Starting Strong with Classroom Culture
Description
The first few weeks of school are critical in establishing a solid foundation for the rest of the year. To start off strong, it's important to proactively foster a positive classroom culture and community. This workshop series empowers educators with the mindsets and skills to understand that behavior is a form of communication and that relationships, clarity and predictability foster an emotionally safe and supportive environment. With a strong classroom culture in place, teachers can then build upon this foundation to ensure a school year defined by a sense of belonging, academic rigor, and overall student success.
This series was formerly called New Teacher Orientation
Who is this experience for?
We've found that both new teachers and those with 10+ years of experience and teachers who are new to the profession loved the training as a way to prepare them for the first six weeks of school.
Learning Objectives
Facilitate affirming one to one conversations with students and families.
Positively and proactively set and reinforce expectations.
Interpret student behavior as a form of communication and respond to behavior in ways that promotes a positive classroom environment.
Implement classroom routines to create predictability and cultivate student independence in the classroom.
Deepening Your Practice with Positive Classroom Culture
Have your teachers already completed Starting Strong with Classroom Culture? This full day intensive is designed to build off what teachers have already learned with Relay to help deepen their practice and build new skills as they prepare for the first six weeks of the school year.
Spotlight on: KIPP Texas
KIPP Texas welcomes almost 500 new-to-KIPP teachers each year, including many first year teachers. They know how much the onboarding experience contributes to teachers’ ability to thrive and produce student outcomes that meet school targets. They chose Relay’s Starting Strong with Classroom Culture as their two day in-person training to prepare these new teachers for the first six weeks of school and beyond.
What Leaders Are Saying
"This is our strongest cohort of 1st year teachers. After attending the Relay training, they almost immediately had the foundational skills down, like giving clear directions, checking for understanding, and teacher presence."
"Relay has consistently delivered high-quality adult learning that simultaneously holds our educators full-selves, anchors on a rigorous and belonging student experience, and results in tangibly better-empowered teachers."
What Teachers Are Saying
- 94% were satisfied or very satisfied with Relay Teacher Professional Education.
- 90% agreed or strongly agreed that "What I learned in today's session will help me be more my effective in current role"
- "This was the best professional development I've had in my several years of teaching! I feel grounded, confident, and prepared to begin the school year."
- "I love how interactive it was. Everyone had a safe space to share their voice.”
- "Overall this was a great training. I learned a lot and gained a lot of confidence"
Modality
In person: 2 days
We request that schools and districts contact Relay at least 6-8 weeks before the desired event date.
Virtual: 6 two-hour sessions
We request that schools and districts contact Relay at least 4 weeks before the desired event date.
Start Your Journey
Our team is happy to talk with you about your needs and find the right professional learning opportunities for your schools and community.