It's Never Too Early to Plan for Back-to-School
School's out for summer, but teacher planning and purchasing for the upcoming year has only just begun.
Summer is here for most K–12 educators, but that doesn't mean their planning work has ended. For many, the summer months offer a prime opportunity to leverage some uninterrupted blocks of time to think, organize, and plan how to promote a more engaging and motivating classroom learning environment. Schools and districts that offer online shopping resources or bulk purchasing flexibility help teachers make the most of their precious summer break time, allowing them enjoy their time away from school. Here are key considerations to help teachers make more comprehensive lists of classroom supplies and essentials, and establish a solid foundation for success in the coming school year.
Take stock of what worked (and what will work better)
When it comes to the classroom environment, make detailed lists of the tools, storage solutions, or strategies that worked well, and set aside those that didn't. Are there areas of the classroom that could use some extra help as far as organization or storage are concerned? Areas or hot spots that required extra time to clean up and reset at the end of a learning session or school day are prime candidates for a refreshed approach.
What about seating arrangements and dedicated work areas? Did students use all of the tools or materials made available to them? Do they need more of any particular items? Books and media storage that hide items from students (rather than clearly show what's available) could also use a fresh take. Some studies suggest positive-feeling environments as well as organizational updates directly impact student learning and engagement.
In its guidance to schools and educators, for example, the California Department of Education references multiple studies finding that a school climate perceived by students as "positive" contributes to improved engagement and outcomes. While a positive-feeling school climate refers broadly to an environment that is safe and free from violence, bright and well-organized classrooms also contribute to positive vibes, and are more conducive to learning.
"A highly organized classroom may minimize non-instructional time as classrooms with stronger organization may have clearer expectations for students, which in turn can reduce the amount of time spent on directions or in transition," according to research performed by the Ohio State University and the University of Nebraska and funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The research notes that the benefits of organization were particularly more significant in the fall, and "highlight how important the beginning of the school year is for establishing developmentally appropriate routines and practices."
"Supporting pre-service and in-service ... teachers with effectively implementing developmentally appropriate practices specific to classroom organization may have important implications for children's language development," the research concludes.
Facilitate change
State- or district-mandated updates or refreshes to curricula mean new materials to facilitate instruction will likely be required. Likewise, teachers who are assigned to cover coursework that's new to them, or work with new student populations, will most likely require new materials and instructional aids to meet those new challenges head-on.
Beyond instruction, it may simply be time to make changes or adjustments to the classroom environment. Perhaps there aren't enough spaces or resources available to help students collaborate with each other, dedicated areas to use classroom technology tools, or even spaces where students can access community updates or simply calm down and focus. What materials will best establish such specific use cases? For calming or focus areas, start with comfy seating, rugs, and possibly special lighting. Flexible furniture with wheels that allow easy movement facilitates a variety of collaborative set-ups.
Don't forget the essentials
What will teachers need to sanitize desks and other classroom items, and keep their learning spaces germ-free when cold and flu season rolls around? What will keep students who suffer from severe allergies safe? What day-to-day items do classrooms exhaust quickly? Ensuring teachers have access to the products and resources they need to clean, organize, and set up their classrooms before the first day of school goes a long way toward streamlining tasks and alleviating back-to-school stress.
Save precious summer break time
Schools can help classrooms eliminate ordering hassles that result in supply delays and make purchasing tasks easier by leveraging online procurement tools like Amazon Business, which provides teachers direct access to supplies and materials already approved under their district's purchasing and procurement guidelines. In schools and districts that integrate purchasing operations or workflows with Amazon Business, teachers can easily create supply or shopping lists by selecting items directly on the Amazon Business website, lock in pricing, and submit orders directly through their district's purchasing system. This triggers an easy-to-use approval process that allows districts to speeds up purchase workflows, and ultimately ensure supplies will be delivered to teachers faster. Establishing spending guardrails and budgets helps to enforce compliance, which removes the need for finance or purchasing personnel to manually manage every purchase or request. Schools can also set per-teacher budgets or purchase limits, eliminating opportunities to overspend. This is particularly important when teachers make out-of-school purchases over the summer months, when administrators or purchasing department teams may not otherwise be available to approve requests.
Robust data and insights into real-time spending and supply use help schools and districts improve annual budgeting processes. Along with setting budgets, administrators can create proactive allocations that provide new users with funding immediately to reduce any delay in receiving much needed supplies. Schools also enjoy the flexibility to choose from multiple payment methods to improve cash flow, for example through extended payment terms, e-invoicing, and more.