The Present Teacher Podcast

How to Set Up Your Classroom the RIGHT WAY For First Year Teachers

• Helena Hains • Season 1 • Episode 99

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Are you a first year teacher wondering how to set up your classroom the right way?

In today’s podcast episode I share everything I do in order to prepare for the first week of school as a teacher, plus different strategies I use to have the first week of school planned and prepped, and how I utilize the first week of school to review old concepts and introduce my classroom management plan.


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//  ABOUT


I’m Helena, a coach for new and first-year teachers sharing knowledge on how to have a thriving career and personal life.


The Present Teacher Podcast is a resource for classroom management, classroom organization, time management, and teacher wellness. Follow along and learn how to thrive in the classroom and in life.


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Helena:

So you've just accepted your first teaching position and you're scrolling through social media Instagram, tiktok, youtube, podcasts and you're looking for a resource that will tell you how to set up your classroom as a first-year teacher. Now, what you're probably finding is a lot of different resources that have a lot of jumbled. You know random strategies and you're spending time trying to piece them together. Well, today I'm going to be showing you step-by-step, action-by-action, task-by-task, what you should be doing in order to set up your classroom as a first-year teacher. So, with that being said, let's jump in. Hey, teacher Bestie, my name is Helena and I'm the creator of the Present Teacher Podcast. I'm a first-year teacher coach and in this podcast, you are going to learn everything from simple, actionable classroom management, social learning and teacher wellness strategies. You know that impact you want to make in the classroom. We're going to make it happen here.

Helena:

Now, one of the first questions you might be thinking is what should I buy for my classroom? Now, while I can see why this is a logical question to ask when you first find out what grade you're teaching, here's something that I wish I would have considered sooner, when I was a first year teacher, and that is don't actually buy a lot of things until you've been in your classroom first. Buy a lot of things until you've been in your classroom first, meaning, don't spend hundreds of dollars grabbing materials that later you're going to find out are actually already in your classroom, reason being that money you spent on those resources could have spent towards something else. That's why I recommend, if you have a must-have, absolutely a heart's desire, want that stuff, absolutely grab them. Otherwise, feel free to make a list once you actually see your classroom. Now, there's kind of this common misconception that your classroom has to be perfectly set up, ready to go while you are teaching your first day of teaching Now, while, yes, you don't want to be prepping your school year and getting ready for the school year during the school year what I actually found to be true.

Helena:

So a little of a background story. I taught kindergarten for three years and then I switched districts to teach second grade. When I switched districts, I didn't worry about buying a bunch of stuff for my classroom. Instead, they told me I would see my classroom. I think it was back in like I don't know the middle of June and beginning of July and school started like August 1st. I waited until I could see my classroom, because I knew if I needed anything absolutely ASAP, I could always buy it on Amazon Prime for a and get a short turnaround. But also I could add as I go I would find that I was missing some things and I could slowly add to it. There wasn't this financial pressure to buy everything at first. That's why I recommend don't buy anything until you get there, don't buy a ton of things until you see your classroom, but two.

Helena:

Then start making a list based on priority. So, for example, maybe when you first get in, you realize that you actually don't have a lot of books, so you decide to spend you know $100, start building your classroom library. So I would, you know, slowly maybe do $50 a month or something like that, but and slowly start accumulating books Heads up. If you are looking for a cheap way to build your classroom library, check out secondhand stores, because typically books are a dollar. Anyways, that being said, make a list of all the things you need first, all the way down to like a wishlist or a must have, and then would be nice to have. That way you're not feeling financially pressured to buy everything at once and you're only getting the stuff you truly need from the get-go.

Helena:

The second thing I recommend doing so as a quick recap, first step is don't buy anything until you get to your classroom, unless you really want to. Once you get there, make a list of all the things you're going to need. Second thing I recommend you do is sketch out your classroom On the day that you go in to see your classroom. Take some time to sketch out what the layout of your classroom looks like. That way, when you go home and you can start setting up the different areas and sketching them out ahead of time. That way, you're not walking in the day that you set up your classroom once the floors and the walls and everything are ready and you have no idea what you're doing. So sketch them out. And, even better, I always take pictures and record a video on my phone giving a quick walkthrough in case I forgot. Ooh, is there a bulletin board on that wall or not? I forgot. That way you can refer back to it from the comfort of your couch by the pool in Cancun and Italy, wherever you are going this summer, you're not pressured to be there in the moment to lay out your classroom. So step number two sketch out your classroom.

Helena:

The third step I recommend you do is to come up with a layout based on classroom flow. Now, I like to think of the classroom like a river it's going to flow where it's least resistance. So if you have a bunch of areas set up next to each other where students are going to be tempted to talk and disrupt each other, you're going to find that you're struggling a little more with classroom management, whereas you think, okay, my students are first going to walk in, they're going to hang up and put in their cubbies. Then I want them to walk here, but I don't want them to disturb this area, so I should set up this area here. Go through the flow of your classroom and start setting up the different areas of your classroom. I do have a previous week where I talked about the different areas you should set up in your classroom. I'll make sure to link that in the description down below. But start laying out what your classroom should look like and the general flow of the classroom. This will put you one step ahead of what most teachers consider when they first start teaching and it will help your setup process be that much smoother, because now you'll have a plan when you walk in All right.

Helena:

So, as a recap, first thing I recommended you do is you don't buy anything until you get to your classroom, unless you want to. But you're making a list of all the things you need to buy and gather over the summer. You have a must-have and a wishlist. The second thing you're going to do is you're going to sketch out your classroom. The day that you go see your classroom, start taking videos, pictures and start sketching it out. The third step you're going to do is you're going to come up with the layout based on the classroom flow. Now, the fourth step you're going to do is you're going to set up different areas.

Helena:

So, now that you've came up with the flow of the classroom, you're going to go in and actually set up those areas. You have a plan now, so you're not going to walk in and think, oh my goodness, how do I lay this out? You've already done the prep work, so now you just go in manual labor and you set it up. It's going to make it that much more faster and efficient because you've already planned it out ahead of time. This is a great time to invite your friends spouses, mothers, fathers, family members, friends, family you get it to come, help you set up your classroom and you have a plan, so you already know what it should look like in each area. So you don't necessarily have to direct them as much. You can kind of just show them a plan and go from there. Side note actually, this phase is actually really fun for me. I like setting up the classroom, especially if you give yourself ample time and you plan it out ahead of time. It's kind of fun. All right.

Helena:

So after you've set up the different areas in your classroom, now you're done, right? Not exactly. There's actually more to setting up your classroom than physically setting up your classroom. The next thing I recommend you do is to plan out communication. Do you have a family night coming up? If so, start planning out your flyers and stuff ahead of time. What are you going to have there during your family night? Make sure to have that ahead of time. What first year or first week of school flyers and letters and whatnot are you going to send to families? Make sure to include that here. Make sure you have your communication with your families planned out ahead of time so when the first week of school comes you're not scrambling and borrowing and buying off TPT random resources because you don't have time to plan it out. Use this time to set it up now, once your classroom is set. So you've set up your classroom now. You have the different ways of communication planned out. Maybe you even went as far as to come up with a weekly newsletter and you've even typed some of those weeks out. That's awesome. You're ahead of the game.

Helena:

Now let's talk about the next part that I wish all teachers did. I wish I could go back and do, and that is to come up with a classroom management plan. In your classroom management plan I have tons of resources talking about this. But in your classroom management plan you want to think how are you building relationships? What are the rules of the classroom? What procedures are you teaching? How often are you teaching them, when are you teaching them and which procedures are you teaching? How often are you teaching them, when are you teaching them and which procedures are you teaching? Also, you want to think about what are the natural consequences? How are you going to be proactive in managing disruptive behavior? What's the first step, the second step, the third step, the fourth step? That way, you're not tempted to give somebody 20 warnings before you step in, you have a clear cut path on how you're going to respond. This isn't being strict or mean. This is keeping you consistent so students don't feel tempted to push boundaries when you start teaching. They know exactly what's expected of them because you've taught the procedures, and then you also know how to respond to their behavior, and they know that this is going to happen if they continue. Simple as that.

Helena:

Highly recommend you plan out your classroom management plan ahead of time so that first week when students come in, you know exactly what you're teaching, you can set the tone for the year and you're strong starting off. Strong, ready to go All right. So, as a recap, first step you're going to do is don't buy anything until you get there, unless you want to make a list. Second thing you're going to sketch out your classroom. Third thing you're going to come up with a layout based on classroom flow. The first thing you're going to do is you're going to set up different areas. The fifth thing you're going to do is you're going to plan out your communication. The sixth thing you're going to do is you're going to come up with a classroom management plan. The seventh thing you are going to do is you're going to plan out the first week and or month, depending how much time you have of school.

Helena:

Now, this doesn't have to be overly in depth. You can do a quick overview of the month, what content you're teaching when. And then I recommend having at least your first week planned and prepped, ready to go. Because when you go from a relaxed state of having the whole summer to kind of chill if you've been working, you kind of chill, work at your own pace to suddenly having a schedule where things have to be by you know X, y, z, it's kind of a transition period. So you want to have those plans set out ahead of time so you're not frantically trying to plan stuff while trying to teach your students, while trying to communicate with families, while trying to be consistent with your classroom management, while trying to learn how the school runs while also teaching. You don't want to be planning during that time. So have at least a good buffer of plans and lessons prepped.

Helena:

Now I like to use themed weeks. I talked about that in previous content. I'll make sure again to put a link in the description. If you want to refer back to some themed week ideas, I like to do so after you came up with your classroom management plan. You've just planned out the first couple weeks or month of school. The last thing you're going to plan out I know there's more in a classroom setup than you thought plan out how you're going to be doing data collection or grading.

Helena:

Here's what you don't want to do. You don't want to go to Dollar Tree and get a cute basket and put file on it and set it on the desk and let your kids put every paper under the sun there. No, thank you. Here's why, unless you have a system to keep up with that pile of papers, what you may find is that pile gets higher, your amount of time to grade gets smaller and eventually you can't grade all those. So you have to get rid of some of them or, you know, it's just not a fun place to be in. So plan out your grading ahead of time. How are you wanting students to turn stuff in? When are you grading? Can you set up your grade book ahead of time so that way, when the school year starts, you already have it set up and you're not worried? Just a tidbit. So that's what I recommend doing next. All right, so I know that was a lot of steps. So here are all the steps to setting up your classroom for success over the first or over the summer.

Helena:

As a first year teacher, first thing you're going to want to do is don't buy anything until you've gotten to your classroom to see what you need, or at the very least, just the stuff you absolutely want, and then make make a list of you of the things you must get and the things that you can wait on. Second thing sketch out your classroom ahead of time. Take pictures, videos so you can refer back to it at home. Third thing come up with a layout based on the flow. Start sketching out the different areas, what the setup is going to be. That way, when you get there to set the day you set up or the couple days of the weekend you're setting up, it's simple, easy and you're not sitting there planning and doing. You can just recruit people to help you set up. Fourth thing you're going to do is actually start setting up the different areas. Fifth thing you're going to do is plan out communication with your families. How are you communicating during parent night? What does that look like, if you have one? How are you communicating the first week of school? What letters are you sending out ahead of time?

Helena:

Sixth thing I recommend doing is coming up with a classroom management plan so you can come in the first day. Everything's already prepped. You know what procedures you're teaching. You know the rules. You know how you're going to interact with disruptive behavior and be proactive to stop it from happening in the future. Then you're going to interact with disruptive behavior and be proactive to stop it from happening in the future. Then you are going. After you do that, you're going to plan out your first week of school. Now that you have your classroom management in mind, you can start using whatever procedures you're going to teach and start planning out that first week so you're not frantically planning and you can smoothly transition into the new school year.

Helena:

Next thing I recommend doing is planning out your data collection and grading. Which papers are you grading, which papers are you not? How are you having students file them so they're easier, and all that sweet stuff. Okay, if you want a resource that breaks all this down into actual pieces, I created a free ultimate classroom setup guide that wraps up the top 10 questions and or tips I have about setting up your classroom over the school year. So if you want to dive deeper and you want one spot to refer to for how to set up your classroom for success, make sure to download the Ultimate Classroom Setup Guide my gift to you as a congratulations I am so glad that you are part of this community and a one-stop shop to. Where are your classroom setup? Research, because the last thing I want you to do is spend hours of your summer researching when I can just compile the list for you.

Helena:

The next thing if you feel like you want to dive deeper with me, I have a classroom kickstart mini course that is starting very, very soon, and this is a four week program that walks new and first year teachers how to set up their classroom for success. We cover each week has a different topic, so the first one we're gonna be talking about is organizing or outlining your classroom. With the flow we talked about, we're also gonna be talking about classroom management. What does creating a classroom management plan look like? We're also gonna be talking about communication how can you communicate with families effectively? And then we also have planning how can you plan out the first two weeks of school so you can rest at ease? And the whole point of why I created this course, as opposed to maybe other ones you've seen.

Helena:

I don't want you spending your entire summer working on your classroom, unless you want to, which is why I'm doing four-week program to condense all that into four weeks. That way, the other four weeks you can spend relaxing by the pool, going to the mountains. I'm going personally to play adult Carmen. I don't like spending my entire summer working, so I don't expect you to either. So I show you my step-by-step framework on how to set that up.

Helena:

Now, if you're watching this, during the summer, I only offer one live cohort each year and that's during the summer. So if you haven't yet, make sure to get on the wait list for that, because, as someone who's on the wait list before the cohort starts, I will let you know first when there's open slots and then, second, you will get an early bird prize as a thank you for joining as one of the first people to join. So make sure you get in on the wait list. And then also the second thing if you are joining at a later time, you can still join the four-week program. It just won't be taught live. I wanted to keep this resource open year round because I recognize that some teachers are going to be starting later in the school year and they might need this resource at a different time. I just know I personally won't have the capabilities to be there for live support 24-7, 365 days. So, and if you already joined us, don't worry, you can join as many times as you want. So if you want to join us for the live cohort this year, much like last year, you're welcome to join us again if you so choose. All right. That wraps up all the steps I would do to set up for a. As a first year teacher, I would set up my classroom.

Helena:

A little bit of a last piece of advice. I want to remind you you're doing a good job. I know this can feel overwhelming. I know it can feel like you're behind. You are exactly where you're meant to be when you start. You are building the foundation of a strong school year and the beautiful thing is if you start and you start and set yourself up for success and you organize your resources and how you do stuff.

Helena:

Now, which I love to teach here at the Present Teacher what happens is each year after it gets easier, especially if you organize the stuff like I'm telling you. Next summer you won't have to make all this. You can look back, reflect and tweak on all this and make it better, but you won't have to start where you are now. The whole goal is you get better and better each year, and every year it gets easier and easier and, as someone who has switched grade levels three years in, who has, you know, taught for as many years as I have, it gets easier, it gets to be fun. You are doing an amazing job. You are going to have an amazing school year. I am so proud of you.

Helena:

Keep your head up. Remember that all you have to do is the next right step. Don't be overwhelmed by it all. Just pick what is one mission I have for today. Focus on that one thing and break it down piece by piece. All right, I believe in you. If I can do it, so can you. If the teacher next door can do it, so can you. All right, I love you. As always, remember we are stronger together and I'll see you in the next one.

Helena:

Teacher bestie Bye. Thank you so much for joining me on today's episode. I hope that you were able to take away some value that will help you thrive inside and out of the classroom. It would mean the world to me if you could take five seconds right now and leave a review on this podcast. And if you found this podcast especially helpful, make sure to take a screenshot of this episode right now and tag me on your socials to let me know you're listening. As always. Remember that we are stronger together, with all the love in the world. Helena, aka the present teacher. See you next time. Teacher bestie.

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Helena Hains-Daubenspeck

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