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One way you might make children feel safe could be to make sure they know exactly what is happening/will happen, and what your expectations are. That way, they can immediately get an impression of what you are going to be like as a teacher: what you want from them, how you like your classroom to be, how you want to interact with them. You might also ask them about what their expectations are for the year, and how they want to be in the classroom and in the school. You might play some ‘getting to know you’ games, or have the students work in different small groups, so that they get to interact with as many of the other students as possible during the first week. This gives opportunities for them to find out about each other while they are working.
Before the children even enter the room, you can ensure that the environment is welcoming and well-organised so that resources are easily available and accessible. Once the children are in the classroom, give them some time to explore it and become familiar with the space and where things are kept. You could set up a game such as ‘I spy…’ and allow the children to find all the items on the list (e.g. scrap paper, scissors, whiteboards). Doing this in pairs, gives the children a chance to get to know each other too. Having time to become familiar with the other children and the environment is key to ensuring the children feel safe and comfortable. I would also take some time to think about your expectations and how you can express these to the children in a way that they understand. Knowing your boundaries and the classroom expectations will help them feel more at ease. You could rehearse certain everyday tasks to demonstrate what you expect and give the children a chance to show you they can do it. To help the children feel more prepared and excited about the day ahead, I like to have a visual timetable ready each morning so they can see the plan for that day. You could take 5 minutes to run though this with them and allow them to ask questions. Finally, as much as possible throughout the first few weeks, try to play games or hold short Circle Time sessions that allow the children to interact with each other and you. Doing so, will allow you to bond as a class and build that safe, fun and inspiring space that you need.