Why I LOVE Meet & Greet And How You Can Too
Do you have a Meet & Greet at your school? Maybe it’s called Meet the Teacher OR maybe there is a different name for it. Are you wondering what to do during this event? Maybe you are confused about the purpose behind it? This is a time when students meet their teacher BEFORE the school year begins. Check with your school and see their expectations for this time. Here are 5 reasons that I love Meet and Greet (and why YOU will too)!
I Get To Meet My Students & Families
Meet and Greet is first and foremost about getting to meet your new group of students and their families. It’s also about students getting to meet you as well. It helps relieve anxiety for your kids and for yourself. It also allows you to begin forming a student/teacher bond from the beginning. Although I’m nervous, once the Meet and Greet starts I relax a little bit and enjoy interacting with my new families.
I Get To Show Off The Classroom
I get to show off all the preparation I’ve been doing over the summer. Students and parents will be able to explore the classroom and check out the environment for the year ahead. Does this mean everything must be perfect before Meet and Greet? No! But, do the best you can to have the environment looking like a peaceful and happy place. Hide the “clutter” and projects you are still working on. Your room may not be fully ready and that’s okay. There might be some empty (or really full) shelves. You can always add a curtain. Put away anything you really care about that you don’t want kids using yet. In cupboards, I hide anything that I’m using for that first week including books, puppets and papers so that I’m not left AFTER the Meet and Greet wondering where everything went. Your new set of students do not know the rules yet…keep that in mind.
I Can Collect Student Information
On each student’s table spot I have a folder (actually a piece of long construction paper folded in half) filled with beginning of the year forms. I have two forms that I need before they leave and the rest they can take home and fill out. I need the “All About Me” form and the “Transportation” form. My goal is to get parent information AND to know how my students get home from school BEFORE the first day of school.
One thing I do the week leading up to Meet and Greet is call each family and talk to the parents, ask questions, allow them to ask questions and see if they are planning to attend the Meet and Greet. After the Meet and Greet, anyone that did not show up (or I didn’t have a chance to talk to on the phone) gets another phone call so that I know how they get home from school on that first day and everyday thereafter.
I have the forms that I send home in this Back To School resource. There are many activities and ideas included in this resource as well.
Just a little tip: Keep pens and pencils at the tables and have a basket or two for the parents to put the papers when they are done.
I Can Answer Questions BEFORE The First Day
Since I call my parents and give them the opportunity to talk to me and ask questions, the Meet and Greet is much calmer. I’m able to interact with more families instead of just one or two who have many questions. There are still questions BECAUSE that is life….and that is just fine. I would rather help parents get their questions answered NOW than on the first day of school when I’m responsible for all the little kindergarteners and the questions are coming at me as the students are walking in the door. Now that is a comical and scary sight!
I Want To Make Everyone Feel Comfortable
My goal for Meet and Greet is to make everyone feel as comfortable in our classroom as possible. I want parents to feel like they can trust me with their child and that I’m approachable with questions and concerns.
After Meet and Greet, I clean up the classroom and get set up for the first day of school (some years it’s the very next day and other years it’s the following Monday). Then I go over the forms I collected and write out a list of how they get home. I write this on a form that is included in the Back To School resource. My goal is do as much as I can before the school year starts so I’m not scrambling when it gets here.
Here are some wonderful beginning of the year blogposts that will help you get your year off on the right foot.
