A Lesson Plan for Teachers

Do you dread packing up your classroom for the summer break? For my first few years of teaching, I had no idea how stressful this could be for teachers. I had it good!

Mr. Clay was the head custodian in my first school, and he saved me every year as I had to prepare for summer. Until I left that school, I had no idea about packing up my classroom for the summer break. Mr. Clay had done everything for me. So the tips I share with you today are not truly mine. They come from the greatest custodian ever!

Should You Pack Up Your Classroom for the Summer?

Even if your school doesn’t require packing up your classroom for summer, it may still be a good idea. While it was a surprise to me that our classrooms do not simply lay dormant over the break, I quickly learned the benefits of this yearly task. Some things to consider that may happen over the summer in your classroom: Maintenance that can be messy. The use of your room for summer school or other events. Or uninvited visitors that take it upon themselves to enter your space. (Ugh, I hated this!)

In each of these situations, packing up your classroom will protect your resources and will save you so much stress and clean up time when you return for the new school year.

The First Steps In Packing Up Your Classroom

1. Take a picture or draw out the layout of your classroom. If you’ve found a layout that worked well for your students in this school year, you will want to remember it. And it’s likely things may be moved over the break. So, draw it on the board, create a layout on your computer, or simply sketch it on a piece of paper and tuck it safely away in your desk. This will save you thinking time when you return to find all your desks pushed against one wall.
2. Trash the trash! If you will not use it, clean out the space it takes up. Lessons do not always work for all students or teachers. Don’t save them just for the sake of saving them. Keeping your classroom neat and organized will save you time, and it will create a better learning environment for your students. The trash must go!
3. Wipe everything down and do a thorough clean. You will have to clean it all again to start the school year, but trust me, this is an important task. The germs and yuck will settle in your classroom over the break no matter what. Still, it’s a good idea to wipe everything down before you pack it all up. This will keep unwanted crawlers out of your materials and it will give you a fresh start as you prepare for the back to school events.
4. Start creating designated areas. I simply create stacks as I clean onto tables as part of my packing process. I organize them but the courses and units I teach. Not only will this help in cleaning my room, it will help when I return to plan the coming year’s curriculum. Once everything is organized as you plan to use it, pack up into boxes (or containers) so you can easily find and use them later.
5. Use strong containers for organization. Boxes are okay, but they are not my choice storage tool. Choose containers you can use over and over AND ones that you love. Find containers that help support how you teach. Containers that can serve multiple purposes are ideal. Pack your units into these containers so that you won’t have to unpack them when the school year starts; you can pull and use as you need them. Functional is best!
6. Label. Label. Label! Especially if you are using containers that are not clear, label everything to help you grab and go.Consider labeling by the unit or the time period in which you will use the resources in the container. Organize in a way that will keep you from stressing when you need the resource ready for students.

Other Tips for Packing Up Your Classroom for the Summer

Keep in mind that everything in your classroom will likely to be moved over the summer break. No matter where I taught, the summer cleaning crew has moved everything to strip and re-wax the classroom floors. They will move it all into the hall and then randomly place it back in your room. Everything your treasure will be in a mess in the hallway!

• Most importantly: Pack up the items in your desk. After I left my first school and Mr. Clay, I learned a valuable lesson. I left everything in my desk and I returned for the new school year to find everything that was inside my desk in chaos. Paperclips were wedged in the drawer slides, leaving me to added challenge of trying to open the desk drawers. Lesson learned – pack it up!
• Pack what matters most to you carefully. If you have gifts from students or decor you love in your classroom, make sure secure these items in ways that will protect them as your containers are moved around. Also, remember that your packed items may sit unwatched in the hallway. Open containers will be seen as free goodies for others roaming the halls.
• Protect your technology supplies. While you may not worry about your tech being taken from your classroom, but you do need to protect it from being damaged. Roll up and tie the cords, check that laptops are closed to protect the screens, and plastic wrap the whole cart if you can.

Final Steps to Summer Prep

Don’t forget your walls! It is easy to ignore everything on your walls as you pack up for summer. You may not be able to image what could happen to your walls. Don’t do this! Take down your decor for two reasons:

1. You may come back to vandalized posters. If you teach middle or high school, this is highly likely. If students can access your classroom over the summer, you may find posters with interesting additions when you return.
2. You need to change up your classroom anyway! Visual changes are good for your students AND for you! Rotate resources from year to year or add in new visuals to create a new vibe for your new or returning students.

Happy Packing and Happy Summer Break!