Now that summer is in full swing, many teachers are swapping their ID badges, work computers, and teacher planners for sleeping in, beach days, and time with family and friends! However, I have such a hard time turning my teacher brain off! Each year, sometime in July, I start to get my “Sunday scaries” for the new school year. However, I’ve found that if I have a game plan for the first week of school, it is so much easier for me to relax and enjoy the summer months!
If you are the same way, here are my favorite first week-of-school activities that I’ll be using during the first week of school in my math class!
Day 1: Ease In with an Around the Room Math Review!
It can’t be just my students who swear they’ve never learned any math in previous math classes EVER. To help them remember and ease back into math topics, I like to start my class with an around-the-room math review. This activity helps introduce my students to important places around the room and makes them recall math they’ve already learned, getting them into the math mindset on day one!
To prepare, I use PowerPoint to create task cards with review questions from all previous grade levels of math. Because I wanted to make sure my students were getting questions right and feeling successful right away, I mainly included problems from kindergarten through third-grade math. I printed them on brightly colored cardstock that would be easy for students to see. Then, I hid them around the room in important places. I also created a simple worksheet (see left for inspo!) that gives students hints as to where the cards may be hidden. Then they grabbed a clipboard and started to explore! The next day, I went over where each card was and solved the problem with students, allowing them to check their work. My students have loved this activity each time I’ve done it!
Day 2: Prepare Them with a Tech Tools Boot Camp!
I use digital activities, like digital task cards, escape rooms, and sorting activities, multiple times a week in my math class, so I need students to know how to use Google Slides fluently in order to save myself headaches down the road! Because not all of my students get a technology class, they come to me with a wide range of technology know-how, so I use a Tech Tools Boot Camp activity to refresh and teach a wide range of editing tools. Best of all, because this activity is a set of Google Slides, it’s really easy for me to assign to students. Insterested in this activity? Snag it on my TPT by clicking here! Learn about how I use digital task cards in my math classroom by checking out my blog post here!
Day 3: Get to Know Them!
My favorite part of back to school is getting to know my new students! Since I work with middle school students, they think most “all about me” activities are lame – but they love having choices! Once I started using a get-to-know-you digital choice board, I noticed more students were on board and they really liked getting to pick and choose what they completed and what they skipped! While students are working, I also love to walk around and discuss the activity they are working on and ask follow-up questions! This lets me start to develop a natural relationship and show my new students that I care!
Grab my favorite Get to Know You choice board by clicking here! This one has digital and printable versions and students love it!
Last year, these activities made a big impact in my classroom and were so easy to use! What activities do you do during the first week of school? Let me know in the comments below!
