 Teaching is a hard profession to enter. No one can deny that. Teachers tend to have a burn out rate of 5 years. One of the best ways to help get past this is having a support system in your school. This usually starts with a mentor in the building. Most districts have a new teacher program that pairs new teachers with a mentor in their building. This mentor is the first line of defense and support for a new teacher and is an incredibility important relationship.
The quality of the mentors used in a school seem to have a direct relationship to new teachers staying in the profession and staying in that specific district. What makes a good mentor? What qualities do mentors need to have to be what they need to be for new teachers?
Our profession is very important and we should do all we can to keep quality new teachers in the profession. Having a mentor with these qualities can go a long way to helping a new teacher grow and feel welcome in their school.
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 Confession. I have the Ron Clark bug. If you don’t know who I’m talking about, here is a little preview: He did amazing things with his classroom and now he does amazing things with his school. At the heart of this success is high expectations for his students as people. He has 55 rules about behavior! He includes things like making eye contact, always saying thank you, answering questions with complete sentences, being grateful winners or losers and respecting others comments and ideas. I knew I wanted to bring some of these rules into my high school classroom but was hesitant to just lay them out with no incentive. (See the full 55 Essentials here!) Lucky for me, I work with a math teacher who has found a brilliant way to incentivize behavior change. He has a couple of major pet peeves including sprinkling the word “like” throughout conversation unnecessarily and people saying, “I have a question” when they are called on after raising their hand or calling him over for help. At the beginning of the year he tells his students his pet peeves and challenges them to not break the rules. He asks them to set a cost to pay for breaking the rules (they usually decide on a dime or quarter). At the end of the year he uses any money collected to buy pizza for his classes. The great thing is that if you don’t break any rules, you get free pizza. If you did break a rule, you had to pay for it, but you still get pizza! *If you didn’t pay, you didn’t get pizza however this doesn’t actually happen. Every year someone has donated money to wipe clean debts so that everyone has pizza. I decided to combine the two ideas this past year and it went great! I told my students about both ideas and then told them while I didn’t want to enforce all 55 rules, I wanted them to choose three as a class to focus on for the quarter. They voted to pay a quarter for any time they broke the rule and we set a date for the pizza party at the end of the year.
FAQ How did I make kids pay money? When someone broke a rule I just said, “quarter” and moved on with class. At the end of class I would tell the class that they owed money and someone would pay. Most of the time it was the person who broke the rule but I didn’t make a big point of calling someone out or bullying them in class. I am a teacher who teases light heartedly but it never became something awkward or rude. Did parents/admin get upset? Nope. I actually received two letter from parents saying that they appreciated the focus on manners! What about the students who couldn’t afford it? Like I said before, I never called out a kid for not paying and I often had students who would say they would like to wipe debts clean and pay a full dollar. I had one student donate twenty dollars near the end of the year to wipe out any debts that may exist. I really enjoyed it and so did my students. I saw a lot of them become more aware of how they treated one another and we had a great time at the party with some great stories from the year!   The BasicsName: Susie Buell Job Title: 2-3 Teacher School Location: Sundance ES/San Diego, CA Instagram: MrsBuellsRoom How did you design your classroom? What prompted you to want to arrange your room this way? Currently, I have six tables for student seating with four students at each table. They share supplies (a circular, rotating bin that houses scissors, glue sticks, pencils, and highlighters). Each student has a chair pocket to hold subject folders, interactive journals, and a personal reading book. These tables are the centered in the back half of our classroom. A carpet with 30 individual spots is the focus of the front half of the room, with my teacher chair and small easel located right next to it for read-alouds, etc. Since there are no desks, classroom textbooks are stored in crates, spaced out between book bins in our class library, which is at the front of the room, right under full length whiteboard. We also have alternative seating in that we have four bean bags, 12 scoop rockers, five laundry baskets, four yoga mats, and six seat cushions. I have a horseshoe table at the back for small groups. There is an additional table for our two classroom laptops, as well as a lowered round table for individual or small group work. Kids sit on the floor when accessing this table. I designed it this way to make the alternative seating easier. It is easier to push six group tables aside, if necessary, as opposed to moving 24 individual desks. It allows for easier group work when the students are seated, as everyone has an immediate face or shoulder partner. Collaborating is simpler. However, I am just coming to understand the difference between alternative seating and flexible seating. I am hoping to move to more authentic flexible seating this year, using the tables less and pushing some of them to the perimeter of the classroom. This would allow for more floor space for the flexible seating. I have also purchased some pilates balls with floor stands to replace some of the chairs. What are some of the important spaces in your room? What are your favorite parts of the room? What are your students’ favorite parts of the room? Important spaces are the horseshoe table for small group work and the open spaces for alternative seating. The rug area is not only an important space, but one of my favorites. They kids’ favorites include getting to choose an alternative place to work. Do your students have assigned seats? Do you rotate stations? Do students have free reign of where to go in the room? Currently, they have assigned seats, but I change the seating arrangement every 4-6 weeks. During Independent work time, they can change to one of the alternative seating options, if they would like. Have you always arranged your room this way? Have you slowly moved to this design? Have you noticed a mood change in your classroom or what are you expecting to change with this setup? The current way described is the way I have always done it, other than adding more alternative seating options. I started with the bean bags and laundry baskets in 2013-14, then added the yoga mats and seat cushions in the next year. This year, I added the scoop rockers. Kids love using the alternative seating and work to remain focused, as they know if they don’t make good choices, I get to choose their seat. It promotes responsibility. Where did you get the materials for your room?Amazon, Walmart, and Target (a teacher’s favorite bookmarks)! What else should we know about your classroom? Kids from other classrooms LOVE to come to our room, as most other rooms on our campus are set up in the traditional manner: individual desks and very little to no alternative seating. We work hard to become a family - a community - where everyone feels safe, welcome, and at home. When everyone can be their authentic self, we work and get along more effectively. Can we see more from you on social media or Teachers pay Teachers?My only active social media account right now is IG - mrsbuellsroom. I use TPT, but only as a buyer. Hoping to change that soon. :)   Whether you're feeling like this... ...or this the big day is approaching quickly!The first day of school! I don’t know about everyone else, but that day still makes me nervous every year. In the beginning it was straight up nerves but now has shifted to more nervous excitement. A new year! What will this year be like? What will the students be like? How will all of the changes I made to my curriculum work out? There is a lot of potential on that first day of school. There is a lot of prep work that goes into the first day of school and the beginning of a new year. There is the room set-up, curriculum, school and department meetings, and so many other details that work up to this day. I know that the first day looks different at different grade levels and I will admit that I really only familiar with the secondary set-up. Regardless some of it is the same and most classes are trying to get the same types of tasks done:
For the new teacher, the first day of school can definitely be a day that is filled with excitement and nerves.  Here are some tips/things to know about the first day of school:
The real trick to having a successful first day is to have activities where the focus is on the students and not the teacher only talking at them all day about rules and procedures. It’s an easy trap to fall in, especially in the secondary classroom, spending every class reviewing the class syllabus, rules and procedures of the class. This is boring for the teacher and the students.  I have tried many different things for the first day to keep the focus on them and not me. There are so many different ways to approach this and it really depends on what you want to accomplish on the first day. Pinterest, Teachers Pay Teachers, and other social media outlets are filled with different ideas for what to do on the first day of school. Here are few ideas that we like!
The first day of school is a chaotic, nerve wracking, and exciting day. Take time to enjoy it whether you are a first year teacher or veteran teacher. It is a day filled with promise, new beginnings, and new opportunities! Above are just a few ideas on how to make the most out of your first day of school. If you have any other ideas, please share them below!   Name: Erin Howley Job Title: 1st Grade Teacher School Location: New Jersey Instagram: Emphasis.On.Education How did you design your classroom? What prompted you to want to arrange your room this way? When I received my first full-time teaching job I purchased the book “Spaces and Places” by Debbie Diller. This book really helped me focus in on what areas I wanted in my classroom, how to optimize space, and how to make sure every area was student-friendly! My first task was making a list of must have spaces for students. Once I had my list I arranged and rearranged my spaces until I felt my classroom was neat, organized, purposeful, and accessible to the students. One very important aspect of my classroom is that every area has a purpose. If I have a back of a bookshelf that is visible, I make sure that I ‘spruce it up’ with paint or contact paper and make it a place to display anchor charts or student work. When I set up my bulletin boards, I make sure that they correspond with the area where students will be utilizing it the most. For example, my reading board is directly behind my small group table (which is also located near my library). My word wall and writing boards are next to one another and by our writer’s table. My math board is located where I have the math manipulatives students will use during center time. By setting up my classroom this way I feel that the students understand where to find materials and where they can access information that was already taught (on anchor charts). Another key component when setting up my room was making sure everything was easily accessible to the students. With easy accessibility, students can move from one activity to another with ease, which makes for a less chaotic classroom! Of course, the best laid plans often go astray, so I have changed my spaces over the years. Overall, the book “Spaces and Places” was a very vital component that helped me arrange my room. While the book and pictures are a little dated (it was published in 2007 and does not look like the Pinterest-perfect classrooms that you see online), it is a wonderful book that I would recommend to all new teachers! What are some of the important spaces in your room? What are your favorite parts of the room? What are your students’ favorite parts of the room? Some important places in my room are my calendar area, my classroom library, my word wall, my ‘take a break’ spot, and my small group table. My favorite parts of the room would be my classroom library and my small group table. I love seeing the students getting comfortable in the library and really focusing on their reading. I also love my small group table because I set it up so I have everything I need to meet my student’s needs in arm’s reach and I can also maintain classroom management as I can see every part of the room. My student’s favorite areas would have to be the classroom library and the calendar area. Our library has lots of fun seating which the kids love! Our calendar area is the place where we start the day with morning meeting. I know my students love coming to our calendar area and greeting each other every morning and reading our morning message. Do your students have assigned seats? Do you rotate stations? Do students have free reign of where to go in the room? My students do have assigned seats with their desks however, students do not spend a lot amount of time at their desks. Students can do work wherever best suits them and their needs, but they have their desk as a place to eat snack, complete crafts, store their materials, and if they prefer to sit there. Since I teach 1st grade sometimes I do require students to sit in their desks for certain assignments (tests, publishing writing assignments, handwriting practice etc.). I also use their desk as a space they can return to if they are off task. Students know that if they do not choose a good spot where they can focus, they will end up back at their desk. I utilize The Daily 5 in my classroom so there are 5 different centers. Unfortunately, the past 2 years I did not have a listening center, but I will be getting one from my teacher wish-list this upcoming school year! After I fully teach each center, students can choose which center they want to go to. In past years I tried keeping track of which center students went to, having students keep track of the centers they went to, or assigning centers. After much trial and error, I found that allowing students to pick works the best. The students know they are to visit each center at least once a week, and I make sure to give students reminders if they tend to only go to one specific center. This year I am going to try having students check in and set goals before we start rounds of Daily 5. This check in will just be oral and make students take responsibility for their learning! I also utilize Math Daily 3 in my classroom. Before math centers begin I have a list of all the available activities and students who are not working with me choose their center. Again, I do not keep track from day to day, but I will guide students to a different center if they repeatedly choose the same one. Have you always arranged your room this way? Have you slowly moved to this design? Have you noticed a mood change in your classroom or what are you expecting to change with this setup? When I first began teaching I had a very hard time letting go of control and giving the students choice. I always had flexible seating available, but to eliminate problems with our ‘fun seats’ I had a rotation of where students could sit that day. This worked well, but I decided that it is important that students learn to problem solve. I had to think, “What happens when the kids are on the playground and they want to go on the swings but they are all full?” They figure it out! Once I allowed students to choose I found that there weren’t as many problems as I thought and that students became more engaged. I noticed students making responsible choices and echoing things that I had taught like kindly telling a friend, “This might not be the best spot for us since I want to talk to you but should be reading.” Of course, the kids do need reminders sometimes (they are only 6)! But I can’t even count the number of times people have come into my room during centers and complimented our class on how quietly and effectively we were working! I feel like when I let the students choose their seats during The Daily 5 or Math Daily 3 I can teach my small group instruction and know that the other students are engaged and learning! Where did you get the materials for your room?
A lot of the materials I have for my room were self-bought. I brought in a butterfly chair, a disc chair, and beanbag chairs I had from my younger years. My parents and I made crate seats. I bought 2 flip couches from Walmart. I have bought countless supplies and things for organizing materials. My school district is really great with granting our teacher ‘wish lists’ but I did not start teaching in this district and my first year I did not ask for a lot of materials. This year, however, I put more on my list and it was approved! My new school district is really great with making sure we get what we want for our rooms, but since I didn’t start there I had a lot that I bought on my own. What else should we know about your classroom? I try to set my classroom up to be a home away from home. Students are expected to spend most of their day in the room so I want it to be a comfortable, cozy environment. I know that as an adult I like to have lots of different places to do work. Sometimes I’m in the mood to sit on the couch and write my lesson plans. Other times I know I will work best at my desk. Students should have these options, too! That’s why I try to make sure my room has lots of areas for students to choose from! Can we see more from you on social media or Teachers pay Teachers? Besides following me on Instagram you can find some resources I’ve made in my TpT store! I am somewhat new to TpT and don’t have too many resources up, but I am working on adding more resources as I make them! My store is https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Miss-Howley !!  An open house is typically the first chance that students and parents alike get to put a face with a name. They know that they (or their child) has been assigned to you for the year but now is you chance to put their minds at ease and give them a good idea of what to expect for the year. Depending on how well your community turns out, this may be your first impression opportunity for the majority of your students...or it may be just a few. Regardless, it is better to be prepared!
The first thing any visitor notices when they come to your open house is your classroom and you. This is not the time to be in shirts and t-shirt working on your classroom. This is your first teacher duty for the year and parents will be looking for a professional. You want your classroom to be welcoming, clean, and organized. This parent is entrusting their child to you and you want to leave them feeling confident in you. Greet them at the door and have a space designated for them to sign-in and leave contact information, any handouts you want them to give, and places for them to sit and wait in the case that you have a line. Some handouts you may want to give:
Every grade-level and school does open house differently, some may have presentations for parents and others are more of meet and greet. If you have a large group, you may have a presentation style overview of your information ready and maybe an activity that parents/students could participate in. At the secondary level it is more of a meet and greet where we get to meet with just the parents and student which makes it a lot easier to get to know them. At this point, we like to go over the handouts. At the secondary level we talk about the syllabus. The big points for us to include are how we grade and what our rules and expectations are. Communicating this to the parents now before school really gets going will help us avoid confusion about grades and discipline later on. We also discuss the supplies they may need throughout the year. We are at one-to-one schools and complete a lot of things online but ask our students to have some organizational tools like a folder, notebook, and/or binder as well as pens and pencils. Once we have gone over the handouts, we like to check in with the parents about their understanding of the school learning management system. Most of us have an online portal where parents can see their student’s grades and attendance. I like to make sure parents know they have access to this and answer any questions they may have at this time. You’ve now introduced yourself, let them know rules, procedures, what to expect, and what supplies to purchase. Give them a chance to ask questions and then help them find their next stop! Maybe they have another classroom to visit or maybe they are on their way home for the evening but your last job is to guide them in that direction! You'll be exhausted after doing this over and over but you can rest easy knowing you put your best foot forward! We hope you had a successful open house! Let us know if you tried something different that either went really well or you wish you'd never done!  Name: Amanda Carney Job Title: first grade teacher School Location: Lexington, Kentucky Instagram: KentuckyKinder How did you design your classroom? What prompted you to want to arrange your room this way? My room is arranged in pods and stations. The pods in my room are in reference to the way our student desks are arranged. As opposed to rows, we've pushed the desks together to form a large square that seats 8 students. This helps to promote a community and improves social skills in many ways. It encourages collaboration and problem solving. The stations I referenced are to aid in Daily 5. In my room, we have a shelf dedicated to Word Work, a table to hold our computers and iPads, a reading nook, a shelf dedicated to Work on Writing, and a similar setup for Math, too! By having designated areas for students to find materials, students are independent and able to begin work without question. The predictability of their materials helps every student to feel successful. I also have our classroom rug facing the board rather than laying parallel. This provides a more distinct separation from my guided reading table and also lets students have more space for their little wiggle bodies when we are at the carpet! What are some of the important spaces in your room? What are your favorite parts of the room? What are your students’ favorite parts of the room? I work hard to make sure that our class library is enjoyable for the kids...and they love it. I have a run of our weekly read alouds that students may choose from, lots of reading buddies (stuffed animals and book characters), bean bags, and pillows. The kids love to curl up with a friend and their book boxes in our nook. Do your students have assigned seats? Do you rotate stations? Do students have free reign of where to go in the room? students have assigned seats but are not required to use them all day. Essentially, students have a “home base” that they keep their pencil box and complete their morning work at when they arrive. Throughout the day, students are given a choice to work at their desk or to find a space in the classroom that they feel makes them more productive. Have you always arranged your room this way? Have you slowly moved to this design? Have you noticed a mood change in your classroom or what are you expecting to change with this setup? No, I am constantly changing my space! The space described above was the most conducive to work flow that I've seen. Students were calm, quiet, and independent. Where did you get the materials for your room? LOTS of shopping. Some materials were provided by school, however, the majority were purchased by me. I have materials from Costco, Target, Dollar Tree, Kohls, and Amazon mostly. What else should we know about your classroom? I keep a set of wooden hearts dangling at the front of the room. These three wooden hearts are attached to a ribbon and have been painted to say, “You are loved.” My grandmother made ours for us but it would be so easy for others to recreate. I frequently catch students reading the hearts and smiling. It's such a small addition to our room but is certainly a powerful one! Can we see more from you on social media or Teachers pay Teachers? Yes! My blog is kykinder.wordpress.com and my TpT is Kentucky Kinder.  |
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