4 Tips for a Successful School Year for Teachers

I was given some advice years ago that I’ve never forgotten. 

The advice actually applies to everything in life, including your classroom, relationships with others, and your personal life.

Here it is:

Start the way you want to end. 

In other words, if you have expectations, you be intentional in establishing them in the beginning - or it will be hard to change a habit or custom later. For example, if you want your children to clean up after play time, you need to teach them that when they are first able to start picking up. Once they are teens, establishing that expectation will be harder.

We have to set clear expectations for our students at the beginning of the year so they know what we expect them to do. This way there is less confusion on their part - and less frustration on your part. 

By starting your school year with intention, you set up your students to succeed! Most of my students would meet the expectations given to them when those expectations were fully understood and agreed upon at the beginning of the school year. 

By setting clear expectations and rules for your classroom, you create a safe and welcoming environment for your students to learn and grow.

As you prepare to begin a new year, remember these four tips for being intentional in your classroom for a successful school year.

How To Start The Year Intentionally 

1. Have Students Create A Classroom Constitution

Some teachers like to have students help create the classroom rules. If you don’t want to do that, you can have students help create a classroom constitution instead! 

A classroom constitution is a kind of creed; it dictates how the classroom will interact with each other, with you as the teacher, and with the content they learn. 

Having students take part in deciding these rules and expectations can help them take ownership of their classroom environment. 

You can give students varying levels of control over the constitution depending on the grade level you teach. You might not want to take everything they say and write it down, but you can acknowledge and discuss their ideas.

When you have students participate in creating a classroom constitution, they will begin the year feeling heard and valued.

2. Ensure That Your Rules Are Clear, Concise, And Select

A HUGE part of starting your school year intentionally is having a clear set of classroom rules for your students to follow. 

It is vital that your rules are clear and concise! 

Students shouldn’t have to look at a long list of confusing rules and wonder what they really mean. 

Think of it like this: telephone numbers are broken into chunks of three or four numbers, because that is about how much people can retain in a chunk. Limiting rules to three or four simple yet global concepts will help students actually remember them.

Instead of having a million rules like no bullying and talk quietly during work time, a simple rule of be respectful can cover all of those issues.

With that in mind, make sure your rules are easily understood by your students (which means you may have to reword them when switching grade levels.)

3. Leave Room For Student Feedback

Doesn’t everyone want to be heard? 

I know I do! 

When we leave room for students to give feedback on how they feel in the classroom, we set up a safe place for them to be honest. 

Maybe your feedback looks like a suggestion box or a notebook where students can write their feedback anonymously. Leaving room for feedback is an easy way for your students to feel like they are part of your classroom. 

4. Model, Model, Model

The keys to success are to build relationships with students and model, model, model. Every time you do something for the first time, model the expectations - even if you think it is something students should know.

One year, I had a student that had a reputation as being a very difficult kid. I positioned her desk near mine so I could frequently hear and join in discussions her table had. I’ll never forget the time she was reflecting on why she had previously gotten into so much trouble. She simply stated, “I never knew you couldn’t do that in school.”

Modeling your expectations sets everyone up for success.

The Benefits of Intentionally Starting Your Year 

When you start your year off with a classroom constitution, clear rules, and room for feedback, and lots of modeling, you are giving your students a voice and tools for success. 

When people have a voice, they feel valued and cared for. Which leads to trust, hard work, and exceeding expectations. 

When people understand thoroughly what is expected of them and feel like a valued member of a group, they are more likely to be successful - and to be willing to try something new, as their fear of failure is reduced.

Start this school year with intentionality and see how your students behave differently than other classes you’ve had!