Summer Prep Back to School Ideas

5 summer prep back to school ideas...

Organize Your Planner

I started using a Happy Planner and I will never go back. I just use the discs, checklists and dividers of the Happy Planner. I create my lesson plans, guided reading plans and assessment pages on my computer to add to the planner. With a Happy Planner rings and a punch you can put ANYTHING into your planner. If you are tired of paying too much for planners that are still a lot of work to fill in...check out the Happy Planner and how I use it in my Instagram reels to simplify my life. Check out my Amazon Affiliate Shop for my favorite planner accessories. 

Read A Professional Book

Besides being a Kindergarten teacher, I am the Math Instructional Leader for my district. I try to read at least one professional math read during the summer. I love to make a cup of tea when I get up on summer mornings and read on my deck until it gets too hot and everyone else wakes up. My all time favorite math read is Putting the Pieces Into Practice by Sue O'Connell. My love of this book led to our district adopting O'Connell's Math In Practice Series which let to me being a co-author on her latest project Math By The Book. This is a book about how to use literature to jumpstart your student's mathematical thinking. Writing this book combined of my love of literature and teaching mathematics to little mathematicians. Check out my other favorite professional reads HERE and below is what I am currently reading. 

I also have a math stack that I am going to dive into next. 

Organize Your Math Toolboxes

I love using math toolboxes in my classroom! Summer is a great time to reorganize them and make sure they are ready to go for your first math unit. If you want you can also do a little planning of how you are going to use them for each of your units. I have created a Math Toolbox Freebie full of lots of math mats that can be used with 

math toolboxes. 

Get Reacquainted With The Copier

  I don't know about you but I hate making copies and I think the copier knows this because it always jams on me. I keep a file of the things that need to be copied for the upcoming school year. This file includes our calendar, reading logs, sight word poems and sight word word work. I teach in a small district/community and I live 5 minutes away from my school so whenever I stop by school to get something or to meet up with my team I send one of these items through the copier . Then I can walk away and do whatever I am there to do...no waiting...no getting done fast for the next person in line. Here are some of the items that I copy during the summer...

Avoid the Target Dollar Spot

My last summer back to school idea is to avoid the Target Dollar Spot. You do not need one more bookmark, bin, bag or border! Save your money and your time because Dollar Spot purchase usually lead to projects that were never going to be on your Back To School to-do list. 

Find more about these back to school ideas in my Instagram Reels.

Check out other Back to School Ideas on my Back To School Pinterest Board...