Latest / Teacher Approved: Elementary Teacher Tips & Strategies / 193. Why Smart Teachers Start Planning for Next Year in May

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193. Why Smart Teachers Start Planning for Next Year in May · Teacher Approved: Elementary Teacher Tips & Strategies

• 0:00
  Heidi: This is episode 193 of Teacher Approved.
• 0:06
  You're listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping
• 0:09
  educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I'm
• 0:13
  Heidi.
• 0:13
  Emily: And I'm Emily. We're the creators behind Second Story
• 0:16
  Window, where we give research based and teacher approved
• 0:19
  strategies that make teaching less stressful and more
• 0:22
  effective. You can check out the show notes and resources from
• 0:25
  each episode at secondstory window.net.
• 0:28
  Heidi: We're so glad you're tuning in today. Let's get to
• 0:31
  the show.
• 0:36
  Emily: Hey there. We're so glad you're here. In today's episode,
• 0:39
  we're sharing why now, yes, even in May, is actually the perfect
• 0:44
  time to start thinking about next school year. Plus, we've
• 0:47
  got a free tool to help you do just that without adding more to
• 0:51
  your plate right now.
• 0:53
  Heidi: Let's kick things off with the try it tomorrow, a
• 0:55
  quick win that you can try in your classroom right away.
• 0:58
  Emily, what is our idea this week?
• 0:59
  Emily: Tomorrow, try out a silent transition challenge. So
• 1:04
  choose just one transition, like lining up for lunch or switching
• 1:08
  from math to reading, and challenge your class to do it
• 1:10
  completely silently.
• 1:13
  Heidi: You can even set a timer to see how fast they can do it.
• 1:16
  Tell them their goal is to beat their best time without saying a
• 1:20
  word. It adds a little bit of fun and novelty to something
• 1:23
  that you are already doing every day.
• 1:25
  Emily: This is one of those sneaky tricks that helps clean
• 1:27
  up your transitions and adds a little end of year energy boost
• 1:31
  when you know everyone's feeling a little wiggly.
• 1:34
  Heidi: And bonus, it gives you a calm moment in your day too. So
• 1:38
  let us know how it goes.
• 1:39
  Emily: If you like this idea or anything else we share here on
• 1:42
  the podcast, you know what I'm gonna ask, would you please take
• 1:45
  a second and give us a five star rating, because ratings and
• 1:48
  reviews are one way that new listeners find us.
• 1:52
  Heidi: Today, we are talking about why May is actually the
• 1:55
  perfect time to start thinking about next school year. And we
• 1:59
  know what you're thinking. Are they crazy? I'm just trying to
• 2:02
  survive until summer.
• 2:04
  Emily: I know we get it, and we're not suggesting that you
• 2:07
  whip out a fresh teacher planner and start mapping out every
• 2:10
  minute of the first week of school right now. But there are
• 2:13
  some seriously good reasons why a little planning now can save
• 2:17
  your future self from that back to school meltdown that we all
• 2:20
  know so well.
• 2:21
  Heidi: So let's dive into it. Why is May such a smart time to
• 2:27
  start planning ahead for next school year? Well, we have got
• 2:30
  five key reasons why right now is the sweet spot for this kind
• 2:33
  of preparation, and I promise none of these reasons involve
• 2:37
  staying after school.
• 2:38
  Emily: So let's start with reason number one, your
• 2:41
  classroom pain points are crystal clear right now. We all
• 2:46
  have a mental 'the things that make me want to pull my hair
• 2:49
  out' list going on right now, right? So, whether we realize it
• 2:53
  or not, that list is in there.
• 2:55
  Heidi: Definitely. In May, you have been living with your
• 2:58
  classroom routines for what feels like forever, and you know
• 3:01
  exactly which ones make you want to scream into your Stanley Cup
• 3:04
  every morning.
• 3:05
  Emily: In the middle of May, I can pinpoint with laser
• 3:08
  precision which parts of my classroom systems are causing
• 3:11
  serious friction in my day, and it would still be fresh on your
• 3:15
  mind how that new center rotation system turned your
• 3:18
  sweet students into tiny tornadoes.
• 3:21
  Heidi: But fast forward to July, and most of that clarity has
• 3:24
  faded into a blur of Wait, what was that problem again? May
• 3:29
  gives you the rare chance to make changes based on real time
• 3:32
  insight, instead of having to rely on fuzzy memories. Our
• 3:35
  teacher brains have this magical ability to block out the painful
• 3:39
  stuff once you've had a little relaxation time.
• 3:41
  Emily: I know it's like teacher amnesia. I think it's because we
• 3:45
  wouldn't come back next school year if we remembered everything
• 3:48
  perfectly during the summer.
• 3:49
  Heidi: Oh, absolutely.
• 3:51
  Emily: And that's why, by mid summer, I'm thinking, oh, you
• 3:53
  know what, my writing workshop routine wasn't so bad, when in
• 3:57
  reality, it made me want to pull my hair out every day.
• 4:00
  Heidi: That's why the first thing we recommend is jotting
• 4:02
  down your wins, your frustrations and your don't
• 4:05
  forget those next year ideas while they are still happening.
• 4:09
  It's kind of like leaving yourself a little warning note.
• 4:12
  Dear August Heidi, do not try the paper passback system again
• 4:17
  unless you enjoy paper avalanches and tears. Love May
• 4:21
  Heidi.
• 4:23
  Emily: Throughout this episode, we're going to be mentioning our
• 4:25
  free end of year roadmap resource that can help you end
• 4:28
  this school year strong and get prepared for next year. We love
• 4:32
  the fix it list in the roadmap. It's a place to capture those
• 4:35
  thoughts before they disappear.
• 4:38
  Heidi: But another reason that May is the right time to start
• 4:40
  thinking about back to school is that you are still in your
• 4:43
  classroom.
• 4:44
  Emily: If you have ever tried to fix a classroom routine in
• 4:47
  August, you know how hard it is to remember exactly how things
• 4:50
  were set up or where you shoved that pile of math games in a
• 4:54
  spring cleaning frenzy.
• 4:56
  Heidi: But in May, you can look at your supplies and systems
• 4:59
  right now, and make smart decisions. Your classroom right
• 5:02
  now is a complete ecosystem, with everything in its perfect
• 5:05
  place, more or less, right? Your library is organized, your
• 5:09
  centers are stocked, and your walls showcase all of your
• 5:12
  brilliant teaching systems.
• 5:14
  Emily: Don't underestimate how much easier it is to make
• 5:17
  decisions and changes when your class is still set up and
• 5:20
  running like usual, versus during the summer, when you're
• 5:22
  staring at bare walls and all your stuff is piled into
• 5:25
  corners.
• 5:26
  Heidi: That is so true. Take photos now. Take photos from
• 5:30
  multiple angles, your reading corner, your small group area,
• 5:33
  how you organize your supplies. Seriously, open up your drawers
• 5:36
  and cupboards and snap a picture of how things are right now. And
• 5:40
  even if you're going to be switching rooms next year,
• 5:42
  seeing exactly what you did in your current room can make
• 5:45
  future room setup so much simpler.
• 5:47
  Emily: Absolutely. So take all the photos. And then I think
• 5:51
  it's a good idea to keep the photos in a folder or a note on
• 5:54
  your phone called classroom setup. Did you know that you can
• 5:56
  just paste pictures and screenshots into a note? That's
• 6:00
  really handy, too. So when you're a sweaty mess setting up
• 6:03
  your classroom in August, you can just pull up those photos
• 6:05
  instead of relying on your tired, summer fried brain.
• 6:09
  Heidi: Yes, the summer is a sweaty mess because, of course,
• 6:12
  they don't have the air on. And don't forget to document your
• 6:15
  classroom systems. Nothing worse than standing there in August
• 6:18
  wondering, Wait, how did I organize my library last year?
• 6:22
  Emily: And that leads perfectly into reason number three that
• 6:25
  May is the perfect time to plan for back to school, and that is
• 6:28
  that you still have time to test things out with your current
• 6:30
  class. They're like your own little personal guinea pigs, but
• 6:34
  cuter and with more opinions, I guess.
• 6:38
  Heidi: Oh, all the opinions. And at this point in the year, they
• 6:41
  have been trained in your ways. They know your expectations,
• 6:45
  which makes them perfect for experimenting with those What if
• 6:48
  we tried it this way ideas.
• 6:50
  Emily: Yeah, your current students are like the beta
• 6:53
  testers of your classroom software. So maybe you've
• 6:56
  realized your morning routine is taking twice as long as you want
• 6:58
  it to. You can try a different approach now and get immediate
• 7:01
  feedback on the changes.
• 7:03
  Heidi: Or maybe your dismissal routine is looking like a game
• 7:06
  of hungry, hungry hippos, but with backpacks and lunch boxes,
• 7:10
  test out a new system now and work out all of the kinks.
• 7:13
  Emily: And the best part of this is it often helps refresh those
• 7:17
  end of year behaviors that we know are getting so sloppy at
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  this time of year. Nothing like a little novelty to boost
• 7:24
  engagement.
• 7:25
  Heidi: But don't limit your experimenting to just routines
• 7:28
  and procedures. Don't be afraid to dream a little. Did you see a
• 7:32
  fun reading idea on Tiktok or Instagram? Try it out with your
• 7:35
  current kiddos, so you can see if it's worth implementing next
• 7:38
  year.
• 7:39
  Emily: Yeah, there is nothing worse than spending your summer
• 7:41
  crafting the perfect plan for science experiments or small
• 7:45
  group math or Tinker lab, only to find out that it just doesn't
• 7:49
  work, all those summer hours wasted on something you can't
• 7:52
  even use.
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  Heidi: So do yourself a favor and give it a go now, even if
• 7:57
  you don't have all the pieces figured out yet, give it a dress
• 7:59
  rehearsal with your current class. Not only are this crop of
• 8:03
  kids more able to pivot than your new students will be, you
• 8:06
  also already have structures in place to fall back on if you
• 8:09
  need to abandon ship midstream. Experimenting now kind of gives
• 8:13
  you a safety net, or flotation device, I guess in this
• 8:17
  metaphor.
• 8:19
  Emily: Plus, as our Grammy used to say, a change is as good as a
• 8:22
  rest. Trying something new now just might give you the
• 8:25
  energetic boost you need to make it to the end in one piece.
• 8:29
  Heidi: Now, for reason number four, why starting back to
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  school in May is a great idea, planning in May lightens your
• 8:35
  summer mental load. You know that feeling when you're trying
• 8:39
  to relax in June, but your brain is still running with all those
• 8:42
  don't forget this for next year tabs open.
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  Emily: When you take a little time in May to offload those
• 8:47
  thoughts onto paper, especially in a low pressure way, it gives
• 8:50
  your brain permission to let go.
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  Heidi: Without a plan, we end up either completely ghosting
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  anything school related all summer, which leads to a real
• 8:58
  nightmare come August, I have been there, or we spend the
• 9:01
  whole break working without boundaries, and we end up
• 9:03
  checking our emails during beach trips.
• 9:06
  Emily: We can speak from our experience that you don't really
• 9:08
  want either of those extremes.
• 9:10
  Heidi: Yeah neither approach really screams relaxing summer.
• 9:14
  But when we identify specific priorities in May, we can
• 9:18
  schedule focus work time and then fully unplug the rest of
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  the time, like actually enjoying that Emily Henry book next to
• 9:25
  the pool without guilt.
• 9:27
  Emily: Yes, you don't have to do a lot. You just have to get
• 9:30
  intentional. It can even be as simple as if you're really
• 9:33
  brave, only three work days on your summer schedule, so one in
• 9:37
  June, one in July, and one in early August. Now if you know
• 9:40
  exactly what you need to accomplish on each today, thanks
• 9:43
  to your time spent thinking ahead in May, you can close
• 9:47
  those teacher work brain tabs out on the other days and get a
• 9:51
  ton done on those three days.
• 9:53
  Heidi: And our end of year roadmap is a great place to
• 9:56
  start listing all of those to do tasks that you'll want to start
• 9:59
  on during your school work days. And that brings us to our fifth
• 10:03
  reason, planning in May reduces back to school panic. You know
• 10:08
  that day and summer, when you're back to school, nightmares
• 10:10
  suddenly start up again.
• 10:11
  Emily: Oh, the dreams where you show up on the first day and
• 10:14
  your classroom is still a storage closet, or you're
• 10:18
  teaching in pajamas, or my personal favorite, and this is
• 10:22
  the one I usually have, which is, I've forgotten that I even
• 10:25
  had a teaching job until the morning of the first day of
• 10:28
  school, and then I'm just like, in sheer panic trying to get the
• 10:33
  class set up, and the students are like, already filing in. Oh
• 10:35
  my gosh, it's such a nightmare. It's just as bad as the I wake
• 10:39
  up in it and I have a college final, and I never went to class
• 10:41
  all semester.
• 10:43
  Heidi: Oh, my stomach is a knots, even just joking about
• 10:46
  it.
• 10:47
  Emily: They are the worst dreams.
• 10:49
  Heidi: Why do teachers have this problem? But seriously, a little
• 10:54
  intentional planning in May can slice that August panic in half.
• 10:58
  Even just having lists of what worked and what didn't, gives
• 11:01
  you a roadmap.
• 11:02
  Emily: Instead of facing an overwhelming blank slate in
• 11:04
  August with nothing but panic and diet coke to fuel you,
• 11:08
  you'll be working from a plan that your May self thoughtfully
• 11:12
  created for you. It's like having a time traveling teacher
• 11:16
  assistant.
• 11:17
  Heidi: And when you've already documented your classroom setup
• 11:20
  and identified your priorities, those August work days become so
• 11:23
  much more manageable. You might even, dare I say it, enjoy
• 11:28
  setting up your classroom.
• 11:29
  Emily: Ooh, maybe.
• 11:33
  And speaking of making things manageable, this is where our
• 11:35
  free end of year roadmap comes in. We created this resource
• 11:39
  because we know that May is not the time for complex planning
• 11:42
  systems that require 12 different colored highlighters.
• 11:45
  Heidi: The free end of year roadmap includes simple
• 11:48
  reflection prompts and our favorite list making tools, the
• 11:51
  to da list for celebrating your successes, because you did have
• 11:55
  wins this year. And it's important to notice that. The
• 11:58
  fix it list for identifying what needs improvement, and your to
• 12:01
  do list for planning your summer work. It can help you make a
• 12:04
  strategic plan for setting work goals while maintaining summer
• 12:08
  life boundaries. You can assign tasks to each month, sort tasks
• 12:12
  by where you do them, when you need to work on them, and how
• 12:15
  long they take. And you can pinpoint which tasks are most
• 12:18
  beneficial for meeting your back to school goals.
• 12:21
  Emily: And we've designed it to be flexible, so you can fill it
• 12:23
  in all at once, or fill it in a little at a time between Field
• 12:26
  Day and end of year assessments with all your free time.
• 12:30
  Heidi: The goal with this roadmap is not to create more
• 12:33
  work for you, but to help you organize the thoughts that are
• 12:36
  already bouncing around in your brain. Your brain is an
• 12:40
  excellent idea generator. It's not a great list keeper, so do
• 12:44
  your poor brain a favor and get everything written down.
• 12:47
  Emily: You can grab your free copy of the end of year roadmap
• 12:49
  by clicking the link in our show notes. It's completely free,
• 12:52
  just a helpful tool from us to you. Plus, since it's in Google
• 12:56
  Sheets, you can type what you want and then print it out if
• 12:59
  you want a paper copy. So much quicker to type things than it
• 13:02
  is to hand write them.
• 13:03
  Heidi: And if you find the roadmap helpful, you might be
• 13:06
  interested in coming to our free teacher summer talk summit at
• 13:09
  the end of June. It's the easiest summer PD, but one that
• 13:14
  you'll actually enjoy, because it is all about making back to
• 13:16
  school easier, not harder.
• 13:18
  Emily: But more on that later. For now, let's recap those five
• 13:22
  reasons why May is the perfect time to start planning for next
• 13:25
  year.
• 13:25
  Heidi: Number one, your classroom pain points are
• 13:27
  crystal clear right now, like painfully, painfully clear.
• 13:32
  Emily: Number two, you still have access to your fully set up
• 13:35
  classroom. Document it now before it disappears.
• 13:39
  Heidi: Number three, you still have time to test things out
• 13:41
  with your current class. These are your own personal focus
• 13:45
  groups right here.
• 13:46
  Emily: Number four, planning in May is actually a gift to your
• 13:48
  summer self. Future You sends thank yous and says you should
• 13:52
  treat yourself.
• 13:53
  Heidi: Yes, always treat yourself. And number five,
• 13:56
  planning in May reduces back to school panic. Sleep through
• 14:00
  August without those nightmares.
• 14:02
  Emily: Remember planning for the new school year in May isn't
• 14:04
  about adding to your already overflowing plate, it's about
• 14:07
  capturing insights that will make your life easier later.
• 14:09
  Heidi: Just a few minutes of reflection and planning in May
• 14:12
  can save you hours of stress and probably tears in August.
• 14:16
  Emily: So download our free end of year roadmap using the link
• 14:19
  in our show notes, and start giving your future self the gift
• 14:22
  of preparation.
• 14:23
  Heidi: We would love to hear how you're planning to set your
• 14:26
  future self up for back to school success. Come join the
• 14:29
  conversation in our teacher approved Facebook group. Bring
• 14:31
  your successes, your struggles and your end of year survival
• 14:35
  strategies.
• 14:36
  Emily: Now for our teacher approved Tip of the Week, where
• 14:39
  we share an actionable tip to help you elevate what matters
• 14:43
  and simplify the rest. This week's teacher approved tip is
• 14:46
  preview next year's content to boost end of year engagement.
• 14:49
  Tell us more about this, Heidi.
• 14:51
  Heidi: We all know that may classroom management can be,
• 14:55
  challenging, shall we say? One of the reasons is that students
• 14:59
  feel less invested. They've mentally checked out because
• 15:02
  they think that they have learned everything they need to
• 15:04
  know and they don't care anymore.
• 15:07
  Emily: Yeah, their level of concern in May has dropped to
• 15:09
  like approximately zero.
• 15:11
  Heidi: Yeah, but there's a simple way to raise that concern
• 15:15
  level again, give them little previews of what they'll need to
• 15:18
  know next year. When students know that what they're doing
• 15:21
  right now matters for what's coming next, it often gives them
• 15:25
  a little extra motivation to stay engaged.
• 15:28
  Emily: And you can sprinkle in little comments like, Oh, you'll
• 15:30
  need to know this for third grade, or your next teacher is
• 15:34
  definitely going to love that you already understand this.
• 15:37
  It's not to scare them, but just to plant the idea that they're
• 15:40
  leveling up soon, and that builds excitement.
• 15:43
  Heidi: And if you know what your students are excited to learn
• 15:44
  about next year, that can be a great hook too. For example,
• 15:47
  second graders might be especially jazzed about learning
• 15:50
  cursive or tiptoeing into multiplication, so you might
• 15:53
  say, you're going to need these skip counting skills when you
• 15:56
  start learning real multiplication next year. Or
• 16:00
  this kind of sentence writing is what gets you ready for cursive.
• 16:03
  Emily: It's a light touch strategy, and you don't want to
• 16:05
  step on any teacher's toes for next year, but it can really
• 16:08
  help reignite some buy in during those wiggly end of your weeks
• 16:12
  without adding more to your plate.
• 16:14
  Heidi: This strategy works because it taps into students'
• 16:17
  natural desire to grow up and master new skills. It gives them
• 16:20
  a reason to care about reviewing concepts that they think they've
• 16:23
  already mastered. So next time your class seems to have checked
• 16:27
  out, try giving them a little glimpse into next year's
• 16:29
  learning adventures. It might be just the motivation boost they
• 16:33
  need to finish this year strong.
• 16:35
  To wrap up the show, we are sharing what we're giving extra
• 16:37
  credit to this week. Emily, what gets your extra credit?
• 16:40
  Emily: I'm giving extra credit to the new picture book Don't
• 16:43
  Trust Fish by Neil Sharpton and illustrated by Dan Santat. And I
• 16:47
  made Heidi look at this yesterday because I gave it to
• 16:50
  my kids for Easter. I had heard it was hilarious and it did not
• 16:54
  disappoint. So I made Heidi read it too, when she came over. It's
• 16:57
  like a nature guide that goes wrong when it veers into all the
• 17:00
  reasons why you shouldn't trust fish, like, they spend all their
• 17:03
  time in the water where we can't see them. Some are as big as a
• 17:07
  bus, and that is not okay. We don't know what they're teaching
• 17:11
  in their quote unquote schools, and they are likely plotting our
• 17:15
  doom. This book is a must have. It would be perfect to launch a
• 17:19
  writing activity as well. I think it is a delight.
• 17:23
  Heidi: It is so funny, very witty. I saw a picture of a fish
• 17:26
  today, and like, the first thing my brain said was, don't trust
• 17:29
  fish.
• 17:31
  Emily: I saw someone showing this, like, cute fish shaped
• 17:34
  basket for target, and I immediately, yeah, thought the
• 17:37
  same thing. Oh no, don't trust fish.
• 17:40
  Heidi: And I think you could have a lot of fun with that at
• 17:41
  the end of the end of the school year, especially, you know a
• 17:44
  twist on animal reports, why you shouldn't trust ring tailed
• 17:47
  lemurs or something.
• 17:48
  Emily: Yes, I think that would be the most fun activity. Should
• 17:51
  we make that activity? Let's drop everything and make a
• 17:54
  writing activity today. Stay tuned. Maybe we'll get it
• 17:58
  together.
• 17:59
  Heidi: It's either that or fifth grade fractions. You can decide.
• 18:02
  Emily: So hard to pick. Okay, Heidi, what are you giving extra
• 18:07
  credit to?
• 18:07
  Heidi: My extra credit goes to the Ecosia web browser. It's
• 18:12
  like, you know, a different kind of Google. This is a great
• 18:15
  company that plants trees based on how many people use their
• 18:18
  site. You can see on the home screen how many trees they have
• 18:21
  planted, and I just checked, so as of today, the number is
• 18:24
  229,612,190 trees.
• 18:28
  Emily: Wow.
• 18:29
  Heidi: I also really appreciate that they are transparent about
• 18:32
  where their money goes. Every month on Instagram, they share
• 18:35
  how much they earned, how much went to trees, and then how much
• 18:38
  went to other costs. It's just so refreshing to see a company
• 18:43
  that has transparency and values. Now, I have to admit, it
• 18:47
  was a bit of a pain to switch over from Google, because so
• 18:49
  much about, you know, Google just already knew what I needed
• 18:52
  it to do. And I still, I haven't moved completely over on my
• 18:56
  phone, but baby steps. I'm moving in the right direction.
• 18:58
  Emily: Oh, I'm gonna have to give that a try.
• 19:00
  Heidi: I've been very impressed. And I feel good doing my Google
• 19:04
  searches. It does not work with Rakuten, though, if you do have
• 19:08
  a rakuten add on, it doesn't, doesn't work with their browser.
• 19:12
  But I figure the trees are worth it.
• 19:16
  That is it for today's episode. Remember that May is the perfect
• 19:20
  time to reflect on what worked this year and start planning for
• 19:22
  next year. Download our free end of year roadmap using the link
• 19:26
  in the show notes to help you get started. And don't forget
• 19:29
  our teacher approved tip to preview next year's content to
• 19:32
  get your students engaged.
• 19:33
  Emily: And stay tuned for information about our upcoming
• 19:36
  free teacher summer talks event at the end of June, where we'll
• 19:39
  be sharing our best back to school strategies.
• 19:43
  Heidi: We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I'm
• 19:47
  Heidi.
• 19:47
  Emily: And I'm Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow
• 19:51
  or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an
• 19:53
  episode.
• 19:54
  Heidi: You can connect with us and other teachers in the
• 19:56
  Teacher Approved Facebook group. We'll see you here next week.
• 20:00
  Bye for now.
• 20:00
  Emily: Bye.