My Favorite Back-to-School Ideas & Back-to-School Bulletin Boards (2024)

Back to School is one of the most critical times of the year to make your classroom look and feel inviting. You will have tons of new students who may not know who you are. If you are moving into a new classroom, use these ideas to decorate your classroom bulletin boards. Creating a welcoming environment that makes them feel at home from day one is the perfect way to foster respect and community daily. Wondering how to start? I have some beautiful ideas that will answer that question for you. See some of my favorite back-to-school bulletin board ideas below.

Prepare for Back-to-School in Advance!

Most schools offer teacher workdays to prep the classroom and lesson plans. Use this time to decorate your room and prepare everything before students arrive at the beginning of the school year. Think about everything you want to be displayed on the walls (classroom and main hallway included) and make a checklist. I’m a sucker for checking things off. It’s a great way to stay on task!

You may want to include alphabet posters, growth mindset posters with positive messages, student names, number lines, calendars, and more. I make it easy with my decor bundles.

My decor bundles include:

• Cart Labels
• Newsletter Templates
• Alphabet posters
• Binder covers
• Meet the teacher templates
• Shape and color posters
• Classroom schedules
• Hall passes
• Welcome banner
• Teacher Toolbox labels
• Clock labels
• Digital slides
• Morning Greeting posters
• Desk name tags
• and SO MUCH MORE!

My Groovy Bright Classroom Decor Bundle has everything you need. It has everything to get you started at the beginning of the year and to display student work every step of the way. I love this colorful bulletin board and classroom theme to give students a warm welcome. If you don’t have much time on your hands, this pack will be a lifesaver this school year.

Create Your Back to School Bulletin Board WITH Your Students!

The classroom community is extremely important to young learners. Many students come to the classroom knowing it’s the only place they feel loved. Since each child has a different home life story, make sure your classroom is always a safe space. Create a back-to-school bulletin board WITH your students to make them feel included.

A great place to start is by reading “Our Class is a Family” and discussing why the classroom is a safe space where everyone feels loved. It’s such a good book. This book contains wonderful examples for students and is a great precursor to the fun bulletin board idea seen below. You can access this bulletin board set and many others by clicking the link.

Prepare your back-to-school bulletin board kit in advance and have a plan for how to set it up with the kids. Each child will do their own student activity where they decorate a paper backpack. Afterward, I like to attach pictures of their faces to the craft to make it more personal, but you certainly don’t have to. The crafts provide cute classroom decor for the first week of school and beyond. Use these easy bulletin board ideas as a class project and classroom decor.

Once the kids are finished, put up their crafts and the decor pieces to create a show-stopping bulletin board display. The kids will find joy looking at the wall, knowing they helped make the masterpiece.

Write Down Your Goals for the First Day Back to School

Don’t put too much pressure on yourself! Be yourself! No matter which grade level you teach, shake off those first-day jitters and focus on a few of these things:

• Getting to know the kids: Take time to get to know each child by talking with them during small group or whole group times. Ask them about their hobbies and what they like to do at home. Anything you can think of to get them sharing!
• Getting to know the classroom: Show kids around the room and point out essential posters and locations within the room. If your room has a bathroom, make sure they know where that is. Show them where the word wall is and where to access the hall pass if needed. Don’t feel like you have to show them everything, just the things they may need daily.
• Getting to know the teacher: Introduce yourself! Tell the kids about yourself, what you like to do, your hobbies, favorite food, and drink, and if you are married or have your own kids. They love to hear about pets as well, because who doesn’t love animals! Let yourself be silly and show them that you’re human too!

I have activities for all of these items for FREE! Sign up for the newsletter to gain access to these plus an entire vault of free resources, especially for teachers!They will help get your school year started on the right foot and provide tons of creative ideas for the classroom.

For more awesome bulletin board ideas, check these out:

• Click here to browse classroom decor collections
• Click here to grab the Back to School Bulletin Board Kit
• Click here to visit the FREEBIE VAULT

I hope these back-to-school ideas set you up for a great year with your new class.

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