Joyful Learning!

Depending on your geographic location,

• you could have been in school already for over two weeks – Allison in Arizona,
• have completed one week with students – Justin in Kentucky and Kathryn in Minnesota,
• have students returning today – Julieanne in California or
• even have students waiting for floodwaters to recede like Margaret in Louisiana.

Whereever you live, the calendar is marching on, and school will soon begin.

In 2015 this back to school blog post focused on relationships and learning priorities while the 2014 post here included blogs and quotes and Lucy Calkins’ challenge to “outgrow ourselves as readers”.  And more recently, this #DigiLit Sunday post was also about planning for the new school year.

Are you prepared?  And what does that mean for you?  

Is your room ready?

Have you added some alternative seating?  Additional partner seating?  How do you allow the students to have some say and choice in the room arrangement?  What does your library look like?  Are students able to easily access books in the classroom library?

Are your first instructional days planned?

How will you greet your students?  What is your first Read Aloud going to be?  Your first mini lesson for reading workshop?  Writing workshop?  Your own first demonstration writing piece?  And what about that first poem?

“The First Day of School

I wonder if my drawing will be as good as theirs
I wonder if they’ll like me, or just be full of stares
I wonder if my teacher will look like mom or gram
And I wonder if my puppy will wonder where I am.

~Aileen Fisher”

Have you set your goals for the year?

My wish is that every child will have joyful learning every day of school that will allow him or her to grow beyond belief in reading, writing, speaking, listening, thinking, math and research (science and social studies). Each classroom will have a skilled, enthusiastic and passionate teacher who focuses on meeting the needs of the whole child!

Not sure if you are ready?  Need some more ideas?  Sarah Brown Wessling writes about her pledge to students here or check out this NEA Back to School Guide!

Are you REALLY ready?

What are your planning priorities right now?

And what about personal priorities for your very own children?  Are they starting a new school year as well?  As a student? As a teacher? As a parent?

What rituals do you share with them?

My son and I had a first day “back to school tradition” of dinner out.  Dinner out at a fancy schmantzy restaurant where we could talk about the first day of school and everything that happened away from the rush of meal prep or the stack of ever-present work.  A joyful celebration of new beginnings!

Thank you, Betsy, Beth, Dana, Deb, Kathleen, Lisa, Melanie, and Stacey for this weekly forum. Check out the writers, readers and teachers here.