First Day of School

My first day of school lesson plans look more like a things to do list. I always set out a packet with surveys and some puzzles to keep the kids busy since they trickle in over an hour's time. I also put picture books, magazines, and nonfiction books on the tables for my new students to read while they are waiting for class to begin.

Once the majority of students have arrived and we are ready to begin our day I begin by teaching my first procedure. I call my students to come sit down on the carpet area of the classroom (my teaching space for mini lessons). The first thing I do is read aloud First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg. The surprise ending gives the kids a little laugh and a chance for me to see how my new students behave and react during a read aloud.

The next thing I do is introduce myself. For younger students I might bring in a bag with pictures and artifacts
that represent my family, travels, and interests. For older students I might create a PowerPoint presentation. One way to learn more about your students is to give them a small paper sack. Tell students to put three things in the sack that represents something interesting about them and prepare to share it in small groups. I don't ask students to present in front of the entire class until they have a chance to get to know each other better.

Throughout the first day I will stop and try to put names and faces together without peeking at name tags. I work on this all day long with the goal of knowing each child's name before they leave.

The next thing I do is unpack, organize, and put away supplies. I am very strategic about it. I decide beforehand where everything goes. I will also run a sheet of name labels for each student before the first day of school, and I will keep blank labels on hand for new students. We label, collect, and put away one thing at a time. I do this in a very organized fashion. I use this time to observe my students behaviors and actions, and teach procedures like stopping to listen for instructions, raising their hand, etc. Once supplies are put away we set up our binders. All of this takes patience, but if you take a one thing at a time approach the morning will move rather quickly.

After supplies are put away, I have several things I can do: read another book, teach a lesson, play get to know you games, take individual pictures for bulletin boards, and teach procedures (restroom, hallway, lunch, recess, morning routine, afternoon routine). I generally over plan for the first day. You never know how fast or slow a group might move, so it's best to have more to do than not enough. You can always carry over the next day, or choose to skip the less important activities.

Please share the love and leave a comment telling us something you do on the first day of school.