6 Simple Goals to Make Open House or Back-To-School Night a Success [Episode 213]

Heidi  0:00

This is episode 213 of Teacher Approved.

 

Heidi  0:05

You’re listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I’m Heidi.

 

Emily  0:14

And I’m Emily. We’re the creators behind Second Story Window, where we give research based and teacher approved strategies that make teaching less stressful and more effective. You can check out the show notes and resources from each episode at secondstorywindow.net.

 

Heidi  0:29

We’re so glad you’re tuning in today. Let’s get to the show.

 

Emily  0:37

Hey there. Thanks for joining us today. In today’s episode, we are sharing the six goals every teacher should have for back to school night, and sharing a tip for adding a little celebration to your first day of school.

 

Heidi  0:49

But first, it’s time for try it tomorrow, a favorite quick win that you can try in your life right away. Emily, what is our suggestion for this week?

 

Emily  0:58

Since it’s August, now, send a quick text to one teacher friend or other school staff member just to check in. At this time of year, there is a lot of comfort in knowing that someone else understands everything you’re juggling.

 

Heidi  1:10

And while strengthening relationships is always beneficial, this can also help you manage your stress level. When you are overwhelmed with your own to do list, reaching out to connect or even commiserate with someone else is a really effective way to make a heavy burden seem a little lighter.

 

Emily  1:27

If you like this idea or anything else we share here on the podcast, would you take a second and give us a five star rating and review?

 

Heidi  1:35

Over the years, Emily and I have created an extensive library of back to school products. To help you find the tools that will make the start of your new year easier, today we are spotlighting our first day wish resource. Tell us about this one, Emily,

 

Emily  1:50

I love this. It’s so cute. We’ve created something so special to help ease those back to school jitters and start building connection before the year even begins. Our wishing star kit gives you everything you need to reach out to students with a simple but powerful message, that you are thinking of them, you’re excited to be their teacher, and you believe in them. This is one of our newest resources, and so you might not have seen it yet, and it is perfect for the first day of school, especially if you’re looking for, you know, a mess free alternative to jitter glitter or ready confetti.

 

Heidi  2:25

Oh, no joke, don’t do that to yourself or your families. The kit includes a sweet poem, and we offer lots of flexible options depending on how you want to connect. If you’re going to be seeing your students at back to school night before school starts. You can pair the poem with a squishy like anxiety relief star. You can buy them in bulk, they’re very cheap. So the kids can squeeze it, whenever they need a little comfort, they can squeeze it and make their back to school wish. If you’re not going to be seeing kids in person, there are templates so you can mail little glow in the dark stars attached, because, you know, kids love getting mail, and I love getting mail. It’s just bills all the time.

 

Emily  3:01

I’ll send you a glow in the dark star too.

 

Heidi  3:02

Please do. You can prep this whole thing in just a few minutes, but the impact on students is huge.

 

Emily  3:08

What we love most about this resource is how it immediately shows students that you’re the kind of teacher who cares about their feelings and wants them to succeed. Plus, it gives you a gentle way to track which families attended your back to school night or open house, and which students you might want to reach out to individually. It’s one of those small gestures that makes a big difference in how students feel about walking into your classroom on day one.

 

Heidi  3:30

And if you’re interested, you can grab the first day wish kit from the link in our show notes.

 

Emily  3:36

So here we are, early August, some of you are already back in your classrooms, and some of you are still savoring those last few weeks of summer break.

 

Heidi  3:44

But regardless of where you are in the back to school timeline, there’s one event looming on the horizon that can make even veteran teachers feel a little bit anxious. It’s back to school night.

 

Emily  3:56

Or meet the teacher night, or open house. You know, whatever your schools call it. It’s that crucial first impression event where families get to see your classroom and meet the person who’s going to be such an important part of their child’s life this year.

 

Heidi  4:10

But can I just get on my soapbox for a minute? This puts so much pressure on teachers and then most other professions, probably any other profession, if you were asked to plan and host an important event to make a great first impression, you would probably get some dedicated work time to pull this together. You’d probably even have a budget to go toward this.

 

Emily  4:32

Yeah, wouldn’t that be nice? Because for teachers, it’s just one more thing on top of setting up your entire classroom, planning your first week of lessons and learning the names of 25 new little humans.

 

Heidi  4:44

Yeah. And I think that pressure leads to a lot of teachers spending way too much time online trying to figure out what they should be doing for back to school night. Should I make a presentation? Should I have activity? Should I decorate everything so it looks like Instagram?

 

Emily  4:57

Yeah. And the problem with just browsing ideas without a clear purpose is that you can end up doing things that look cute but don’t actually serve you or the families. You might spend hours on something that’s fun but doesn’t help you build the foundation for a successful year.

 

Heidi  5:12

So today, we want to give you a framework of six specific goals for back to school night that will help you use your time and energy strategically.

 

Emily  5:19

Once you know what you’re trying to accomplish, you can evaluate every idea through that lens, and then we’ll talk about how you can use stations to make the event flow seamlessly.

 

Heidi  5:31

So funny story about stations. Early in my teaching career, I actually got my friend and teammate, Cassidy, in trouble for doing stations instead of making a formal presentation at back to school night.

 

Emily  5:43

Oh my gosh, I can’t believe you did that to Cassidy, and she’s still your friend. What happened?

 

Heidi  5:48

Well, it was totally unintentional. I had seen the idea in a scholastic teacher book, you know, the kind that we used to spend all that money on back in the day. Because that was the only resource! And it had suggested doing stations for the back to school open house. And I had done it for a couple years, and she was a brand new teacher, so I suggested it to her. But Mr. Oluson, whose wife taught at our school, and yes, I am going to out him, because it’s been 20 years, he didn’t like it, so he complained to the principal.

 

Emily  6:16

Wait, was that like a parent or who was that?

 

Heidi  6:20

Oh, so his daughter was in Cassidy’s class.

 

Emily  6:23

Ah but he didn’t like the stations.

 

Heidi  6:25

Yes, he had to come to the open house because his wife was obviously running her own open house, and he was unimpressed with stations apparently.

 

Emily  6:33

Imagine being a parent on back to school night and you’re gonna already attack your kid’s new teacher for how they ran it.

 

Heidi  6:40

A brand new teacher at that.

 

Emily  6:42

Oh, mercy.

 

Heidi  6:43

So after a few years, I did get to go back to stations, and it goes so much better. I just hated talking at families from the front of the room. It’s so impersonal and it’s so boring for everyone involved.

 

Emily  6:57

Oh, amen. As a parent, I do not want to go in and stand there awkwardly while the teacher talks to like 30 parents crammed in there, because sometimes you’ve got both spouses there and then kids and sometimes younger siblings, and it is the worst. I so much prefer it when I can go in and do stations, because I do not want to be sitting in that tiny desk while someone reads their classroom policies to me, like that could be an email. Tell me about it on my own time.

 

Heidi  7:24

Oh, exactly. I had no idea we had such big feelings on this, but apparently we do.

 

Emily  7:29

I’ve sat in too many un air conditioned classrooms packed in with too many other parents. I’m over it.

 

Heidi  7:36

Kids losing their minds because they’re so bored.

 

Emily  7:39

And they want to go to their class and yep.

 

Heidi  7:41

It’s too much. Well, let’s do better for everyone. And these days, if you look at any teaching blog or any back to school advice online, everyone recommends doing stations. It’s become the gold standard because it’s so much more personal, it’s so much easier to manage, and it’s so much more informative.

 

Emily  7:57

Yes, like, it’s no surprise that everybody says to do stations, because it is by far the best way to do it. Heck, we even did it for meet the teacher when we taught preschool.

 

Heidi  8:05

Oh yeah.

 

Emily  8:06

They kind of came in and they had their own little checklist that they did, and it’s just the best way to do it. So this way, the families can arrive whenever they’re going to arrive. They can move at their own pace. The kids can explore the space, and you actually get to have a real conversation with people, instead of just talking to a room full of faces.

 

Heidi  8:25

Right. Absolutely. 100% cosign all of this. So don’t be afraid to buck tradition if it means creating a better experience for everyone. And to help you do that, we’re going to dive into the six goals that should guide your back to school night planning. They are build connection, gather important information, familiarize families with the classroom, welcome students into the space, manage supplies and spark excitement for the year ahead. Should have come up with some catchier titles.

 

Emily  8:51

I know I can’t believe we didn’t use alliteration.

 

Heidi  8:54

Or an anagram or something.

 

Emily  8:55

Yes.

 

Heidi  8:56

We’ll work on that for next summer.

 

Emily  8:57

Yes. These goals work together to strategically build the foundation for a successful school year. So let’s break down each one and talk about how to make them happen. First goal is to build connection.

 

Heidi  9:10

And this is all about letting families get to know the person behind the desk. They are entrusting you with their most precious possession, their child, so they need to feel like you are a safe, caring adult who truly cares about their kid.

 

Emily  9:22

And this really isn’t about impressing the parents or proving how amazing you are, even though obviously you are, it’s about showing them your heart and your teaching style. The goal here is we’re just trying to build trust. One of the easiest ways to do this is with a looping slideshow that runs in the background while families are exploring your room. You can include photos of yourself, your family, your pets, your hobbies, anything that helps them see you as a real person. You could also include slides about your teaching philosophy, what a typical day looks like in your classroom, or even just some fun facts about you. The goal is to help them feel like they know you just a little bit when they’re done.

 

Heidi  9:57

Another simple option that I think a lot of teachers do is to have a bio sheet available. You could either print that out and hand it out at back to school night, or it could just be something that you send in an email, which is probably the easier option, but either way, it helps parents to know that they aren’t leaving their child with a complete stranger.

 

Emily  10:14

The second goal is to gather important information. So you need details to help keep kids safe and supported, and so open house or back to school night is the perfect time to collect that information while families are still in their eager to help mode, because, spoiler alert, they won’t stay in that mode.

 

Heidi  10:32

Oh yes, capitalize on that window if there’s something you need back from families. So think about all of the forms that you need, emergency contacts, transportation plans, allergies, any kind of accommodations. This stuff is too important to leave to chance or hope that it trickles in over the first few weeks.

 

Emily  10:50

You can make this so easy by setting up a dedicated station in your room with all your forms clearly labeled. Or if you want to go digital, you can have QR codes that link to online forms that families can fill out on their phones right there in your classroom.

 

Heidi  11:03

Or make it really easy, if you have access to Chromebooks or tablets, you can set up a station where families can fill out the digital forms right then. However you’re collecting this information, just make sure there’s a clear way for people to turn that in. If they’re turning in papers, have a clearly marked basket. If you’re doing it online, have all the steps printed out so you don’t have all the questions.

 

Emily  11:23

Yeah, one year, my son’s teacher had it where, when we got there and we were going through the checklist of things to do at the open house, one of them was for him to get out a Chromebook, login for the first time, like so he was getting it all set up for himself, which I thought was really smart to make the parent help do that.

 

Heidi  11:41

Yes, that’s so clever.

 

Emily  11:42

Yes. And then on his computer, I filled out the forms I needed to fill out. And so I was like, that is actually, I’ll be honest, it wasn’t necessarily slick, because it was a pain in the butt to help him get logged in, because, of course, there were issues, but I can see from the teacher perspective why it was so smart to do it that way and have the parents help get through the tech issue, instead of you trying to help 24 kids do that on their computers all together.

 

Heidi  12:06

That is ninja level teaching, right there.

 

Emily  12:09

I know, clever. So anyway, the key is, whatever you’re doing here, make it obvious and easy. You don’t want families wandering around wondering where they’re supposed to put things or what they need to fill out.

 

Heidi  12:21

Goal number three for back to school night is to help families, both the students and their caregivers, feel at home in your space. When families understand how your classroom works, it eases first day nerves and it shows them that you run a structured, student friendly room.

 

Emily  12:35

This is where that station approach really shines, because instead of just talking about where supplies live and how routines work, your families can actually see and explore for themselves.

 

Heidi  12:45

This is where you can have a lot of fun. You could create a self guided scavenger hunt with tasks like find the classroom library and browse the books, or locate the supply station and draw a smiley face with a marker.

 

Emily  12:56

Or you could simply have clear labels and signs throughout your room with short explanations, like you could have a little sign by your reading corner that says, This is where we gather for read alouds. Or, students can choose books from these bins during independent reading time.

 

Heidi  13:09

Your fourth open house goal is to welcome students into the space and to create a moment of belonging before the year even begins. Students should be able to see their names, find their spots and leave a little piece of themselves behind.

 

Emily  13:22

This is so important because you want kids to walk in on the first day and think, Oh, yes, I belong here. This is my classroom too. This is why having names visible in the room is so important. Even if you use student numbers, make sure each child’s name is visible somewhere in the room. A good rule of thumb is that it should be visible in three places, especially one of them being the door or right outside the door. It just goes a long way toward helping everyone feel included and comfortable.

 

Heidi  13:51

But you can even take that a step further by having an activity where students can contribute to their classroom right away. Maybe you have them do an all about me drawing activity where they create something that they can display. Or you could do a shared class goal chart where everyone adds their hopes for the year.

 

Emily  14:07

Or you can have a station where students can vote on which book they want you to read aloud on the first day. These are little touches, but they help students feel like they’re already part of the classroom community and not just visitors in the space.

 

Heidi  14:21

Goal five of your back to school planning is all about managing supplies and your support systems. First, make it easy on yourself by making it easy on families to drop off school supplies. Have clearly labeled bins or areas where they can leave their items.

 

Emily  14:37

Yeah, I’ve been surprised the years that I show up with, you know, bags full of supplies to donate, and there’s no, there’s no clear place of where I’m supposed to put it. And it’s like, hey, hey, where do you want these? You got to think about these things. And if you have a classroom wish list, this is a perfect time to share it. You could create a take a tag display where families can choose an item to donate if they want to.

 

Heidi  14:59

And also, don’t forget about volunteer opportunities. Having a simple sign up sheet for things like field trip chaperones, classroom helpers, party planners or special event volunteers can be really helpful all year long.

 

Emily  15:11

Oh yeah, and I love having these out to sign when I go to open house. Obviously, just keep it simple and pressure free. Some families are going to be eager to help, and others might be dealing with work schedules and other constraints, and that is perfectly okay. We don’t want anyone to feel like they’re not contributing if they can’t sign up for a volunteer opportunity.

 

Heidi  15:32

And finally, goal six is to spark excitement for the year ahead. You want people to leave this event feeling like something wonderful is beginning. This is where you can really lean into that sense of fun, make some memorable magic, but with a purpose. We’re not doing cute activities for the sake of being cute. We are strategically building anticipation and joy.

 

Emily  15:53

You could set up a photo station with props where families can take a picture together. And also, I was thinking, open house is the perfect time to take a picture of each one of your students. Even better if they’re, like, holding a name tag that has their name on it.

 

Heidi  16:07

So smart.

 

Emily  16:08

So that you can practice their names before the first day of school. Because I would always take pictures of my students on the first day of school and then go home and, like, cram looking through the pictures. And I would get them pretty good with, like, basically doing it like flashcards. So it’d be even smarter to do it for open house. Plus it would just be fun for the families to be able to take pictures at a photo station as well. Or you could have your students contribute to a banner where they write or draw their hopes for the year and then clip it onto the banner, which will be waiting for them when they come on the first day of school.

 

Heidi  16:39

And of course, if you want to send people home with a little bit of magic, don’t forget to grab our first day wish resource. One thing I love about this is that the poem prompts kids to hold the star and make their wish for the new school year, but they’re also supposed to imagine that their teacher is making their wish for them at the same time. I just always think that’s such a heartwarming little thought of you know, the teacher and the student are still having this connective moment, even though school hasn’t officially even started yet.

 

Emily  17:03

Yes, I love that, and the point is to end this open house or back to school visit on a note of joy and anticipation. So whether it’s their first year at your school or their last, every student deserves to feel like they’re about to embark on something amazing.

 

Heidi  17:20

Okay, so those are your six goals, but let’s talk about the how. How do you actually structure this evening so you can accomplish all of this without losing your mind?

 

Emily  17:29

We recommend creating a simple checklist that covers all six areas and gives families a clear path through your classroom. So just think of it like a little roadmap that guides them from station to station.

 

Heidi  17:41

As families arrive, you greet them at the door, and you hand them the checklist, and they can move through the activities at their own pace while you float around the room having real conversations with people.

 

Emily  17:51

Your slideshow can be running in the background, providing that connection piece we talked about. And meanwhile, families are checking items off their list, filling out forms, exploring the classroom, finding their child’s desk, dropping off supplies, or just pausing to watch the slideshow.

 

Heidi  18:07

There’s so much to do in just those few minutes. But the beauty of this approach is that you are not trapped at the front of the room giving the same presentation over and over. You can actually talk to families, get to know your new students, answer specific questions, figure out how to say some unfamiliar names and start building those important relationships.

 

Emily  18:26

And like I said earlier, families love it too, because they’re not sitting passively in those little desks listening to you talk. The kids can explore and touch things. The parents can ask questions as they come up, and everyone can move at their own pace. If they’re in a hurry, they can get in and out quickly. It’s just so much better for everyone.

 

Heidi  18:44

Now, if all of this sounds great in theory, but overwhelming in practice, we have got some news for you. We have created a brand new open house, back to school, meet the teacherresource that is designed to help you meet all six of these goals without having to start from scratch.

 

Emily  19:01

Yes, this resource includes everything from a meet the teacher slideshow template, and welcome letter, to classroom labels, volunteer signups and even those wishlist tags we mentioned. The whole thing is designed to make your back to school night both meaningful and manageable.

 

Heidi  19:16

You can find that resource in our shop, and we will be sure to put a link in the show notes. But whether you use our resource or you create your own, the important thing is having those six clear goals to guide your planning.

 

Emily  19:27

So to recap, at your back to school night or open house, you want to build connection, gather important information, familiarize families with the classroom, welcome students into the space, manage supplies and support systems, and spark excitement for the year ahead.

 

Heidi  19:34

With those goals in mind, you can evaluate every back to school night idea through that lens and use your time strategically to create an event that actually serves you and your families.

 

Emily  19:52

We would love to hear how you manage meet the teacher or open house. Come join the conversation in our teacher approved Facebook group.

 

Emily  20:01

Now for our Teacher Approved Tip of the Week, where we share an actionable tip to help you elevate what matters and simplify the rest. This week’s teacher approved tip is a classic one that we’ve shared before, but we’re revisiting again because it’s so timely, and it’s about starting the year with a celebration. So Heidi, will you tell us about this one?

 

Heidi  20:18

Yeah, unfortunately, we can’t take credit for this. This comes from Joanna at Head Over Heels For Teaching, and she has a tradition every year that we absolutely love. So the first day of school comes to a close, she distributes Happy New Year hats and horns, and the class does a countdown to the bell ring at the end of the first day.

 

Emily  20:35

It’s such a whimsical way to kick off the new year, and we want to help you make this happen in your own classroom. So we have a set of Happy New Year headbands, glow in the dark glasses and horns to give away. So come join us in the Teacher Approved Facebook group and comment on the giveaway posts, and you will be entered into a drawing to get your own class set of Happy New Year supplies so that you can try out this tradition this year.

 

Heidi  20:58

To wrap up the show, we’re sharing what we’re sharing what we’re giving extra credit to this week. Emily, what gets your extra credit?

 

Emily  21:00

I’m giving extra credit to the cluedle kids activity books. So I just got one of these for my son for his birthday, and it has been a massive hit. I got him the first one, which is the case of the dumbleton diamond. And so the book has like, case notes and evidence to read, and then you evaluate, you know, what you’re learning as you go through to try and solve the case. And then there’s 50 puzzles to solve throughout, yeah, like, it’s jam packed, and I’m sure I’m gonna end up getting the next one when he finishes this one, because he’s enjoying it so much. And there’s other books like this. Like, there’s one where you’re solving a murder, and it’s called Murdle, and there’s a whole series of that, and there’s kids versions of that too. I think this is a fun new genre of activity books that are out there. So if you have a kid that likes solving mysteries, this will be right up their alley.

 

Heidi  21:54

Yeah, this sounds like it was just made for him.

 

Emily  21:56

Yep. What are you giving extra credit to, Heidi?

 

Heidi  21:59

Well, my extra Credit goes to Oh Happy Danny’s classroom posters. I know we’ve talked about her designs in the past, because everything she does is so cute. I know she’s got some really cute like affirmation signs you could put on a mirror in your classroom. But these new posters are top notch. They have encouraging messages about kindness and bravery, and they show lots of different hands all working to make a difference, and we will put a link in the show notes, so you can check them out if you’re interested.

 

Heidi  22:25

But one thing that I really appreciated with these is that if you live in a state like Idaho, where it’s now illegal to tell children that everyone is welcome, on her Instagram, she made a post breaking down the riskiness of using her posters in different learning environments. So if you do live somewhere that that might be a problem, I’m so sorry, but you still can get a positive message across without getting fired for it. It’s possible.

 

Emily  22:49

Yeah, it’s handy. It shows like which posters are more, would potentially be more risky. It seems ridiculous that we even have to say that, but she she’s there to help out too. She doesn’t want to get any teachers in trouble.

 

Heidi  23:01

Yeah, especially because it is all just like, be kind, be brave. We build a better world together. But, this is where we are. So, don’t lose your job over it.

 

Emily  23:11

Yes, but go check out Oh Happy Danny, her designs are beautiful and so fun.

 

Heidi  23:17

That’s it for today’s episode. Use those six goals to guide your back to school night planning, and don’t forget to grab our open house resource if you want some ready to use materials that align with everything we talked about today.

 

Emily  23:28

And make sure to come enter the Happy New Year giveaway in our Teacher Approved Facebook group.

 

Heidi  23:35

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I’m Heidi.

 

Emily  23:39

And I’m Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an episode.

 

Heidi  23:45

You can connect with us and other teachers in the Teacher Approved Facebook group. We’ll see you here next week. Bye for now.

 

Emily  23:52

Bye.