach “that kid”. Well guess what? You have “that kid” in your classroom too. It is inevitable. But, it doesn’t matter because you don’t see him/her as “that kid”. You just see them as your kid and you are willing to walk to the ends of the Earth this year for them to be successful. Truth.
In the past years, I have used various resources to help me prepare. My goal right now is to do my best to make your life easier which is why I created a new EDITABLE Meet the Teacher set. I kind of love it and I hope you do too!
To prepare for Meet the Teacher, I start by cleaning my room. Like, really clean my room. They are supposed to do the floors over the summer, and they do, but it’s not always like I would do it. You know when your kids do chores and then you have to tell them to clean it like you would and then they huff and puff and blow the house down? Yeah. That is what I am talking about. I mean, dust for miles. MILES. And cob webs. And that bathroom. Oy.
So first, everything gets a great big cleaning. Yes. You sneak in the forbidden cleaners for a day because let’s be honest, you need the real deal to clean up after the millions of germs from the previous school year. Don’t worry, no one will ever see “those cleaners”. You are like a cleaning ninja. Then, I make sure I have my room arranged exactly the way I want it. Sometimes, this is easy, sometimes not so much. I feel like it is important to have defined spaces. Children like defined spaces and structure. It makes them feel safe. You can check out previous pictures of my classroom here.
I put out boxes and crates around the room for MTT and the first day of school with labels for PARENTS to sort student supplies when they come to the room. This makes my life so much easier. It already takes an act of congress trying to figure where to stash a billion tissue boxes and germ gel (also known as hanitizer) bottles so having them presorted makes this circus act go by much faster.
Here are my directions. Don’t laugh! “Find your child’s folder. Read the directions on the front of the folder and follow them.” Easy enough right? You would think. 🙂 Isn’t the melonheadz clipart the cutest? I just printed, cut and taped this stuff to an art easel. Easy peasy.
First Day TIPS
Have a bucket near your cubbies with extra name tags, cubby tags, a permanent marker and a magic eraser. It never fails, you will have students that go by another name that you have already labeled everything with and NO we cannot call your child Boo, Honey, or Daddy, oy). It’s not big deal though if you have all of your materials ready. Just grab that magic eraser and make the quick change.
Have extra folders for parents of new students or parents that have lost forms (Because of they are like me and have three kids, it was a miracle we make it out of Meet the Teacher alive when my kids were little!).
Extra printables. New students will come in. Some students may make a mistake and need a new sheet. Usually, I would just tell them it will be okay and move on but the first week of school, I am trying to be sensitive to their needs as the are learning to trust me.
Bring a healthy snack for your class (if you are allowed to). The school schedule is not the same as their home schedule. In the past, my class had lunch at 10:55 and that was SO early for me and then. By 2:00 you would think it was midnight and the kids hadn’t been fed in two weeks. Hungry kids are cranky kids!
Also, have some sort of breakfast snack ready too. Many families are new and don’t know how breakfast works so they may be too embarrassed to ask and just tell their kids to deal with it for that day.
Make immediate notes on parents who tell you their kids have allergies.
Make sure you ask parents how their kids are getting home the first week or have them fill out the form.
Eat lunch. As in YOU. You need to fuel your body because you will crash and burn.
BEFORE the first day, make all of your copies for the week and have as much prepared as possible.
If your school allows, take an extra recess the first two weeks. Students are making friends and play is an important part of that. It also breaks up the day for them, which already feels like forever.
Use GoNoodle for brain breaks. You shouldn’t expect your kids to just sit for more than five minutes unless they are SO engaged, which is unlikely. Remember, they have to build up STAMINA for everything. Sitting. Listening. Everything. GoNoodle is a FREE resource for teachers that you will LOVE!
Do not, I repeat, Do NOT put too much pressure on yourself. You may plan to do ten things a day but honestly, you will only get three things done. That is okay. Follow your kids! The work you put in on the first few weeks of school lays the foundation for the entire year. It’s super important you give them time to settle in and build relationships with you and their peers.
**If you are looking for help with the first few weeks of school, check out my new Survival Kit. I’ve included everything I would do during the few month of school to help you get a great start! Check out the previews below.
Best of luck for the new school year. I know you are going to ROCK IT! Most importantly, it doesn’t matter how prepared you are, the only thing your students need is YOU. Read, laugh, play, and learn together as your grow as a classroom family. In the beginning they are not looking to be little geniuses. They are looking for love and a safety net in you. Capture their heart and they will give you their very best each and every day! It’s a beautiful thing!
Great tips! I had to laugh at the name issue. I had a student come mid year last year and they told me that the whole family just calls him”boy”, say what!! No I am not calling him “boy” we will use his given name. Sometimes parents amaze me!
~Laura
Luv My Kinders
Best suggestions I’ve read in 20yrs! Yes it’s almost identical to what we do every year but you actually published the words & sentiment I struggle to convey to strangers😉