Completing the School Year End of Term Procedures Successfully
Arlyne LeSchack

Somewhere around the beginning of May you will receive an end of term calendar from your school principal. One of the first things you will have complete is a “Preference Sheet,” indicating what grades would be your first, second and third choice to teach. Submit this form back to the principal, making a copy for yourself. If you want an out of classroom position, those should be posted later. It’s a good idea to indicate somewhere on the preference sheet that you will be applying for an out of classroom position. You have the right to know your position ten days before the end of the school year.

There’s lots of work to be done in the meantime. First of all, remember that you still have to teach and maintain discipline in your room. You shouldn’t really do any clerical work while you are with students. If you make any mistakes on a student record card or in your roll book- do not erase- correct with red ink and initial the correction. There are two half days at the end of the year set aside for clerical work.

All students should have a Cumulative Record Card. Start working on them now; you can make many of the entries already. When you complete the marks on the record card, be sure they match the marks you are putting on the report card. Attendance in your roll book is taken to the last day, but on the record card you can presume full attendance for the rest of the year on the second half day. Technically speaking, on the first half day teachers on a particular grade should get together to decide on the classes of the next grade. After those decisions are made, the record cards should be completed and delivered to next year’s teacher on the second half day. I say technically speaking because it very often doesn’t work that way for any number of reasons.

When you complete the column for the days absent and present and times late, indicate promoted or held over, go up to the next column and enter the starting date for students for the coming fall. You place that starting date on all the material in the student’s folder. You will also be expected to complete a column on the health card. Unless there is something outstanding, most teachers indicate NSN- no symptoms noted. You will be expected to weigh and measure the students, but not to give eye and ear tests.

The last page of the “End Term Calendar” will be a checklist. As you hand in things and get your records checked, various people will sign your checklist indicating that you have completed all the end term procedures. You’ll be expected to hand in a reorganization sheet showing which new classes your students have been assigned to, collect lost book money, have your report cards checked, hand in your curriculum guides, have your roll book checked, get your new class list, and return any audio visual materials and textbooks. Usually the last thing you have to hand in are your room keys. You will present the checklist when you get your five summer checks or stubs. Some principals may act as though you won’t get paid if you don’t do all these things, but obviously that is not true. Have a wonderful summer!