1) Get all of your name tags done in the summer and bulletin board ideas together.
It's a lot less stress and everything will already be done. Trust me in the middle of the semester when you have school work, the last thing you will want to do is make name tags.
2) Be organized!
It becomes very hard as the semester goes on but try and get into a routine. The routine will help you stay organized
3) Keep your door open at least one hour a day
I found it easiest to do this the same time every day. I keep my door open the whole time I am on duty, and one hour a day between 7-8.
4) Think outside the box
Everyone uses Pinterest to get ideas. Try thinking about something new! My personal idea came from the movie Frozen. I made a bulletin board that allowed my residents to build upon their name tag which was a snowman's head. Do you wanna build a snowman? I put different pieces so that the residents could custom build their own snowman. It gave my residents a way to express themselves.
5) Check up on everyone!
I make sure to talk to all of my residents at least once a week. By talking I mean a simple hello? How is school?. Something so small helps when school is becoming stressful or someone is having a bad day.
6) Get to know everyone even residents that don't live on your floor.
I make sure to say hi to everyone when I am on rounds. I check in with everyone seeing how they are doing or just to say hey.
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