Google Doc version to view or share: A Starting Point for Educator Summer Planning
This resource provides a checklist of ideas that educator can consider as they prepare for the 2021-22 school year. The ideas that follow are aligned to one or more of the nine key areas of family partnership: Communication and Feedback, Roles and Responsibilities, Student Well-Being, Organization and Study Skills, Support Structures, Attendance and Engagement, Technology Tools, Instructional Tools, and Learning Environment.
Gauge the gaps
Areas addressed: Support Structures
Identify previous year’s priority standards and plan how you will assess these for any gaps that need to be filled.
Summer skill building
Areas addressed: Support Structures
Identify foundational skills that could be built and strengthened during summer at-home practice. Provide these to families for summer skill building. Consider items like book clubs, math challenges, etc.
Student Technology Hardware
Areas addressed: Technology Tools, Learning Environment
Identify what technology the students have or will be using for the school year as well as what technology will be in the classroom.
Student Technology Software
Areas addressed: Organization and Study Skills, Technology Tools, Learning Environment
Verify or identify what software will be used virtually or in the classroom with the students. Get a list from the district to help with planning.
Staff Administrative Software
Areas addressed: Organization and Study Skills
Verify or identify any software changes you as a teacher might need to prepare for. Obtain a list from the district. Maybe the SMS has been upgraded or changed. Maybe the professional development platform has changed, etc.
Familiarize yourself with your district’s back to school guidelines
Areas addressed: Roles and Responsibilities, Organization and Study Skills, Learning Environment
Every school district is handling the return to school differently depending on local restrictions and conditions. Some may be returning fully to the classroom while others will remain online, while many may employ a mixture of the two. And plans may change quickly as the pandemic continues to develop. In the weeks leading up to the first day of school, make sure you’re up to date with your district’s guidelines. That way, you can adjust your plans for the year accordingly and in a way that keeps your students safe.
Adjust your classroom setup for social distancing if you will return to school
Areas addressed: Student Well-Being, Organization and Study Skills, Attendance and Engagement, Learning Environment
Once you’ve reviewed your school guidelines, and if your students will spend time in class, organize your classroom in a way that supports them. For example, the American Association of Pediatrics’ Healthy Children suggests the following:
- Keep desks three to six feet apart
- Limit the number of people in the classroom at any time
- Use outdoor spaces whenever possible
Provide families with back to school information ahead of time
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback, Support Structures
One way to keep families at ease is by providing them with information about the first days of school in a letter or email. That way, you can limit the anxiety and stress families experience by limiting uncertainty.
Know your plan for if a student or colleague tests positive for COVID-19
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback, Roles and Responsibilities, Student Well-Being
The CDC guidelines for returning to school recommend that school administrators create a proactive plan for what will happen if students or faculty members test positive for COVID-19. Discuss any existing plans ahead of time with your administrator so you can have peace of mind if such a situation arises. As discussed by Edsurge contributor Stephen Noonoo, teachers who are high-risk for severe COVID-19 symptoms face additional concerns as they re-enter the classroom. If you are at risk, bring your concerns to your school administrator and come up with a plan to limit your exposure and stay safe.
Consider a distant, hybrid, or blended classroom strategy
Areas addressed: Organization and Study Skills, Support Structures
If your school will remain at least partially online, it’s normal to feel overwhelmed—especially if you have limited experience with distance teaching. Hybrid and blended classroom strategies can help you create your lesson plans for these first days of school. Blended learning is a strategy which allows students to learn both as a class and independently, and—according to Blended Learning Universe—it often involves online instruction. Hybrid learning is a subsection of this strategy that provides students with both in-person and online instruction. Researching both of these strategies can help you create strong lesson plans if your district intends to remain online in some capacity. If your school district will be distant in any form this year, check out the Remote Teaching Setup resource from Stanford University. This can be helpful for educators less familiar with distance or hybrid learning to make the transition less daunting.
Establish classroom routines
Areas addressed: Roles and Responsibilities, Organization and Study Skills, Learning Environment
Some of your students might not have been in a classroom in well over a year. They may need some extra time to readjust.
Determine your hybrid classroom setup
Areas addressed: Student Well-Being, Organization and Study Skills, Instructional Tools, Learning Environment
Establish what your classroom will look like for instruction ahead of time as it might change over the summer following CDC guidelines.
Focus on the students
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback, Student Well-Being, Support Structures
Planning for any new school year should always begin with considering student needs. This is especially critical given the uncertainty, change, and fear caused by COVID-19, which left many students in a fragile place. Providing students with options and allowing them as much freedom as possible is critical to their success. This process begins with collecting student course requests in the fall. Do you have these tools and processes in place to ensure your students get everything they want and need to be successful? A solid 4-year Personal Graduation Plan within your student information system. Individual meetings scheduled to ensure student needs are met and Personal Graduation Plans are up to date (more important this year than ever!). An accurate and efficient school master schedule to ensure all students have the correct courses to meet promotion or graduation requirements.
Come up with your own Student Wellness Practices
Areas addressed: Student Well-being, Attendance and Engagement
Establish a schedule of physical activity, including a variety of sports activities and games. Activities can be completed in increments of no less than 10 minutes, for a total of 30 minutes per day.
First Day Focus
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback, Support Structures
Update/Create materials to share the first day/week of school that factors in different types of learning environments. Consider an introductory letter, class outline, contact information, class technology information.
Make a plan
Areas addressed: Attendance and Engagement
Update/Create lesson plans and materials for the first week of school. Include getting to know you and community-building activities.
Organize Everything
Areas addressed: Roles and Responsibilities, Organization and Study Skills, Support Structures, Instructional Tools
Work on organizing all of your digital files and teaching resources. Determine the organization structure to use with the learning management system and how you will share this information with students (or reference the district approved learning management system and organize your files so it is easy to upload when it becomes available).
Communicate with families
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback, Student Well-Being, Learning Environment
Send letter/email to families introducing yourself and your classroom routines. Consider hosting virtual Q&A session for parents and students to help ease anxiety.
Focus on yourself
Areas addressed: Student Well-Being
The 2020-2021 school year was stressful for many. Take some time to relax and recharge so you will be at your best in September.
Keep on learning
Areas addressed: Student Well-Being, Organization and Study Skills, Support Structures, Attendance and Engagement
Attend professional learning sessions on topics you would like to learn more about or grow.
Plan for parent communication
Areas addressed: Communication and Feedback
Decide how frequently you will talk with parents/families and the platforms you will use.
Resources are ready
Areas addressed: Technology Tools, Instructional Tools
Get all your classroom resources ready for the school year, including plans for pivoting to remote or hybrid learning.
Classroom roles and jobs
Areas addressed: Roles and Responsibilities, Support Structures, Attendance and Engagement
Decide the classroom roles/jobs students will have for in person, hybrid, and remote learning.