- Tuesday 06 August 2024
A new school year is almost upon us – and teachers are starting to prepare their classrooms and lessons for a brand new cohort of pupils.
With so much to do, you might be wondering if there’s anything essential you haven’t thought of, or perhaps forgotten to tick off the list.
That’s where our help comes in, with this carefully curated article that is sure to set you up for success as you head into Term 1.
1. Plan and prepare as much as possible …
Summer holiday is prime time to prepare ahead as much as possible so that you can stay organised and on top of your workload.
Think about the concepts and subjects you’ll need to teach in the upcoming weeks. What can you prepare ahead right now that will save you time later?
Here are some ideas to get you thinking:
- Learning stations – what if you had four weeks' worth of maths and literacy activity rotations packed up in containers or folders, ready for pupils to use?
Even if your pupils are at a different learning level than you anticipated, you can bank these activities for later down the track, which will still buy you back time later on.
Our box sets contain a range of activity cards that can easily be used in learning stations or categorised per reading level, making it easy to prep aligned activities and resources well ahead of Term 1.
- Daily skills builders – imagine if you had a maths resource, a reading resource, and an English resource that could be used day-by-day and fill your morning timeslots, leaving you with more flexibility in the afternoons?
Even better, these resources encourage daily practice of taught concepts, as well as opportunities for consolidation and review, ensuring taught concepts are reinforced regularly.
Explore our range of skills-building resources and stock up on whole-class sets now, so that you only really have to worry about planning your afternoon lessons while feeling confident you’re covering the key learning areas that need covering.
- Create themes and routines – you might find it helpful to categorise certain days or timeslots to ensure you’ve got a balance of teaching, deepening, and assessment.
What skills need to be practised every single day? What subjects could be taught once a week on a set day? What projects and activities might you work on for multiple weeks at a time?
Block these out in a planner or calendar now so you have an outline to work with when you jump into Term 1. Even better, sign up for a free trial of Let’s teach! and use our online lesson planning platform to plan your first term in advance!
2. Set up and decorate your classroom …
How you set up your classroom now will set the tone for the entire year, and while you might change and tweak the layout as you go, you want pupils to feel welcome and supported in your classroom environment from day one.
So, create great expectations!
Consider things like the classroom desk layout, where you’ll store your lesson rotation activities and materials, where your classroom library will go and where you want to position your desk for this year.
3. Purchase items for your classroom …
Finally, what resources do you need to stock up on for the new school year?
Are you low on stationery items like whiteboard markers or classroom essentials like tissue boxes?
Do you need support with lesson planning and want to stock your classroom with a box set or a full class set of daily skills builders?
Perhaps you just want a few more posters for this year – we’ve got some great options like this set on classroom values and various educational posters on spelling or maths.
Make these purchases now so that they arrive in time for the new school year, and you have a chance to integrate them into your classroom.
Over to You
We hope you’re feeling all the more prepared for Term 1 after reading this article! Did you forget to check anything else off your list?
