Advice to New Teachers
Smooth a few bumps on the learning curve by following this advice for new teachers.
Advice to New Teachers Is Gold
You can save yourself both headaches and heartache by following these tips for new teachers.
From classroom management to self-care to dealing with parents, colleagues, and administration, we have advice that will help your first year be the best it can be.
Personal Care
From what to wear to what to pack, this advice to new teachers will help in your first year.
Pack a Water Bottle
You are teaching, which means you talk for a living. You will be thirsty!
To stave off dehydration, bring a water bottle every day.
Get an insulated one so you can have ice water on hot days.
Water bottles with straws are also helpful so you can take a quick sip between sentences.
If you don’t like plain water, find a way you will drink it.
You can add a splash of juice or a water enhancer like Mio.
Keep a Snack on Hand
You never know when your blood sugar will plummet. Be ready for that moment by always keeping a snack in your desk drawer.
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Invest in a Mini Fridge
Mini fridges are not just for college dorms! If you have a dedicated classroom, invest in your own mini fridge.
If this is not possible, you can use the fridge in the teacher’s lounge, but label everything that belongs to you!
And prepare yourself: no one cleans that fridge.
Wear Comfortable Shoes
You will be on your feet for most of the day. Do yourself a favor and wear comfortable shoes.
(Check out this list of the best teacher shoes.)
Dress Smart But Comfortably
In the beginning, invest in a few staple items that look professional but are breathable and comfortable.
Teachers are active. You will be reaching, squatting, walking (maybe even running!), going outside, and carrying heavy bags.
Wear clothes that can handle the work!
If you feel better, you will teach better.
Dress Predictably
You need an efficient morning routine. Don’t spend extra time on your clothes.
Buy items that look good straight from the dryer (think “wrinkle-free”).
If you find a pair of pants that fits your checklist (comfortable, breathable, professional, and wrinkle-free), buy them in several colors. Do the same with shirts.
This will make planning your daily outfit a breeze.
Practice Self-Care
Your first year of teaching is challenging. It is like student teaching but without a seasoned teacher guiding you.
Your first year of teaching is draining mentally, physically, and emotionally.
While next year will be much easier, you must take care of yourself this year.
Follow these tips for self-care for teachers.
Organization and Efficiency
Any advice to new teachers should include ways to be organized and efficient.
Have Extra Worksheets for Time-Fillers
No matter how extensive your lesson plans are, there will always be extra time in the week that you need to fill.
Have sets of worksheets ready to go as last-minute time-fillers.
There is no need to make these up yourself; grab some from our Freebies Library!
If you are not a member, it’s simple and it’s free to join!
Figure Out a Planning Method that Works for You
What works for one teacher may not work for another; you must develop a system that keeps you organized.
Some teachers thrive with a paper planner (see our favorites here).
Before the school year starts, you can pre-set your planner with your school calendar, daily class schedule, and special events.
During the year, you can write a bulleted list of what you are doing in each class that day, along with what you did not get to or need to review.
Some teachers prefer to do this on a giant desk calendar. Others prefer an online planner. Find what works for you.
Find the “Sweet Spot” for Lesson Plans
Are you wondering how to lesson plan?
Remember this truth: more work upfront means less work in the end.
Backwards-design your lesson plans. First, consider your learning targets.
Then, you can go back and fill in your formative and summative assessments (mid-lesson and end-of-lesson assessments, respectively) and set up your assignments to practice the learning targets.
This does take effort, but if you do this ahead, you will know what you are doing each day, and you won’t panic.
Keep your lesson plans in a binder for each class. Then, you have room to write notes and keep your master copies in one place.
Set Up a Pattern for Learning
Run your classroom the same way each day for the first year.
Start with a bell-ringer activity (more on this later), lesson opener, instructional time, hands-on activity, etc. The components can be whatever you decide.
Whatever your pattern, stick with it each day.
You can plug the topic or skill into your existing pattern when planning lessons. This is a huge timesaver!
Setting Boundaries
You could spend 24 hours a day on this job. Obviously, you shouldn’t do that, so what do you do? You should set boundaries.
Limit Your Grading
You can quickly become overwhelmed with paperwork. In the beginning, limit yourself to hand-grading two items per week.
For everything else, rely on multiple-choice quizzes that can be auto-graded or use online assessments.
Also, consider that more work upfront often means less work in the end.
A quiz of short answer or essay prompts may take little time to whip up, but it will take you much longer to grade than a fill-in-the-blank or multiple-choice test.
Learn to Say No
In the beginning, you will want to earn points with the administration by saying yes to the extras. That’s a natural tendency.
The administration may approach you to coach a team, lead a club, or help with an extracurricular activity.
Although you want to show your value and be a team player, this is not the year to take on anything extra.
Say no, kindly but firmly. You need to find your feet in the classroom during your first year.
Don’t Overspend on Your Classroom
Don’t spend too much time or money decorating your classroom.
I know this is hard. The teacher down the hall has a Pinterest-worthy classroom. You don’t want your students to be disappointed with the room.
But a beautiful classroom does not teach your kids or help them learn. You do that.
Spend your time and effort on teaching this year. If you love decorating, save that passion for future years when you have more margin to devote to it.
Do you need some ideas for making your classroom an ideal learning environment? Check out these classroom setup ideas.
You can also preplan all your bulletin boards for the year; check out this inspiration! We have simple but effective design ideas.
Classroom Management
Without effective classroom management, your students will not learn. Follow this advice to new teachers on managing your class.
Greet Students at the Door
Classroom management begins at this moment.
Greet students with a smile and by name as they enter your classroom. You will head off most problems with this simple step.
Have a Bell-Ringer Activity
A bell-ringer is an activity students should do when they first enter class.
Post the activity right by the door and require students to complete it with a pencil and paper.
Bell-ringers can be anything from silly questions to recalling what was learned in the previous class.
This quiet time gives you a chance to take attendance and collect yourself between subjects or transition points in the day.
Overcommunicate Your Classroom Rules and Procedures
Develop a set of classroom rules and procedures and stick to them like glue.
Post them in your classroom in a highly visible spot and review them repeatedly.
Students should know exactly what will happen if they violate a classroom rule. If that happens, follow through.
If you are calm and consistent in your follow-through, you will reduce future behavioral incidents.
Perfect Your Teacher Voice
Work on your “teacher voice” when you need your students to listen.
Typically, this involves dropping your voice down and speaking slowly but firmly. This communicates to your students that you mean business.
Do not yell in your classroom. That is stressful for everyone!
Also, keep your voice from becoming high and squeaky in chaotic moments, as this shows your frustration.
Practice your slow and low teacher voice in the car when you are alone, and work on your tone.
Communication with Parents
Don’t be afraid of parents. Remember, this is a team effort, and you are on the same team.
Send Out a Classroom Newsletter
If you have younger students, you can send a weekly newsletter to parents.
If you have older students, you can send periodic emails or messages that keep parents in the loop about what is happening in class.
Get Out In Front of Issues
Immediately communicate when a student’s grades start slipping or they stop turning in assignments.
Use language that shows parents you are concerned. Use phrasing like, “I am reaching out to you so we can partner in getting Billy back on track.”
Give suggestions on ways for the student to improve their grade.
This advance notice allows parents to address the issue with the student and potentially turn the situation around.
You never want to blindside parents with a poor grade on a report card.
Find a Support System
As a first-year teacher, you need a solid support system!
Avoid the Complainers
Some of your fellow teachers may be constant complainers. They tend to find one another and bond over constantly complaining.
You do not want to be in this group. It will change your outlook on your job and bring on teacher burnout.
Subtly, try to avoid the complainers, and find friends who are positive about their job.
Collaborate
You may be a first-year teacher, but you can collaborate with other teachers to lessen everyone’s workload.
Band together with another teacher to share lessons and assignments or co-create assessments (e.g., “You write ten questions, and I will too.”).
Final Advice to New Teachers
While this advice may clear the path for a smoother year, you will still experience bumps in your first year of teaching.
Give yourself grace and learn from your mistakes.
There is always room to improve as a teacher. Set small goals for yourself each year. Try to get a little better, one small change at a time.
And focus on the positives: you are making a difference in the lives of your students!
