30-60-90 day plan for teachers
On this page
- What makes a teacher's first 90 days different
- The 30-60-90 day plan
- Legal duties to cover before students arrive
- What "on track" looks like at each checkpoint
- A filled example
- Informal visits before formal evaluation
- What the principal owes the new teacher
- Mistakes that stall a new teacher
- Adapting the plan
- Questions people ask
A new teacher's first 90 days are set by the school calendar, not by an onboarding schedule. The students arrive on a fixed date, the first grading period closes on another, and family conferences, testing windows and the first formal observation all land whether or not the new teacher feels ready. A 30-60-90 day plan for a teacher, written by the principal, should use those fixed points as checkpoints and make sure the support arrives before each one rather than after.
This page is for principals and assistant principals onboarding a newly hired classroom teacher, whether a first-year teacher or an experienced transfer. For the general template across roles, see the 30-60-90 day plan template for new hires, and for the first-week logistics (keys, accounts, badge, payroll), the new hire onboarding checklist.
What makes a teacher's first 90 days different
Most new hires get a few weeks of low-stakes learning. A teacher is fully responsible for a room of students from the first day of school. That means the plan cannot defer the hard parts. Classroom routines, accommodations for students with disabilities and safety procedures all have to be in place in the first week, and the principal's support has to be front-loaded to match.
The day counts below start from the teacher's first contract day. If they start before students arrive, the first week or so is pre-service; if they start mid-year, compress month one and keep the same order of priorities.
The 30-60-90 day plan
30-60-90 day plan — [Name], [grade / subject], [school]
Principal / evaluator: [name] Start date: [date] First day of students: [date]
Mentor teacher: [name] Grade-level or department lead: [name]
SIS: [e.g. PowerSchool / Infinite Campus] LMS: [e.g. Google Classroom /
Canvas / Schoology] Curriculum and pacing guide: [link]
DAYS 1-30 — Routines, students and systems
Goals:
- Complete required district training before students arrive
(student privacy, mandated reporting, safety and emergency drills,
any special education training the district requires)
- Read every IEP and 504 plan for assigned students; meet the case
managers; put accommodations into lesson plans and seating
- Teach and practice classroom routines: entry, transitions,
materials, getting help, dismissal
- Contact every family with a positive introduction in the first
[2] weeks
- Plan the first unit with the grade-level team using the pacing
guide; give the first common assessment
- Set up the gradebook and post grades on the school's schedule
Evidence by day 30:
- Two informal visits from the principal or coach, with feedback
- Mentor meetings held weekly
Check-in: day 30, 20 minutes with the principal
DAYS 31-60 — First data cycle and families
Goals:
- Bring first common assessment results to the team or PLC; plan
reteaching for students below the target
- Use one feedback point from the informal visits and show it in
practice
- Prepare for and hold family conferences with student work samples
- Use the school's behavior system consistently; refer only what the
system says should be referred
Evidence by day 60:
- A reteaching plan and the results of the reteach
- Conference notes and follow-up for students of concern
Check-in: day 60
DAYS 61-90 — Formal observation and the grading period
Goals:
- Pre-conference, formal observation and post-conference on the
district's rubric
- Close the first grading period accurately and on time
- Set one professional goal with the principal for the rest of the year
- Observe at least [1] colleague's class with a focus question
Evidence by day 90:
- Formal observation completed with a written next step
- Grades submitted; no missing IEP progress reports
Check-in: day 90 — review against this plan and the evaluation calendarLegal duties to cover before students arrive
As of October 2026, a few federal and state requirements shape what a new teacher must know on day one. This is a summary for planning, not legal advice; your district's legal and special education offices set the actual training and procedures.
- Student records privacy. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act protects the privacy of student education records at schools that receive funds from the U.S. Department of Education (20 U.S.C. 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99). New teachers need to know what they can share with families, colleagues and outside parties, and how the gradebook, LMS and email fit in. See the Department of Education's FERPA page.
- IEP access and responsibilities. Under the IDEA regulations, a public agency must make each child's IEP accessible to every regular and special education teacher responsible for implementing it, and inform them of their specific responsibilities and the accommodations, modifications and supports required (34 CFR 300.323(d)). That is why reading IEPs is a week-one goal in this plan, not a month-one one.
- Mandated reporting. Every state sets out in statute who must report suspected child abuse and neglect; teachers and school personnel are named in most states, and some states require every person to report. Procedures and training rules differ by state. The Child Welfare Information Gateway summary links to each state's law. Tell the new teacher exactly who to tell inside the school as well as how to make the report.
What "on track" looks like at each checkpoint
| Checkpoint | On track | Worth a direct conversation |
|---|---|---|
| Day 30 | Routines run with few reminders; accommodations are visible in lessons and seating; every family has been contacted; the first common assessment is given | Frequent office referrals for minor behavior; the teacher cannot name which students have IEPs or 504 plans |
| Day 60 | The teacher uses assessment results to regroup and reteach; feedback from informal visits shows up in practice; conferences happened with work samples | Assessment results are recorded but nothing changes in instruction; families hear about problems for the first time at conferences |
| Day 90 | The formal observation shows growth from the informal visits; grades and IEP progress reports are on time; a professional goal is set | Grades are late or not entered regularly; the teacher has stopped meeting with the mentor |
A filled example
Teacher: Hannah Cole (invented), a first-year seventh-grade science teacher with four sections, two of them co-taught with a special education teacher.
Day 30: Read the IEPs for her 19 students with plans and met both case managers in pre-service week. Taught lab safety and materials routines for the first two weeks. Called or emailed every family. The principal's first informal visit noted that transitions between lab stations took most of ten minutes; the mentor modeled a timed rotation.
Day 60: The first common assessment showed most students below target on reading data tables. With the science team, she built a short reteach and the reassessment showed improvement. Held conferences with lab notebooks as work samples; three families asked for regular updates, which she set up.
Day 90: Formal observation scored her classroom environment as proficient and questioning as developing; the post-conference goal was to plan higher-level questions for each lab. Grades and IEP progress reports were submitted on time.
Informal visits before formal evaluation
The most useful support a principal can give a new teacher in the first 60 days is short, frequent, non-evaluative visits with one piece of specific feedback each. Ten minutes and a single next step, delivered within a day, does more than a long write-up after a formal observation. It also means the formal observation measures growth rather than surprising anyone. Keep the informal feedback separate from the evaluation record unless your district's process says otherwise.
What the principal owes the new teacher
- A mentor with time to mentor: shared planning time where possible, and a schedule for classroom visits both ways.
- Materials and access before students arrive: curriculum, pacing guide, class rosters, SIS and LMS accounts, IEP access and the copier code.
- A reasonable assignment. Avoid giving a new teacher the most preps, the most challenging sections and an extra duty all at once.
- Clear behavior and escalation rules: what the teacher handles, what goes to the office and who to call in a crisis.
Mistakes that stall a new teacher
| Mistake | What it looks like | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Content before routines | Strong lessons that never get going because transitions take the period | Make routines the first goal and check them at the first visit |
| IEPs read late | Accommodations missing for weeks | Make IEP review a week-one goal with case managers |
| First family contact is bad news | Defensive families at conferences | Positive contact with every family in the first two weeks |
| Silence until the formal observation | The first feedback the teacher hears is a score | At least two informal visits with feedback before it |
Adapting the plan
- Special education teachers: add IEP meeting scheduling, progress monitoring and compliance timelines to month one; the special education teacher screening questions cover what to look for when hiring.
- Mid-year hires: students already have routines from a previous teacher or a run of substitutes, so the reset of routines is harder and the first visit should come in week one. If the class has had a long string of substitutes, the substitute teacher screening questions are worth a look for the next gap.
- Experienced transfers: shorten mentoring to school systems and culture, but keep the informal visits; a strong teacher in a new school still benefits from early feedback on what this school expects.
Questions people ask
What should a principal expect from a new teacher in the first 30 days?
Consistent classroom routines that students follow without constant reminders, every IEP and 504 plan for their students read and the accommodations in use, first contact made with every family, and a first common assessment given. Polished lessons matter less in month one than a classroom where learning can happen.
When should a new teacher's first formal observation happen?
Follow your district's evaluation calendar and any collective bargaining agreement, which often set the timing and number of observations. Within those rules, give at least two informal, non-evaluative visits with feedback before the first formal observation, so the teacher knows what the rubric looks like in their own room.
Does a new teacher need a mentor if they are experienced?
A mentor or buddy teacher helps experienced transfers too, mostly with school-specific systems: the gradebook, the discipline process, the bell schedule, where materials live and how the grade-level team works. A first-year teacher needs more: regular observation, co-planning and someone to debrief hard days with.
What legal training does a new teacher need before working with students?
Requirements vary by state and district, but commonly include student privacy under FERPA, mandated reporting of suspected child abuse and neglect under state law, special education responsibilities, and any state-required safety or health training. Confirm the list with your district office; this page is not legal advice.