SPECIFIC

ROUTINES
FOR SETTING UP
A SUCCESSFUL
KIPP
CLASSROOM
“SETTING UP CLASSROOM” CHECKLIST
 Do you have a class list?

 Are your desks arranged in a way that is conducive for student learning?

 Do you have deliberate seating arrangements?

 Will you have binders/folders? If so, are they labeled with student’s name?
Are the names spelled correctly?

 Do you have a sample binder to show how to organize?

 Do you have/need labels for binder preparation?

 Is your board set with Aim, Agenda, and HW?

 Is your lesson plan in a visible space?

 Do you have your worksheets complete?

 Have you contacted students to welcome them to your class?

 Have you thought through your expectations for student behavior,

interactions and transitions?

 Have you allotted time to model your classroom expectations for volume?

 Have you allotted specific time to practice what a page set-up looks like?
Where HW goes? The date order in which it goes?

 How will students be praised or rewarded for meeting expectations on day

one?

 How will I reset expectations when they are not met?

 Do I have a place in my classroom for students to sit when they need to be

away from the group?

 Are your documents translated to reflect your student population?

 “Countless unseen details are the only difference between mediocre and
magnificent.”
In all of these procedures be deliberate about the way in which you model, teach and explain. It requires repetition and
consistency before it becomes a routine. 

PRE-PLANNING CLASSROOM PROCEDURES

QUESTIONS FOR SETTING UP WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
PROCEDURES SOCS (Specific, Observable, Concrete, Sequential)
Do you have the necessary materials
prepped for when students arrive? (labeled
binder/folder, sharpened pencils, paper,
dividers pre-done  binders only)
Do you have a class list? Do you have a
seating chart?
How will students enter the classroom on
Day 1 and find seats?
Does your board have the aim, agenda, HW
(maybe do now)?
Is the board (Smart, LCD) visible? Is your
handwriting legible?
Do you have worksheets completely ready
and set out?

How will every desk look upon entering?

 IN-CLASS ROUTINES
QUESTIONS REGARDING IN-CLASS WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
ROUTINES SOCS (Specific, Observable, Concrete, Sequential)
What do the students do the first 5 minutes of
class?

How will students enter the classroom on Day 1

and find seats?

Does your board have the aim, agenda, HW

(maybe do now)?

When are students allowed to get up out of

their seat?

What will symbolize a transition (a bell to ding,

a countdown, and DEFINITELY A PRE-
WARNING)?
How will students line up to exit? (ASSUME
NOTHING – including 8th graders)

What happens if a kid needs to blow their nose?

Needs tissue paper? Has a bloody nose? Do
you have tissue?
How and when are pencils sharpened?

How is trash disposed of? When?

 ESTABLISH EXPECTATIONS FOR ACADEMICS
QUESTIONS TO ESTABLISH WORK WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
EXPECTATIONS SOCS (Specific, Observable, Concrete, Sequential)
What does a heading look like?

How must HW be completed?

Where do they place HW?

What transpires if HW is incomplete/poorly

done? (What constitutes poorly done?)

How will you check HW? (Collect, Review,

Random choosing, etc)

Is the board (Smart, LCD) visible? Is your

handwriting legible?

What does independent work look like?

What must students be responsible for copying

off of the board?

What supplies do KIPPsters need with them

everyday?

What will KIPPsters do when they finish an

assignment early?

What happens when a paper falls? Pencil

breaks? Pen explodes?
(THESE LITTLE THINGS MATTER)
How are tests passed back?
What is the expectation in terms of turnaround
time for tests returned to students?
 ESTABLISH EXPECTATIONS FOR CULTURE/CHARACTER
QUESTIONS TO ESTABLISH WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
CULTURE/CHARACTER EXPECTATIONS SOCS (Specific, Observable, Concrete, Sequential)
What is accountable and acceptable talk in your
classroom? Is there a set stem for answering
questions or disagreeing? (EXAMPLE: I respectfully
disagree…, I want to give a shout out to…, etc)
What does SSLANTing look like/feel like (be
specific!) and when is SSLANTing required?

How will I recognize KIPPsters if they go above and

beyond?

How are KIPPsters expected to acknowledge one

another when someone does the right thing?

What are students acknowledged for? What does

this sound like?

What are the expectations in my class? How do I

want to model these?(respect for others, apologies,
not talking when teammates are talking, etc)

Do students know what my expectations are? How

do I know?

How will I address the class or an individual student

when expectations are not met?

What happens when students are disruptive or

disrespectful?

Where in my classroom do students go if they need

to be away from the group?

What are behavioral norms while a student is

talking? (hands, eyes, nodding?)
 COMMUNICATION WITH STUDENTS/FAMILIES
METHODS OF COMMUNICATION WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
SOCS (Specific, Observable, Concrete, Sequential)
Is there a frequent method of contact?
Monthly newsletter? Weekly report?

Are your documents translated to reflect the

student population?

Have you made phone calls prior to the first

day to establish contact and/or invite them
to class?
Have you had any face-to-face interaction
with families? (This may include but is not
limited to invitations to class and requesting
to do a home visit).
How can you use email to highlight some
great things happening in your class? To
highlight great things students have been
doing?
How do students know that you are looking
forward to having them in your class?

Do parents and students have my cell phone

number or e-mail and know they should not
hesitate to reach out to me with questions or
concerns?
Do families know when is the latest time to
call? What to do when a call is not answered
regarding HW?

If this is a student’s second year in my class

(holdover) how will they know this is a new
year with a new expected outcome?

REMEMBER: Like a closet full of rusty tools, we can have all the systems and routines
planned out, but the important part is to use it.