As the start of the school year approaches, the time has finally come for you to be in charge of your own class, and in your own classroom! The prospect of preparing for the year to come can seem daunting at best, but the most important thing for any NQT to remember is that preparation is key. Make sure you have these key 5 aspects covered and you will be beginning the year with a happy classroom.
Stationery Stash
For starters you are obviously going to need to stock up on stationary, and we don’t just mean pens and pencils. A decent stapler will be a godsend when you are putting up displays, as will blu tack. Many teachers swear by having their own guillotine and staple remover to keep in their classroom so that they are ready to hand at all times, but make sure you put your name on anything you want to keep in case it goes walkabout.
Classroom Decoration
Decorating your classroom at the start of the year is a really fun opportunity to put your own personal stamp on the space. Don’t feel you have to create elaborate displays from scratch if you are not the most artistic of teachers, as these will quickly be replaced by artwork from your students anyway. For the first few weeks at least, some colourful posters and pictures can go a long way.
Wall Planner
Get set for the new school year with a calendar or planner, like the new 2017-18 Year Planner available from Teachit Primary. Featuring all of the relevant seasonal events, key holidays and festivals, the PDF contains links to corresponding resources to help ensure you have lessons covered when it comes to seasonal activities. You can download and print it out for your wall to provide an at-a-glance view of the year ahead, and even get your own template to personalise with specific dates for your class such as birthdays and school events.
Set of Named Photos
Learning the names of the children in your class as quickly as possible will make everything easier, and not just for you. If your class are also new to each other, or even if you just have a few new students, spending time playing games to help everyone learn each other’s names is a must for the first week of term.
Rewards Chart
All children can benefit from seeing visual evidence of their progress, so a rewards chart is a great motivator within the classroom. Never underestimate the power of stickers! Having a chart on display that is updated daily can really help you to keep track of everyone and can work as a handy incentive when you’re trying to promote good behaviour.
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