Back to School Night Tips

Oh back to school night (BTSN!), it’s not my favorite time if I am being honest. It feels so stressful to have to present a set up room and school year plan when you’re just trying to get your footing and get the kids situated.. Then suddenly you are on display for parents and guardians and tons of questions! Whew. It’s a lot. Here are some tips for BTSN that help us make it feel a little more successful.

At the heart of it, BTSN can feel like the first day of school for guardians and is their main (sometimes only) peek into what school looks and feels like for their kiddos. With that in mind, the goals for BTSN for me remain:

A) Invite them into our world and affirm we are on the same team for their child/ren

B) Communicate my expectations of them and how communication will work for the year

C) Stay afloat for myself amidst juggling the beginning of the year set up with the kids!

So without further ado, here are my top 10 tips for BTSN:

Name tags, welcome station
- It gives people something to do, it helps connect names to faces for you, it lets parents mingle, too.
Combine with another class if possible
- If you share a lot of the same information it can be really nice to do it this way and tag team!
Kids work / something up - have them help with this lift!
- Having the kids make their name art, get to know you’s etc and having that up is always helpful. It gives everyone something to look at and the families a peek into the kiddo’s transition into the start of the year.
A slideshow/ppt
- It’s easiest for the visuals, the slew of info, and to keep you on track.
- It’s also professional vibes and clear/something you can refer back to or share if you need to!
Communication about how you will communicate for the year in the ppt/ slideshow
- This is its own point because this is SO important! Communication is at the crux of everything. Letting families know you don’t email during the day (you are with their kids!) or that meetings are to be scheduled for the phone first, then in person, or you turn your email off at 5pm and check it the next morning before work.. Whatever your boundaries are and communication style is, it is essential to let them know what to expect ahead of time. It’ll keep you in check, too:).
Pack your water bottle
- A fidget! For health! For a break when you need to pause before answering a question!
We are a team!
- Saying this multiple times during the evening and that you are excited to be on this team with them for the year is always a good idea. It’s a special relationship and team to be on!
Have a firm end time , don’t linger
- If you linger, you can be stuck forever and it can be turned into who can grab you for a parent teacher conference after back to school night dance.. Whatever time the event is supposed to end, say that at the beginning, give 10 and 5 minute warnings, and wrap up and pack up when it is time to go! You have to teach the next day!
Have plans for the next day/morning set
- This is a lifesaver if you can do it. BTSN is a long night during chaotic back to school time. Any way you can make the next morning easier for yourself is a kind thing to do for your future self <3.
Have a treat at home
- Any treat will do! You deserve it.
- I promise I don’t work for them but I’m currently non-dairy thanks to breastfeeding and a baby whose body currently doesn’t like dairy and these Trader Joe's Hold the Dairy are delicious, just sayin’!

Sending you all our bestestest right now. We know this is a chaotic time of year even just getting the basics going. Remember good enough is good enough!

Late last month, I had the honor of participating on a panel presentation at the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual convention. I was sharing details about our beloved storytelling unit on a panel about cultural relevancy, the arts, and student voice! I was lucky to be paired up with an excellent co-presenter (the panel ended up just being the two of us!) and loved sharing details about what still is one of my favorite units to teach.

I was originally slated to be on a panel with four other people, but as it worked out, only two of us were able to present. We were both able to share more details about our work and had more time for questions (which is often my favorite part). Not surprisingly, the highlight of my presentation really was the video of a student performance from our Final Stage show where every single one of our students performed a true story about their life.

Other things I loved presenting about: Anne Thomas, who was our guest speaker/storyteller and introduced the concept of storytelling as a performance with her story, Burden No More, how we used both Story District and StoryCorps as resources, the incredibly valuable tie in to social emotional learning as stories help us both understand ourselves and learn from each other, and how I wish Jacqueline Woodson’s amazing new picture book, The Day You Begin, existed when we were teaching this unit.

I truly loved seeing how the audience responded to my student’s story. I spoke about the bares bones of the unit, why it was transformative, student quotes, and resources and ideas, but the student video was far more powerful than anything I said! I also was asked many great questions about how to use storytelling with preservice teachers and adults in general. There was a lot of engagement with the idea of storytelling as validation of less prominent stories or voices, and connections to other cultures with oral history traditions (especially Native Americans and tribes fighting for state and/or federal recognition).

It was also amazing to be around so many teachers of English (and authors! And readers!)! I enjoyed all the nerdy, literary, and punny shirts and tote bags and just general love for books and authentic literacy opportunities. Thank you to my wonderful co-presenter, our audience, and all the other educators I was lucky enough to meet at NCTE!

Presenting at NCTE

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