Back-to-school night is a time to meet families, the tradition of welcoming parents to join educators as partners in the educational process, and more. This is an opportunity for parents and teachers to meet and connect. I’ve gathered ideas and materials to help plan the evening, ideas to encourage participation,  as well as tips to help you make the most of back-to-school night and set the tone for a successful school year.

Tip 1: Be Yourself and Breath During Back to School Night!

Even if this is not your first year of teaching, I am sure you are nervous or anxious. I know I am! I just wanted to remind you to be yourself. You are an amazing teacher. Do you know how I know that?! You are taking the time to read blog posts like this to better yourself for your students. Your students are so lucky to have you!!

BREATHE! Your student’s families are just as nervous and anxious as you are…believe me. Their child is starting a brand-new school year with a brand-new teacher. They are about to hand over their child to you for most of the day for the whole school year. They are nervous! It is ok to level with them and let them know that you are nervous/anxious too. Then you can let them know how TOTALLY excited you are for an amazing school year and how much you have been awaiting their child’s arrival!

Tip 2: Have prepared slides!

Not only will having slides make you look super prepared for back-to-school night, but it will help YOU! Since you are likely to be anxious and/or nervous when all the families come piling into your room, having slides prepared ahead of time can help with this! Whether it is a slideshow of information that plays while the families walk around or a formal presentation led by you, having slides will help you feel more prepared and ready to speak about everything you wanted to speak about.

In my TPT store, I have this set of editable slides specifically designed for meet the teacher/open house/back to school night! The editable PowerPoint comes with 300+ slides that you can add text, shapes, and images to. 

You can also easily use these slides in Google Slides:

• Drag the editable PPT file into your google drive
• Double click the file
• Press ‘open in google slides”
• File, save as google slides

If there is a heading or slide that you would like added please feel free to let me know what you want to be added, and if I have the clip art and ability, I will add it within 1 week. All you have to do is email me at rachel@engagingearlylearners.com!

Customers are LOVING this product so far: 

Check out the editable back-to-school slides today! 

Tip 3: Have a takeaway for the parents and/or students!

Lastly, have a takeaway for the parents or students. This will help them remember you, the experience, and all the information at back-to-school night! You might also like this parent-teacher conference blog post.

Here are some examples of adult takeaways:

• A copy of your presentation
• A copy of your class schedule and other important information
  • I have some FREE schedule templates for you!
• A contact card with your information on it
• If you are having a back-to-school night for parents to gain information, have that information for them to take away in a packet/folder.

Here are some examples of student takeaways:

• A small toy or ‘prize’ for the students (maybe they have to complete a scavenger hunt around the room and then they get a prize) 

My Back to School Night/Open House Setups in the past: 

2017

-I made everything

2018

-Open House kit from Teach Create Motivate   

2019 was the same setup as 2018 plus these additions

 

  

Back To School Night, Meet The Teacher Night, or Open House is an exciting night where teachers open up their classrooms to share with their new students and families. Use these tips to make the most of the back-to-school night.

My students are always engaged when they have activities involving mini erasers. They are inexpensive and available in a wide variety of shapes and styles. Thanks to the dollar section at Target, I knew I needed a new way to organize and store allllllll of the mini erasers i own! 

The snack containers from the Dollar Tree offer the perfect storage solution. I sort my mini erasers by season. The photo case containers from Michaels will hold 23 of the snack containers! This allows for maximum storage, ideal for shelves in a classroom. I can fit 6 of the photo containers on one of my shelves! This storage hack is a game changer for my classroom organization. 

These editable labels fit on the lid of the Dollar Tree snack containers. After printing the labels, laminate the whole page. Then, cut them out on the black lines. Lastly, use double sided tape to attach the labels to the inside of the lid of the container. I found the students are not touching the labels and they last longer. Some of the titles this product includes are General, Back to School, Holidays, and one for each of the seasons. There are also labels with blank titles for you to create your own. 

I cannot tell you how much this has already positively affected my classroom use of the mini erasers. These labels and containers have added an essential layer of organization to the classroom. Now my students and I can spend more time using them in our learning activities! 

Teaching a Hybrid Classroom is something most of us did not learn how to do in college. We are used to coming up with creative ways to keep tons of moving parts organized and running smoothly. Hybrid teaching has become a lot of those moving parts! Many teachers have wondered how to keep it all organized and how to have the same learning outcome for the students learning in the classroom and at home. Here are 5 tips to help you start organizing your Hybrid Classroom! 

Use Laundry Baskets As Lockers!

In hybrid classrooms, lockers and cubbies are no longer in use. Plastic laundry baskets make the perfect personal, easy-to-clean solution. These baskets are from the Dollar Tree. They are tied to each student’s desk using Zip Ties. These baskets are the perfect size to hold backpacks and water bottles! They’re also very easy to sanitize and keep clean between student use. 

Use Book Bins for School Supplies!

When a student’s workspace stays organized, it sets them up for success. To maintain an organized and clean workspace, each student was assigned a classroom number and a book bin with their number on it. These book bins are from Lakeshore and Amazon, the Numbers are from Michael’s and the Clear Adhesive Pockets are from Target. To maintain cleanliness, these Supply Book Bins should be placed at the students’ desk each morning BY THE TEACHER. This will limit the amount of contact on school supplies used by the students. 

Print Workbook Pages!

A charged device, masks, packed lunch, water bottle… There is so much for students and families to remember when learning in a hybrid classroom. One week they’re learning at home and the next they could be learning in the classroom. Only to be back at home the following week. By printing out workbook pages, students do not have to bring as much material back and forth. This all guarantees that all students will have their learning materials with them at all times. 

Use One Slideshow Per Day!

In a Hybrid Classroom, time savers are essential. One of the best tips I use daily is having one slideshow for the entire day. These slides engage the students to help create a classroom community, build routine and consistency for both learning platforms. Also within the Slideshow are links to the day’s lessons. When the lessons are linked to one place, the classroom day can flow smoothly and seamlessly. Time will not be wasted looking for the slides needed. I have included slides for countless things for Morning Meeting and other whole group lessons.

You can purchase these slides by clicking the image below!!

Get Yourself A Swivel Chair!

Last but not least is having a swivel chair! This swivel chair is a MUST in my hybrid classroom. With this swivel chair, I’m able to rotate quickly between in-person and virtual students! The kids also love it because I can push off and make my “grand entrance” to begin lessons or approach them when they have questions. 

Teachers need to lean on each other for support and assistance. This is new territory for all, so I hope that you found something that you can use in your classroom! 

Choice Boards allow for effective classroom management while developing the skills children need to be successful in and out of the classroom. These Choice Board templates offer differentiation and teacher choice for what best fits their classroom. Examples of these Choice Boards and ways to use them in the classroom are below! 

Choice Boards in the Classroom 

One way to differentiate student choice is to offer fewer choices at first. If you have a student who likes to choose the same center, then this method might be for you! After printing the Choice Board PDF place the choice boards in a dry erase sleeve. Your student can use a dry erase marker to circle their choice for the day.  The dollar store is a great place to find these sleeves. You can also find them here. 

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This option is great if you don’t want to print multiple boards. All you need to print and laminate are the center picture options and board you’d like to use for your student. By placing the center picture options with velcro, your student can choose which station they would like to go to by removing the other card. You have the ability to have up to nine rotations with these choice boards.

The Choice Board to the right is one of the versions that was created to help with students traveling from one station to another or to conserve desk space.

Another way to organize your student’s choice board is with a laminated file folder. Simply print out the choice board you’d like to use with the My Choices PDF. Then glue the My Choices pages to the inside of the folder and the Choice Board PDF to the outside. After you laminate the folder, add velcro to the inside and outside of the laminated folder. On the inside of the file folder, you can have all of the choices your student can choose from. They put their center choices on the front of the file folder. This is what they can carry with them from one center to the next. 

Daily Reports 

Students write their choices on their checklist and this checklist is sent home everyday. You can also keep a copy of these for your records. This allows you to track when your student goes to each center. 

There is also a “Look at Me” certificate that students can earn as well! This could be earned if the student completes their centers and uphold classroom expectations. Simply staple the certificate to their “Today I Chose…” checklist. 

Hopefully these Choice Board Templates are the solution you were hoping for in having differentiated and effective classroom management during centers! I’ve had lots of success with Choice Boards in my classroom and I’m hoping the same happens for you too!