Are you trying to enjoy your summer, but your mind is constantly thinking about how to prepare for Back to School? Don’t worry, many teachers have these thoughts, but I have some tools that can help. Don’t get me wrong, I still think about it even with these tools but it is not overwhelming. It is more of excitement knowing I will be prepared. I simply take the time to go through the different planning pages so I can get my thoughts down on paper. If there is an area I want to research or learn more about I star it and put it on a to-do list for a rainy afternoon. Then I know I am prepared and can enjoy my summer with activities like going to the beach, taking a boat ride, going on vacation, or binge-watching Netflix. No matter what your relaxation style is, you need to give yourself time to relax and recharge prior to the school year starting.
If I don’t work much over the summer, you may wonder how I am prepared for the year. Well, I do work some during the summer but I always allow myself time for fun and relaxation. If I know I have items I need to prep and laminate I have a pile of items and do them when my kids are with friends, when it is raining, or when I get an urge to work a little. Usually by the end of the summer my pile is done and I didn’t stress over it at all. What’s the worst that can happen? I would just do it during my planning week or once the school year starts!
Another great resource I will provide you is a first week of school planning pack with activities you can use. I use to overwhelm myself with what my first week would look like and if I would have enough time to prep my classroom and make first week plans. Since I knew this was an area I worried about, I created a pack of activities and ideas to help me feel relaxed about my first week back at school. Better than just creating it for myself, I am sharing it with you. There are different versions of activities to make it work for different elementary grade levels. I hope after looking, you can check off first week of school plans from your to do list too!
Here are some resources that I have prepped on rainy days over the summer in past years that were LIFESAVERS during the year.
Free Graphic Organizers Print and Digital for Elementary (You will also get an email with some other FREE resources)
Classroom Decor and Organizational Resources (Just Some Ideas, but Pinterest has great ideas too!)
Literacy Centers (Kindergarten)
Poem of the Week with Lesson Plans (Kindergarten)
FREE Text Based Writing Lesson Plans (4th and 5th Grade)
Text Based Writing Yearlong Resources (Create a Writing Curriculum Binder)