As the first day of school quickly approaches, I have been reaching into my bag of tricks to plan some activities. Here are 10 of my favorites:
1. We almost always start with the name game. I have the students sit in a circle on the carpet, and they have to think of a food that starts with the first letter of their first name. The first person says, "My name is Johnny Jello." The second person says, "This is Johnny Jello, and I am Sarah Spaghetti." The third person says, "This is Johnny Jello and Sarah Spaghetti, and I am Thomas Tomato." We continue around the circle until the last person has to name everybody before telling his/her name! By the time this game is over, I almost always know everyone's names. On the last day of school this year, one of the students said this was a favorite memory. It surprised me that most of them still remembered their food names from the first day!
2. Each day for the first week, I hand out a paper with five students' names with the letters mixed up. They cut the letters out, rearrange them, and glue them onto another piece of paper. This helps reinforce name recognition, and students feel special when the class is making their names. This might be an activity that you continue after the first week, but with spelling words.
3. My students always love when we do a treasure hunt! Each student gets a half sheet of paper. I usually have fifteen squares on the paper, each with a different criteria that a classmate has to meet. They walk around looking for other students to fill in each square. Some ideas of what to write in the squares are: Rides the same bus as me, Born in another country, Has lived in another country, Has a baby at home, Has a dog, Has a cat, Went to our school last year, Is new to our school this year, Loves to read, Loves math, Visited another state during summer break, Likes fishing, Likes broccoli, First name starts with a vowel, First name starts with a consonant, Has at least three siblings, Has a birthday this month, Read at least 3 books over the summer. This is a great way for students to get to know each other a little better, and I usually join in by putting my name in some squares. When we are finished, I have the students raise their hands if they meet each criteria, and we graph the results.
4. I give students a class list, and they cut out the names and glue them on another sheet in alphabetical order.
5. I hand out small sheets of white construction paper. I usually cut 9" x 12" pieces in fourths. I then have the students draw a picture of how they get to school. We use the papers to create a big graph on the carpet.
6. I use UNO cards to separate the students into groups. Ahead of time, I make sure I have numbers 1-5 in each of the four colors. I hand out the cards and tell the students to find everyone with the same color card. They discuss their summer or a bullying discussion question...this part is very flexible. After discussing for a certain amount of time, I tell them to switch groups and now find everyone with the same number. They continue the discussion with all new people.
7. We have some school-wide agreements that I want the students to learn/review. I write each of them on an index card, then I cut each card into four puzzle pieces (or however many will give each child one piece). Students walk around the classroom and look for people with pieces that will help complete their puzzles. When all puzzles are complete, I have the groups share what is written on their cards, and we discuss them.
8. Glyphs: I almost always have the students complete a glyph at the beginning of the year. You can make a glyph to match almost any theme, and they are a lot of fun to have hanging up when parents come visit. I am attaching a free pattern for an owl glyph. (
Click here.) This one is very simple. You can use the hair bow for a girl, no bow for a boy. The color of the belly can be the student's birth order...green = oldest child, blue = middle child, purple = youngest child, yellow = only child. The beak can be orange if they have a pet, red if they don't. The color of the talons can be orange for bus riders, yellow for car riders, and red for bike riders or walkers. Again, this is very simple...there is not a lot that can be changed on it. But, it makes a really cute display!
Most recently, I did a bug glyph. They glued their bugs onto paper jars, and the color of the lid on the jar represented their transportation to and from school. The color of the bug represented the student's birth order. The number of spots represented the number of pets, and the color of the spots represented the type of pet. The color of the eyes represented their favorite subject. The number of stripes represented the number of their birth month, and the antennae colors were pink for girls and blue for boys. You can make these as simple or complex as you wish.
9. I always like to do an initial writing assessment as early as possible. So, one of the first things I have students do is answer three questions: "What are three things you did over the summer?", "What are three things you liked about school last year?", and "What are three things you want to learn this year?" I have the students share before I collect these assignments.
Click here for a printable version of these three questions.
10. Me Box: I love having students bring in "Me Boxes!" These are boxes (or bags) that contain up to 10 items that represent the student. Some examples are: something that is your favorite color, a wrapper from your favorite candy bar, a picture of you and your family, an item representing your favorite sport or activity, an item representing something that you collect, or your favorite stuffed animal. I usually share mine on the first day of school, and the students bring them in and share theirs within about a week after that. These are a great way to get to know a little bit more about your students!
So, there you have it...my top 10 ideas for the first day. I hope that you have found something that you can use! Enjoy!!
~Ella Jane
