There is something especially fun about turning the tables on the teacher!
We spend so much time getting our classrooms, lessons, supplies, and students ready for a new school year.
But what if the STUDENTS had to get the teacher ready?
That’s what makes How to Get Your Teacher Ready such a fun read aloud for the beginning of the school year—and it provides the perfect springboard for comprehension, sequencing, how-to writing, vocabulary, word work, and math.
Start the Day Thinking About the Teacher!
Before reading, students begin with a Circle, Color, Write & Draw Morning Opener.
They think about what their teacher might need to get ready for school, share how they’re feeling, make a fun Would You Rather choice, draw their teacher ready for school, and write about something they hope their teacher will teach them.
It’s a simple way to get children talking, thinking, and making connections before you even open the book!
Read, Listen & Gather Ideas
As you read How to Get Your Teacher Ready, encourage students to pay attention to all the advice the children give their teacher.
What do they tell the teacher to do?
What is the teacher getting ready for?
What happens first?
What happens next?
Which ideas are helpful?
Which are just plain FUNNY?
Students are enjoying the story, but they’re also naturally practicing story recall, identifying important details, sequencing, making connections, and oral language.
And all that listening gives them something very important for the next part of the lesson…
IDEAS!
From Ideas to How-To Writing!
This is one of my favorite parts of the lesson!
After reading, it’s the students’ turn to become the experts.
Students decide what THEY would like to get their teacher ready for.
Maybe it’s…
Picture Day!
Field Day!
Lunch!
The library!
The 100th Day of School!
Or maybe they have a completely different idea!
Before asking students to begin writing, they first gather their ideas.
Then they organize those ideas in the order they should happen:
FIRST → NEXT → THEN → AFTER THAT
Now students aren’t staring at a blank writing page wondering what to say.
They’ve thought about their topic.
They’ve gathered their ideas.
They’ve put those ideas in order.
And NOW they’re ready to write!
That simple progression—
IDEA GATHERING → SEQUENCING → ORGANIZING → WRITING
—helps young writers understand that good writing begins before we ever start writing our final piece.
Make It Personal!
The learning can also move from the teacher in the story to the teacher standing right in front of them!
With What I Learned About My Teacher, students listen as their teacher shares information about themselves and record what they learn.
Students can then use those details to talk and write about their own teacher.
It’s a fun way to practice listening for information and gathering details while also helping build those important beginning-of-the-year classroom connections.
Add Some Word Work!
The story and school theme also provide lots of opportunities for literacy practice.
Students can work with:
Vocabulary • ABC Order • Syllables • Word Search • Making Words • Vowels & Consonants • Sentence Writing
There’s also a Parts of Speech activity where students work with nouns, verbs, and adjectives.
And remember…
You don’t have to use everything in one day!
Choose the activity that best fits the skills you’re teaching and save the others for literacy centers, small groups, morning work, partner work, or early finishers.
Take the Learning Around the School!
One thing I really like about this story is how easily it connects to experiences children have throughout the school year.
The resource includes activities for:
School Lunch • Library • 100th Day of School • Field Day • Picture Day
Students can recall what happened in the story and then connect those events to their OWN school experiences.
That’s when comprehension becomes so much more meaningful!
Don’t Forget the Math!
You can even carry the theme right into your math block!
Partner games provide practice with addition, subtraction from 20, doubles, number recognition, and math fluency.
Just grab some dice and counters and you’re ready to play!
One Read Aloud—So Many Possibilities!
What I love most about using How to Get Your Teacher Ready is that it doesn’t have to be just another back-to-school read aloud.
One engaging story can become the starting point for a meaningful day of:
READING • THINKING • TALKING • SEQUENCING • WRITING • WORD WORK • MATH
Most importantly, students aren’t simply completing a how-to writing page.
They’re learning the PROCESS.
They listen for ideas, gather their thoughts, organize those thoughts in sequence, and then turn their plan into writing.
And when the topic is getting THEIR teacher ready for school?
That makes the learning even more fun!
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