As teachers, we wear many hats. Teacher, mentor, listener, event planner, cheerleader, mediator, entertainer, motivational speaker...and on and on! We also have to be good communicators. We communicate with our students every day, of course, but we also need to be mindful of communicating with our students' families on a regular basis. When you have over 100 students, it seems like a daunting task. You may wish you could email each student's family individually every other week with a kind note about their progress, but there's just not enough time. That's where a class newsletter saves the day.
Why Use a Classroom Newsletter?
A classroom newsletter serves two purposes: it saves time and it allows you to effectively and efficiently communicate with your students' families. Communication is key because we are all working as a community to support the students.
What Does a Newsletter Look Like?
This is the beautiful part - it can look however you want. Are you a creative soul with time to craft a detailed one-page (or more, wow!) letter with multiple columns and pictures? Go for it! Short on time and want to write a paragraph or two in a mass email summarizing recent class activities or upcoming due dates? That works perfectly, too. I prefer to send mine digitally to all the families with access to an email and make a paper copy for those without easy access to the internet. The main goal is that you are communicating with families and keeping them updated on what's happening in the classroom. I love the responses I get from families after I send a newsletter or email and feel that it creates a stronger community between my classroom and students' homes.
How Often Should I Send a Newsletter?
Again - you decide! While I love to aim for once a week (Fridays being my favored day), sometimes its just a bit too much to handle. If once a week seems daunting, aim for twice a month. The important part is that you are opening the lines of communication between your classroom and your students' homes. It can make a huge difference in creating a positive classroom environment and managing student behaviors when your students know that the lines of communication are open between teachers and parents.
What Information Can Be Included?
Here are some ideas to get you started:
1. Upcoming due dates
2. Overview of recent class activities
3. Pictures of student work (and students working, with parent permission!)
4. Reminders about upcoming tests
5. Study strategies
6. School-wide events
7. Requests for classroom donations
8. Student Spotlight - choose a student (or a few to ensure everyone gets chosen throughout the year) to highlight in each newsletter or email blast
9. A list of optional supplemental resources students can use at home to further their learning about your class content
10. A link to a helpful blog post that parents may find interesting as they support their child's academic success from home
Your turn! What else should our teacher community include in our frequent communication with families? Leave a comment with your thoughts to help us all grow as educators in our efforts to effectively communicate with families.
I love teaching Social Studies. I really love it. It's exciting to present historical concepts to students and find ways to make it interesting and engaging for them. I love hearing comments like, "Social Studies is my favorite class" and "Social Studies is really fun" because they often come from students who were wary of the subject at the start of the school year. Through our activities and the creation of a positive classroom environment, they find an appreciation for my favorite school subject and sometimes it even becomes their favorite subject of the year. How cool is that?!
I also love sharing my passion for teaching Social Studies and connecting with teachers like you who share that same love of learning and bringing history to life in their classrooms! But where to begin? Hint: it involves lots of freebies which are included in a FREE Introduction to Social Studies Mini Unit - 5 complete days of lessons - all activities are included - just for you!
Here are some lesson ideas for introducing the subject of social studies in your classroom:
Hook Ideas
A good hook activity is a great way to start a new lesson. It grabs students' attention and sets the scene for the unit or daily lesson. Here are some easy ideas:
1. True or False?
Write a brief series of questions about the study of history and some key terms you plan to cover. Ask students to raise their thumbs in the air (up for yes, down for no) in response to the questions. It's an easy and fun way to assess prior knowledge. You can also use mini white boards and have students collaborate in groups of 2-3 to answer true or false. After each question, you can review the right answer.
2. YouTube Videos
I love finding a great (and brief!) YouTube video to use during a lesson. Here are some of my favorites to introduce the subject of social studies:
This hook is perfect for mini whiteboards. Ask students to draw or write images, words, doodles, etc. when they think of the words "social studies" or "history". These images can spark discussions about concepts that relate to social studies!
A Word Wall
Hold up! Do you have a word wall in your classroom? If not, it's time to start. A word wall is a place to collect the important vocabulary terms you are teaching in your unit. You can even collect and keep them up all year! Word walls give students a chance to review and interact with vocabulary daily. The more students interact with vocabulary terms, the more connections they can make between ideas and build upon those concepts to better understand and make deeper connections to curriculum content.
You can make your own word wall for an Introduction to Social Studies unit or download this free resource from my TpT store! :)
Introduction to Social Studies Activities
Now that your students are hooked, it's time to dive into the unit. I've created some free resources in my TpT store - The Teacher's Prep- to help you in this endeavor!
1. Vocabulary Activities
We've already discussed the importance of vocabulary posted in a word wall - now let's talk about some activities students can complete to interact with the vocabulary in a variety of ways!
The Introduction to Social Studies Vocabulary Activities resource (it's free, too!) has three activities to use with your students. I like spreading out these activities over the course of the unit to give kids extra practice.
The first activity I typically start with is the Introduction to Social Studies Vocabulary activity in which students write the definitions for each vocabulary term. As we use the terms in class during the unit, I give them time to write a sentence using each word in the chart.
On subsequent days, there are two more activities to use - a matching activity and a crossword puzzle. Again, the more students interact with the words, the more opportunities they will have to understand the important concepts you are teaching in class!
If that sounds like activities you'd find useful in your classroom, download it here!
2. Informational Text
Ok, now it's time to dive into the heart of the unit - reading informational text! If you don't already have access to informational text or would like to supplement the resources you currently have, I've created an Introduction to Social Studies Interactive PowerPoint that is filled with informational text students can read. It also directly corresponds to a set of interactive notebook graphic organizers for student note taking.
Oh! And not only is it available in PowerPoint in an interactive format, there's also TpT Easel and Google Drive versions included, too. I've got you covered!
How do students organize their notes for this unit? In an interactive notebook! I love these graphic organizers because they consolidate student notes in one place. The graphic organizers directly correlate to all the activities I've mentioned above so far and give students the opportunity to summarize the main ideas and details they learn as they are introduced to the study of history.
I love interactive notebooks so much, I made complete sets for Ancient History, American History and Civics / American Government ... in both paper and digital formats. You can check them out by clicking on the links in the last sentence!
Last (for now!) but certainly not least are task cards. Task cards can be used as bell ringers, entrance tickets, exit tickets, station work and more! I alternate their use based on my class needs of the day, but they include brief writing prompts to encourage students to think critically about the content they are learning in class.
If task cards seem like something you'd like to add to your Introduction to Social Studies unit, click here to download a free resource of them from my TpT store!
And Finally...
Thank you for all you do for your students to bring history to life in your classroom and engage students in topics that will foster a love of learning. I hope these resources make your life a bit easier and save you valuable time in the school year.
I absolutely love hearing from teachers like you. If you find the resources useful in your classroom, I invite you to leave me a note in the feedback sections and let me know how you used the activities in your classroom. I read every word and your notes mean so much to me!
Happy Teaching!
Oh, and here's a link (click here!) directly to a page in my TpT store that lists all of these free resources in case you don't want to scroll back through the post. :)
Every year in July I am drawn like a kid in a candy shop to the classroom décor section of any store. I can't help myself - it's just so exciting to imagine how my classroom will look when I return to school! While I'm definitely not rushing my summer vacation away by any means, there's just something special about the beginning of the school year that makes me smile...and begin envisioning how my classroom will look when my students first walk in the door.
If you teach middle school students, like me, there's just one little issue. All of those decorations are adorable...but definitely not designed for older kids. I love decorating my classroom and making it feel warm and inviting, but I also want to fill it with items not only themed to my curriculum, but that also add value to my students' academic lives.
If this is a dilemma you're facing, too, here are some ideas to use in your classroom this year:
1. Flags and Bunting Summer is a great time to purchase flags and bunting in the United States because there are always Fourth of July sales! I love running to Michaels, Target or Hobby Lobby after the holiday and grabbing new decorations for my classroom when I'm teaching American History or American Government. Flags and bunting are perfect for hanging around the classroom, on bulletin boards or over windows to easily make the classroom feel "homey" and themed to your year's curriculum! You can also make your own if you want a different color or pattern to match your personal classroom style.
2. Posters
Posters are a great way to decorate your classroom with your curriculum theme of the year while providing value to your students' learning. I've collected a few posters over the years like a copy of the Constitution, some motivational quotes and other history-related content. This year, I'm adding new posters to my decor. I had a ton of fun making them and I'm excited to continually reinforce these two questions: What is History? and Why Study History? There are three different sets, so if you are teaching American History, American Government / Civics or Ancient History, check them out! :)
3. Pictures
I love using pictures in my classroom! A small selection of personal pictures near your desk can help students see people and places that are important to you. I also love taking photos of students learning in my classroom, on field trips, as a class, etc. and posting them around the room. It really helps students to "own" the space and makes it feel personal to us for the school year!
4. Word Walls
A word wall is a portion of your classroom dedicated to showcasing the vocabulary you are teaching. The more students see and interact with content vocabulary, the better they will understand what it means and how it relates to their current studies. You can write these words on a white board or type and print them out to post in your classroom. I love using word walls that include images and definitions to reinforce what is being taught in the classroom. If you are looking for easy print-and-go resources, check out the Word Wall section of my TpT store. The word wall resources are organized by unit so you can find what you need! :)
5. Student Projects / Work
I've saved the best for last! Student work is always the best "decoration" I can have in my classroom. Whenever I add new work to my walls or change a display, students are always keen to walk over at the beginning of class to see what is posted. As such, I always make sure to try and feature all the kids' art/projects/work at some point during the school year so that everyone gets the recognition they deserve! :) It also serves as a great example of what we've learned in recent units when visitors walk through our classroom.
What other décor ideas do you have? I'm always on the look out for creative ideas for the classroom and I'm sure others are as well! Add your ideas to the comments - I'd love to read them! :)
It's the first day of school. Whether you've welcomed students into your classroom for many years or it's your first year ever, it's always exciting (and sometimes a bit terrifying!) to meet so many new students at the start of the year. You know you're going to spend the next year together and making a good first impression is the key to getting started on the right note. Here are 5 ideas to take with you into the new school year:
Tip #1: Over Plan
In one of my first years as a teacher, I made the mistake of under planning for the first day of school. I worked so hard to make everything perfect but I didn't anticipate how fast some of the activities would be completed. As a result, I found myself looking up at the clock and seeing 15 minutes left of class staring back at me...along with 22 faces waiting to see what I had planned for them for the rest of class. Oops. I quickly added a small review game, but I felt so disorganized. I had put so much thought into the first day of school but had made a classic rookie mistake. With that in mind, my first advice for you is to over plan. Have a back-up activity or two already prepared in case you find yourself with some wiggle room at the end of class. If students see that you have fully prepared for their arrival on Day 1, you'll already be off to a great start.
Tip #2: Make a Seating Chart
I'm sure there are some benefits in allowing students to sit wherever they'd like on the first day of school, but it is definitely not a strategy that works for me! There are two big reasons I have a seating chart posted right when they walk into the classroom: it establishes order and parameters on Day 1 and I can call them by their name when we start our activities. I love seeing student's faces when I call them by their name within 5 minutes of entering my classroom. It immediately starts establishing the positive classroom community I strive to create in my classroom. They know my name and I know theirs! It shows them that I care about them as individuals. (And yes, I do keep a seating chart in my hand or nearby so I can discreetly refer to it during class - it takes me a few days to memorize all those new student names!) Having a seating chart also demonstrates that the classroom is organized and a plan is in place for their learning. It sets the stage for a great school year right away.
Tip #3: Change it Up
I've made the mistake of spending half the class period (or more!) discussing my syllabus, classroom rules, procedures, etc. Talk about a BORING first day for the kids! Now, I change it up and make a point to select 3 or 4 different activities for an hour-long class. I usually start with a small icebreaker that doesn't put kids on the spot. Then I give kids my welcome letter which introduces them to the class and review over the parts I think are most important on Day 1. Then, we review some class rules and end with a few games / activities to get them talking and moving around. I spread out my classroom rules, procedures, syllabus, etc. over the first 2-3 days of school so as to not overwhelm the kids with too much information all at one time. They will appreciate you for it!
P.S. If you're looking for some fun digital activities for the first week of school, check out some of my favorites here!
Tip #4: Choose a Game (or two!)
I love to host a game or two on the first day of school! Also called icebreakers, these fun little games or activities encourage students to communicate with each other and helps you learn more about their personalities right from the start.
Side note: Icebreakers can make...or break...a child's confidence in your class on Day 1. Seriously. I love a good icebreaker, but never want to put a child in a position where they feel uncomfortable on the first day - this is the opposite of my goal of building a positive classroom community! This means I make sure to choose icebreakers that aren't going to put a singular student "on the spot" (like a solo skit/charades or solo public speaking role). Ultimately, it depends on the class and you know your students best, but sometimes those types of icebreakers are better left for later in the year when students know each other better and feel more comfortable in your classroom.
That being said, here are some of my favorites. (Some of these can be found in my Back to School Activity resources on TpT!) Check them out here for sixth, seventh and eighth grade:
InstaFriend: This activity gets students moving around the room and interviewing classmates! Their InstaFriend paper has a series of descriptions and characteristics. When they find a student who matches the description, they write their name on the box. Each name can only be used once!
Right or Wrong: This activity is perfect for a class who loves skits. These skits are centered around our class rules, expectations and procedures. I first divide students into small groups of 2-3. Each group then randomly receives one of our class procedures or expectations. As a group, they have to work together to create two mini skits - one showing the RIGHT way to follow the expectation, the other showing the WRONG way. Hilarity ensues when showing the wrong way to follow a class rule. After each skit, I point out all the positive behaviors as well as reinforce the correct ways to conduct ourselves in the classroom.
Online Games: Something new I tried last year was a great success: taking the classroom rules, procedures, policies, syllabus information, etc. and turning them into a fun online review game at the end of the week! The kids LOVED the games and it was a fun way to review. Some of my current favorite game websites are Blooket, Quizlet, Kahoot and Gimkit.
Tip #5: Dress for Success
Every individual teacher has their own preference for clothes, so this is not a tip about wearing particular types of clothes or styles on the first day of school - just advice recommending that you dress to impress in a way that fits your style. When students walk into the room, they are making a first impression of you. What will it be? I make sure to dress teacher-professional that day because I want my students to see not only my classroom neat and organized, but also my appearance. My main goal is to convey that I take my time at school and their learning seriously and that I am organized and will conduct myself as someone who is approachable and professional. What you wear conveys your personality - both on a personal and professional note - to your students. They are watching carefully!
There are SO many things to think about as you prepare for the first day of school. If you were creating your own list of 5 things every middle school teacher should do on the first day of school, what would it say? Add your thoughts to the comments section to help other teachers ace that first day, too! :)
