{"id":4465,"date":"2023-06-11T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-11T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/?p=4465"},"modified":"2023-04-17T12:23:57","modified_gmt":"2023-04-17T16:23:57","slug":"back-to-school-stations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/back-to-school-stations\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Run Back-to-School Stations for High School English"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new school year is almost here and you’re looking for a fresh way to start a new class. Why not try back-to-school stations?<\/strong> In this post, I’ll share some ideas and tips I learned trying this approach during the first couple of days of the school year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Looking for more ideas to start your school year off strong?<\/em> Check out my five engaging back-to-school activities!<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also skip the prep work and just grab my Back-to-School Stations for ELA here<\/a>!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"How to Run Back-to-School Stations for High School English\" blog post pin with the title over school supplies<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Why Back-to-School Stations?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Historically, the first couple of days of school have been spent reading the syllabus, going over class rules, and maybe learning about the teacher. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this! These things need to be done.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Cover<\/a>
Save time and grab these Back-to-School Stations for ELA<\/a>! It includes six stations, editable directions, and templates for everything you need!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

But when your high school students have eight classes just like this, your presentation isn’t going to stand out.<\/strong> In fact, your students still won’t name your name after you spend an exhausting hour talking nervously to a bunch of teens you just met. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stations, however, are way more engaging than a sit-and-get. <\/strong>They set the stage for the rest of your class by telling students, “Hey, here you’re going to move, work, and have fun!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The movement around the room will also help wake up those sleepy teens and introduce them to their new learning environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, stations are less energy for you. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They DO require more prep than the standard syllabus-reading day. However, during your actual instruction time, you’ll be facilitating rather than speaking the whole time. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This gives you time to wander, actually converse with your new students, and takes you off center stage. Personally, as a teacher with social anxiety, this made those nerve-wracking first couple of days of school much easier for me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Many Stations Do You Need?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This will largely depend on how long your classes are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For shorter classes (forty-five minutes or so), three stations with simple tasks and easy directions will probably be enough. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For longer classes (ninety minutes), you could do six short stations or fewer stations with longer tasks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, if you really want students to do six stations but you have short classes, you could extend your back-to-school stations to two days too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The more stations, the more prep work you’ll need to do.<\/strong> However, once you create the materials for your stations, these can usually be reused over and over. <\/p>\n\n\n

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\"How to Run Back-to-School Stations for High School English\" blog post pin with the title over three students working together on a computer<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Back-to-School Stations Ideas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So what kind of stations can you set up in your room? I encourage you to think about the work students will be doing throughout your class and try to have your stations reflect those activities. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will want at least one station where students can get to know you and another station where you can get to know them and they can get to know each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my Back-to-School Stations Resource<\/a>, I have students read a letter from me and write a response at one station. This is great for two reasons: they learn about me AND I get a writing sample from them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a different station in my Back-to-School Stations Resource<\/a>, students fill out an “All About Me” worksheet and hang it up in the room. Then, they can check out their classmates’ as they move around from station to station and learn about each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were a one-to-one school, so I used another station to force students to find their device and use it to complete a reading survey. This gave me information about their reading habits while setting up technology for the rest of the class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you provide any kind of organizational system for students in your class, consider using a station to introduce students to it. <\/strong>One station in my Back-to-School Stations Resource<\/a> has students labeling and decorating the folders they’ll keep in the classroom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’ll probably want students to create goals early on. Why not use a station to do it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have a classroom library<\/a>, put it to work!<\/strong> In my Back-to-School Stations Resource, students start a To Be Read sheet. This forces them to–gasp!–actually start touching books and thinking about what they’ll want to read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More Ideas<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When coming up with your stations, prioritize the routines you’ll be using year-round and the systems you want to set up early.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some other station ideas to consider:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • Create a “word of the year”<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Create a vision board for the year<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Write a letter to your future self<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Create a reading\/studying\/homework calendar<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Annotate\/read a syllabus<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • A quiz about the teacher<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Watch book trailers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Student survey<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Create a name plate\/tag<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Create a bookmark<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n