5 Back to School Goal Setting Tips for Teachers

Back to school doesn’t have to be daunting, especially not if you have a set of solid goals to give you direction. Here is a list of a few ideas for getting your goal-setting started and for keeping yourself accountable to your goals once you’ve set them.

Tip 1: Ask yourself questions to learn what is important to you this year

What are you passionate about? Where do you find the motivation to succeed? What do you enjoy most about your life in school and out? Questions like these can help you to learn about yourself and what kind of goals (character-building, achievement-based, or both) you want to set for the year.

Tip 2: Brainstorm potential goals

With your vision in mind, brainstorm a list of all the things you’d like to accomplish. Don’t leave anything out, as this brainstorming phase is important. Also, be sure to include things you did well last year that you want to continue to succeed at this year. Consider goals for your specific subject, work/life balance, family life, and before and after school.

Tip 3: Organize, combine, and prioritize your goals

Take the big list you made and highlight the most important ones. Differentiate between easy goals and tough goals that line up with your ideal self you envisioned at the beginning. Set aside goals that don’t move you towards your ideal, as well as goals where success is difficult to determine. The best goals are measurable, realistic, and don’t take away from your biggest priorities.

For example, you may want to join more committees at school, but that may be difficult if your biggest priority is to spend more time at home with your family. Knowing your priorities helps to sort your goals.

Tip 4: Make your goals visible

Once you’ve made the goals, you’ll want to make sure you are reminded of them often. It’s easy to forget items on a list and thus complete fewer of them. Try writing your goals in your lesson plan book, your daily schedule planner, or on a note you keep at your desk. Keeping them listed on a whiteboard by your desk is another great way to ensure you are seeing them regularly.

Not sure you want to write them all out for the world to see? Give yourself easy-to-remember keywords to reference each goal, and keep the full list somewhere more private.

Tip 5: Plan for Success

Once you have the goals written out, give yourself measurable due dates and steps to achieving the larger goals. Mark these due dates and steps in your calendar to keep yourself accountable and to check in on your own goals throughout the year.

Make sure to keep things realistic. Only you know yourself inside and out, so determine the steps to meet your goals based on what you know you can handle. No matter what the outcome, doing your best to meet your goals is a great way to start a new school year.

Teacher Goal Setting: Tools for Organized Planning

If you’re sitting down at the start of a new year with some big goals in mind, it’s important to document the steps to achieving them. It’s important to have the right tools to organize your plans and goals. Check out these teacher favorite supplies to make your goal-setting look and feel more organized!

More Teacher Life Blogs for Back to School

If you’re looking for more inspiration to use as you prepare for a new school year, check out our other blog posts in the Teacher Life category page using the link below. You’ll find must-have supply lists, funny posts, and new ideas for creating your learning space.

Read More: Teacher Life

How do you set goals before each school year? Tell us about your method in the comments section!