| You are ready to make a fresh start with a new school year.  You've learned a few tricks of the trade with past experiences, and now you are  ready to face your classroom and students again, but better. If you are a new  teacher, you want to make sure that you start off on the right foot as well.  Take a look at this guide on how to have a great school year. It's all up to  you! Preparedness is Key When you walk into your classroom at the beginning of a new  year, you will want to be sure that you are prepared for your students. Your  first few weeks of school set the stage for the rest of the year. If you are  unorganized, your students may become lax in your class. If you are orderly and  organized, your students will feel a sense of meeting your same standards. When  you and your students are in accord, you will have a great school  year. Win Your Students In today's day and time, it is more apparent that kids come  to school because they have to. If they had any other choice, they would just as  soon not go at all. This, of course, is a terrible attitude, and you must  somehow convince your students that learning is worthwhile and they are capable  of enjoying the journey. In order to do this effectively, you have to make  lessons interesting. You don't have bend over backwards to be your students'  friend instead of teacher, but you do have to make some effort to prove to them  that learning is a privilege, and they should take advantage of it. By doing  this, you will have a great school year. Mix Encouragement with Learning Students come from all different backgrounds. Some have a  healthy home life, while others are not so fortunate. Teaching has become more  than just teaching. It is now a matter of encouraging and supporting students  who feel depressed and worthless. While you want your lessons to be solid, you  must also build a foundation of encouraging your students to do their best.  There has to be the right mix between learning with good content and encouraging  students to do well. This extra effort will help you to have a great school  year. Elicit Support from the Community Knowing some of the burdens that teaching has on your time,  try eliciting the help of parents and other people in your community to help you  where they can. This may involve having a parent come in and read to children  for a while each week. It may mean asking a friend to stop in and give your  students a talk about what they do for a living, if it connects to your lesson  plan. Having people resources is a perfect way to make sure you have a great  school year. Volunteers are happy to help, and probably appreciate that you want  them involved. Taking some of the burden off your shoulders will help you to  have a great school year. Communicate with Parents Too often parents are not as connected with your child's  education as they should be. Some think that they are not welcome in the  classroom. That is the teacher's domain. Others do not think they have the time  to contribute to their child's education, so it falls solely on the teacher to  teach the kids and prepare them for the future. Don't let this happen in your  classroom. Keeping parents up-to-date on what is happening in your classroom  will help you build strong relationships with them. This is important for the  students because knowing that parents and teachers are working together to give  them best education possible, makes them feel unity with you in the classroom.  Keep parents in the loop, and you will have a great school year! Source: http://www.worksheetlibrary.com/teachingtips/greatteachingyear.html  Worksheet Library More Resources:  http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/backtoschoolthemes.htm  Back to School Themes, Lessons, Activities,  Ideas |