Back 2 School Link Up: Parent Communication

It has been a busy week… I started moving into my brand new building. All of the teaches are busy setting up their new classrooms. August is always a whirlwind, but I feel like it especially will be this year.

That being said, I haven’t had a chance to announce last week’s giveaway winner. So, drum roll please…

Debbie, Jessica will be emailing you about getting your gift card!

As I am gearing up for my first day on Monday one thing I always think about and prepare for is parent communication. So, this week Notes from the Portable and I are sharing some of our favorite ideas for communicating with your student’s parents.

I have a communication notebook with a divider and clear page protector for each child. In front of the page protector I put this sheet:

I use this simple form to keep track of how often, when, how, and about what I contacted parents. It makes recording these things super easy. In the page protector I put any absence notes, tardy slips, and conduct referrals.  Want this form? See below how you can get this communication log plus many other amazing beginning of the year resources for FREE below.

 

 

I also make sure to print out any email correspondences between myself and parents. I store these behind their communication log.  It is always good to cover your rear-end. ;)

Another thing I like to do is call my parents at some point during the first week of school. This helps establish a positive relationship, and makes those not-so-fun conversations a little easier.

This week we are giving away our Teacher Time Savers: Everything You Need for the Beginning of the Year pack, plus any item you want from each of our stores! That’s 3 fantastic products all for FREE!! Just enter below…

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Back 2 School - Getting to Know You Activities

Time to start planning those back to school activities! This week Notes from the Portable and I are sharing some of our favorite getting to know you activities and games.

Getting to know your students is important. Knowing their likes and hobbies will allow you to engage them throughout the year.... if Little Johnny loves baseball he will enjoy solving baseball themed word problems in math.

One 'get to know you' activity that I love is NAME ART. It is a minimum prep activity (love that too!). All I do it type my students name in bubble letters using Power Point.

Print their names out and have them decorate the letters with things the love. While they are working on this you will have a few minutes to do those tedious first week tasks (you know- organizing 20 packs of paper so they fit in your cabinet). Then, when everyone is done have the students share their name art. I like to hang their name art somewhere in the room.

 

Another good and time consuming activity I have my students do is an All About Me banner. Each kid decorates a pennant, then they share it with the class. I take there picture with this frame and they put it on the pennant. Then, I string the pennants into a banner and hang it in the hallway.  You can download these banners HERE!

 

 

Lastly, now that you have gotten to know you students, now it is time for them to get to know you! I like to play a little game... 25 Facts About Your Teacher! I tell the students 25 facts about me, and when I am done I try to see if they can remember them all. I have played the 'game' several ways...

 *Students can call out facts until you get to 25

*Students can work in pairs/groups to list as many as they can

*Students can list as many as they can on their own - see who can list the most.

I created a Power Point that I use to share my facts. This ensures I won't forget a fact as I am introducing myself and allows me to quickly check off the facts that they can remember.
You can download this editable template HERE for FREE!!

 

Of course, we have another great prize this week... a $25 Michael's gift card! Enter below!

 

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And the Winner Is....

Thanks to all of the people that entered our $25 Target Gift Card Giveaway! Notes from the Portable and I have randomly selected a winner....

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We hope you will join us again this Thursday for another Back to School Link Up and of course, another fun give away!!

Back2School Link Up: Procedures & Policies

What procedures and policies do you teach at the beginning of the year? I am excited to read about what you all do as I link up with Notes from the Portable for another week of our Back 2 School Link Up!

 

The first procedure I have to share is one that makes my skin crawl. Yes, the dreaded pencil sharpener!  I HATE it, absolutely HATE the sound of the pencil sharpener! My students are not allowed to use it during the day.

How do I enforce this? By always having sharpened pencils ready! I bought these cups last summer and use two for pencils… one for SHARP and one for DULL.

So, when your pencil is dull you exchange it for a sharp one. This procedure takes A LOT of practice. Many kids want to just put the dull one in their desk and get a new pencil. Well, that causes a problem. At the end of the day, when my trustworthy students go to sharpen the pencils, there won’t be many in the dull cup. There is no trick to perfecting this procedure, just lots of practice and reminders.

 

The next procedure I start teaching early on the first day of school. Lining up is a very important procedure. I am not talking about lining up in a certain order, I am talking about lining up in a proper line.

I refuse to be that teacher who can’t control her line. I want my students to be able to walk nicely down the hallway without me and especially when I am absent.

We start by lining up in the classroom and reviewing expectation for a line. I like a 4S line. Straight, Still, Silent, and Smiling!

 

 

I hang this cute poster by our door. I say “Show me a 4S line” and the students hold up 4 fingers. As I say each S, if they are doing that thing then they put their finger down.  You can get this cute poster HERE in our Teaching Tips: Everything You Need for Back to School Pack.

When we are ready to venture into the hallway the 4S line should continue. I teach my students the first week where to stop in the hallway, that way they are never too far from me. Practice makes better, so we practice our 4S line a lot the first week by touring the school.

Another procedure I am pretty strict with is our bathroom sign out.

Let me start by saying that my students can use the bathroom whenever they want unless I am teaching or they are in a small group with me. I teach them to hold up a 1 with their finger to signal they need to use the restroom. No interruptions, which is especially important when I have a small group with me.

 Our school has a policy that students must sign out before going to the bathroom, but this is something I have always done.

Why? Because I can quickly check to see where a child is in case of a fire drill or emergency. But won’t you remember you gave them permission? No! I’ll give them permission and go back to who I was working with.  I print this simple sign out sheet and stick in on a clipboard.  This sign out sheet is also available I our Teaching Tips: Everything You Need for Back to School Pack.

 

 

Want to know more about the procedures and policies Notes from the Portable and I teach at the beginning of the year? Check out our Teaching Tips: Everything You Need for Back to School pack in m TPT store {HERE}.

 

Now, for some real fun! This week you have a chance to win a $25 Target eGift Card! Enter below!

Giveaway will close Monday evening.

 

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A Giveaway Winner and Looking Forward!

Thanks to everyone that entered our first Back2School Link Up Giveaway yesterday!

A winner has been randomly selected, and drum roll please....

 

 

Shannon, I will be emailing you your gift card in the next few minutes.

 

I hope you will join Notes from the Portable and I again next Thursday for another link up and giveaway.  What procedures are vital to classroom flow? What policies do you teach and enforce?

 

 

Back2School - Organization

I am thrilled to kick off a new link-up series hosted by yours truly and Jessica from Notes from the Portable!

I admit I am a little OCD... everything has a home! And no, I don't mean to just shove everything into your desk. Ugh, there is nothing more that I hate more than a disorganized desk. I hate it so much that I switched to table last year. Next year, unfortunately, I will be back to using desks because our school is moving to a temporary location while they bulldoze and rebuild.

Anyways, I try to teach my students that EVERYTHING HAS A HOME from day one. So, where does everything go? Let me show you.

There are some organization strategies that I initiated last year with tables, that I think will really help prevent the dreaded messy desk.

Raise your hand if your kids lose their crayons in their desk. Yup, it is bound to happen. Well, I have a solution. Snack packs!

I buy these from the Dollar Tree each summer. They fit a box of crayons perfectly. They close tight, so crayons won't be floating around their desk. I keep extra crayons in the back of the room in case they do break or lose a certain color (see the picture at the bottom).

Speaking of supplies getting lost in desks, my next tip is one I think many teachers use. Table caddies! I teach students the first week of school what lives in each compartment. I have to reiterate this over and over the first few weeks, but eventually they keep it organized on their own. Now, just because these are on the tables does not mean they are "community" supplies. I write student's name on markers, colored pencils, and scissors. Glue sticks and pencils are "community" supplies.
Table caddies just help keep things out of their desks and keep things organized.

Another way to help keep desks organized is to provide an extra place for storage. And if you use tables, this is a simple way to create a storage space. 

I placed these "bookshelves" at the end of each table for easy access. Students wee able to store those never used textbooks, workbooks, journals, and unfinished work folders. Those white magazine boxes are perfect and cheap... Get them at IKEA, 5 for $1.99!

Lastly, I highly suggest making extra supplies accessible. I create a central zone for student cubbies, extra supplies, completed work, pencils, and extra work. Students quickly learn that if they need something they just go to that counter.

 Now, let's have some real fun! Want a $50.00 TPT gift card? Simply enter to win below! Giveaway closes July 17th and the winner will be announced here Saturday morning. :) Good luck!