Meet the Teacher is such an important event for our students and their families. It's so easy to get busy and miss someone or have a family monopolize our time. As teachers, we want everyone to have a good experience.

How do we make Meet the Teacher an event that makes all of our students and their families feel welcome, seen and comfortable in their new classroom?

Some of the things I have ready for families and students at Meet the Teacher are:

A Plan for Everything

1. Greet everyone at the door with a class list [check them off as they come in]. Hand each student a Meet the Teacher flyer and printed steps to complete in the room [a scavenger hunt, checklist or a map to follow]. Have a quick greeting ready that you'll say to everyone. This lets them know you are excited they came, get them on track and move them along.

2. Have an exit line. You have to prepare for excusing yourself quickly from long, personal conversations and monopolizers. I like: "I don't want to take any more of...

Using books to teach or enhance lessons brings a richness to everything we teach and makes the lessons more memorable. Stories embed in our memories better than facts alone. One of the things all of these books have in common is they teach a lesson in a fun way without being preachy. Each book can be used to teach about reading and writing as well.

I put a few suggestions for writing by each book. There are certainly plenty of other ways to use them, but these are a start. All of these books can be used for ideas for writing- new ending or beginning, write about a similar topic or from a different point of view, compare/contrast these characters to themselves, retelling, beginning, middle and end... This is a good place to begin the year in our writing instruction to get student started and be successful right away.

School

Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes (using type style and size effectively, sentence fluency)

Lily's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes (ideas,...

BOOKS, BOOKS AND MORE BOOKS.

You'd think I would've had enough of picture books after so many years of teaching elementary school and raising 5 kids. I haven't. Here's the thing... even my kids still read [and love] the new picture books (and chapter books) I bring home. They have an opinion on all of them, too. 

My love of books, especially picture books, began young in the children's section of our local public library. My mom is an avid reader and library user. So, I've been going to the library from the time I was born. I've had a lot of 'favorite' books over the years, but you never forget your first real love. 

THE MARSHMALLOW GHOSTS WAS THE FIRST BOOK I FELL IN LOVE WITH.

It wasn't ground breaking, particularly moral instilling or really anything special in and of itself. Most kids my age probably never read it. It just captured MY imagination. So, I checked it out every time it was available for an entire year. My poor mother read that thing...

Today is inspiration day!

Sometimes you need a bit of inspiration and Pinterest works, but I actually love Instagram just as much. Here are a few creative souls on Instagram. While there are tons of other great teachers on Instagram, these are a few you might not have encountered. 

@keslerscience

Chris does such a great job of showing what he is doing in science.

@nittygrittyscience

If you are looking for some great ideas for making science come alive, this is the place to be.

@hellojenjones

Jen's creativity, energy and ideas are fabulous! I especially love how she shares the inspiration she gets from others too!

@applesandabcs

So many great ideas for dealing with the "details". 

@thechattylibrarian

Susan has such a love of books and reading. I'm loving her book suggestions. If you message her, she'll give you a list of ideas for whatever you are teaching!

@deepspacesparkle

Her art ideas and lessons are worth checking out! She makes everything so easy, even for...

Teacher tired is a real thing.

No one, except another teacher, can understand that kind of tired. Add in a family and suddenly, the teacher tired gets through the roof.

Teachers, I'm just going to say it.... You HAVE to take care of yourself! It's just not an option to keep putting yourself last. There is a reason the airlines tell us to put on own masks on first. You can't help anyone else if you can't breathe! Let's face it, we can't being our best selves when we don't take care of ourselves.

I know what you are going to say... you feel guilty about taking time for yourself when you have so much to do. Plus, you have parent guilt about not spending enough time with your family because you are always "working" on the stuff you bring home. You can't go on that way. Let me just point out one teeny, tiny thing... that Teacher Tired has a lot to do with lack of sleep, guilt,  and caretaker burnt out.

It's time to make a pact. Repeat after me...

I, (state your name),...

Every summer when my kids were little, they would head outdoors and investigate nature. So one summer, I made them a "field notebook and kit". Oh my goodness! Was this ever a hit in the neighborhood! 

Granted, we lived in Colorado where wildlife roamed, even through the suburbs. But my youngest still drags it out from time to time here in Florida. Your investigation site can be as small as a backyard or large as a park or beach. 

It's amazing what kids will find when they slow down and really look with an investigator's eye. These kits are easy to make and can be used with groups of students, sent home as a family project or used with your own kids. They're great for some summer learning that's still tons of fun, too. 

Here's my kit's contents:

• Zippered (heavy duty) plastic pencil pouch

• Local or regional field guide

• string

• scissors

• baggies- various sizes

• magnifying glass

• colored pencils + regular pencil

• sharpener

• eraser

• sharpie

• wet wipes (a...

My summer has begun! That's why I'm sitting here making a plan and setting goals for back-to-school prep and planning.

I can just hear you... "Planning for Back-to-School? Lisa, wait. We're just heading into June! Goals for back-to-school? I just got done with this year! What are you talking about? I'm going to soak up some rays and chill. I got it covered. No plan needed. Right?"

You Deserve a Break

YES! I'm all for a break - 100%. Actually, I insist that the teachers I work with commit to taking a long break over the summer. But at some point, prep for back-to-school has to begin. Start your summer with a quick plan for Back-to-School, so you can relax. Knowing where you are going to begin at the end of the summer will help make you less stressed and be super productive later.

You'll be the together teacher come fall if you do a plan now for what needs to get done at the end of your summer. Plus, you'll be able to relax, put school out of your mind for...

Here's the deal....

Be honest. Do you really ever turn off the "thinking about school" part of your brain? I don't. I think I will, but I don't. I'm always thinking and applying my personal experiences to my work. 

I can't help it. I love what I do! Teaching is not a job for me. It's my vocation. I am passionate making education fabulous for both teachers and students. But, we all need to take breaks or we'll get burned out.

So...

Here are 5 simple (non teaching) things you can do this summer that will make you a better teacher. 

1. Take a break. No. I mean a REAL break. No school talk. No professional reading. No planning for at least a month.

2. Enjoy a hobby. Pursue your hobby, whatever it is, with passion. Get really good at it.  

3. Write. Write a book or poetry. Keep a personal or spiritual journal, field journal or write letters. Whatever. Just write every day. Think about your struggles as a writer. Note where you like to write and...

Have you ever felt under-valued? Written off? Several times in my life I have had people under-estimate me. Turns out, it was their loss. I know I'm not alone in this.

True story. 

My father was voted “Least Likely to Succeed” in his High School Yearbook.  He was poor, a bit of a punk, could barely read and only stayed in school because they let him play football. He left high school intending to work on the railroad. He was bored to tears. His very good friend came home for a visit from college and brought my father an application, bugged him until he filled it out and got the registrar at the high school to send his transcripts. I’ll be forever grateful to Eddy and the school registrar for believing in my dad. 

Success

Guess who was the most successful student from that class? My dad. He went on to earn multiple degrees, head up incredible projects, travel the world and became a well-known physicist with more than 25 patents in his name.  

Oh,...

As a teacher and a mom, I have a love-hate relationship with summer homework.

(Cue record scratching.) What?! I know, right?! But, it's true. The teacher side of me knows it's important to keep learning and staying sharp over the summer. But as a parent, I also know that family time and downtime are really important, as well. I know my kids are ready to go back to school when they finally get bored with downtime. 

Let's face it, these are kids we are talking about. First off, we know that our brains need a break. Shoot, teachers need a break by the time summer comes. Imagine what is going on in our students' immature brains. 

Have you ever felt like you just counldn't do one more thing?

My aunt used to be a long-distance runner. She told me there were times she just new she was done running for the day or the week. Literally, she couldn't take one more step. Her body and brain were done. The same is true for decision making. Some executives have a...