Effective teacher in-service days are crucial for setting educators up for success, yet many schools struggle to maximize these opportunities. The success of your inaugural in-service day school activities can significantly impact school culture and educational outcomes for the entire year ahead.

What is the purpose of teacher in-service days?

Teacher in-service days serve as dedicated professional development opportunities strategically scheduled throughout the year. These student-free days allow educators to collectively focus on professional growth, helping them keep current with the evolving educational landscape.  

As education continuously evolves to meet diverse student needs, these sessions ensure teachers remain effective lifelong learners who can adapt their practices to maximize student success.

Make teacher in-service days fun and effective

Creating effective and fun teacher in-service days requires us to reimagine traditional professional development approaches. While in-service sessions often have a bad reputation in education, feeling irrelevant or consisting of one-way lectures, they have the potential to be transformed into engaging experiences that teachers value. 

Gather input from your teachers about their needs and preferences for in-service structure. Ask specifically how these days can best serve them, whether through expert speakers, hands-on workshops, or collaborative discussions. This stakeholder involvement creates buy-in and ensures content relevance. 

In-service teacher education should challenge educators’ critical thinking and help them make real-world connections that translate to authentic classroom changes. Keep sessions targeted to school goals while incorporating movement and interactive elements to maintain engagement. 

Don’t miss the opportunity to use in-service days to build staff camaraderie and positive school culture, especially at the beginning of the year. Celebrate the new school year while providing meaningful professional growth opportunities that teachers will actually look forward to attending. 

Try utilizing Nearpod for your next teacher in-service day! Nearpod is the ultimate instructional platform designed to support teachers and engage students. While Nearpod is a beloved classroom resource, it can also be a powerful tool for teacher in-service days, PD, and other events. The same interactive activities, multimedia capabilities, and engaging formats that attract students can also work on teachers, while also demonstrating the learning power of Nearpod for educators who might be unfamiliar with it!

New to Nearpod? Teachers can sign up for free below to access and create interactive lessons. Administrators can schedule a call with an expert to unlock the full power of Nearpod for schools and districts!

How to design fun teacher in-service days that support school goals

1. Align on school goals

The foundation of any successful, and enjoyable, in-service day is clarity. First things first, it’s always a good idea to get everyone on the same page. Much of your work at the end of last school year and over the summer has probably been on setting school and district goals. Now your task is to clearly communicate such to your other key stakeholders: your staff. 

To be meaningful, engaging, and aligned, quality in-service teacher education should always connect directly to these goals. Use your in-service time to clearly link professional development activities to broader school priorities. Consider sharing: What needs surfaced? How were the goals decided upon? What factors were considered in adopting any new resources? 

By providing context as to where new goals and objectives come from, your teachers will have more understanding about the direction for the upcoming school year. This transparency not only fosters buy-in but also sets the tone for in-service days that feel purposeful and connected to the bigger picture. These goals can then help shape any upcoming teacher in-service days with related information or training.

2. Get buy-in through surveys

Once goals are clearly communicated, the next step in designing meaningful in-service days is securing teacher investment. To do a pulse check on how your objectives resonate with your district or site educators, consider surveying them. You can also use this to gain insight into their attitudes, perceptions, and concerns with a school climate survey at the beginning of the year to help determine a cohesive action plan.  

You’ve probably heard the expression that you can be data-rich but insight-poor. Too often data is gathered but not utilized or shared. To avoid this, make survey results an active part of your in-service strategy. Consider using Nearpod to outline and share the results of your survey You can include colorful graphs and visuals or embed a video explaining your plan of action’s next steps.

For any lingering questions, you could include a Poll or Open-Ended Question to gather more intel. Incorporating interactive survey tools during your in-service sessions also models the kind of engagement strategies teachers can use with students. By being proactive about establishing a continuous feedback cycle with your educators, you’ll ensure you all start the new school year on the same page, and with shared ownership of school-wide goals.

3. Find and create engaging PD opportunities

To design fun and goal-aligned teacher in-service days, your PD offerings must be engaging, relevant, and rooted in educator needs. Teachers at heart are continuous learners, so most are willing to try new strategies and methods, so long as those resources bring actual value to their instructional practice. This makes it essential for you to provide them with thoughtful PD opportunities that will not only pique the curiosity of your educators but also value their time. 

Find out what they are most interested in and use that to find and create PD that echoes their passions and professional goals. By doing so, you showcase your own understanding of just how important a personalized learning approach is. 

Planning fun ideas for teacher back to school in-service can transform traditional PD into memorable learning experiences. Nearpod offers educators engaging PD opportunities throughout the year via webinars, courses, and workshops. These sessions are designed to be both fun and functional—an ideal match for in-service days that aim to inspire and equip. Encourage your staff to join this year’s Camp Engage from July 24–26, 2025! Teachers can earn up to 15 hours of PD at this virtual, free event while learning about innovative teaching strategies and resources before the start of the new school year.

In addition to Nearpod’s offerings, you can use the Nearpod platform to create your own interactive PD sessions showcasing how they can use Nearpod to engage learners with multimedia content, gamified activities, and active learning. This not only models best practices but helps educators directly experience the tools and techniques they’ll be using with students. You can craft presentations that help onboard educators and even provide opportunities for them to check their own understanding through Nearpod’s formative assessment activities.

4. Don’t forget about team building

Fun teacher in-service days aren’t just about professional development. They’re also a chance to strengthen school culture. After the summer break, it never hurts to promote team culture and encourage staff bonding through collaborative activities. Having a strong sense of community amongst your staff can boost morale, job satisfaction, and help them work through challenges as a unified front.

For teacher in-service days, there are so many fun ways to incorporate icebreakers and other get-to-know-you activities to help staff connect beyond their teacher identities. These lighter moments can energize your team while reinforcing the shared mission of supporting students. Make sure you also make time for teacher make and take activities for in-service where educators can collaborate and exchange ideas for the upcoming school year.

Nearpod’s Collaborate Board is an interactive discussion board often used by teachers to facilitate classroom conversations. Try using it to have staff members exchange ideas, whether it be addressing a site-based challenge (“What approaches are working to increase student engagement during independent work time?”) or sharing implementation strategies for new tools and resources (“How are you using student response data to inform real-time instruction?”).

By weaving in collaborative tools like Nearpod alongside team-building moments, your in-service days will feel more connected, inclusive, and impactful. This ultimately reinforces your school’s goals and sense of community.

5. Implement new tech efficiently

Introducing new technology during teacher in-service days can be exciting and impactful—as long as it’s done with intention. When rolling out new educational technology (edtech), provide comprehensive onboarding to help educators see its value, not just view it as technology for its own sake. The learning curve for this new tech can be steep, so it is imperative to carve out plenty of time for teachers to test out and practice using the tools before they are expected to do so with students. 

Some schools host “Appy Hours,” which is voluntary time for educators to collaborate with one another around technology. You can bring this idea to your in-service day agenda as a low-pressure, high-interest session that encourages organic exploration and peer support.  

Nearpod is a great way to model how educational technology can address individuals’ dynamic needs in a variety of practical ways that are aligned to goals. It is not tech that is just novel and trendy. When educators see technology applied in ways that enhance student engagement and instructional effectiveness, they’re more likely to embrace and implement it. 

And of course, when implementing new technology, it’s important to make sure your educators know that this tech is not substituting but rather redefining learning experiences, helping make their practices more efficient and engaging. Framing new tech in this way helps shift mindsets from compliance to curiosity, one of the key drivers of successful adoption.

6. Establish a model of ongoing communication

A single teacher in-service day can spark change, but ongoing communication is what sustains it. Even with designated teacher in-service days, there’s rarely enough time to feel fully up to date. Change and flexibility are often required skills when it comes to being an educator, but clear communication can make adapting to changes that much easier. 

In anticipation of the winds of change, establish a clear method of communication with your staff so that they know when and where to find your updates. This reduces confusion and builds trust across your team. 

More than just the ultimate instructional platform, Nearpod can also serve as an internal communication tool. The multimedia presentations can make for a great go-to handbook where you can outline changes in school standards or policies. You can add visuals such as site maps outlining where to find what. You can include hyperlinked lists of curated resources and recommended materials. And you can frame it all in a personalized, embedded video. 

Your staff can access and revisit this content whenever and wherever they may need it. Plus, the feedback and collaboration tools mean that your staff has a way to reach you, ask questions, and leave suggestions on-the-go and just-in-time. Embedding this kind of real-time dialogue into your communication model not only supports transparency but also empowers educators to feel heard and informed.

Bring on the school spirit!

Most districts and schools just have a handful of in-service days throughout the year, so it’s critical that you capitalize on that time by finding ways to make them truly fruitful, engaging, and meaningful.  

Nearpod is a multifaceted platform that has tools and capabilities to support teacher in-service days. From surveys to PD and team building to communication, Nearpod can help you further your goals. So, lean on Nearpod to help make the most of your teacher in-service days this school year!

New to Nearpod? Teachers can sign up for free below to access and create interactive lessons. Administrators can schedule a call with an expert to unlock the full power of Nearpod for schools and districts!