With the beginning of the school year right the corner, it is time to start thinking about which lessons will be most valuable for our students. Starting the year on the right note and with lessons that will help your students thrive throughout the entire year is one way to set-up your students (and you) for a successful school year. These lessons are the ones that they will use throughout the entire school year and even after they leave your classroom.
One recommendation I have for planning your first few weeks is to think about and list your teaching pet peeves. If there is something that grinds your teacher gears, teach that. For example, the word “a lot” is one of mine. I cringe every single time I see a student write alot. To alleviate this issue, toward the beginning of the year I tell my students that a lot is two words. Then I write the word “a” on one side of the board and the word “lot” on the other side of the board. Then I have all of my students stand up and put their hands in the air. They wave their hands to the side written “a” and say “a.” Then they wave their hands in the air to the other side, the “lot” side and say “lot”. We probably do this for about two minutes or so, and it probably looks quite peculiar from the outside, but it works. However, as I said, it is one of my pet peeves. Figure out your top pet peeves and teach those concepts first. By doing so, you’ll significantly reduce your stress level throughout the year.
The First Week of School
I usually start my first day of school with this emotional and powerful icebreaker activity that shows my students that they are not alone. I was first introduced to this activity in a creative writing class in college, and when I became a teacher, I knew it was something I could use to begin to establish a positive and empathetic classroom community from day one.From there, I like to use the first week to get to know my students and get a feel for their ability levels. To get to know my students, I like to use some of the activities in my Back-to-School Activities Packet. One of my favorite activities is the classroom scavenger hunt because it forces students to talk to students whom they might not otherwise. I also like assigning my students a square for our classroom quilt. I usually display our quilt on the wall before back-to-school night, and the students, parents, and administration all love it. Incorporating growth mindset activities at the beginning of the year is also a great way to begin the year.
For Digital Learning, try this: SMARTePlans Digital Back to School Stations.
Email Etiquette
As I mentioned earlier, it is beneficial for teachers to think about their pet peeves when planning out the first few weeks of their curriculum, and in addition to students writing a lot as one word, I also cringe when I receive ridiculous ill-formatted emails from my students. And, to be realistic, most students probably send these terrible emails because text messaging is one of the only digital formats they know. It’s entirely possible that they’ve never received formal instruction on email etiquette and writing emails before. I created my Email Etiquette Crash Course mini-unit as a way to help students write better emails. This mini-unit includes an editable PowerPoint for teachers to use for direct instruction and many different handouts, organizers, and assignments to help students learn how to write properly formatted emails while maintaining excellent email etiquette.For Digital Learning, try this: SMARTePlans Digital Email Etiquette Lesson.