Easy Meet The Teacher Ideas: 8 Stations to Help Your Back To School Night Run Smoothly

I can clearly remember stressing myself out SO much during my first few years of teaching over back-to-school Night. What will the families think of my room? Am I prepared? Did I forget an important document?

…and the list of “what ifs” could go on and on.

WELL after 20+ meet-the-teacher nights, I have learned a thing or two…:) Here are some tips for rocking your very first (or second, third, fourth, or fifth) meet-the-teacher night + 8 station ideas to help your event run smoothly!

Back to school night stations for parents at open house.

Tips For Using Stations at Meet The Teacher Night

Before we dive into the station specifics, here are some quick tips to remember before prepping your meet-the-teacher night! I hope it’s as stress-free as possible!

Make copies of student information forms on different colored paper so you can easily sort through them later.
Have a plan for storing supplies (let the parents do this so you aren’t left with bags upon bags of supplies to go through). Decide what will be group supplies vs. individual supplies and have parents put them in the right spots. (Ex: write their name on all individual supplies and place them in their pencil box, put tissues on the back table, and extra pencils in designated box).
Have a classroom “wish list” ready to go! (Here’s a freebie!!)
Have something for the kiddos to be working on so parents can focus on the paperwork.
Make the rotation clear to avoid anyone missing a center (Ex: Use a checklist or scavenger hunt paper).
Have desks or table spots labeled.
Your classroom does NOT have to be 100 percent ready to go.

Meet The Teacher Station Ideas

There are several different formats you could use for a successful Back-to-School Night. Some teachers love a laid-back open house night while others love a structured powerpoint presentation.

After some trial and error, I have found that stations work the best! Stations allow parents/families to freedom to work their way around the room without needing you to guide them.

Here are the stations I include at every meet the teacher night!

1. Sign In

Not only is this typically required by your school to track attendance, it’s also a great quick resource for you to see who did not attend. Instead of digging through the mounds of paperwork to see what you are missing, you can simply look at the sign-in sheet and then contact those who were not in attendance.

2. Supply Drop-Off

Ahhh, the intimidating supply drop-off.

We all know that the elementary supply list is LONG and students arrive with bags of supplies. Having your families bring in the supplies on meet the teacher night will save you the hassle of trying to organize it all on the first day of school.

Supply organization labels and bins for Meet the Teacher Night open house

During my meet the teacher nights, I like to designate one station solely to supply drop-off/organization. Be sure to have a list of where to put community supplies and what to put inside student pencil boxes and/or individual desks.

3. Transportation

The transportation station is a quick, yet important station. This is where you can have information about dismissal and the paperwork needed for parents to fill out stating who and how their student can leave.

I like to keep this information separate from the other paperwork as I typically refer to it a lot in the first week or so of school.

meet the teacher back to school night parent station

4. Student Information

Here comes all.the.paperwork. This center could be digital or good ol’ fashioned paper and pen.

Some forms that could/should be included here include allergies, classroom management contracts, student interests/about-me forms, school calendars, and parent-teacher communication directions.

Tip! If you are using paper and pen, copy the forms on different colored paper for easy organization!

Meet the teacher parent station sign and student information form

5. Volunteer Sign Up

Parent volunteers can be SO helpful throughout the year (if managed correctly). Back-to-school night is a great time to gauge interest and see what parents are interested in. As the school year goes on, you will have a great master list of who to contact when help is needed.

This is also the perfect time to have volunteers fill out the background check information that your school most likely requires. Learn how to make the most of your time and manage parent volunteers in your classroom.

6. Classroom Tour

Although a classroom tour station isn’t necessarily needed, I like to include it as it gives parents (and their students) a chance to familiarize themselves with the classroom. You could have a simple scavenger hunt ready-to-go (ex: find the library).

7. Photo Booth/First Day Pictures

Who doesn’t love a fun photo booth?! I love this meet the teacher idea as it gives busy parents the chance to take those adorable back-to-school photos! Plus, it frees up more of my time to answer questions in station 8!

8. Meet The Teacher/ Questions

And last, but certainly not least is the offical meet-the-teacher station! This is where I position myself throughout the night. After parents complete the first 7 stations, they will likely have questions!

I also have my about the teacher handout available here with contact information if questions arise later!

More Meet The Teacher Night Ideas and Resources

I have bundled up all my Meet the Teacher and Back to School Night tips, forms, stations, templates, and PowerPoints into one handy dandy “Meet the Teacher” pack. I hope these meet the teacher ideas and stations help to relieve some back-to-school stress!

Will you be using stations this year to simplify your meet-the-teacher night?! I’d love to hear any other meet the teacher ideas you’ve used in the past!