Setting up your classroom for September

You've done it! Clambering over obstacles as diverse as skills tests, passing your assignments and school placements, you have attained Nirvana - well, QTS, anyway!

You have filled in mountains of application forms, trekked to far - flung schools where you have been shown round by bizarre, twitching potential 'colleagues', muttering and giggling nervously about the 'delights' of teaching 5A…you survived the interview and you have The Job.

So what comes next? If you are a primary teacher, it is setting up your classroom.

With a bit of luck, the previous incumbent will have cleared the classroom of their goods and chattels before you take up residence. Otherwise, go armed with an industrial sized roll of black sacks. Do NOT throw away anything stamped with the school's name unless you want to be known ever - after as 'That young wastrel…'

Instead, put to one side anything you think may belong to the school or the previous teacher, and ask the Deputy or Head what you should do with it (don't ask them during stressful moments - you may get a rude and anatomically impossible suggestion.) File under 'Bin' any mashed up boxes, cartons etc. that have been kept 'in case they come in handy as resources.' Once the classroom is roiling with small persons, you will be amazed at how little room you actually have.

Have a quick clean through. Cleaners can be wonderful, but their timescale may not dovetail with yours. On this note, check that no major painting/carpet cleaning etc. is taking place during the holidays or your carefully set up classroom may end up as a near - vertical pile in the centre of the classroom come the end of August.

If your school has a certain way in which they like classrooms to be organized - great. Check this with colleagues and school policies. Increasingly this is the case. If not, think about how you would like your classroom laid out. Remember not to create 'blind' areas, where you cannot see what little Johnny is doing to the tadpoles, or where the technology tools are…and don't block 'high traffic' areas (such as near the bin, routes to the door etc) or you will spend hours picking up knocked over resources and grumbling at children.

Whole class teaching is an element of Numeracy and Literacy strategies, but provision should also be made for organising the tables in the classroom for group work. You should also think about using 'bays and displays' for different subject areas if this does not already happen in your school. Designate 'maths', 'English' and 'science' areas. Keep resources for these subjects readily available in the designated area to encourage independence. Cheap baskets are a good idea as children have open access to resources.

Think about some displays you can have in place when the children come in for the first time in September. These can then be added to as the children complete work ready for display. Some teachers do not bother with this, but a bare classroom is a depressing, cold place. Sorry to go 'changing rooms' on you, but you will be amazed at what you can achieve with some swatches of fabric and a staple gun!

Drape fabric over your display tables, and at least label the displays you will be mounting once the children are in. If your topic is Egyptians, drape a table with sandy coloured fabric and add some artefacts - even better; a large tray of sand with artefacts to 'discover'…you get the picture. If the children are dying to get into your classroom to see what you have prepared for them, you have won the 'battle' before it has begun. And a prepared classroom gives out a powerful message to children and parents alike - you think they are important, you want them to have fun, and it's going to be an interesting year. The biggest compliment I ever got from a pupil was along the lines of 'I couldn't WAIT to be in your class! I used to love coming along and bringing messages, because there was always so much to look at…'

Start with the door to your classroom. Sounds obvious, but this is the first thing the children will see in September. Make a welcome sign for your door - don't moan; you'll be making LOTS of things this year - and be honest, if you didn't like getting busy with the scissors, glitter and glue, why did you train to be a primary school teacher?

Cut images of children's faces from magazines and catalogues. Write the words 'Welcome to Class xxx' neatly on a piece of large card. Alternatively, trace letter templates onto felt, coloured card etc. and stick the letters on the card. Ask around school - if there is not a 'school' set of templates, another teacher is bound to have a set. Alternatively, cheap wood or plastic sets can be bought in remainder bookshops. Stick the faces around the words and you have made your door less scary and more welcoming - not bad for an evening's work in front of the telly (lager, crisps and a bad film optional).

Lastly, think about reward systems. The school may have their own, but if not, think of one yourself that goes with the 'theme' of your half term/term. If you are doing Earth and Space, use stars. If you are doing minibeasts, have busy bees - whatever. I once had an 'Achievement Vine' with a Y6 class who were studying the rainforest. A few felt flowers; coiled green crepe paper as vines and green pipe cleaners as tendrils…the classroom was a green and verdant place by half term! I provided blank green paper 'leaves' for myself - or the children - to write positive comments about each other on. (I was even awarded a few leaves myself!)

Once again, the 'rewards' system made visible at the beginning of the year set the scene: I had high expectations, and knew that the children in my care were going to live up to them. A few hours spent 'cutting and sticking' in August will reap benefits for the rest of the academic year. You will NEVER forget your first year in teaching. Make it a good one!

Reproduced by kind permission of: Times Educational Supplement.