Kiwi Speech Prep now for back-to-school

Prep now for back-to-school. Now? Why? Back-to-school time is super overwhelming. And the reality is that I DO think about it – All. Summer. Long. It hangs over my head and stresses me out.
So, I’ve put together a little list of some small tasks you can do now to help you ease into the school year later.

1. Learn something new

You know that disorder you wish you knew a little more about? Or how about that online training that would be so valuable to you, but doesn’t offer ASHA credits (gasp!)? Set aside ONE day this summer to complete a training that will further your clinical skills for the school year.

2. Organize your computer

What if you could open your computer on the first day of school ad truly feel like you were looking at a clean slate? Ahhhh. Bliss. Take a day this summer and organize your files. Every year I make a new folder titled with the last school year’s dates (i.e., “2017-2018”), and anything that isn’t relevant anymore but that I’m afraid to trash goes into it. Out of sight, out of mind.

3. Get a new bag

Having a functional bag, tote, or cart (depending on your situation) is a must. After buying new ones every year for the first few years of SLP-ing, for the last five years, I’ve had two that I’ve loved and kept. The first was the All-In Organizer by Thirty-One Gifts with the Fold N’ File. (Not an affiliate link, I just truly loved it.) The one I have now and totally love is the Go Anywhere Carry-On from Vera Bradley. It has just the right number of little pockets, two main pockets inside (I tend to separate work and personal stuff in these), and a designated spot for your laptop. Yes, it’s more expensive than the ones I’ve bought in the past, but if it’s lasting me multiple years, then I feel it’s worth it.

4. Earn credits on TpT by leaving feedback

Say what?! Did you know you can earn credits toward future purchases on Teachers Pay Teachers just by leaving feedback for previous purchases? Yep. You heard me.

Head on over to TpT and click on “My Purchases” under your menu.

Leave feedback for your purchases by clicking on the “Provide Feedback” link under any product you have purchased.

Rack up your credits toward future purchases!

5. Write down a professional goal

Every year, I get bogged down in all things. Even the best SLP has room to improve, and if you’re like me, you’d like to be better organized, better at fluency therapy, better at keeping data, better at writing reports, better at …. everything. PICK. ONE. THING. Make one area your true focus for improvement for the year and write it down. When you feel overwhelmed, come back to this goal and prioritize tasks that get you closer to this goal. The rest can wait. This past year, mine was to communicate and collaborate with teachers more.

6. Write down a personal goal

The beginning of the school year brings plenty of challenges at work, but let’s not forget the new challenges we’ll face at home. Whether you have children or not, a new school year means a new schedule and, for most of us, less time for…well, life. Pick an area of your personal life you’d like to focus on, make a goal, and write it down.

Me? Last year, I aimed to cook meals at least three times a week. We used meal delivery options (Sunbasket – because of the meal variety, or Every Plate – because of the super-affordable price) to help meet this goal because that’s what worked for our family. This year, my goal is to be more active and prioritize fitness. To make it measurable, I’ll probably set a step goal.

7. Prep all the things

At least this one can be done during summer binge-watching TV. Remember last school year when you bought that awesome product from TpT? And remember how you haven’t really used it because you never had a chance to prep the whole thing?

I actually find prepping materials relaxing when I’m not in a rush to do it right before a group walks through the door. I spend 15 minutes during the day printing off a whole load of materials, then at night, I can laminate and cut in front of the TV.

Here are some of my easy-prep must-haves:
–HP Instant Ink (so I can print in color without the guilt)
–Scotch PRO Laminator
–Laminating pouches
–Astrobrights paper (perfect if you only print in B&W)
–Paper cutter (makes cutting out flashcards so much quicker!)
–Poly pouches (a must for storing materials!)
–Plastic “photo” boxes (perfect for storing Speech Centers)

8. Create a plan for data-collection

The hardest part about progress monitoring is that you need to start collecting data BEFORE you start making progress. In past years, I have been faced with mid-year progress reports knowing a child has made improvement, having data to show their current levels, but realizing that the data I collected at the beginning of the year isn’t quite what I need to show the progress clearly and concisely. Either that or I have weeks and weeks of data that I need to go back through in order to interpret. I have since learned that I need to collect baseline data in the first week on ALL the goals I’ll target that year – even if they seem far, far (so far) away in terms of short-term goals (vocalic R anyone?!).

These past two years I’ve used my Progress Monitoring Packs for articulation – they’ve helped to keep me on track and have made progress reports a breeze. No more baseline-data-do-overs for me.

Hopefully, this has helped to give you some actionable tasks you can accomplish this summer to help you get your school year off to a great start!

Is there anything you do every year that I missed?

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