It’s back-to-school time and we know you’re determined to start the year off right. But whether you’re a new or veteran teacher, you still need some time to stop and get back into the back-to-school frame of mind. Armed with these 10 back-to-school tips for teachers, the new school year is bound to be a success no matter what it looks like!

Our Top Back-to-School Tips for Teachers

1. This Year is Not Last Year

Whether your last year of teaching was great or terrible, head into this school year knowing that it will be different. That doesn’t mean that if you had a great year last year, you won’t have a great year this year. It just means you need to look at the year with fresh eyes. You will have different students with different interests and unique personalities. What worked for your students last year may not work this year and ideas that flopped last year may be this year’s biggest successes.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking, “This year will be a breeze. I’ll just use the same lesson plans, same activities and same materials I used last year.” Instead, keep what you did last year as a backup, but go into the school year prepared to start over focused on a new group of students and their individual needs.

2. Get to Know Your Students

It takes time to get to know your students. Plan to spend a lot of time getting to know your students during the first week of school. This involves more than just learning their names. Find out their learning styles, what their interests are, and how they feel about the subject you teach. Create a few short tests or tasks to figure out where students are at so you know where to start the curriculum and to make sure no students are left behind if you’d planned to start much further ahead in the curriculum.

3. Make Students Feel Welcome

As you get to know your students, you should also make them feel welcome in your classroom. If you receive class rosters in advance, welcome students before they even step through your door by sending them a short letter or calling them and letting them know how excited you are to have them in your class. For a smaller class, post students’ names around the room or give students a special gift on the first day of school. Greet every student with a smile and a handshake as they walk in the door and let them know that it is going to be a great year.

4. Communicate with Parents

The beginning of the school year is the perfect time to get parents on your side. You may not have many discipline problems during the first week of school, but you can still make phone calls or send e-mails to parents. During the first two weeks of school, make it a point to contact every student’s parent at least once to share something positive. This will let parents know that you truly care about their children and that not every phone call from the school will be for something bad. Once students get wind that you contact parents for positives, they may be more motivated to behave in the hopes that they get another good phone call home.

5. Set the Tone

The first few days of school are usually a little more relaxed, but they are also important days for teachers to use to set the tone for the rest of the school year. In the midst of ice-breakers and administrative tasks, make sure students are clear about the rules and expectations for your classroom and start following those rules from day one. While you may not want to give homework on the first day, students should also start learning on day one. Plan an activity to introduce students to what you will be teaching and help them understand that learning is the main focus of your classroom.

6. Be Organized

If you are not organized at the beginning of the school year, it will be hard to get organized once the school year begins. Set up any folders, bins and other systems of organization you plan to use during the school year. Figure out how you will take attendance, collect and hand back student work, store extra copies of handouts and organize forms and other professional papers.

You can also get organized digitally. Create folders on your computer for each class period or to hold lesson plans and resources for specific units. Set up accounts for students on any websites you plan to use and make sure you remember your passwords for any accounts you plan to access regularly. Clean up your website and make sure your gradebook is ready to go. If you already have student and parent e-mail addresses, you can also make sure they are easily accessible in the computer.

7. Stock Up on Supplies

Even though students have school supply lists, chances are many of them will forget their supplies. Back-to-school time is the perfect time to stock up on pencils, paper, notebooks, markers and other materials you may need throughout the school year. Many large discount stores offer deep discounts on these items during the weeks leading up to the start of school. While it may seem crazy to buy 100 notebooks or 1000 pencils at once, in the middle of the school year you will love that you do not have to pay full-price to restock these items in your classroom.

8. Get Ahead While You Have Time

The beginning of the school year is the perfect time to get ahead. While you cannot plan detailed lessons before you get to know your students, you can determine the general sequence of what you plan to teach and do some lesson planning in advance. You can also start to fill out the paperwork for a grant you know you’ll want to apply for, and make initial contacts for any field trips you know you are going to take. As you are going through your to-do list or organizing your classroom, if you start to set something aside to do later, stop and ask yourself if there is any part of it you can do now in order to make it easier to finish up later.

9. Ease into It

Don’t throw yourself into the new school year. Instead, ease into it. If you can, gradually start setting your alarm earlier and earlier so it’s not so much of a shock on the first day of school. Instead of rushing to get everything done two or three days before school starts, take a few hours each day a week or two before school starts and get a little bit of prepping done here and there. That large essay or massive homework assignment you want to give students can wait too. Instead of arming yourself with loads of papers to grade the first week of school, give a smaller assignment that you can check in class or have students take online. If students had a summer assignment to complete, check off those who brought it in and then give them a week to polish it, giving you some time to adjust to the new school year before being swamped with projects to grade.

10. Think Positive

Maybe you have to teach seven out of eight periods a day. Maybe you were saddled with multiple preps. Maybe your class roster contains some of the most notorious discipline problems in the school. Maybe your school performed poorly last year and the pressure is on to do well this year. Whatever issues you may face this school year, you must go into the year thinking positive.

Yes, you may have a full load of classes, but you get to influence that many more students. Prepping for multiple classes is hard, but at least you don’t have to teach the same thing all day. Those discipline problems are going to test your patience, but you’re guaranteed not to have a dull moment and maybe you’ll actually turn them around. And those test scores? With your amazing teaching skills, of course they’re going to go up.

You can be organized, have a cabinet full of supplies, and know exactly what to do during the first week of school, but if you have a negative attitude, none of it will matter. Whether this is your first year of teaching or your last year before you get to enjoy retirement, think positive. This school year will be successful and, if it’s not, it’ll be over in around 180 days. Then you’ll get to start again.

You can always ease students into the learning process with Back-to-School worksheets from HelpTeaching. We’ve also shared some special tips for new teachers.

What back to school tips and tricks would you share with teachers? Leave them in the comments!

Whether you have a full-time job and want to make a little money on the side or you would like to earn an income while being a stay-at-home mom or homeschooling your kids, opportunities abound. Getting a minimum-wage job is not always cost-effective, nor is it easy to find one with an accommodating schedule. Instead of traditional jobs, numerous teachers and parents are creating income opportunities that fit their own unique interests, skills and scheduling needs. To help you with ideas, check out our Money-Making Ideas for Teachers and Parents!

Our List of Money-Making Ideas for Teachers and Parents

Tutor

Tutoring is an easy way for teachers to make money on the side. You can choose to work for a tutoring company and have them help find clients or simply advertise around your neighborhood. During the school year, parents may hire tutors to help their children improve in a specific subject area. Many also seek out tutors in the summer to help their children get ahead or keep them from losing information during their time away from school. And while tutoring may be best suited for teachers, it is not limited to certified educators. If you have a bachelor’s degree in an area where students need help, you may be qualified to tutor students who need help. Companies such as WyzAnt and Club Z can help you find local students to tutor in your area.

If you have children at home or cannot find students to tutor in your local area, you can also tutor online. Sign up with an online tutoring service such as Tutor.com. They will connect you with students who need help in the areas you are qualified to teach. You may also find opportunities to teach students from other countries how to speak English such as through VIPKID or a similar service.

Write a Book

Everyone has a story to tell and, with the Internet, it has never been easier. Turn your advice, creative story ideas or special area of interest into an e-book. Do not be intimidated by the idea of writing a book. E-books do not have to be hundreds of pages long. In fact, many e-books are as short as 20,000 words or around 30 pages long. That may be the perfect length to write out your parenting tips, a guide to local events and attractions or a how-to guide related to one of your hobbies. If you are not a strong writer, put your ideas down on paper and then hire another freelance writer or editor to help you shape them into a book. You can then sell your book through online platforms such as Smashwords, CreateSpace or Lulu.

Create Educational Materials

Teachers and homeschooling parents are always creating their own worksheets, quizzes, lesson plans and other educational materials. You can profit from those materials by selling them on a website such as Teachers Pay Teachers. Remember that all materials must be entirely your own, not created using question banks, such as those you will find at HelpTeaching.com or any other copyright-protected artwork.

If you are a certified teacher, you may also be able to make money by creating materials for educational companies. Many educational websites, textbook publishers and educational software designers contract with teachers to have them design lesson plans, worksheets and test questions or have them review materials to ensure they will work well in the classroom. This work can often be done remotely and on a part-time basis during the school year.

Get Crafty

If creating educational materials is not your cup of tea or you have other talents, consider getting crafty. Sell your crochet-work, knitting or creative craft projects online using Etsy or another online shopping platform. If you are into stamping or scrapbooking, turn your skills into making stationery and pre-designed scrapbooks. Not sure what to make? Take a stroll around your local craft store for inspiration. A foam circle, some ribbon and artificial flowers could turn into a new wreath-making business. Wood and some paint could become kitschy signs and fun home décor. Flipping furniture is also a big trend. Browse thrift stores on the weekend for desks, hutches, bookshelves, tables, old chairs, and other pieces of furniture to re-stain, paint, and turn into something new.

Be a Tester

When companies launch new websites or products, they need people to test them out. Earn some money on the side by becoming a tester. UserTesting.com hires testers to review websites and answer a few questions about them. Software companies such as Microsoft also hire individuals to test out new products and websites. Not only can you earn money for your work, but you can be one of the first to experience cool new products and websites.

Complete Random Tasks

In some cases, companies have random tasks that they are willing to pay people to do. While the tasks may only pay a few pennies or a few dollars to complete, the more you complete, the more the earnings add up. Websites such as Amazon Mechanical Turk have you complete random tasks, such as verifying website addresses or finding search results. You can also do some field research through apps such as Field Agent and Gigwalk. These apps send you to local businesses to search for products, verify addresses and take photos, giving you the opportunity to earn a few bucks for each task you complete.

Want to control the type of tasks you complete? Try a site like Fiverr where you offer services and products for $5. Review websites, write poems, create logos or offer to do anything else you think is worth $5. If you can get enough people to take you up on your offer, you could earn decent money. If you have a specific skill, such as the ability to design webpages, work as a copywriter or complete the work of a virtual assistant you can also advertise your services and your price for those services on a website such as Upwork.

Drive and Make Deliveries

Decompress after school by hitting the road and driving for a company such as Uber or Lyft. Some companies, such as Grubhub also hire delivery drivers to pick up orders from restaurants and deliver them to customers. Want to be a professional shopper? Sign up for a service like Instacart.

Give Feedback

You can also earn money by giving feedback to companies through surveys and focus groups. While not all survey websites are legitimate or will result in significant earnings, some can provide a decent part-time income. Survey Police is a website that can help you determine whether the online survey companies you find are legitimate. If you are social and like participating in online conversations, try a website like Crowdtap, where you can take surveys, participate in discussions and occasionally try free products to earn points that can be redeemed for gift cards and other items. Searching in the ETC column of your local Craigslist jobs board will often reveal local focus groups that can pay up to $100 for participation, usually in the form of gift cards.  However, be careful not to give out confidential information until you have verified that the opportunity is legitimate. Don’t forget to check out local hospitals and universities for medical and psychological studies you may be able to participate in as well.

Run Errands

Driving around town anyway? Make money by running errands for others at the same time. TaskRabbit pays individuals in major cities to run errands and complete tasks for users. Tasks range from grocery shopping to dog walking and home repairs. You may even find long-term work through the TaskRabbit app. If you find you enjoy running errands, you may even be able to start your own local business, advertising to busy executives, those who have difficulty leaving their homes and even other busy moms. Craigslist is also a place to find random jobs, such as walking dogs or helping move boxes.

Babysit

The last thing many teachers and parents want to do during their time off is spend more time around children, but if you have children of your own, babysitting may be the perfect way to earn extra cash while keeping your children at home with you. During the summer, working parents of elementary-aged children are often looking for affordable care. You can also serve as a drop-in babysitter, offering to watch local children for a small fee while their parents go to appointments or need to have some time to themselves for a few hours. Connect with a website such as Care.com or Sitter City so people needing sitters can easily find you.

Re-Sell

Chances are you have items lying around your own house that can help you make money. Sell those unused kids toys and clothes kids have outgrown using websites such as Craigslist, local swap groups on Facebook or a Just Between Friends or other kids’ consignment sales. Look for free items and good deals on Craigslist and at local garage sales, and then resell those items online or at a larger sale. Do your research by looking up current prices online to make sure you are getting a good deal on the items you buy and sell.

Rent Out Your Home

Have an extra room? A mother-in-law suite you don’t use? Consider renting out your home on a site such as Airbnb. Just make sure you have time to prepare your home for guests and are willing to share with people before you create your listing. If you have family or friends in the area that will let you stay with them one weekend a month, you could even offer up your whole home to renters every so often.

Add an Idea of Your Own

If none of the ideas above appeal to you, there’s nothing stopping you from starting your own business. All you need to get started is an idea and some funding. While the idea should come from you, the Internet can help with the funding process. Crowd-funding platforms such as Kickstarter.com, Indiegogo.com and GoFundMe are designed to help you find the funds you need to write the next Great American Novel, produce a video, design the latest, greatest invention or even start a cool new business venture. All you have to do is create a project proposal and start soliciting support from family, friends and individuals around the world.

Making money during the summer, part-time or online requires thinking outside of the box and taking a look at what you have to offer. Make a list of all of your interests, hobbies and skills. Then think of ways you could get other people to pay you for using those interests, hobbies and skills. You may not start off making a lot of money, but as you build experience and get more people interested in what you have to offer, your summer job could turn into a way to fund a summer vacation, add a significant amount of money to your budget or even become a new full-time career.

Looking for ways to get the whole family involved? Check out Money-Making Ideas for Families.

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Joe Pizzuto-Pomaco is an educator, writer, and editor who has taught in public and private schools 15 years.