Christmas Sight Word Books Freebie

One of the best features of these sight word books is they are super easy to prep! Teachers don't have extra time during the holidays to print, cut, staple, or glue mini readers together. You're in luck because these books only require 1 page per book and NO cutting, stapling, or gluing. (And all the teachers shout “hooray!”)

All you have to do is print 1 book for each student. Model how to fold the book with your students and then help them prep their own book. This is a great activity to work on fine motor skills!

They will simply fold the books in half along the dotted line lengthwise, or “hot dog” style. Then, they will fold widthwise on the next dotted line, or “hamburger” style. That's it! The book is ready for them to write their name on and start reading!

Using the Christmas Sight Word Books

To use the Christmas sight word books, students will first write their name on the front of the book. Since the pictures are in black and white, students can color the books to make them their own.

This is a great opportunity to encourage students to think critically and color the pictures to match the sentence and the real-world picture. They will take pride in knowing that they read and colored their very own book!

Students will read the Christmas books, pointing to the words as they read, working on one-to-one correspondence and fluency. Each time the student completes the whole book, they will color a star on the front page, keeping track of how many times they have read the book.

There are 3 stars on each book. That makes 9 different opportunities for students to practice between the 3 books! Of course, they can read it even more times than that, too!

Ideas for Differentiation

There are so many ways that you can differentiate these free Christmas sight word books! To focus even more on the sight words in the books, you can give students a yellow highlighter or crayon and have them highlight the sight word of focus on each page. This is another way for them to familiarize themselves with the word. This is a great strategy for visual learners!

These books can also be used in a variety of instructional settings. They would make a great morning work activity or small group activity. You could have students partner up to read together or read them independently as a part of your literacy block or as an early finisher activity. These books can even be used to assess your students' sight word fluency.

If your school does a reading buddy day where an older grade joins your class to read, your students could read their Christmas sight word books to their reading buddies! This makes them feel so special!

These sight word books also make great take-home books for students to read at home with their families. If you send home books for students to read and mark on a reading log, these would be the perfect fit for their take-home bag of books. You can even send them home with a fun winter break reading log challenge and give students a prize for bringing them back.

Craving More December Activities?

Your time is valuable, especially during December. You don't have time to spend countless hours searching for and prepping materials. But you still have to teach!

This set of 80 math and literacy worksheets will save you planning time while adding a dash of holiday cheer to your curriculum. They are perfect for those busy days leading up to winter break when you need engaging activities that review essential skills.

With these worksheets in hand, you'll be able to effortlessly reinforce math and literacy concepts all month long. Plus, you'll find you have a lot more time for other things.

You can download your FREE copy of the December sight word books by filling out the form below. They'll be sent straight to your inbox!

I hope you and your students enjoy them!

Thanksgiving Mini Readers Freebie

These emergent readers are so simple to put together. There's no prep work required, which is great for this busy time of year. Just print one for each of your little readers. There's not cutting, gluing, or stapling required.

Students first fold the books in half, long ways. I have always called this a “hot dog” fold in my classroom – because the paper becomes long and thin..like a hot dog. There is a line on the book to help students know where to fold.

Next they take the book and fold it again on the other line. I call this a hamburger fold.

There is a place on the front cover for students to write the name. The pictures are in black and white, so students can color them and really take ownership of their book.

You'll notice three stars on the front of these Thanksgiving emergent readers, right above where students write their name. These stars are to help student keep track of how many times they read the book. Once they read the book, they color a star.

You can also have students use a yellow crayon or highlighter to focus on or find a particular sight word.

Thanksgiving Read Alouds

There's just something about Thanksgiving read alouds that gets everyone in the spirit of celebration and gratitude.

Using Thanksgiving read alouds in your classroom is a great way to help students learn about the history of Thanksgiving while sharing what they're thankful for.

Here are some of my all-time favorite Thanksgiving read alouds that are spot on for kindergarten.

• One is a Feast for Mouse
• The Great Turkey Race
• The Best Thanksgiving Ever
• The Littlest Pilgrim
• T is for Turkey
• Who Will Carve the Turkey This Thanksgiving?
• This is the Turkey
• Thanksgiving Rules
• Thanks for Thanksgiving
• The Amazing Turkey Rescue
• Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving
• Balloons Over Broadway
• Bear Says Thanks

November Writing Centers

With all of the exciting Thanksgiving topics to write about, November is a fun time to practice enhancing your kindergarten students’ beginning writing skills.

One way that you can do this is by using November-themed vocabulary words and hands-on writing activities within your writing centers. This helps students learn more about the Thanksgiving holiday, use new words in context, and have fun as they strengthen their writing skills.

Consider allowing your students to share their personal favorites and opinions as they write about what they are thankful for, their favorite Thanksgiving foods to eat, and whether they prefer apple pie or pumpkin pie. You can find all of these writing activities and more within these November Writing Center activities. 

With a variety of activities included in the resource, your students gain writing practice by completing different tasks such as labeling, building sentences, and more. 

The November writing centers contain exciting activities that ask students to tell a story about a family having Thanksgiving dinner, create and illustrate a silly Thanksgiving sentence, and write a Thanksgiving postcard to someone.

To practice thankfulness this month, consider having students write their Thanksgiving postcard to someone in the school that they are thankful for. This is a great way to show appreciation for cafeteria workers, custodians, front office staff, etc. 

DIY Thankfulness Chain

This DIY Thankfulness Chain is one of my favorite Thanksgiving activities for kindergarten and is a great addition to your centers. It's easy to prep and implement and sparks great conversations with your students.

To prep, cut 2″ X 6″ strips of different colored construction paper. Give students 3 strips each and have them write something they're thankful for on each strip. This activity can be made easier by giving students only 1 or 2 strips each. This is a great time to help students practice sounding out words.

Stand in a circle and have students read their strips and tell what they're thankful for. Make a loop and connect it to the next person's strip with either tape or a stapler to form a long chain.

Once everyone has read what they're thankful for and connected their strips, you'll have a class Thankfulness Chain. You can hang this in your classroom as part of your Thanksgiving decor.

You can also do this same activity as a way of creating a Friendship Chain. To do this, students write something kind about a friend on their strips instead. 

November Roll & Spin Activities

With kindergarteners, predictability helps build confidence. These November Roll & Spin games all use the same basic directions, so once your students know how to play one game, they know how to play them all!

Having predictable math and literacy activities in place during a busy month like November not only helps your students, but also saves you a ton of time during a month when you’re already stretched thin.

Covering standards like number order to 10, one more and one less, simple sentences, and short e words, these Thanksgiving activities for kindergarten provide extra practice with the skills you’re already teaching in your classroom.

These games are a fun, low-key way to have students gain extra practice during the last few minutes of the day, during centers, or after recess. 

For added excitement, send a Roll & Spin game home for students to play during Thanksgiving break with their families. Not only will it keep the content you’ve been working on fresh in your students’ minds, but it’ll also inspire families to spend a little extra time together during this family-centered holiday.

Thanksgiving Placemat Freebie

Want to add an easy holiday craft to your Thanksgiving centers? This Thanksgiving placemat freebie is quick prep and easy to use with your students. Just print, have your students color the placemat pieces, and then draw and label a picture of something that they are thankful for. It's as easy as that. For added fun, consider laminating them and using them for your class' Thanksgiving feast!

November Morning Tub Activities

Mornings during the holidays often feel a little chaotic. Between schedule changes, school events, fun activities, and more, trying to find morning work that your students enjoy but that is also easy to prep can feel exhausting.

One of the best ways to keep your students on track in the mornings is with hands-on activities that give a soft start. These turkey-themed morning tub activities are perfect to use all November long with your little learners.

Your students will gain independence as they work on important math, literacy, and fine motor skills with a variety of fun activities that are perfect for the season. Activities include matching numbers with feathers, identifying beginning sounds of pictures, and more fun. 

Want more info on how morning tubs work? Check out this post. 

November Math and Literacy Centers

Another way to incorporate turkey-themed activities into your lesson plans is with November themed math and literacy centers.

With themes like turkeys in disguise, football, and Thanksgiving food, your students will love these hands-on, themed center activities.

With 13 literacy and 13 math centers included, you’ll have all of the center activities you need for the whole month!

A follow-up worksheet is included for each center to help reinforce the skills being taught. Plus, it holds students accountable for their learning which is important even for kindergarteners.

You’ll love using these Thanksgiving activities for kindergarten as early finisher work, informal assessments, homework, or small group instruction. 

Thanksgiving Emergent Readers Freebie

Want to add holiday fun to your small groups? These FREE Thanksgiving mini books will be a hit with your students.

Teach your students how to fold the books on their own and then allow them to color the black and white images as they read through all four emergent readers. 

Three little stars are included on the front cover to help students track how many times they’ve read the book. As students finish reading, they color in a star. They continue until they’ve read and colored in all three stars.

With simple, predictable text, these readers are perfect for your kindergarten students to read at school or at home. 

Get the free Thanksgiving readers sent right to your e-mail!

I hope these read alouds and Thanksgiving activities for kindergarten make planning just a little bit easier for you this November. For even more Thanksgiving games and center ideas to add to your lesson plans, check out this blog post.

DIY Pumpkin Craft for Kids

When we complete this activity, it is done as a whole group. I have a completed example to show the students what we are going to be making. But I also make the craft with them. There are no tracers – just simple rounding corners and following directions.

I pass one piece out at a time and we work on the project step by step. First I model how to cut the paper and then the students cut the paper.

All you'll need for the project is construction paper, scissors, and glue sticks. Students will need either a blue or black background. I let the students pick which one they want. Blue represents a day-time scene, while black makes for a great night-time scene.

Here is what each student will need:

• 1 blue or black piece of construction paper (for the background)
• Brown Paper: 2 1/4 x 12 inches (1 piece of brown paper, they will cut this into fourths)
• Green Paper: 1 rectangle, 2 x 12, for the grass
• Green Paper: 1/2 x 2,  for pumpkin stems
• Orange: 3 squares, 2 1/2  x  2 1/2 inches, for pumpkins
• Yellow: 1 square 2 1/2  x  2 1/2,  for sun

Cutting Directions:

Start with the long brown piece of paper.

Step 1: Have students cut the brown paper in half lengthwise, to create 2 pieces 12 inches long. Take one of the brown pieces and cut it in half lengthwise again to become the fence rails.

Step 2: Take the second piece of brown paper and cut it into 2 6 inch pieces. Then take each of those pieces and cut it in half so you now have 4, 6 inch long pieces. These become the fence posts.

Next, students will get the grass ready. Take the long piece of green paper and make vertical cuts, 3/4 of the way down, the whole length of the paper.

For this step I show students a non-example. I have an extra piece of green paper and I show them what happens if they cut too far down. For students who are having trouble judging how far down to cut, I help them make the first cut as a guide.

To prepare the pumpkins, take each orange square and round the corners to make pumpkins. It's cute to see the different size and shape that each pumpkin becomes.

Next have students make 3-4 vertical lines on each of the pumpkin with a black or brown marker/crayon.

Take the small green piece and cut into the 3 pieces for the stems.

Finally, round the corners of the yellow square to be the sun (or the moon, if the scene is night-time).

Here's a look at the completed pieces.

Assembling the Pumpkin Craft:

Now it's time to put the pumpkin craft together. Here's step-by-step directions:

The first fence rail should be glued right down the middle of the paper. Glue the second rail half way between the bottom of the paper and the first fence rail.

Then glue on the fence posts, spaced across the paper.

Glue on the grass. Tell students to gently pull each piece back to “fluff” the grass.

Finally the students will pull back the grass just slightly to glue on the pumpkins along with the stems. They'll glue the sun/moon in the sky – on the left, right, or middle.

Apple Centers for Kindergarten

Incorporating the apple theme into your kindergarten literacy and math centers is a piece of cake (or pie) with these September Math and Literacy Centers for Kindergarten.

These apple themed centers are great for September and the beginning of fall. This packet includes 13 literacy centers and 13 math centers for a total of 26 centers – all with a fun apple theme!

These centers were made just for Kindergarten. Which means you'll find the activities to be hands-on, developmentally appropriate, and relevant to the skills your students are working on.

Inside you'll find a table of contents that you can click and easily access the activity you need. A recording sheet is included for every activity to hold students accountable for their work. Each activity also comes with a kid-friendly “I Can” poster to promote independence.

You'll also find a follow-up print-and-go activities/worksheets to reinforce the skills covered in the center – for every single center.

No Prep Pages for Every Center:

Here's an example of the no prep pages included with each center.

Apple Themed Printables: Letter Freebie

And now for a freebie. I put together an apple themed activity and wanted to share it with you. Since fall in Kindergarten using means learning letters and sounds, what better way to learn than with free apple themed printables!

To prepare this free apple letter mat activity, simply print and laminate the activity mats. Students will need a set of A-Z magnetic letters for this activity.

This activity is perfect for a quick literacy center, morning tub, or a fast finisher activity.

Students select a magnetic letter and identify the letter name or letter sound. They will find a matching apple and place the magnetic letter on top. They will continue until all of the apples have been covered.

You could also use this activity in a small group adult-led station. Simply call out a letter or make a letter sound and have students use a mini eraser or plastic math cube to cover the corresponding letter or picture.

You can download the free apple themed printables here. I hope your students have a blast with these!

Survival Guide For the Teacher

Teachers have a lot on their plates when planning and prepping for back-to-school time. There's organizing and decorating the classroom, planning lessons, catching up with coworkers, and beginning-of-the-year professional development, just to name a few.

Self care

While the to-do list may seem never-ending, it's important to remember your own mental health and well-being. A tired, rundown teacher won't be able to show up as the teacher they want to be.

Be sure to get your rest, practice self-care when you can, and give yourself grace. During the first week of kindergarten, not everything will be perfect or go exactly as planned, and that's okay.

To make sure you're prepared for any situation that may arise at school, it's also a good idea to prep a teacher emergency kit. You may want to include things like a nail file, stain remover, hand lotion, lint roller, hair brush and hair ties.  This will ensure you have everything you need while away from home.

Lesson planning

When planning lessons for the first week of kindergarten, be sure to focus more on making your students feel welcome than on curriculum and skill practice. There's plenty of time throughout the year for that. However, this first week is all about getting to know your students.

Don't try to do it all this first week. Take the time to get to know each other, teach routines and procedures, and make your students feel safe and welcome at school. The goal for each day of the first week of school is to make your students love school and be excited to return the next day.

This Realistic Expectations for the First Week of Kindergarten blog post includes a sample first week of school schedule.

Plan simple first week of school activities to help ease students into the school year, like those that will allow students to practice using classroom tools and manipulatives, get to know their classmates, and work on fine motor skills.

Survival Guide For the Classroom

As you plan your lessons for the first week of kindergarten, remember to keep it simple. You'll be spending a lot of time on routines and procedures and teaching how to transition from one activity to the next.

Below you’ll find ideas for read alouds, hands-on activities, and math and literacy must-haves as part of your first week of kindergarten survival guide. These ideas will make school fun for your students and get everyone in the groove while slowly incorporating beginning-of-the-year skills.

Read alouds

One of the best ways to connect with your students and make them feel welcome at school is with back-to-school read alouds. There's something about listening to a story that makes students feel calm and more relaxed.

A few of my favorite back to school read alouds for kindergarten are:

• The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing
• Kindergarten, Here I Come! by D.J. Steinberg
• First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg
• Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten by Joseph Slate
• The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn

Check out your school's library or see if you can borrow these books from a teacher friend if you don't have them and you'll be set for an entire week of read alouds.

First week activities

Having a variety of hands-on activities for students is an essential element of your first week of kindergarten survival guide. These activities will teach students how to use different supplies and manipulatives in the classroom while being exposed to basic kindergarten skills.

Remember, during the first week, the main focus is routines, procedures, and relationships. 

You can give your students practice with the classroom tools that you'll be using, like scissors, glue, hole punchers, and bingo dabbers. This will help them understand the expectations and practice using them independently as well.

Set up your day for success

While the first week of kindergarten mainly focuses on procedures and relationships, you also want to start developing routines. Clear expectations, consistency, and practice are key to all routines.

One of the most important routines to establish is your morning routine. A smooth, consistent morning routine is vital for a successful day of learning and sets the tone for the rest of the day.

Morning tubs are an excellent way to provide a routine that students enjoy and look forward to. You'll find that this simple routine makes a much bigger impact than students coloring or sitting around waiting for the day to begin.

Keeping your kindergarten students excited yet ready to learn those first few days of school can be a bit overwhelming. Having easy to use activities on hand will not only help keep your stress levels down, but will also help your students feel excited and confident going into the school year.

Get a head start on planning with these free back to school activities!

I hope this first week of kindergarten survival guide gives you peace of mind knowing that you don't have to do it all in the first week. I'd love to hear which ideas and activities you implement this year. Leave a comment and let me know!

Tip #1: Use a Pacing Guide

The first tip for planning ahead for next school year is to look at your grade level pacing guide. Look to see which skills you'll need to cover in the first few weeks and months back to school.

A pacing guide serves as your go-to reference when planning your units, themes, and lessons throughout the year.

While you definitely don't need to start planning your lessons right now, it's helpful to see which skills you'll be working on right away. Therefore, you can print and prep materials over the summer.

It's also helpful to see the entire year at a glance so you can prep materials in bulk, such as yearlong centers, morning tub activities, etc.

By knowing exactly what key skills you'll be teaching throughout the year, you can also be on the lookout for teacher professional development opportunities or Facebook groups to join over the summer.

You can grab this Kindergarten Pacing Guide Freebie by filling out the form at the bottom of this blog post.

Tip #2: Take a Classroom Inventory

Taking an inventory of what you currently have in your classroom is helpful when planning ahead for next school year. Your school might even require this as part of your teacher checkout process at the end of the school year.

By going through your classroom and taking inventory, you also prevent yourself from holding onto items that you haven't used in awhile.

You can even have your students help you do this during the last week of school. They can help you organize manipulatives and supplies (while practicing teamwork and sorting skills…yay!) They'll feel so good knowing they're helping prepare your classroom for the next group of students.

Make a pile of items you want to get rid of or donate to another teacher (first year teachers are always appreciative).

Then, go through your files of centers and worksheets that you printed and see what is left over or reusable. Put these items in a pile to use next year. Finally, look at what you have and make a list of what you still need to purchase and prep.

Don't forget to take inventory of what's in your teacher space. Need to clean out your desk and replace pictures in your picture frames? Do you have a stack of random books and papers lying around?

By getting organized now, you can come back to school after the summer feeling lighter and more prepared.

Tip #3: Plan Ahead with Bundles

Bundles are your best friend when planning ahead for next school year. By purchasing and prepping bundles that will get you through the first months of school or even the entire year, you'll take a lot of time, work, and stress off of your plate when the school year rolls around.

Reference your handy pacing guide and look through your pile of resources you're saving for next year. Then, determine what you have and what gaps you need to fill in your curriculum. Think about strategies or units you want to implement with your students. Do you want to use morning tubs, seasonal centers, etc?

Once you have your wishlist of items you need and want to implement, treat yourself to some teacher retail therapy and shop for bundles.

Not only do bundles save you money, but they also provide consistent activities for your students and allow you to prep ahead of time. Imagine having skill-based, seasonal, and yearlong activities ready to go before the school year even starts!

Tip #4: Print and Laminate Early

Finally, to make planning ahead for next school year effective, take advantage of the slow copy room traffic at the end of the year. Print and laminate your materials before you head home for the summer.

Most teachers aren't using the copy room during the last week of school, but you know how crazy it can get in there come back to school time.

I know summer is calling you, but stay disciplined and hang on for just a bit longer. Go print and laminate all of the resources you want to prep over the summer. You don't need to cut or organize them just yet. Just print and laminate and put them in a box to take home.

While you're enjoying your slow mornings or afternoon quiet time, you can cut and organize your materials into labeled file folders or large zipper baggies without rushing around.

I think it's actually kind of therapeutic sitting down to cut perfectly laminated centers and resources. It's one of those mindless activities that you can do while catching up on a show or listening to a great teacher podcast.

I hope these tips for planning ahead for next school year help you get organized, feel confident, and minimize stress as you look to the new school year. By implementing these tips, you can focus your time on your students and planning amazing lessons when you get back from summer break.

Check out this blog post with tips for prepping ahead for the new year along with a few must-have items that you can cut and prep over the summer!

Want a copy of the Kindergarten Pacing Guide freebie? Simply fill out the form below and get it delivered right to your inbox!

The Importance of Goal Setting for Teachers

As educators, it’s important to continue learning and looking for ways to grow in your teaching practice. However, it’s easy for teachers to take on too many goals at one time! It’s important that you narrow your focus.

By narrowing your focus, you can make real progress toward a goal. Just like you teach one lesson at a time, so students can truly master it, your goals should be narrow to allow you room to focus and grow.

Creating a Goal

At the end of the school year, I recommend doing an end of year reflection to think back on the challenges you faced, the wins you had in the classroom, and the areas you want to improve on next school year. This reflection is a great way to determine the areas in which you want to grow and improve.

However, goal setting for teachers is still possible even if you didn’t do a reflection at the end of the year. Instead, think back on last school year. Did your principal offer any feedback? Was there a particular struggle that sticks out? Are there any new strategies you are excited about?

You may also get an idea for a goal when attending summer or back to school PD. During a session, you might learn about a new teaching tool you want to focus on or dive into a particular struggle students have that you want to help them overcome.

Why Goal Setting in the Summer is Effective

Summer is definitely a time to rest, relax, and unplug from school. However, it’s still a great time to think about your professional goals for next school year.

During the school year, it can be hard to sit down, reflect, and think about the areas you want to grow in. Your mind is going a mile and minute, and your time is limited.

In the summer, you have more time and mental space to think about the goals you want to work towards. You also can focus on getting specific on your goals. There’s a difference between saying, “I want to be a better reading teacher” and “I want to implement literacy centers in order to improve as a reading teacher.” The second option is specific and states exactly what it is you want to learn and focus on. 

Additionally, you have more time to research, learn, and dive into professional development. You actually have time to consume information that relates to your goal without distraction.

Goal setting is also effective in the summer because you have time to prep the materials you may need to achieve the goal. In the example of the literacy centers, you can actually take the time to learn what you’ll need, find the literacy centers you want to use, and prepare them ahead of time for the year.

Goal Setting Ideas for Teachers

When setting goals, you want to make sure they are SMART goals. This means they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Based. By setting SMART goals, you’ll be able to get specific and create an action plan that’s in line with your timeline and what you want to achieve.

In the list below, I’m sharing some of my favorite goal-setting ideas for teachers. I’m also including an example SMART goal for each one. These are some of the most common topics that I hear from teachers that they want to improve on.

Increasing Classroom Organization

If you struggle with organizing your classroom, this might be the best goal for you. With this goal, you can focus on how organization impacts classroom learning and behavior. This could also be a small goal that gets you started at the beginning of the year, but you don’t have to focus your entire year on it.

Example SMART Goal: Organize all of my manipulatives and classroom supplies into labeled totes before I report back to school in August.

Improving Classroom Management

Classroom management is on every teacher's mind during back to school. Even if you’ve been teaching for twenty years, you know that every year is different, and it can be a challenge to predict what classroom management strategies will work for this particular group.

Instead of trying to figure out the entire school year, set a goal for how you will knock off classroom management with students or conquer a particular part of the day, like dismissal.

Example SMART Goal: Establish 5 main classroom rules, and plan and prep for a mini-lesson to explicitly teach them on the 2nd day of school.

Focusing on Relationship and Community Building

Relationships are the backbone of every successful school year. However, building relationships can take time. You can set a goal for how you will build relationships with your students or how you will maintain those relationships throughout the year.

Example SMART Goal: Choose 3 classroom community building strategies and implement them during the first week of school.

Setting up and Implementing Centers

Getting kindergarten students to be successful in centers takes a lot of time! With this goal, you can decide how you will implement centers, what your year-long goal for centers will be, or how you will make centers easier for you. 

Example SMART Goal: Print, prep, and organize math and literacy centers into labeled baggies for the entire year before I report back to school in August.

Improving Writing Instruction

The longer you teach, the more strategies and tools you can implement in your classroom. Maybe this year, you set a goal for where students will be out throughout the year with their writing skills. Perhaps you also determine what new writing activities you will implement, like interactive writing prompts and writing centers.

Example SMART Goal: Plan a daily directed drawing activity for our writing lessons for the first month of school.

Establishing a Morning Routine

If your morning routine has been a bit chaotic in the past or super time-consuming to plan, this is a great goal. You can set a goal to implement a new morning routine, like using morning tubs.

Example SMART Goal: Prep and store a Back to School set of morning work activities for students to complete each day during the first month of school.

Tracking Your Progress

After you’ve completed some goal setting for teachers, you want to track your progress and check-in with yourself frequently in order to achieve your goal.

This is where the Measurable and Time-Based portion of the SMART goals come in. You want to be able to measure your progress and give yourself a deadline for when you’ll accomplish the goal. If you don’t set a deadline, you may fall victim to procrastination and constantly putting your goal on the back burner.

Make sure you write your SMART goal down so you know exactly what it is you want to achieve. You can even write it in a journal so you can take notes, make to-do lists, and track your progress toward your goal.

Another way to ensure you’re moving forward on your goal (and to make it a little more fun) is to get an accountability partner! Maybe your team teacher wants to also implement centers next year. Check-in with each other on how the prepping is going. You can even get together over the summer to print, laminate, and prep.

Is there another teacher in your building that has a great morning routine? Pick their brain over the summer and ask them for their best advice. Tell them the goal you’re working towards. Ask them to hold you accountable by checking in with you once or twice over the summer.

Lastly, you don’t have to be perfect. It is summer, and you shouldn’t be spending every day thinking about your goals for next year or working on school tasks. Give yourself grace, adjust your plans if needed, and keep moving forward.