I am going to be perfectly honest with you and say that sending classroom newsletters has never been a strength of mine. This is mainly because I have always taught at schools were the majority of the parents speak Spanish. So that means each note I send home has to be translated to Spanish. I could never seem to get my act together to get the classroom newsletter ready in time for it to be translated. So, I had this brilliant idea to have the students create the classroom newsletters, and I wanted to share these free classroom newsletter templates with you. Hopefully, this is an idea that you can use in your classroom to save you some time and keep in contact with families.
These free classroom newsletter templates are available from August through June, with two options for September (one template better suited for back to school and one for schools who started in August). Depending on the month, the newsletters have relevant details for the students to include that would be important for their parents. For example, the October newsletter has a spot for important November dates so the student can record the dates for Thanksgiving break.
On the last day of the month, give the student that month’s newsletter template. They will be writing a recap of the month that is just ending. So, on September 30th, you would complete the September newsletter and send it home. Depending on when the last day of the month falls, you can always send it home the last week of the month to ensure it gets home before the end of the month. Depending on your grade level, I would suggest modeling the first month with the students or generating a class list of ideas for each section.
The students complete the newsletter template by filling in four different sections that essentially recap their month in the classroom. For this example, the students are describing their favorite math activity, discussing what they read this month in reading, telling important facts they learned in science and social studies, and finally writing some ideas for how they can continue their learning at home.
Each page also includes a monthly graphic that they students can color because everyone loves a colored newsletter, right?
When the students are finished writing the newsletter and coloring the graphic, you have a personalized newsletter ready to go home for each student. I am loving this idea because the students do all the work, the newsletter is completely personalized, and this can be a gateway for a good discussion about what is happening in the classroom between the parents and the student. When the student gives the newsletter to their parents, they can go into more details about what they wrote and what they are learning in the classroom.
Click on the link below to download these FREE classroom newsletter templates from my TpT store!
I love this!
I think it is so important to teach kiddos to reflect on their life, goals and achievements.
This is a great resource. My 5th graders will love it. Thanks for sharing.
Beti
I love this idea of having the student reflect and write the newsletter. Thank you for this resource!
Thinking that this will be a great boost for a new year routine. Thank you.
I love your creative ideas. I’m going to make a newsletter template similar to yours that will work for my dyslexia class. Thanks so much for sharing!
Thank you so much for sharing this resource. It’s a great way for students to reflect and it’s purposeful writing.
Love this idea! Can you make this editable though? I would love for the students to write down important dates every month and make it slightly more customized to our curriculum. Thanks!
I love the idea!!! Thank you for sharing!