HOW TO CREATE EFFECTIVE CLASSROOM NEWSLETTERS
Classroom newsletters are an excellent way to keep parents informed on what’s going on in their child’s classroom. Sending home a classroom newsletter is a simple, but effective way to do all of the following :
- Maintain great parent-teacher communication
- Keep parents up to date with what their children are learning
- Make your life a whole lot easier by reminding parents of important things like “gym shoes on Mondays”
Why should you send a classroom newsletter?
Parent communication is so important, but can often be a struggle to maintain with everything else you have going on. Sending home a classroom newsletter helps keep parents in the loop on what their children are learning AND it shows parents you are committed to keeping the lines of communication open with them throughout the year.
What should you include in your classroom newsletter?
Creating newsletters do not have to consume a ton of your time! After creating your weekly (or monthly) plans, transfer over the big topics for each subject onto a newsletter.
Other things to include in your classroom newsletter:
- Spelling Lists
- Upcoming dates or important events (like an assembly or book fair)
- Important reminders (wear shoes for p.e. on Mondays)
- Your contact information
- Book suggestions for their children to read at home
- Photos of things happening in your classroom or recent school events
- A quick, parent friendly description of what students are learning in each subject
How should you send newsletters home?
If you’re already communicating to your students’ parents via email, then creating a newsletter in Keynote or Powerpoint and emailing a PDF version of to parents may be easiest for you. If not, then printing out a hardcopy and sending it home with students is probably best. Either way, parents are going to appreciate the effort you’re making to communicate with them on a regular basis.
EMAIL TIP: If you do choose to send your classroom newsletter through email, make sure to blind copy the parents you email. This will prevent parents from responding back and emailing everyone on your list.
How often should you send classroom newsletters home?
You have to find what works best for you. The most important thing is that you remain consistent with whatever you choose. I prefer to send home a newsletter every Monday. After creating weekly plans, I just transfer into the newsletter what we’re learning and any important reminders or events for the upcoming weeks.
If sending home a newsletter each week isn’t something you feel like you’ll be able to stick to, sending one home at the beginning of each month may work better. A monthly newsletter is a good option when you aren’t constantly moving to a new skill each week. If you do choose to send one home monthly, I would highly recommend to reach out to a few parents each week. Just a simple note about how their child is doing to keep the line of parent-teacher communication going.
If want to step up your communication with parents this year or are looking for some fresh newsletter template to use in your classroom, click HERE to see the editable newsletters I have in my TPT store.
See what other teachers are saying about these Monthly Newsletters:
“This is just what I need. For years I created weekly newsletters, and it was utterly exhausting. I am excited to change to a monthly newsletter system this year. I am looking forward to using these templates. They are perfect. Thanks!!”
“I love these! There are so many different formats / decor options to choose from, and I love that I can just type right into the PDF. Cannot wait to start sending these home with my students once the new year starts!”
I’ve already created cute templates that are ready for you to use! All you have to do is make sure you have Adobe Reader (free to download) type what you want to say in the text boxes, and print! There are both seasonal templates and general school image templates to choose from.
So you can be ahead of the game, I’ve included August Newsletter Templates for FREE.
Just click HERE to check them out and download your copies!