Summer is almost here!

Kindergarten teacher Melissa Pelletier sits on the floor of her room getting stuff ready for packing to take home. Melissa was one of the teachers that will not be caried over to the new school. Jefferson County spent several months figuring out ways to save money, focusing on closing underenrolled schools. At one point, the district was looking at two dozen schools. But after public outcry, the district decided to close only one - Russell Elementary School in Arvada. The school is shutting down and students will attend a new Arvada K-8, which replaces Arvada Middle School. John Leyba, The Denver Post

packing up classroom

Are you counting down the days until summer like me?  Well, with only a few weeks left it’s hard to imagine the finish line, but it’s almost here. All teachers are swamped with end of the year celebrations, teaching while beautiful outside blues, and the dreadful cleaning out their classroom before the last day. Be happy you’ve made it and you have the summer off! Here is my list of 8 must do’s to finish out the year, I hope this helps.1. Ask for the end of the year checklist if you don’t have one at your school make sure you and the staff make one up. Things that should be on there are (keys, clean, technology, IEP files, health records, textbooks, math manipulatives, furniture) with signatures here is a sample (Sample Checklist)2. Put all of your classroom supplies and manipulatives away in carefully organized boxes, using a detailed system that you will almost certainly forget when you start unpacking said boxes in September.3. Organize your library, send books back to the library this is one way to insure you do not pack your library books or have to pay fines one your teaching supplies are into to storage boxes.4. Look under your desk…inside your car…in your library bins…in your mini fridge…Don’t’ forget to clean out these things, there’s nothing worse than coming back from the summer and finding out the meat in your refrigerator grew legs.5. Make sure files, folders and report cards are completed and sent back to the office there is nothing worse than being called back to school one your summer break has started to find a student’s folder, this is horrible but I’ve seen it done.6. Recycle your students work and extra butcher paper this has been a very long year and you want to make sure that you do not hold on to any work. You do not want to carry the extra baggage when moving this stuff to storage.7. Say goodbye to your co-workers during the summer many things happen and your dear friend don’t come back so make sure you hug them, they were in the struggle with you during challenging times and they too will be missed. Try to talk about life, not education there will be plenty of time for this in the fall.8. Pack up all of your "I *heart* my teacher" items and donate them to the Goodwill, many of them you will keep but to have 30 cups from year after year of gifts is not worth the hassle. Take a good 2-3 home and re-gift the rest.