Meet the Teacher Night

In my experiences growing up and as a teacher, I have always had Open House, rather than a Meet the Teacher Night. Last year was the first year we did Meet the Teacher Night. I was excited, but of course I wanted my room to be absolutely perfect the first time families and students saw it, so the pressure was on! Here is how I set up my classroom for Meet the Teacher Night...

READY CONFETTI!

I made bags of ready confetti and attached this poem to the bags. The students sprinkle it under their pillow the night before the first day of school to help with any first day jitters.

CLASSROOM WISHLIST

I labeled these cupcakes with consumable products that we use a lot of in the classroom. Parents were free to take a cupcake from the cake stand if they wanted to donate an item.

COMMUNICATION MAGNETS

On the right side of the table you'll see my teacher communication magnets. On these I place my name, e-mail address and phone number. Parents take a magnet so that they always have access to my contact information. 

PARENT WISHES

The last item on the table is my jar of parent wishes. Parents write down a wish they have for their students for the school year. They fold it and place it inside. We revisit them later in the year during a conference when we celebrate their child's successes.

Classroom Scavenger Hunt

I have a scavenger hunt for the students and a scavenger hunt for the parents. This ensures that parents complete all paperwork, get a chance to move through the room without needing step-by-step directions from me.

Note the small cards labeled with numbers. Those cards are numbered stations for parents to go to throughout the room. It starts with a simple sign-in sheet and progresses to things like completing paperwork and introducing them to various areas of the room. I used spray painted clothespins to hold the cards up. I found the awesome cards here and they are completely editable, so you can create them to fit your needs!

I'll leave you with these guys for today. I stalk the Kohl's Cares items every couple of months when they change. Most of you probably know about them, but if not, they choose a theme or an author every couple of months. They have some hardcover books and the corresponding stuffed animals for only $5 apiece. The best part is, ALL OF THE MONEY IS DONATED TO SUPPORT KIDS' HEALTH AND EDUCATION INITIATIVES NATIONWIDE. 

Right now they have the books written by Laura Numeroff.

IF YOU GIVE A PIG A PANCAKE

IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIE

IF YOU GIVE A MOOSE A MUFFIN

IF YOU GIVE A DOG A DONUT

I already have the books, so I picked up these little guys as reading buddies for my classroom library.