The New School Year

The beginning of a new school year is always exciting and a little daunting. We never know how the students in our classroom will interact together. Will their personalities mesh or clash? Will behaviour or academics be the focus of our teaching? What we expect from our students is the one thing we can know for sure. It is vitally important to develop a clear set of expectations and state them clearly for both parents and students. We can take a stand on disrespectful, hurtful and bullying behaviour right from the beginning of the school year before problems arise. We can let students know what is unacceptable and the consequences for the behaviour.

1.	It isn't always possible (if you're new to teaching, or moving to another school/board) but if you can visit the students you will have the coming year in June, it can go a long way to creating a smooth transition the coming September. Students get to put a face with a name and you can find out that the "oppositional student" you'd heard about isn't as bad as you thought. By developing a connection early you'll help many children adjust to the new school year that much faster.
2.	If it isn’t possible to visit your students in advance, get the students’ addresses and send them a friendly postcard over the summer introducing yourself and subtly laying out the behavioural expectations for the coming year (e.g. “I’m really looking forward to a classroom full of respectful, kind and hard working students. I’ve got lots of great activities planned for the first week that will help us establish a safe, respectful and fun classroom environment”).
3.	Send home a homework assignment before school starts. It could be some questions they need to answer about themselves or they might bring in an item to talk about. Some questions you might include could be related to the topic of bullying thus laying the groundwork for discussion when September arrives.
4.	Kindergarten often has a day for new students to visit. Why not do the same? Send an invitation to your upcoming students to visit your classroom one day (for an hour!) before school starts with or without their parents (depending on their age). By choosing the date and time, you give students and parents the opportunity to visit quickly before the start of school. This extra effort will go along way to establishing a positive parent-teacher-student relationship. Note: be sure you gain support and approval fro your principal, and establish a workable plan to end the visit session so you are not entertaining parents for hours beyond the designated visitation time.