One of the most important steps a teacher can take is making sure the classroom is equipped for new students—assuming your school district allows you early access. If you’re allowed, here is a checklist of ways to suitably set up the classroom.
The Basics
It’s easy to get worked up and fret over all of the details, but you can’t forget about the basics! Make sure you stockpile pens, pencils, paper, and other tools your students may need.
Personalize
The basics are important, but so is allowing your personality to shine through in the classroom. Find posters, art, and trinkets that will help your students connect to the human at the head of the classroom and foster a better learning environment.
Organize
With all of the papers, homework, and other assignments and handouts, organizing your classroom will be very important. Stock up on file folders, dividers, file storage boxes, and other items to keep all your students’ work organized.
Decorate
This is typically more applicable to younger classrooms, but any educator can make their classroom fun with classroom decor! You can find a number of objects that provide a charming flair such as decorative desk name plates, silly hand pointers for the chalk board, or even awards and certificates for well-behaved students. These items not only decorate the room, they make the classroom and learning process more fun!
Getting to Know Your Students
Normally, elementary school teachers will be provided a list of the students they’ll have for the upcoming year. A nice touch would be to send out emails to all of the parents introducing yourself and expressing your enthusiasm for having their children in your class. This will provide a sense of comfort to parents and also provide you with an opportunity to list any materials that will be helpful for your lesson plan.
If you’re teaching older students or won’t be getting a dedicated class, you can also learn about your students from teachers who taught them the previous year. They can let you know what the students were like, who might challenge you, who will be easier to teach, as well as other helpful insights.
Compile Your Supplies
Last—but definitely not least—is to make sure you have all the supplies you need for yourself. It’s essential to assemble the lesson planners, grade books, and other materials that will help you plan your students’ lessons. You can find an array of materials for teachers at any store including Staples, Target, and online stores such as Quill.com.
Also, since you will be spending most of the time in the classroom, you need to make sure you feel at ease while there. Bring in anything that can help you de-stress while working because youre relaxed composure will shine through your teaching style. This can include pictures of your pets and family, your favorite snacks (also good to keep up your energy!), or your favorite coffee mug; if you don’t drink coffee—well, as a teacher it might not be a bad idea to start!
With a little forethought and preparation, you can make your classroom and yourself ready to take on the new school year in stride!
Krista Wolfe
Quill.com Contributing Writer
Krista Wolfe is a marketing project manager for Quill.com where she writes to help small businesses, teachers and healthcare professionals make more informed decisions on office essentials. She also writes on our new community blog, Café Quill, about a wide range of business matters such as leadership, productivity and work-life balancing. Krista lives in Chicago and you can find her on Google+ or LinkedIN.