It seems like you just wrapped up the year with your students. They made tremendous progress over the course of the year. The routine of the day flowed naturally, the expectations about what is and isn’t appropriate behavior is clear to them (and to you), and you left the school year feeling confident that they were ready for the challenges that lie ahead. \
Expectations of the Year Ahead
Now, you're deep into the summer, enjoying a much needed break. You're probably looking forward to your new group of students in the fall. You may even be preparing for the new year, and you may have already planned a list of wonderful first day of school activities that you hope will go off without a hitch.
First Day of School Reality
The first day of school begins, and suddenly you are met with the realization that this is not going as you had planned. Some children come in flying through the door, while others need to be pried away from their parents in hysterics. No one seems to know how to sit at their table, how to walk down the hallway, or how to clean up after an activity. Suddenly, it's clear to you that this is not at all what you had expected. You think to yourself, “Have they all lost their minds?!”
The first few days or weeks of a new school year can be rough. Speaking from personal experience, I remember very vividly saying to my friends, “Do not talk to me until October!” As much as I loved the back to school experience, I equally despised the exhaustion that I felt each day as I left my classroom. Some days I would even leave in tears feeling defeated, as if no one understood what I was going through. If you have ever felt this way, I can assure you that you are not alone.
Just as you enjoyed your summer months with no alarm clock and no real urgency to be anywhere, so did your students. They may have stayed up later than usual. Maybe they attended camp with many field trips and outings, or maybe they had a much more lax schedule. They may have gone on vacation, stayed with friends, and gotten a lot more free time than usual. It is natural and expected that they are going to need time to acclimate to back to school.
So, what can you do to make this transition easier? (Okay, who am I kidding? It’s not going to be “easy” but there are ways to make it better!).
Here are four tips for making the back to school transition easier for you and for your students.
1. Be Patient
You will get them there. Just breathe.
As the old saying goes, "Patience is a virtue." Getting angry or upset with your students is not going to do anyone any good. Remember that setting expectations and establishing a routine does not happen overnight. I often said to my coworkers, “Last year’s class was so much more on point,” until one day a co-worker stopped me and said, “You are remembering last year’s group of students in June, try to think back to how they came in August. You will get them there. Just breathe.”
Those words couldn’t have been more true.
2. Be Consistent
Throughout the school year it is important to be consistent—but never more crucial than during the first few weeks. If you expect your students to adjust to a new routine and expectations, you have to be clear on what they are. Some days you might feel like a broken record, repeating the same expectation over and over again, but as the students get more acclimated to new classroom norms, you will find yourself not having to repeat yourself so much.
It's challenging! I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that I dreamed of a product where you could push a button and have different voice prompts, such as “Please use walking feet,” or “Our hands are for helping friends—not hurting."
3. Be Sensitive
Nothing is more frustrating to hear than, “You are fine,” when you don't feel fine. Your students are filled with a variety of emotions: some happy, some sad, some frustrated, or maybe a mix of all of the above. Acknowledge their confusing emotions and ask them to share why they are feeling that way.
The new school year can be a very scary time for children. Are they going to make new friends? Will they know anybody in their class? Will they know where to go when it’s time to be picked up? There is a lot of uncertainty that may leave them feeling anxious about school. Being able to acknowledge all those emotions is important. During my years in the classroom, I invited my students to write down (or draw pictures) of something that made them happy, sad, scared, etc. This allowed me to get a better understanding of what they were feeling. It also served as an important outlet for children to express their emotions.
4. Be Kind
Expecting perfection is not a realistic goal.
Expecting perfection is not a realistic goal, especially during beginning of the school year. Don't beat yourself up about that! Knowing that some days will be better than others is important. It’s easy to beat ourselves up when things don’t go as planned. I was often guilty of this, until I decided to start journaling. At the end of each school day, I wrote down at least one positive thing about the day. Some days I had many things to write down, and other days I would write, “Johnny did not eat the glue stick today." That’s positive, right?
As back to school quickly approaches, I hope that you will take comfort knowing that we are all in this together. Find your happy place and an outlet to decompress. Take time to pamper yourself and disconnect from the stress of your day. Take a long walk outside, soak in the tub, or—if you are like me—watch HGTV and drink a glass of wine. But just one glass, because, after all, it is a school night, right?
