Preschool Procedures and Routines Checklist for the First Day of School

The new school year is here, and this means that, like every year, it’s now time for teaching all those important routines and procedures!

You see, the life of a preschool teacher is not easy (no matter what some people might tell you).

We have quite a few things to take care of and keep in mind, and this is especially true during the beginning of the year, when everything is still a bit chaotic.

Lucky for you, the chaos doesn’t have to be permanent.

You can get rid of it by setting up simple routines and procedures that will help make the rest of your year run smoother.

Today, I’ll be sharing those procedures with you!

Well then, what are you waiting for?

Tune in now!

Get Access to the Preschool Procedures & Routines Checklists

A Quick Back-To-School Story

Not many people can wrangle a large group of young children and have them magically follow directions all at once.

That takes skill and talent (which can take years to develop) and there’s nothing easy about it.

It truly is an art form.

Think about it, you can never take for granted that your little learners will know what “wash your hands” or “clean-up” mean.

In fact, there are so many critical little routines and procedures in preschool that if you miss just one, you’re sunk for the entire school year!

I would know, since it’s happened to me before.

A few years ago, I made a flagrant mistake when setting up my procedures and routines checklist.

That year, I had moved to a new campus, and the school didn’t have bathrooms in the classrooms like I was used to. Instead, they had bathrooms down the hallway, the kind with stalls.

That’s when I discovered one tiny little procedure I had completely left out (because it had never come up before). And that was the urinal in the boy’s bathroom.

It never crossed my mind that the little boys in my classroom may not have seen one before or known what its purpose was.

From then on, I started inviting the men who attended my Meet the Teacher night to show their sons.

And on the first day of school, a male staff member would volunteer to review this procedure just in case anybody missed the Meet the Teacher night.

Back-To-School Procedures and Routines Checklist for Your Preschool Classroom

The Importance of Visual Aids

You and I both know that setting expectations and practicing routines is so much easier said than done.

If we’re constantly talking at our students when we’re trying to teach them these critical routines and procedures, won’t they just start to hear Charlie Brown’s teacher?

And what about ESL students, or those who are neurodivergent? How will they be successful with the routines and procedures?

Well, the answer is simple!

When it comes to teaching young children the procedures and routines of a classroom, the key ingredient is visual supports. By that I mean pictures, and a lot of them (one for each procedure would be perfect).

From the very moment that your students walk through the door into your classroom until the minute they go home, procedures and routines are critical.

If you have rock solid procedures and routines in place, it’ll be so easy it will look effortless (but we know it isn’t).

The Most Important Procedure to Teach Your Preschool Students

When your students enter your classroom in the morning, what do they do?

If left to their own devices it could look different for every student.

Some may throw their belongings on the floor because their parents always clean up after them. Others may cry because they’re overwhelmed and don’t know what to do, and some might even wear their backpacks and coats all day long if you let them.

But that isn’t what should be happening, right?

Which is why we need to teach them where to put their belongings, how to hang up their coats and backpacks, and where to go after they’ve put their belongings away.

It’s one tiny little procedure that sets the tone for the entire day, so you’ve got to make it count.

Once you have all your students in the door and they’ve gone through those critical steps, you’ll be ready to start your day on a high note.

What About the Other Procedures and Routines?

What are the other routines and procedures that you’ll need to get your classroom running like a well-oiled machine?

The answer is in my free checklist! Use it to help you identify all the different routines and procedures you’ll need for a successful year.

I discuss this and more in more depth in the episode above, so make sure to give it a listen when you can!

Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Grab your free back-to-school procedures checklist