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How to Make a Teacher's Day

Last Updated: March 4, 2021

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Your teachers work hard to make you a successful student and sometimes it can feel good to recognize their hard work. Though the official World Teacher’s Day celebrating teachers around the globe is on October 5th, you can also choose to make your teacher’s day more special by using positive words and positive actions any day of the week.

Using Words

• Try to be specific when you compliment your teacher so it feels like you are not just throwing around empty words. For example, if your teacher gave you more time to complete an assignment due to an illness, you may compliment her by saying: “I appreciate that you were willing to be flexible about the due date and I feel like you have a positive attitude toward teaching that benefits me as a student.”
• You may also compliment your teacher in a more general way by commenting on her teaching style and her approach to teaching in the classroom. For example, you may say: “Thank you for coming into class every day with enthusiasm and excitement. You are great at breaking down difficult concepts so I can understand them clearly. I really appreciate your teaching style and I feel like I am learning important, useful things in your classroom.”

• In your presentation, list the ways in which your teacher inspires you as a student and the ways in which she brings learning and fun into the classroom. Have your classmates each contribute at least one to two reasons why your teacher is great so that you can present a long list that will surely brighten your teacher’s day.

• It may be helpful to describe a specific situation where you felt your teacher went above and beyond. For example, may be your teacher worked with you after class to learn a difficult math concept that you struggled with so that you could pass the upcoming exam. You could tell the superior that you feel like this shows how dedicated the teacher is to her students and how the teacher sets her students up for success.

• Think about a specific time when your teacher has impacted you in a positive and thoughtful way. This could be something small, like asking how you’re doing, or something more significant, like giving you an extension on your deadline for an assignment. You can ask your parents to help you write the letter or try to do it on your own.

Using Actions in the Classroom

• Be sure to keep the decorations age appropriate and non-offensive, as the door will be exposed to the rest of the school and be seen as representative of your teacher’s class.

Also, ask for permission before decorating the door at all. Ask your principal, not your teacher or that will give the surprise away! You may not be allowed to stay in class after school or paste things on school property; some schools find that offensive even if it was not meant to be. So be sure to ask the principal first. You do not want to get in trouble when you were only trying to express gratitude for a teacher! If you are not given permission, do not worry. And never, never go ahead and do it anyway; that will only cause your authorities (including your teacher!) to not be impressed with you at all. You can make your teacher's day some other way.

• You may also want to take it on yourself to organize a cleaning schedule with the other students and surprising your teacher with the schedule. You can do this for the feeding schedule for the class pet. Taking the lead on classroom duties can help to reduce your teacher’s stress level and brighten her day.

• Do this even if you are not absolutely certain you know the answer or have the right solution to the teacher’s question. Participating verbally in discussions will show your teacher you are engaged and make her feel as though she is reaching at least one student in the room.

Using Actions in the World

• 1 Make your teacher a thoughtful handmade card. Nothing makes a teacher’s day like a beautiful, handmade card telling them how great they are. Spend some time the day before school and get crafty. Use colored paper, glitter, and colorful markers to draw a picture of your teacher or decorate a message that lets your teacher know you think she is awesome. You can then present the card to your teacher as a thoughtful gift. Don't make your card anonymous unless you are shy but still want your teacher to know he or she is awesome! However, a teacher would like to thank you for your card and not embarrass you.

So consider putting in your name! [2] X Research source

• There are also online templates you can print out and decorate for your teacher, featuring fun messages and images to make your teacher’s day. [3] X Research source

• You can find more information about national awards for teachers in the United States by searching online. [7] X Research source

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College Educator Workshops & Conferences

Student Success, Retention & Engagement | On Course

Teacher for a Day: Improving Classroom Behaviors

INTRODUCTION: Some students perform poorly because of self-defeating behaviors and attitudes of which they are unaware.  I decided to have my students assume the role of teacher for a day so that they could see how students behave in a classroom from a teacher’s point of view.  I hypothesized that observing their classmates’ behaviors and attitudes would give them insights into their own, providing a motive to adopt new, more supportive habits of success. In fact, this was exactly what happened.  

In the ESL class in which I did this activity, I had 20 students and the class met for 2 hours and 30 minutes twice a week.  I allotted 3 class meetings and 40 minutes of another to complete the process.  This activity can be used in any course to help students gain self-awareness of positive classroom behaviors and/or attitudes. An additional benefit is that students learn how to present to a class.  I also experienced an improved relationship with my students seemingly because of their new-found empathy for the instructor’s challenging role.

• To help students become aware of behaviors and attitudes that sabotage or support academic success
• To encourage students to replace their self-sabotaging habits with supportive habits
• To help students learn how to present to a group

SUPPLIES/SET UP:

• Class textbooks
• HANDOUT #1: Teaching Guidelines (appended below)
• HANDOUT #2: Homework Assignment (appended below)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Provide students with HANDOUT #1: Teaching Guideline. Explain that they will have the opportunity to be “the teacher” for 20 minutes during an upcoming class.  For my students, presentations took place before the mid-term exam. Each student was assigned to review one grammatical point or writing organization rule and have the whole class participate in an activity they prepared. 

2. Create a schedule of when and what topic each student will teach.

3. Before each student teaches, remind him/her to observe students’ attitudes and classroom behaviors while teaching.  Ask each student-teacher to make notes about appropriate and inappropriate classroom behaviors.

4. After all students have had their turn as teacher, provide students with HANDOUT #2: Homework Assignment, which asks them to write about their experience of being the teacher for a day. 

EXPERIENCES:

In the beginning of the semester when I told the students that they would be asked to be the teacher for 20 minutes, many students gave me a big “Oh, no!” response.  They said that they did not want to stand in front of their classmates because they would be too nervous.  I told them that I understood their fear because I had experienced that same fear when I first became a teacher and sometimes in the beginning of a new semester, I still get a little nervous because I do not know what kind of students I may have in the new classes.  They looked very surprised when they heard that I would get nervous.  I decided to help ease their anxiety by asking students to come to the front of the classroom to help me with some assignments or explain some grammatical points or writing rules every class meeting.  By the time they had to be the “teachers,” they had all been in the front of the classroom either to help me explain a lesson or to assist me with an activity.

When it was their time to be the “teachers,” they seemed to be less nervous even though a few students still had trouble starting their lessons.  I acted as a TA (teacher’s assistant) and asked the student-teacher what the lesson was about or if s/he needed me to get any supplies. The student usually started talking to me and eventually started talking to the whole class.  I tried not to help the “teacher” too much, but I did step in to say something when s/he had trouble continuing the lesson.  Compared to presenting information, students seemed to have an easier time conducting an activity they had prepared.  They walked over to small groups or pairs and talked to individuals to make sure people were participating in the activity.  It seemed to me they were less threatened when they were not in front of a large group of people and were able to see who needed their assistance. 

Since I had told the whole class that these teaching sessions would be the only opportunity for them to review the materials before the midterm examination, the students paid attention while they were being taught by their classmates, and they actually asked more questions of those student teachers than they usually ask me when I am the teacher.  They also pointed out the mistakes that the student teachers made, and the whole class would try to figure out ways to make corrections.  I believe the reason that the students felt comfortable being taught by their classmates was that I had asked every student in the class to help me with an in-class assignment before this activity.  I also had given the students numerous pair and group projects during which they helped one another.  Therefore, they were already accustomed to learning from their classmates.

Some student teachers enjoyed the activity so much that they did not want to stop being the teacher after 20 minutes.   I told them that they were welcome to assist me any time in the future.  The other students seemed to be comfortable being taught by their classmates, asking many questions and giving a lot of feedback to the student teachers. In addition to helping students recognize classroom behaviors and attitudes, it was also an effective activity to review materials and promote student participation.

All of the students stated in their homework writing assignments that they had learned something important about themselves.  One student said that she had never wanted to participate in group or pair work because she had always thought that her electronic English dictionary could give her all the help she needed.  However, after seeing how some students seemed to have learned from one another during the activity that she conducted, she became willing to participate in group or pair work. Another student came to me and said that he had no idea how obnoxious he had been because he had always complained about how boring or meaningless were some of the activities I had given in class and he had often interrupted me during lectures.

Almost all of the students stated in their writing assignments that they could see some attitudes or behaviors that contributed to their bad grades.  Those attitudes or behaviors included sleeping or being almost half asleep in class, interrupting the teacher, not participating in pair or group work, talking to classmates during a lecture, and making negative comments such as: “Do we have to do it?” or “That’s too much homework!” They realized that some attitudes or behaviors could be disruptive in a class.  A student also said that it was embarrassing to see a classmate behaving badly when he was the “teacher” because he had displayed the same immature behavior in class at one time. 

After this activity, more than half of the class said that they liked being a teacher because they felt they could explain the lessons the way their classmates would understand.  They also said that by preparing the lessons themselves and having the opportunity to “teach” the lessons, they had a better understanding of the materials studied.  After this activity, I noticed a big difference in students’ attitudes and their classroom behaviors.  They rarely complained about class or homework assignments, and they seemed to enjoy participating in class activities much more.  Further, they stopped interrupting me or sleeping in class anymore.  They also asked me more questions during my lessons, which shows me that they learned the importance of communicating with the teacher to get the most out of a class.

This activity truly was an eye-opening experience for many students.  They saw themselves from a teacher’s point of view for the first time and were able to recognize some of the self-sabotaging behaviors they exhibited.  It was also great that many students realized that they have the power to choose to replace harmful habits with some of the positive attitudes and behaviors so that they can be successful students.

LESSON LEARNED:

I learned that many students are afraid of standing in front of their classmates, let alone conducting a lesson or an activity. Although I tried to ease their fear by asking them to help me with my lessons before they had to do theirs, the next time I conduct this activity, I may give students the option of pairing up with a partner to co-teach.  I think it would be more effective for some people to work with a partner in the front of the classroom, conducting the lesson together so they do not feel alone or intimidated.  I also learned that many students like to be given responsibility for important tasks.  After this activity, many students told me that they felt more useful and productive when they were the “teacher.”  They asked to assist me in my future classroom activities so they could actively participate.

An important lesson I learned about being an instructor is that I am not there to “teach” students as much as to guide them so they can learn to be responsible for their own learning process and outcomes.  I also realized that I like to create activities for my classes because I see myself when I look at my students.  After all, I used to be an ESL student myself, and I did not always have a positive attitude towards my studies or constructive habits in the classroom.  I believe that sharing my own experience with my students made the gap between my students and me smaller.  As a result, they feel more comfortable to come to me for assistance or advice.

SUPPORT MATERIALS:

HANDOUT #1: Teaching Guidelines

1. Prepare a 20 minute lesson to teach your classmates.  I will provide topics.

2. Use your own words to explain the lesson rather than reading from the book.  

3. You would be wise to rehearse being the teacher with some of your classmates or friends before the day that you are the “teacher.”

4. On the day that you are the “teacher,” please wear nice but comfortable clothes and remember to bring whatever you will need for your 20-minute lesson.

5. Have eye contact with your students while you teach.

6. Ask students questions to check on their understanding of the materials.

7. Walk around the classroom to make sure everyone participates in the activity you have prepared.

8. Observe students’ attitudes and behaviors while you are teaching.

HANDOUT #2: Homework Assignment

Write an essay about your experience of being the teacher.  Here are some questions which might help you with this assignment.

1. Recall the attitudes or classroom behaviors that you observed while teaching. Which ones do you think will contribute to student success? Which to student failure?

2. Do you possess the same or similar attitudes and/or behaviors which you observed? Please explain.

3. If there are some attitudes or behaviors which prevent you from being a successful student, what do you plan to do to change those habits?

4. What did you learn about yourself, your classmates, and/or your teacher from this experience?

Feel free to share any special moments and/or to include any important lessons you learned.

–Angela Chang McGaharn, Faculty, ESL (English as a Second Language), Pasadena City College, CA

My first day back I plunged into using On Course materials and methods with my students, and they LOVED it!! And I LOVED it! Thank you so much on behalf of myself and all of my present and future students!

Ways I think the workshop could be improved? You can’t improve on perfect!

On a scale of 1-10, I rate the overall value I received from the workshop as a 15.

This was an awesome experience for an educator who was burning out!

I’m a better instructor because of On Course.

The On Course Workshop was the most productive learning experience I have had in years.

This workshop has taken a hardened, crusty educator and softened her once again to be committed and energized to become the best person and teacher she can be.

I arrived as a skeptic, but by the end of the first day I was converted. These strategies are practical and timely. I am looking forward to implementing them in my courses.

I am going back to campus more empowered and energized.

Since first attending one of the summer retreats in 1997, I’ve held nine On Course workshops for our college, and I plan to offer more.

Letter Writing: Teachers Day

Writing a Teacher’s Day letter is a heartfelt way to express appreciation and gratitude towards educators who have made a significant impact on their students’ lives. Such a letter can be a personal tribute to a teacher who has inspired, motivated, and guided you or your child. Below is a detailed guide on crafting a thoughtful and memorable Teacher’s Day letter.

Table of Contents

Purpose of the Letter

Before you start writing, reflect on the reason behind the letter. Whether it’s to thank a teacher for their support, acknowledge their hard work, or celebrate their dedication, your purpose will set the tone for your message.

Gathering Thoughts and Memories

Think about specific instances where the teacher made a difference. It could be a lesson that stood out, a moment of personal support, or an example of the teacher’s commitment to their students. These details will add depth to your letter.

Structuring the Letter

A Teacher’s Day letter should follow a warm, respectful, and sincere tone, structured in a personal letter format:

• Date : Include the date at the top of the letter.
• Salutation : Start with a personal greeting such as “Dear [Teacher’s Name],”.
• Body : This should consist of an introduction, main content, and conclusion.
• Closing : End with a heartfelt closing.
• Signature : Your name or your child’s name goes here.

Writing the Letter

Introduction.

Begin the letter by mentioning the occasion:

“Happy Teacher’s Day! I wanted to take this opportunity to express my gratitude…”

Main Content

In the body of the letter, elaborate on the following:

• Personal Connection : Share how the teacher has personally impacted you or your child’s life.
• Specific Examples : Include anecdotes or specific examples of the teacher’s influence.
• Teacher’s Qualities : Highlight the qualities that make the teacher exceptional.
• Gratitude : Convey your deep appreciation for their hard work and dedication.

Keep the tone warm, positive, and appreciative.

Conclude with a summary of your thanks and well wishes:

“I cannot thank you enough for all that you do…”

Closing the Letter

Use a warm closing such as:

“With heartfelt thanks,”

“Warm regards,”

followed by your handwritten signature (if sending a hard copy) and typed name.

Proofreading

Check your letter for spelling and grammatical errors. Ensure that it flows well and conveys your message clearly and effectively.

Letter For Teachers Day Example 1

Dear [Teacher’s Name],

I hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits. As Teachers’ Day approaches, I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for your exceptional dedication, passion, and unwavering commitment to education.

Throughout my time as your student, you have been an incredible source of inspiration and guidance. Your teaching style, enthusiasm, and unwavering belief in your students’ abilities have made a profound impact on my life. I am truly grateful for the knowledge, skills, and values that you have imparted to me.

Your classroom has been a nurturing space where I felt encouraged to think critically, ask questions, and explore new ideas. Your ability to connect with each student on a personal level created an inclusive and engaging learning environment. I vividly remember the stimulating discussions, thought-provoking assignments, and the genuine care you showed for our individual growth.

Your unique qualities as a teacher shine brightly. Your patience and willingness to go the extra mile to ensure our understanding, your ability to make complex concepts accessible, and your unwavering support have made learning a joyous and transformative experience. Your genuine passion for the subject matter has ignited a curiosity within me that extends beyond the classroom walls.

I am grateful not only for the knowledge you have imparted but also for the life lessons you have taught me. Your commitment to integrity, empathy, and perseverance has left an indelible mark on my character. You have instilled in me a sense of responsibility and the belief that I can make a difference in the world.

As I move forward in my educational journey and beyond, I carry your teachings with me. The impact you have had on my life extends far beyond the classroom, and I am confident that the values and skills you have nurtured in me will shape my future endeavors.

On this special occasion, I want to express my deepest gratitude for your tireless efforts, unwavering belief in your students, and your incredible ability to inspire. Your dedication to your profession and the transformative impact you have on the lives of countless students like me make you a true hero.

Thank you, once again, for being an extraordinary teacher. Your passion, wisdom, and unwavering support have touched my life in ways that words cannot fully express. I am forever grateful for the profound influence you have had on my educational journey.

Wishing you a joyful and memorable Teachers’ Day! May this day bring you the recognition and appreciation that you truly deserve.

Warm regards,

[Your Name]

Letter For Teachers Day Example 2

I hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits. As Teachers’ Day approaches, I wanted to take a moment to express my deepest gratitude for your outstanding dedication, passion, and unwavering commitment to education.

Throughout my academic journey, you have been an extraordinary source of inspiration and guidance. Your unwavering belief in your students’ potential and your relentless pursuit of excellence have left an indelible mark on my life. I am truly grateful for the transformative impact you have had on my education and personal growth.

Your classroom has been a sanctuary of knowledge, creativity, and growth. Your teaching methods, innovative approaches, and ability to create an inclusive learning environment have made learning a joyful and enriching experience. I fondly recall the engaging discussions, challenging assignments, and the genuine care and attention you showered upon each student.

Your passion for teaching is infectious. The way you bring the subject matter to life, igniting curiosity and fostering a love for learning, is truly remarkable. Your ability to simplify complex concepts, encourage critical thinking, and nurture our individual strengths has empowered me to reach beyond my perceived limits.

Beyond the content of the curriculum, you have taught me invaluable life lessons. Your unwavering dedication to integrity, empathy, and resilience has shaped my character and instilled in me a sense of responsibility towards others. Your belief in my abilities has given me the confidence to overcome challenges and pursue my dreams.

I want to express my deepest appreciation for your tireless efforts and unwavering support. Your commitment to our education and well-being extends far beyond the confines of the classroom. Your guidance and mentorship have not only prepared me for academic success but have also equipped me with the skills and values needed to thrive in the real world.

As I reflect upon my educational journey, I am filled with gratitude for the countless hours you have dedicated to nurturing and shaping young minds like mine. Your passion for teaching, your ability to inspire, and your genuine care for your students make you a true role model and hero.

On this special occasion, I want to wish you a joyous and memorable Teachers’ Day. May you be celebrated and honored for the incredible educator that you are. Your profound impact will continue to resonate in the lives of your students, and the legacy you leave behind will forever inspire generations to come.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for being an exceptional teacher. Your unwavering dedication, infectious enthusiasm, and transformative influence have made an indelible impact on my life.

With deepest gratitude,

Letter For Teachers Day Example 3

I hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits. As Teachers’ Day approaches, I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt appreciation for your exceptional dedication, guidance, and unwavering support throughout my academic journey.

From the first day we crossed paths, it was evident that you possess a rare and extraordinary gift for teaching. Your passion for education and genuine care for your students shine through in every aspect of your work. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the privilege of being your student.

Your classroom has been a safe haven, a place where I felt encouraged to explore, learn, and grow. Your teaching methods have always been engaging and innovative, capturing our attention and fueling our curiosity. You possess a remarkable ability to make even the most complex subjects accessible and relatable, instilling in us a love for learning that extends far beyond the walls of the classroom.

What sets you apart as an exceptional teacher is not just your knowledge and expertise, but also your unwavering belief in your students’ potential. You have always seen the best in each of us, challenging us to surpass our own expectations and reach for greatness. Your encouragement and support have been the driving force behind my accomplishments, both academically and personally.

But beyond the academic realm, you have taught me valuable life lessons that will stay with me forever. You have not only imparted knowledge but also nurtured our character, teaching us the importance of integrity, resilience, and empathy. Your mentorship has helped shape my values and prepared me to face the challenges of the world with confidence and compassion.

I want to express my deepest gratitude for your unwavering dedication and the countless hours you have invested in helping your students succeed. Your commitment goes far beyond the classroom, as you have always been there to lend a listening ear, offer guidance, and provide unwavering support. Your impact on my life and the lives of others is immeasurable.

As we celebrate Teachers’ Day, I want to take this opportunity to honor you and acknowledge the profound difference you have made in shaping the minds and futures of your students. Your passion, resilience, and unwavering commitment to our growth have left an indelible mark that will forever be cherished.

Thank you, [Teacher’s Name], for being an exceptional teacher, mentor, and role model. Your dedication to education and your belief in your students have inspired us to reach for the stars. On this special day, I wish you a joyous and well-deserved celebration, filled with love, appreciation, and the knowledge that your impact will forever resonate in the hearts and minds of your students.

With deepest gratitude and admiration,

Final Thoughts

A Teacher’s Day letter is more than just words on paper; it’s a tangible token of appreciation that can brighten a teacher’s day and provide them with encouragement and recognition for their invaluable contribution. By taking the time to write a sincere and personal letter, you honor the commitment and passion that teachers bring to their profession every day.

About Mr. Greg

Mr. Greg is an English teacher from Edinburgh, Scotland, currently based in Hong Kong. He has over 5 years teaching experience and recently completed his PGCE at the University of Essex Online. In 2013, he graduated from Edinburgh Napier University with a BEng(Hons) in Computing, with a focus on social media.

Mr. Greg’s English Cloud was created in 2020 during the pandemic, aiming to provide students and parents with resources to help facilitate their learning at home.

Whatsapp: +85259609792

[email protected]

Best Back to School Ideas 🍏

End the Unfinished Work Battle: Catch-Ups and Pickles

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Are your students struggling to complete their work? Up to your eyeballs in missing or unfinished work assignments? Then you might need to institute a “Catch-up and Pickles” routine in your classroom as a way to win the missing or incomplete work battle! This is seriously my favorite unfinished work routine!

A few weeks ago, I posted a Reel on Instagram about some of my more “controversial ” grading practices. Between you and me… they really aren’t that controversial… just good teaching! But folks LOST THEIR MINDS! And honestly, it shed light on a bigger problem: the struggle of incomplete work.

Controversial Grading Practices

You’re probably wondering what those controversial grading practices were. I’ll let you watch the IG Reel to see all three, but the one that had most teachers up in arms was the belief of not putting anything less than 50% in the grade book.

This one line led to me being called many things, but most teachers asked, “What about missing or incomplete work?”

To which I responded that I rarely struggled with incomplete or missing work. I can think of one time I had to put a zero in the grade book because of a missing assignment – ONCE – in 13 years of teaching. Those are some pretty good odds!

Unfinished Work Routine

So, how can this be?

First, let’s clear up some things:

• No – I didn’t have perfect students who completed every assignment without asking.
• No – I didn’t work at fancy schools with high volumes of parents involved who made sure the work was completed at home.
• And, no – I didn’t work myself to death chasing down students.

I rarely had missing or incomplete work because I planned time in my week for students to work on missing or incomplete assignments.

Today, I’m sharing this simple yet HIGHLY effective routine that basically eliminated the struggle to get students to complete missing or incomplete assignments.

This magical weekly routine that solves the missing work problem is fondly called, “ Catch-up and Pickles. ” But, that’s really just a fancy name for a time set aside on a Friday morning so students can work on unfinished work.

What is Catch-Up and Pickles?

I shared about this concept a while ago in my “Small Group Time Exposed” post , but I feel like after all the hoopla that Reel caused, it warranted its own place on the blog!

Each day, I had 60 minutes of time built into my schedule for small group rotations. That worked great Monday through Thursday. But, I noticed that Fridays were a bit cramped. Not only did we have our spelling and vocabulary test that day but we would also have a reading comprehension assessment. Time is needed to complete all these assessments, and that ate into a portion of our small group time.

Rather than try and stuff the small group instruction into the 30 minutes that were left after completing everything else, I decided to transform that awkward time slot into productive work time.

So at the end of the week, instead of formal center rotations, I did a “Catch-Ups and Pickles” routine. Students who had not finished their work used this time to “Catch-Up,” while those who were done were allowed to “Pickles” a reading-based activity to complete.

For students, this time was dedicated to completing their work or choosing a preferred activity to complete.

For the teacher, this routine provided time to reteach lessons, pull students for  assessments , or conference with students one on one.

And let me just say… this was a wildly popular time in my classroom!

How to Find Time?

So the big question here is, how do you find the time? Everything you are required to teach in a day leaves very little time in your schedule for “makeup work,” but like I shared before… I was able to find time by reallocating the time I was using for reading centers. It wasn’t working for us on Fridays, so we changed it up.

I suggest you take a look at your schedule. Do you have some awkward or weird times?

I like the idea of doing Catch-up and Pickles on a Friday, so it’s easier to track the work that needs to be completed. But maybe Fridays don’t work for you. Look for a block of time (at least 20 mins!) and see if it works. If it doesn’t, restructure or choose a different time. This could even be something you do at the end of a unit in reading or math or on the last school day of the month.

Warning:  I wouldn’t do this one day a quarter… that’s too big a chunk of time to complete everything. Doing that is like saving all your laundry for a month and trying to do it all in one day. Someone will get overwhelmed, and it’s not going to get done.

How to Get Started with Catch Up and Pickles

Once you’ve found your time, it’s time to plan the “Catch-Up and Pickles” activities.

In my classroom, I allowed students to “catch up” on any work, whether it be math, reading, or something else entirely. You need to select what students will be working on. Maybe it’s just reading, so you do only reading makeup work.

Whatever you decide, be specific. The unstructured nature of this routine means that chaos could happen at any minute. Being clear on what students should be working on at this time (and reinforcing it each time you have a Catch-up and Pickles session) can help keep the crazies at bay.

Who is a Catch-Up and Who is a Pickle?

From there, you’ll need a system for knowing who is a “catch-up” and who is a “pickle.”

Right before we started, I’d scan my grade book for any missing assignments. Those students with missing work would go on my “catch up” list.

Another way I identified students was through their “Unfinished Work” folder. Any classwork that didn’t get completed went in there (not tests or quizzes, just classwork). Right before we’d begin, students would pull out their folders and check to make sure there wasn’t any work that needed to be completed. If there was, they were on the “catch-up” list.

Let me just say, just even having an “Unfinished Work” folder helped a great deal with handling incomplete work! It was much easier for students to keep track of their work. If they finished an assignment early, they could either grab a book to read or work on unfinished work from their folder. The finished work folder lived in their desk, and I always told them, “If you aren’t done, put it in your finished work folder!”

You can read more about the unfinished work folder here !

I kept this routine real simple, guys! No fancy slide shows…just a whiteboard and names. In one column, I’d write “catch-up” with the students’ names and a list of work they needed to complete. In the other column, I’d write “Pickles” with the names of students who had completed all their work. When a student completed assignments and turned them in, they could erase their name and put it under the “pickles” side instead.

Activity Idea for Pickles

Now, remember, the name of any student who had completed all their work or their I-Ready minutes would be placed in the Pickles column.

My students loved being a pickle! They loved the idea of choosing their own activities (even if they were reading-based).

Some activities my students could pick from:

• Writing and illustrating stories – Pretty popular! Especially the illustrating. I showed students how to make a mini-book with lined paper folded and stapled together.
• Playing an educational computer game – Probably the most popular!
• Creating or playing on the IPad – Don’t worry, I was very clear about which apps they could use during this time!
• Completing a reading center game – Students could do this with their friends. I’d put any stations we had completed that week in an area towards the back of the classroom, and students could grab one to play. This also worked well for any student who needed to complete a station activity for their “catch-up” activity. Need reading center ideas? These were always a hit !
• Free choice reading – They could choose their own book and where they’d like to sit and read. They could also read with a buddy.
• Helping a friend complete their work – This one was pretty popular! I allowed it as long as they weren’t just telling their buddies the answers. Honestly, it was a win-win: The student got help, and the student helping was learning more! Bonus- it freed me up to complete DRAs, fluency checks, or reteach skills as needed.
• Teacher assistant – Sometimes I needed help, so if they were done and didn’t want to do one of the other activities, I’d put them to work, helping to organize papers or filling the mailboxes with returned work.

Unfinished Work Routine- Catch-up and Pickles

So there you have it, teacher friends. This is the simple, routine way I kept my students on top of their work. I mean, what teacher wants to feel like they are constantly chasing students around trying to get them to finish their work? NOT ME! Now you don’t have to!

Free Catch Up and Pickles Download

Want to grab a few resources to help you get started? Click below and have this resource sent straight to your inbox! Now you can easily implement a Catch-up and Pickles routine in your classroom this week! This free download includes printable tracking sheets, whiteboard labels, and an editable PowerPoint file.

More Great Ideas!

Check out these other great ideas to try in your classroom!

• 5 Tips for Dealing with a Chatty Class
• How to Organize Your Google Classroom for 2nd Grade
• Help Students Take Ownership of Their Learning without a Data Notebook
• End of the Year Survival Tips
• Categories: Classroom , Classroom management

Hi, I'm Leigh.

The Applicious Teacher is all about creating hands-on and engaging lessons that align with the standards while still having time for your life. This is your place for ideas, tips, and resources for the REAL teacher!

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#TeachAg Lesson Plans, Games and Activities

Please encourage your students to consider agricultural education as a career, because without them, there won't be enough ag teachers to keep our programs going.

Use these resources to celebrate & bring awareness to the career of agricultural education, whether it's on NAAE National #TeachAg Day or any day. For details on any of these activites, just click the link.

Ideas for...

• Middle/High School Students
• Postsecondary Students (2-year tech schools)

Adult Farm Business Management Instructors

• University Level - Teacher Educators, Ag Ed Majors, Ag Ed Student Organizations
• State Agricultural Education Leaders (state supervisors, etc.)

Ideas Using Social Media

• #TeachAg Promotional Materials (video, graphics, ringtones, news release templates, state proclomation examples, and more)
• Games & Other Cool Stuff to Promote Agricultural Education as a Career

Missouri NAAE National #TeachAg Day Lesson Plan Contest Resources

Check out these great lesson plans to use in your classroom to promote agricultural education, developed by top-notch ag teachers in Missouri as part of their 2017 NAAE National #TeachAg Day celebrations! Click here to download the zip file.

Ideas for Middle/High School Students

Sample Class Outlines for Middle or High School Use the outlines coupled with the lesson plans below to make NAAE National #TeachAg Day planning easy.

• Class outline for 40-50 minute period
• Class outline for 75-85 minute period

Other Activities and Ideas

• Have a student who you think would be a good ag teacher? Send them a Tagged to #TeachAg Kit !
• Play "Are You Smarter than your Ag Teacher?" Details and download games
• Have the students be the teacher for the day. Put them in charge of the class for 10 minutes; they have to create a meaningful lesson on a topic of their choice with instructor preapproval. Lesson plan
• Research the duties, salary, job outlook, education, etc. needed to become an ag teacher or other agricultural education professional. Lesson plan
• Share your individual path to becoming an ag teacher and encourage your students to ask you questions about your career. Lesson plan
• Host a university agricultural education student or former student who is currently an ag teacher from your program to share his or her experiences. Lesson plan
• Host a Farm Business Management instructor to talk about his or her job. Lesson plan
• If you have a student or students who are interested in teaching agriculture, line up a job shadowing experience with a teacher at a nearby program. Activity guide
• Set-up a PALS program in your school or make arrangements for students who are interested in being an ag teacher design and present lessons to the elementary and junior high on agriculture.
• Bring in representatives from the ag education department at the colleges in your state that offer ag education. Use the college finder here on the #TeachAg Website for a listing of universities.

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Post-Secondary Students (2-year technical schools)

• Give each student a slip of paper with a career related to agriculture on it. Have them research and share with the rest of the class how agricultural education plays a role in the prosperity of that career. Lesson Plan
• Play "Are You Smarter than your Ag Teacher?." Details and download games
• Have your students contact a nearby high school ag program and shadow the teacher for a day. Lesson plan
• Arrange an event on campus about agricultural education or set up a booth or display in a high-traffic area. Activity guide
• Host a departmental open house for students, members of the community, and other school personnel. Activity guide
• Send a letter to those enrolled in your program thanking them for allowing you to be an ag teacher. Example
• Contact a local high school and talk to the class about how having a degree in agricultural education can lead to many different career paths, like being a farm business management instructor. Example
• Hold an appreciation event for all the other agricultural educators in the region/district.
• Host an open house for students, members of the community, and other school personnel. Activity guide

University level: Teacher Educators, Ag Ed Majors, & Ag Ed Student Organizations

• Set up a booth in an area of campus where agricultural education might not be as widely recognized and pass out literature about being an ag teacher. Activity guide
• Have ag ed students write a letter to their high school principal, superintendent, or other administrator thanking them for having an ag program and talking about how their ag teacher has influenced their lives.
• Play "Are You Smarter than your Ag Teacher? " Details and download games
• Create an ag education major mentoring program with new or transfer students and junior/senior ag education majors. Activity guide
• Contact local high school ag programs and ask if you can be part of the NAAE National #TeachAg Day celebration in their school.
• Host a high school student for the day and have them attend classes with you. Give them a tour of your school and introduce them to the agricultural education professors. Activity guide

Ideas for State Agricultural Education Leaders

• Create a personalized letter for students you think would make good ag teachers. Include information about why you think he or she would be a good ag teacher as well as information about the career. You may even want to send a carbon copy to the parents. Letter Example
• Invite ag ed undergraduates to your summer ag teachers conference and offer workshops designed for undergraduates and first year teachers.
• Recognize senior students who will be majoring in ag education on stage at the State FFA Convention. Contact Ellen Poeschl for more information about #TeachAg Signing Events.
• Implement a #TeachAg CDE at your State FFA Convention.
• Have students create mini commercials about their ag teacher and show the commercials at convention or at the summer ag teachers conference.
• Work with other leaders in your state and offer a #TeachAg Workshop at State FFA Convention for students considering a career in ag education. Workshop can be open to anyone or by special invitation only. Give each attending teacher a few Tagged to #TeachAg stickers with their registration packet to designate students selected for the workshop. Access sticker templates here. | Workshop planning resources

Ideas for Everyone

• Organize a visit to your state legislative body on NAAE National #TeachAg Day to talk with lawmakers about agricultural education and the importance of ag teachers in your state. Use NAAE's Legislative Action Center to help plan your visit.
• Send a letter of appreciation to ag teachers in your state (state supervisors and Alumni or advisory boards). Example
• Mentor and connect with new teachers in your state to encourage them to stay in the profession.

Twitter: Challenge yourself to share an agricultural education story in 140 characters or thread your story throughout the day with multiple tweets. Tag us with @Teach_Ag or use hashtag #teachag. Follow the #TeachAg feed to stay up to date with ag ed, learn about scholarship opportunities, or stay focused on your goals of becoming an agriculture teacher.

Sample tweets:

• Get tagged to #TeachAg.
• College- and career-ready thanks to ag ed! #TeachAg
• Ag teachers teach by doing, not just telling. #TeachAg
• Teach the new 3Rs: rigor, relevance, and relationships. #TeachAg
• How do you feed 7 billion people? #TeachAg
• Vet science, ecotourism, floral design, & nanotechnology under one major. #TeachAg
• Ag ed: a special blend of tradition and the future. #TeachAg
• Want a career with flexibility, variety, and travel? #TeachAg
• No two days are the same in one program & no two programs are the same. #TeachAg

Facebook: Tag your friends to #TeachAg with a status update, or write your ag ed story as your status or on our Facebook wall; don't forget that you can tag your local program, agriculture teacher, media, and supportive local businesses with the @ symbol and their name. You can also post to your legislator's Facebook wall. Don't forget that you can use Facebook to facilitate event planning. "Like" the Teach Ag page to stay up to date with ag ed, learn about scholarship opportunities, and stay focused on your goals of becoming an agriculture teacher.

Sample updates from students:

• I’m tagged to #TeachAg! @Teach Ag
• Agriculture is the nation’s largest employer with 28 million jobs. Thanks @[your instructor] for giving me career skills!
• There are over 11,000 ag teachers in the US, but mine is the best. Thanks, @[your instructor]
• FFA taught me leadership; my SAE gave me experience; Ag Ed brought it together in one classroom. @Teach Ag
• Ag is my only class that uses all five senses. Thank you @[your instructor]

Sample updates from teachers:

• Today, I’m tagging @[insert student] to teach ag!
• I love being an ag teacher because [insert reason] @Teach Ag
• There are 800,000 ag students nationwide but I have the best every year. @Teach Ag
• I know what the future leaders look like because I teach ag. @Teach Ag
• Why try to explain miracles to kids when you can have them plant a garden, raise a calf, or look at an atomic structure? @Teach Ag

Sample updates from anyone:

• @[insert friend], I’m tagging you to teach ag!
• Never have the same day twice! #TeachAg! @[insert friend]
• Be a trendsetter and know the latest technology! Think about teaching ag! @[insert friend]

Instagram: Post a picture of the great things your are doing in your ag program! #teachag

Blog: Write a blog post about agriculture education and send us the link.

Sample posts prompts:

• What role does agricultural education play in your community? Think of your current ag program, alumni groups, local businesses, industry supporters, and those who might not even realize the connection.
• How has agriculture impacted your life?
• Why are you studying to be an ag teacher or why did you become one?
• What the one thing that you wish everyone knew about ag education?
• Should STEM change to STEAM?

Video: Post a video to YouTube and send us the link.

General Tips:

• Link to outside information.
• Use active verbs.
• Alternate facts and a story.

Use this Powerpoint game to challenge your students. A fun way to get them thinking about the knowledge and skills required to become an agricultural educator. You can also change the answers and questions on the template and use as a review tool for any subject.

Download game Download instructions

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Lesson Plan:  Student Teacher Project

Lesson Plans

What’s not to love about a project that can be used in any subject area? This lesson is great any time, but especially at the end of the year. The  Student Teacher Teach-A-Class project will have your students gearing up for an unforgettable day in the classroom as they prepare for moving on to the next grade, learn new material, and teach it to their peers.   

Explain It:  This project includes a full week of preparation as students choose a topic from the next grade’s curriculum, research it, and create a lesson complete with notes, handouts, a presentation, activity, and assessment for their peers. They make their own copies, teach the lesson to the class and grade the assessments. The class also provides feedback on the lesson in the form of a peer review.

By they way – we’ve already done the heavy lifting on this project for you – we’ve created  fully editable  directions for you to provide to help students create a lesson from start to finish. Each lesson will mimic a true “teacher” lesson complete with an objective, lesson opener, student notes, a hands-on activity, assessment, and a closing Q&A activity.  Our project also includes a student friendly lesson plan template, example lesson plan, group member assignment log to show student involvement throughout the process, and an easy to use scoring rubric.

Thank you! I was looking for something appropriate for higher education, and there seems to be little out there. The last thing I want to do is lecture my class to death. I was given two weeks to prepare for my class. I had no idea what I was going to be teaching before this. The fact that you made these editable, made it so easy to use.

I really appreciate it.

• Grades 6-12
• School Leaders

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Educators Say These Are The Best Online Planners for Teachers

Learn about the most popular tools from the teachers who use them.

One topic that comes up frequently on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook is lesson planning and planners. These days, many folks are doing their planning digitally, so there’s plenty of conversation about the best online planners for teachers. These are the planning sites and apps that real teachers recommend most. See their thoughts and learn more about each, so you can choose one that’s right for you.

Cost: $15/year; school and district pricing available

This is by far the most recommended of online planners, with teachers saying the minimal cost gets you tons of terrific features . Set up a weekly, bi-weekly, or cycle schedule, including alternate day schedules for things like half-days. Bump lessons as needed when things change (snow days, etc.). Attach all the files, videos, links, and other resources you need right to the lesson, and easily align your goals with learning standards. You can also re-use your schedule each year, adapting as needed. Teacher collaboration is easy, too. Other Planbook features include seating charts, grade books, and attendance reports.

What Teachers Say:

• “Our district uses Planbook, and I think it’s great. Very user-friendly, easy to modify, and it’s got all the standards already listed.” —Kelsey B.
• “I love Planbook. I like how easy it is to share. Especially if you’re sick and need to give plans to a sub. The ability to add links is the best.” —JL A.
• “I love it better than a paper planner. I can attach links and files. I’m able to bring up the digital version more quickly. Plans also seem to change frequently (I’m at an alt Ed secondary school) so the easiness of the flexibility moving plans around is awesome.” —Jennifer S.
• “My co-teacher and I can share lessons. It really is easy to copy/paste from one period/year to the next. I also export each week to a Google Doc so I can submit my weekly lesson plans in that format.” —Cayle B.

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Cost: Free for individual teachers; Chalk Gold offers enhanced features for $99/year

If you’re looking for free online planners, Planboard by Chalk has a lot of fans. Their free version is robust with lots of useful features, including the ability to attach standards, manage files, and adjust your schedule with ease as things change. You get an online grade book too.

All of this is completely free, but you can also upgrade to Chalk Gold to create a classroom website, integrate your lesson plans with Google Classroom, and share lessons with others. Custom school and district programs and pricing are available via Chalk .

• “I use Planboard, and it’s amazing and free!” —Micah R.
• “I bought the paid version because I had to be out for a little while ,and it allowed me to send a link of my plans to my substitute that I could change in real-time if I needed to. With the free version, I can send a copy of the plans, but then if I change something, I have to send him a new copy of the plans. With the upgraded version, I could just change it similar to a Google doc. I really liked just sending a link as well.” —Trish P.

PlanbookEdu

Cost: Free basic plan; Premium $25/year

For teachers looking for a truly basic lesson planning program, PlanbookEdu’s free program fits the bill. One of its best features is just how easy it is to use. If you can handle a word processing program like Word, you can master this. Simply set your schedule (including A/B rotations) and enter your plans. You can access this web-based planner from any computer, phone, or tablet at any time.

For extra features like the ability to attach files to lessons, share your plans with others, and integrate standards, you’ll need the Premium plan. It’s very reasonably priced, and you can save even more with group discounts .

• “I’ve used PlanbookEdu for many years. I wanted to customize my plan book in a very specific way, and PlanbookEdu was the only one that let me do that. I also like the ability to click on standards and have them copied to my plans.” —Jane W.
• “Love it. I embed it on my class website. I basically list daily objectives on there and then upload anything I use for that day so I’m transparent to all of the parents.” —Jessica P.

Common Curriculum

Cost: Basic plan is free; Pro is $6.99/month

There are multiple online planners for teachers out there, but one way Common Curriculum sets itself apart is the fact that it was designed by actual former teachers. Cc (as it’s known) helps teachers focus on meeting standards, whether it’s Common Core, state standards, or others. You can even add your own district’s or school’s standards into their program.

The Basic plan is full of terrific features, including the ability to post lessons to Google Classroom. The Cc Pro plan adds advanced elements like unit planning, a class website, and the ability to comment and edit plans with up to 5 collaborators. School plans are available too, which extends collaboration to all teachers along with other advantages.

• “I love that I can make a calendar for my students, and they can view just parts of my lesson plan. I post it to my class website. The unit planning is very nice. It just feels cleaner than a lot of other ones I’ve tried.” —Nicole B.
• Use it and love it! I don’t see a need for Pro. I know my units and how long they take, so I don’t need the site to organize them for me. The bump lessons feature is the best. I link everything I need there, even my Google Slides. And the year copy feature is great because all I have to do is copy last year’s plans to a new plan book, and I can see exactly what I did when last year.” —Elizabeth L.

Cost: $12.99 (Mac/iPad only)

For diehard Mac and iPad users, iDoceo is a solid choice. Aside from the one-time purchase fee, there are no additional costs. Use it to coordinate your lesson planner, grade book, and seating charts. iDoceo integrates with iCal or Google Calendar and lets you configure schedules and rotating cycles in a snap. Bump lessons as needed, and make notes right in the planner to improve your experience each time you deliver a lesson, year after year.

• “The best spent money of my career. Amazing and new version syncs with MacBooks.” —Gorka L.

Cost: Request estimate here

OnCourse is designed for schools and districts rather than individual teachers, but it offers a lot of collaborative benefits. The system makes it easy to ensure lessons align with designated standards and to submit them to administration for approval and comments. Custom templates save time, and an automated Homework Website syncs assignments for students and parents to view as needed. Administrators will appreciate the ability to review stats and data in real-time, ensuring accountability to standards that matter to you. Teachers who feel OnCourse might be useful should talk to their administration about implementing it in their school or district.

If you’re still deciding between online planners, come ask questions and get advice on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .

Prefer to do your planning on paper check out the best teacher-recommended planners here..

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A celebration of strength and resilience this World Teachers’ Day

Oct 04, 2021

[[read-time]] min read

According to Google Trends, over the last 18 months, searches for “missing my students” increased 150%, and searches for “bulletin board ideas” dropped to an all-time low in April 2020. 

Some of the top questions searched were things like “How can educators support students who are struggling with distance learning?,” “How can students and teachers build a useful virtual classroom community?” and even “What does remote learning mean?” Clearly, educators — at home or in the classroom — have had plenty of challenges. So for this World Teachers’ Day, we put together a place where you can see other education and learning-related searches and trends from the past year.

Despite the many questions, I’m inspired by the strength of our incredible global educator community. On this World Teachers’ Day we’re sharing stories of how they found a way to teach during a year that has taught us so many lessons.  

Ann Kerr — Administrator, California, USA

Like many districts around the world, Ann saw an increase in stress across staff and students. To help students who were struggling, she tutored in the evenings after school to help students navigate the changes. Her efforts helped one student not only understand how to use Google Classroom but also their assignments, and the student raised their grades above passing before the end of the year. Even though they had only met through Google Meet, they made a real connection.

Jeffrey Bradbury — Lead Instructional Coach for Digital Learning, Connecticut, USA Jeff also saw a need to support the mental health of his students. This year, he co-led Norwalk Public Schools to launch a brand new Digital Learning Department to support teachers with not only using digital tools, but also to provide social and emotional support both in and out of the classroom.

Vanessa Almeida — K-12 Public School Teacher and Pedagogical Coordinator, Amazonas, Brazil Vanessa started preparing her school for online teaching in 2017, years before the pandemic — but nothing could  have prepared her for what was to come. She set out to create a more connected and efficient usage of the technology resources; at one point she worked for 48 hours straight to make sure all students had Google Workspace for Education accounts. This meant that her school continued its classes uninterrupted during the transition from face-to-face to remote learning. Even today, Vanessa offers her lunch break to teach students on various online tools.

Suyanti Witono — 10th and 12th grade Biology Teacher, Jakarta, Indonesia Suyanti is also no stranger to working overtime for her community. Once a stranger to remote learning, Suyanti spent her summer break going back to school herself. She took online courses and webinars to push herself to be prepared for whatever the upcoming academic year would bring. She learned about new online tools and how to use them to support her students from afar. After completing these courses, Suyanti was able to come back to the unknown with confidence. This extended to her students and the second wave of remote learning was not only easier, but more collaborative. Aside from lesson plans, she focused on engaging students with critical thinking, enhancing creativity and promoting effective communication  by using collaborative tools like Google Slides and Pear Deck.

Janice MacRae —  Head Teacher, Highland Council, Scotland Janice and the Muirtown Primary School in Inverness, Scotland knew it would be important to  maintain extracurriculars no matter what the circumstances, given how beneficial they are for kids. Every year, they host the “Muirtown’s Got Talent” show, which usually takes place at school with in-person voting. The curtains still rose this year, but on a very different stage: The performances were recorded and uploaded to a Google Site, and parents voted via Google Forms (which actually garnered more participation).

Renee Bogacz — Instructional Technology Teacher, Illinois

Like many other teachers, Renee found a silver lining to the struggles of the school year. “The last school year may have been the most challenging school year of every educator’s career, but it will also be the most memorable,” Renee says. “It will be the one where we all came together to find thoughtful and creative ways to support our kids in ways we never dreamed.” 

This last year is a reminder of the incredible strength and resilience of educators. I saw firsthand how passionately students wanted to learn and grow, and how incredibly they performed when given the right environment and resources.

I’m so lucky to work with and learn from inspiring educators from around the world every day. Thank you to teachers everywhere for your strength and Happy World Teachers’ Day. You can celebrate further by joining a Google teacher community in your area .

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5 ways Google for Education helps teachers and students stay safer online

New education features to help teachers save time and support students

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Teacher Planner – 64 Useful Pages For Every Teacher

Looking for a teacher planner for the new term? Then look no further!

We’ve created this 64-page teacher planner 2023 binder, that’s full of useful pages to help you make the most of your year. With calendars for 2023 and 2024 included.

You’ll find useful pages such as lesson plan templates , class rosters, class schedules , assessment trackers, assignment trackers, behavior logs, inventory, projects, and much more.

You’ll also find more familiar planner pages to help you with your day to days, such as daily and weekly planners, to-do lists, and many other pages to help you stay organized. You’ll find a full list of all of the included pages below.

Best of all, it’s totally free! Simply print, or import into your favorite digital planner app, and make the most of the school year ahead!

The only teacher planner that you’ll need

Our stylish teacher planners are not only packed full of pages that you’ll find very useful, but they’re also professionally designed in two optional styles.

You can choose from a simple stylish version, that features subtle colors and a classic layout. Or if you prefer something more fun, then there’s a totally cute version that’s full of colors and great for anyone who wants something a little more quirky.

Start planning and stay organized

Our teacher plan book will help you with your lesson planning and organization.

Your lessons might run from Monday to Friday but we know as a teacher that your work doesn’t end with the work week.

This teacher planner is packed full of useful pages, lesson planning templates, and tools to help you make the most out of teaching, planning, and creating a confident learning schedule for yourself and your pupils.

Read on to learn about our teacher planner, why it is important to use one, and how to get it as a printable planner or as a digital planner!

What is a Teacher Planner?

A teacher planner is a great organizational tool that helps teachers, tutors, mentors, or homeschooling parents manage their time and workload. It’s an ideal tool to have that will help you plan lessons, inspire your class, understand your class better and create an educational experience that will ensure success.

This planner is perfect for all stages of education. It’s flexible and versatile enough to use from early years, through school, and into adult education. Whether you are a kindergarten teacher, a high school teacher, a special education teacher, or a college professor, the teacher planner will benefit you.

Do I need a teacher planner?

If you want to be at your best from the start of the academic year then I strongly recommend a teacher planner.

A teacher planner will allow you to plan and schedule everything that is important to your teaching and learning experience, and having it all together in a teacher planner will allow you to stay on track.

What should a teacher planner have?

A good teacher planner should be well thought out, genuinely useful, and have a focus on both the teacher and the pupils throughout the school year.

There are many different pages and elements that can be incorporated into a teacher planner to offer the best experience and with a planner like ours, you can add additional and custom pages to make it the planner perfect for you.

Before you spend $40+ on a teacher lesson planner, give our free teacher lesson planner a try – I promise you will love it!

Best Teacher Planner

Our teacher planner has been designed with a focus on both the teacher and the student and will help you streamline the classroom experience.

Our teacher binder is ideal if you love to rearrange your pages, remove pages or add more pages to suit your own needs and teaching style. Using our printable teacher planner allows you to consistently change your planner around, adding more when you need more rather than worrying about running out of space.

Teacher planners tend to have space for August to the following July, so you can use a new teacher planner for every new term for free!

We think it is one of the best planners available, so give it a try and see for yourself!

See what’s included in this free teacher planner

The teacher planner comes with 64 useful pages, designed to help you make the most of your time as a teacher.

The pages include:

The Teacher planner comes with a beautiful cover page, so no matter how you decide to bind your printable planner, you will have a cover page for the front.

2023 year calendar + 2024 year calendar

The yearly calendars are extremely useful for planning the academic year and the year ahead. There are two annual calendars – one for 2023 and one for 2024.

Teachers are extremely busy and outwith the teaching periods, they still have 101 other things to be doing. Let this to do list help you prioritize your daily tasks.

Weekly To Do List

Make sense of your weekly tasks with this weekly to do list. From marking homework to requesting new supplies, this weekly to do list will help you see your tasks at a glance.

Daily Planner

Use the daily schedule to plan your lessons down to a tee. Having a daily schedule allows you to keep structure to your day and with our daily planning pages, you can add or remove them as you see fit.

Class Schedule

Plan your class schedule to a tee with our handy class schedule pages. Print as many as you need whenever you need them.

Weekly Planner

The weekly pages are ideal for lesson planning, keeping a note of projects or homework, and other weekly activities.

Monthly Planner

The monthly planner is amazing for helping you see what’s coming up at a glance. Whether it’s a month of meetings and parent’s evenings or if a field trip is due, you will see it all with the monthly planner.

Monthly To Do list

When planning your month, take the tasks that need to be done and list them on the monthly to do list pages. From there you can allocate them to different weekly to do list pages.

Checklist pages

Use these pages to create checklists for anything end everything you need.

Month in review

The month in review page is a great tool for helping you reflect on the month. This is super handy for a teacher as you can see what worked in your lessons and what didn’t quite reach the mark.

Year Overview

Focus on long-term plans with curriculum maps, yearly overviews, goals planners, and monthly schedules. Our teacher planner offers space for planning field trips and any other activities that might be on the horizon.

Next year at a glance

Pencil in some long-term goals and plan ahead with the next year at a glance page.

Improvement planner

The improvement planner pages are great for both teacher and student! Print one out for every pupil and let them fill it in. They will learn to recognize and understand any difficulties they have and what they need to improve with. This allows you to understand the child’s needs better.

Goal Planner

Plan your goals with the goal planner. What do you want to achieve this term? What do you want to work on and what steps will you take to get there?

Class Project Planner

Use this page to plan your class projects. Planning any projects will make sure you have everything ready from the start, making sure you are prepared and leaving less room for error.

Make notes with the notes page. Add as many note pages as you like.

Blank lined paper

Use the blank lined paper to make additional notes, drawings, brainstorming, or anything else you might need it for. You can also choose from a selection of blank lined paper in various styles to add to your planner.

Blank dot grid paper

Use the different page layouts for different needs. You will find blank dot grid pages included in the teacher planner, along with additional note pages. There are also graph pages in different formats if you would like to add these to your planner.

Contact list

Use the contact list to keep important contact information for your students.

Password tracker

A password tracker is a great way of keeping the password for shared devices in the classroom, whether that’s online learning websites or something the students can access for fun during breaks.

Daily work log

Use this page to keep a log of your daily workflow and stay on track.

Weekly work log

Keep a record of your weekly work log so you can see what you have worked on throughout the week.

Use the timesheet to log the days you worked and whether they were half days or full days.

Student list

The student checklist is perfect for helping you keep a record of students and can be used for your needs in and outside the classroom.

Class roster / attendance

Keep track of your pupil’s attendance with this class roster. Use it daily and then figure out their attendance percentage out of 100% at the end of each term.

Expenses tracker

Keep a log of any expenses you might have before filing them with the admin team. This could be for classroom supplies, or any business expenses covered by the school.

Things to do planner

Got ideas for things you need to do or what you can do with your class? Keep a note of them here.

Class inventory list

Use the class inventory list to keep a track of the things your need to help your classroom run smoothly.

Class schedule

The class schedule will help you plan the week of lessons and activities down to the hour.

Assessment tracker

Use the assessment tracker as a template for carrying out any relevant assessments throughout the school year.

Seating chart

One thing that adds structure to a classroom is a seating chart. Use the seating chart at the start of the term and reevaluate it based on pupil performance and concentration.

Whether it is a school fete, school sports day, or someone to help in the classroom, keep a note of any volunteers with this page.

Behavior log

A behavior log can be very beneficial to a teacher. It’s not about a naughty or well-behaved child, it’s about noticing patterns of behavior that could hint at something that needs to be addressed or might be happening outside of school.

Communication logs

Communication logs are an essential part of any teacher planner and you can use this page to log communications with co-workers, parents, and others.

Class groupings

Use the class groupings list for developing lessons for small groups or intervention documentation.

Assigned reading tracker/list

Keep a note of any assigned reading throughout the term and make a note as to whether the students enjoyed the book and how they understood it.

Assignment tracker

Keep a log of any assignments allocated to pupils or even yourself.

Grades tracker/grade book

There is also a space for keeping a log of any student grades, so you can see their progress at a glance and reflect on how far they have come or recognize any students that might need a little extra help.

Lesson plan

Use the lesson plan to really hone down on what you need for a successful lesson such as the standards and objections, the materials and procedure to use, and how to approach the lesson for different levels.

There’s a lesson plan template to help you plan the lesson, along with materials required, learning objectives and any assessment details.

You’ll also find a weekly lesson plan template to help you see all of the lessons that you plan on teaching for the week ahead.

Conference schedule

Teachers are always learning too and have opportunities to go to conferences and other educational gatherings. Use the conference schedule to keep all of these important opportunities in check.

Student Birthday Log

There is plenty of room for keeping a record of class birthdays, medical information on students, and other important info.

Teacher Planner Stickers

You will also get free teacher planner sticker sheets included, and better yet, we have tons of free planner stickers available for you to use too. Just take a look around and get your favorites.

How to get this free teacher planner

The teacher planner is available in two styles, and you can get them right here. Choose the version that you want below.

Printable Teacher Planner

To get the teacher planner, click the download button below to go to the archive page.

Cute Teacher Planner

To get the cute style teacher planner, click the button below.

You’ll also like…

Did you know we also have free planner stickers that you can use in your planner? They’re so cute you’ll love them!

More awesome planners for you to enjoy

Every week we create a cute set of printables, planners, and digital freebies to help you make the most of the things that matter. Our creations are loved by many and are free for you to enjoy.

If you love this teacher planner and would like more awesome planners, then check out our latest creations that you can use right now for free.

We think you’ll love these:

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About the Authors: Ellie Watson and Don Watson are the creative minds behind World of Printables. They are both professional graphic designers with over 30 years of combined experience in the graphic design industry and have dedicated their careers to crafting beautiful and practical printables. Through their articles, they share their expertise and insights to help readers make the most of these printable designs. Whether it's printable planners, calendars, templates, or educational worksheets, Ellie and Don are passionate about adding value to your life through their printable creations. Stay inspired and organized with Ellie and Don's expert tips and designs at World of Printables. Learn more .

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Diary of a Busy Teacher: What My Day Really Looks Like While Teaching From Home

• Topics : A Teacher's Perspective

Teaching at the elementary level is challenging enough when the kiddos are right in front of us - but teaching from home is a whole new level. Take a look at what veteran teacher and TeacherVision contributor Lisa has been doing to create routines, accountability, and community for her students.

Teaching just got thrown its wildest curveball yet. If you had told me a few months ago that I would be going about my school day from home for weeks, possibly months, I would have laughed in your face. Teaching at the elementary level is challenging enough when the kiddos are right in front of us, but it is a whole new ballgame teaching from home. Take a look at what I’ve been up to to create routines, accountability, and community for my fourth grade students.

Side note: I am incredibly, unbelievably grateful to work in a district in Massachusetts that had already set up distance learning, originally for snow days. Wakefield created the Learn Anywhere Project , initially configured as a means to not have to make up any snow days at the end of the year. Kiddos are assigned various amounts of work (depending on grade level), and that work is due one to two weeks after the snow day. Now, obviously, we are not in a perpetual snow day, and we did not plan on using our distance learning long term, but we’ll take what we can get.

• Coffee: obvious part of the setup.
• Chair with a comfy pillow on it, blanket across the back: also obvious.
• Computer: duh.
• Class list: I’ve been using my class list to mark off who has done assignments each day and also take note of who is attending my twice-weekly class video chats.
• Blank paper: using to make anchor charts.
• Phone: using to film videos of myself teaching relatively easy new concepts to post to the Seesaw app for kids to view.

My Daily Schedule

• Wake up around the same time I normally would for a regular day of school.
• Around 8:30-12-- sit at my set-up area, create the Learn Anywhere assignments for the following day (I’ll give many, many ideas for tools and assignments next!), and respond to parent and student emails as they come in.
• Around 5 or 6 PM-- email out the following day’s assignments so that kids and parents who like to plan their day around the work can have a heads up as to what is coming the next day!
• Mondays and Fridays I host an 11 AM Google Video Hangout with my entire class, and almost everyone has joined! I set it up on a schedule so that parents and kids know exactly what days and what time it will happen, and I send out a meeting link for it the night before within my assignments page.

Tools and Assignments

Side note: If your students do not have laptop/tablet/computer/internet access, these tools will not work for you. Any engagement in reading and writing that the kids are able to access is a great way to continue learning without a computer, and any activities that kids are doing with their families such as baking, reading a book together, going on a nature walk, and more, are all ways to infuse learning into daily activities. This site offers a ton of great ideas for engagement without a computer:

• Google Docs : My students have used Google Docs for years, so it was an easy transition to bring it home. I had them create a Learn Anywhere folder inside of their fourth grade writing folder which was already shared with me earlier in the year, and any time I offer a writing assignment, they make a new document in their Learn Anywhere folder to keep everything organized.
• Seesaw : I have used an interactive app called Seesaw with the kids for many years. It allows kids to post their own photos, videos, or written responses, and I can also post updates that push out to all parents and kids. I’ve been using Seesaw lately as a very easy platform to post long videos. I have been filming myself with my phone teaching the kids some new (but easy to learn) concepts (such as geometric terms like lines and rays), and posting the videos to Seesaw only takes a few seconds! Then, I can grab a shareable link that the kids can click and it takes them right to the video! I have also been using Seesaw as an optional place for kids to post fun photos and videos of what they have been up to!
• Epic : Epic is an incredible digital library that offers kids thousands of books to choose from. The site appears to be free at the very least during school hours, and may work later into the evening as well. My fourth graders love reading on Epic and it’s a great way to offer lots of choice if kids don’t have many books at home.
• Scholastic Virtual Field Trips: So many different platforms are offering free virtual field trips for kids, and I have used Scholastic so far to send them on a field trip of the Revolutionary War!
• Educational Videos: YouTube and many other places are great to find educational videos! The ones I’ve been sending out lately are the Liberty Kids American Revolution series, which are cartoon episodes of the various events of the Revolutionary War!
• Prodigy : Prodigy is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE math tools and kids of many different elementary grades LOVE it. The game is free, easy to learn, and gives kids practice with math concepts that you can assign to them as a teacher, or let the game take them through the concepts. The game has an algorithm to know when the kids need more practice with various concepts, too! It is very easy to log on as a teacher and see exactly how many problems kids have tried!
• i-Ready : Another math tool that allows for custom lessons for kids, and the program gives them a full video teaching them the concept as well as opportunities for practice and a quiz at the end. Very easy to see student work!
• Readworks : Readworks is another free site that allows teachers to choose articles based on grade level, lexile, genre, and more, and provides space for students to respond to multiple choice questions as well as engage in written responses. It’s very easy to access and very straightforward, and is another great way to see who is engaging with the work.
• Mr. N 365 : A paid site (but when I joined they had 80% off due to COVID-19) that offers hundreds of games, lessons, and activities for all ages. I found some incredibly fun math games on there, and it was super easy for the kids to log in!

Communication with Parents

• Email : Email has been my main source of communication with parents, and as I have done about two weeks’ worth of Learn Anywhere, I have learned that less is more. I make a point to include in a single email each night all relevant information for the following day’s assignments, video hangouts, and anything else that may be going on so that the parents are not bombarded with too much information. I also think it is VITAL to let families know that whatever engagement their kiddo has with the distance learning is great. Take a look at a piece of an email I pushed out to parents recently:

"My goal for Learn Anywhere is to try to give kids a semblance of routine, because I know that many, many kids desperately crave and need routine even if they think that they just want to goof off. Whatever that routine looks like in your house is GREAT. If the kids are reading daily and maybe playing Prodigy here or there, great!! Or if you're spending time together as a family and reading a book together, or if you're going outside and engaging with nature, or if you're finding virtual field trips or fun podcasts or the kiddo is practicing an instrument or learning how to bake. Obviously it's wonderful for me to see them engaging in the activities I've provided and learning new things, and if that has been working for you, keep on with the usual. My true goal, though, is that the kids feel happy, connected to me and the rest of the class, safe, healthy, and mentally and emotionally okay.”

All in all, the most important part of teaching from home in a time of coronavirus is to maintain connections, promote happiness, and support our kiddos in any way that we can. Whatever you have been doing as a teacher, whether it’s sending out videos of yourself reading a book, sending an email just to say hello, hosting video chats, providing full assignments: You are doing a great job. 

What does your average day look like teaching from home? Share with us on Instagram , Facebook , Twitter , and Pinterest .

Lisa Koplik is a fourth-grade teacher at the Greenwood School in Wakefield, Massachusetts. She loves teaching math, reading intense read-aloud books that promote complaints when she has to stop reading, and figuring out educational games to play with her students. Check out her video series on classroom management!.

About the author

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Google Slides Daily Agenda Templates

Daily Agenda Slide Templates for Teachers (+ free templates)

Get This Product On Teachers Pay Teachers

10 reasons why you need a daily agenda slide for your classroom (+ free templates below), from morning meeting to independent work, agenda slides are the best tool for classroom management..

I have been using agenda slides for years, and I honestly cannot imagine going back to not using them.

Not only do they provide students with the visuals they need and help them become more independent, but they also make a huge difference for my mental state as a teacher.

Every time I use them, I feel less stressed and overwhelmed, and I receive fewer questions.

If you haven’t tried agenda slides or aren’t using them consistently, here are 10 ways they will help improve your classroom management (plus a free agenda slide template for you to try them out!).

1. They focus your students when they walk in the door

I love using Good Morning Slides as my students walk in the door.

They’re a great way for me to inform them about what they need to do for morning work or bell work, which assignments to turn in, and reminders for the day. It’s a perfect space to celebrate birthdays or recognize students.

As a bonus, you can also use them to conduct your Morning Meetings! List your greeting, share, activity, and message on a slide.

Moreover, as a teacher, it’s helpful to have a visual reminder of all the items I want to discuss right away in the morning.

2. Students know exactly what they should be doing during independent work time and partner talking

And you can save your energy for meeting with small groups instead of answering questions like “What do we do?!” Yes, please!

When you project what students should be doing during work time on an agenda slide, you’ll notice their heads continuously referencing it. It’s such a great tool that fosters independence.

Students appreciate structure, and often they can’t remember the long list of directions you gave them about what to do and what to do when they finish early. (I mean, how many times do we as adults forget things we’re supposed to do?)

Having it typed out is invaluable.

Not having to write it in marker on your whiteboard is also a huge benefit. You don’t have to use up precious wall space, and it’s much faster to type.

Did I mention that Agenda Slides are automatically saved in Google Slides? You can create them ahead of time or on the fly and refer back to them anytime. You don’t need to worry about your board getting erased.

Turn and Talk

Using agenda slides for partner turn-and-talk is also fantastic. You can include talking reminders, which students consistently need, along with the discussion prompts you want them to address.

They are much more likely to stay on task and actively engage in the required conversation.

Writing it down is always better! 

3. Class timers help all of your students, especially the ones that have difficulty staying focused

“I would put timers on them, and it makes transitions much smoother.”

Timers are absolute game changers.

You can add a timer to anything: turn and talk, centers, small groups, free choice, independent work time, problem of the day, your mini-lesson, and more.

When I think of timers, sometimes I actually think of myself benefiting from them first.

I enjoy using timers to stay on track with the day’s schedule. It’s easy to lose track of time, which is great when your students are deeply engrossed in a project, but not so great when you need to complete certain tasks or provide your students with ample work time.

However, timers immensely benefit students! Here are just a few ways:

• Time awareness
• Task pacing
• Focus and attention
• Task chunking and transitions
• Motivation and self-regulation
• Reducing anxiety and increasing predictability

Your students who struggle with unpreferred tasks will truly benefit from timers, as they provide a clear and finite amount of time they need to engage in the activity.

🔥Bonus tip: Do you have your own unpreferred task? Challenge yourself to spend 30 minutes after school tackling it without any distractions like your phone. Set the timer and get started! I find it incredibly motivating 🙂

4. Students can finally see the anchor charts! (woot woot!)

Yes, please!

What’s worse than creating these beautiful anchor charts that no one can see from their seats and, as a result, they don’t use them!

Include them in your agenda slides or co-create them with students during your mini-lessons. Then project and keep them visible during independent work time.

I’ve added anchor charts in two ways:

• Insert a table into Google Slides and either co-create the chart with students during the lesson OR cover parts of the table with a shape (using the shape tool) and reveal parts of it gradually.

• Another option is to create an anchor chart using chart paper as you typically would, and then take a photo of it.

Insert the photo onto the slide that students should refer to while they’re working.

Since the chart is projected and larger, they are more likely to use it.

Moreover, this approach frees up valuable classroom wall space. Who is really looking at the writing anchor chart during social studies? Probably no one. Just display it during writing time!

5. Agenda slides organize your links so you can make learning more engaging

There are various ways to organize your links and share them with students, but incorporating a quick links slide into my agenda slides has been an incredible addition.

Having this slide with all the websites we use daily linked in one place allows for easy and quick access to them.

Typically, I add an image or text of the website and hyperlink it to the corresponding site. (Click on the image – Click CTRL + K and paste the link)

This slide also serves as a resource for students to access the websites during school or even at home.

I update it whenever there’s a valuable addition, and the slide automatically updates for everyone.

💡Bonus idea: You can also directly add links to any of your agenda slides. This way, you can access the link right when you need it, whether it’s to show students a video, play a song, or take them to a website during your lesson.

6. Agenda slide templates make decorating for the holidays even easier

Agenda slides for the holiday s are such a fun way to mix up your classroom decor and in some holiday fun. Both students and, let’s be honest, teachers like myself, thoroughly enjoy the holiday spirit!

You can customize these slides for any holiday or season, and even include extra stickers or decorations. Personally, I find adding holiday jokes to be a fun addition.

If you’re already using agenda slides, incorporating these holiday-themed slides will be the ultimate enjoyable bonus.

7. Students know exactly what their homework is and what the week looks like

I love projecting the homework agenda slides before students leave for the day. It allows them to easily write down their homework and gain a clear understanding of upcoming assignments that are due.

This practice empowers students to take responsibility for their work and helps them stay organized.

You can also involve your Google Classroom by posting a saved image of the homework slide in your feed. To do this, click on the slide, go to File, select Download, and choose PNG.

Week at a Glance

Additionally, using week-at-a-glance slides and providing students with a link to access them, especially if you have linked online assignments, can be incredibly helpful. These visual resources have proven to be beneficial for students.

Parents can also benefit from this approach. By granting them access to the homework slide or including the image in an email, they can conveniently review the week’s homework and actively support their child’s learning journey.

One of the significant advantages of using agenda slides is that students always have online access to their homework information. This eliminates concerns about them forgetting to write it down and ensures they can easily refer to the slide whenever needed.

8. They help you stay organized and on track when you're teaching (don't forget the wrap-up!)

I’m highlighting a lot of benefits for students, but it’s important to acknowledge that agenda slides offer numerous advantages for teachers beyond simply reducing the number of questions they have to answer.

Agenda slides can serve as a valuable tool to guide your lessons, ensuring that no important elements are missed. You can include the warm-up question, key components of the mini-lesson (such as the anchor chart), turn and talk questions, and the crucial wrap-up, which often gets sidelined when time is limited.

By clicking through these slides during different parts of your lesson, you can avoid forgetting any essential aspects, including important terminology and guiding questions. 

When everything is organized and listed across the slides, I find myself feeling much more prepared for the lesson, and it tends to run much smoother as a result.

9. They're great for getting students caught up with work

You can incorporate agenda slides into your Ketchup, Mustard, and Pickles catch-up sessions !

(Of course, if condiments aren’t your thing, feel free to use other creative names!)

Include all the tasks that need to be completed by students on your catch-up slides. Students must finish the “must-dos” before they can engage in other activities.

This approach is an excellent way to ensure that all students are back on track and assignments are turned in. Additionally, when students see what they “get to do” after completing their regular work, they become more motivated to stay focused and complete their tasks.

Keep student who are home sick connected

You can also utilize agenda slides to help catch up students who are sick at home. Proactively getting them up to speed before they return makes the transition easier for both you and them.

Here’s the trick: simply share a link with those absent students that allows them to get a glimpse into what the class has been working on during their absence. It’s like a virtual window into the day’s lessons.

Now, I can’t guarantee that it will miraculously catch them up completely, but at least they can stay informed and keep up with online assignments and math work.

You can include links or attachments directly on the slides, making it convenient for them to continue their learning from the comfort of their own home. It’s all about finding ways to keep them connected and engaged, even when they can’t physically be in the classroom.

While agenda slides won’t solve all the challenges of catching up, they certainly make a difference. By using them, you’re demonstrating care for those sick students and providing them with an opportunity to stay on track.

10. You can share agenda slides with parents to keep them in the loop

Agenda slides serve as a secret weapon for keeping parents informed about their children’s school activities.

When parents receive these agenda slides, they gain an instant and clear understanding of their child’s schedule, allowing them to plan and stay organized.

The best part is that agenda slides provide parents with easy access to all the essential information they need. They can simply refer to the slides to check due dates, project requirements, assignments, and the topics being studied in class.

This way, parents can actively support their child, engage in meaningful conversations about their school experiences, and be present for any challenges or celebrations that arise along the way.

You don’t have to share all the slides; just share the relevant ones. You can create a separate presentation for parents that you keep updated. (Select the slides you want to share, click File – Make a copy – Selected slides. Then share the link)

It’s all about fostering open communication and parental involvement. With agenda slides, we create a supportive learning environment where parents are well-informed and can actively participate in their child’s education. It’s a win-win situation that significantly enhances their overall learning experience.

Want to try out Agenda slides? Fill out the form below and get a sample of our Everyday Agenda Slides sent to your inbox.

This was exactly what I was looking for had agenda, morning message, and timers included! Editable and easy to tailor. Thank you.

Maggie, 4th Grade

This resource saved my so much time. It is very organized and helps eliminate using multiply resources.

Angela, 2nd Grade Teacher

I love using these for my morning messages and daily agenda! Very bright and colorful, yet not overwhelming! Love the timers that are built in! Thank you!

Stephanie, 2nd Grade Teacher

I love this resource, makes planning the day simple and easy for students to follow. I love the themes and how it easily editable.

Deanna, 5th and 6th GradeTeacher

Teachers’ Day

The role of teachers in everyone’s life is great as they are the only visual source of knowledge for their students. One day every year, we celebrate Teachers’ Day in honor of the teachers who spend so much time teaching us so many things. It is a special day dedicated to all teachers celebrated every year to honor the teachers and appreciate their special contributions towards education. It is a day to show the teachers that they do a commendable service to the society and nation by educating the youth.

They help us to improve our knowledge, skill level, confidence as well as they shape us in the right shape to get success. This year, Teachers’ Day began with a school assembly in the hall where the headmaster delivered a speech. After that we adjourned to our classes, not to have lessons, but to enjoy ourselves. The main objective of the whole celebration is to show the teachers how much loved and respected they are for the service they do to the students.

In our school life, we celebrate teacher’s day with grandly with more of the fun. My classmates gave a small party for the teachers who taught us. Each of us contributed a small sum of money to buy cakes, drinks, and other titbits. On that day students gives many of the gifts to their teachers. On that day we arranged the chairs and desks so that they surrounded an empty space in the middle of the classroom. In some schools, students dress up as teachers and take the role of teachers by conducting classes. So began a round of eating, drinking and playing games with the teachers. Most of the teachers were very sporting and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It was so different from having lessons. This is just for fun and let the teachers relax.

The other classes gave parties too. So the teachers had to move from class to class and participate in the fun. I would think that this was quite tiring on the part of the teachers but they managed it. After all, it was their day to enjoy and have fun.

Many schools give awards to teachers for their contributions and hard work. Teachers are encouraged to participate in games and other cultural activities which are being conducted on this special day.

This is a day of relaxation and enjoyment for all the teachers. All in all, it was a great day. The whole school was immersed in an atmosphere of gaiety. Students honor their teachers and hand gifts to them as a token of respect. So when the school bell rang for dismissal I felt a little sad that it should end, but end it must. The day was over and we went home tired but happy.

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