Beginning of Year Procedures and Expectations Checklist

The beginning of the school year can seem like a blur with all that you have going on in the classroom.  But within the craziness, there are many important things to teach–mainly beginning of year procedures and expectations. The list of things to teach can feel daunting, especially as you go throughout your day and think, “Oh, I need to explicitly teach that.” You will not stop teaching these throughout the year, friend. But you can start strong and set your class up for success to run smoothly!

As you are thinking about what needs to be taught, it’s helpful to break it down into some areas. For example, maybe begin with:

• School-wide procedures
• School-wide expectations
• Classroom procedures
• Classroom expectations
• Center procedures
• Center expectations
• Table/group procedures
• Table/group expectations
• Partner procedures
• Partner expectations

These are just a few areas to help get your wheels spinning as you are thinking about beginning of year procedures and expectations. If you are like me, then you want to make sure you don’t let anything fall through the cracks!

FREE Beginning of Year Procedures and Expectations Checklist

To help you get a jump start, I created a beginning of year procedures and expectations checklist of all the procedures that I will need to teach during the beginning of the year.

HERE is my back to school procedures checklist!

Of course, these will not all be taught during the first day or even the first week of school (such as the fire drill expectations during the second week of school). Some will come up naturally (like lining up) and others I will have to bring up (such as where to put folders in the morning).  I typically spend the first full 6 weeks really focusing on behavior expectations and classroom procedures.  Doing this saves me SO much time during the rest of the year.

Remember, “go slow to go fast”. It’s the key to success in so many areas in the classroom–expectations, centers, phonics instruction. Don’t rush it. Practice, practice, and practice some more, friends!

As the year goes on, you will think of more things. You will reteach procedures. You will reteach expectations. That’s okay and it’s normal. They are kids who are learning and relearning. (I think this is all of us, right?) You CAN start the year off strong, though. You CAN set your classroom up for success by taking the time to explicating teaching beginning of year procedures and expectations.

Can you think of anything else to add? How long do you spend focusing on the beginning of year procedures and expectations? Let me know in the comments below!