Recently, I was talking with my student teacher, and she asked me a question that I am sure a lot of new (and old) teachers have wondered: “So, what do you like, actually do with students the first day of school?”
She felt silly asking it, but I knew exactly what she meant! As a first-year teacher, one of the many things I was not prepared for was exactly how to start the school year! I was so wrapped up in the excitement of setting up my classroom that I forgot to plan for what really mattered – what to do with the students in front of me! This left me in a near panic before the first day of school! To save you from that same panic, here are a few of my favorite activities to do on the first day of school!
Class Family Word Search
I am a teacher who always likes to have something for students to do as they come into the classroom. Obviously, on the first day of school, students have yet to learn my warm-up routine, so I need something simple to engage them as we wait for everyone to get situated and while I’m taking attendance! A class name word search is perfect! For each class, I type their names into a word search generator and copy and paste in to a PowerPoint slide to create a cute worksheet, but most word search generators will create a worksheet for you as well! I am always sure to include every adult in the class, such as co-teachers, instructional assistants, or student teachers, too! Since word searches are pretty self-explanatory, students are able to get to work easily. Once I am ready to start class, I project the word search on my smart board and we work together to find everyone’s name. As a quick ice breaker, I ask each student to share something about themselves as we find their name.
I love using this website to create the word search itself!
Classroom Scavenger Hunt
Another activity I do each year is a classroom scavenger hunt. I create a worksheet with questions and prompts that will draw students to important areas in the room and give them time to complete it. Then, I sit back and watch! The classroom scavenger hunt teaches me a lot about each class. For example, it is easy to see which students are leaders and which prefer to follow, who should and shouldn’t be partners in-class activities, and who may need extra help or a quick check-in to get started! Because I don’t need to lead most of this activity, I can also chat with students as they work and start building relationships. The next day, I start by reviewing the answers to the activity with students so they all know the right answer and my expectations. Here’s what I’ve used the last few years if you’d like some inspo!
What’s That?
If you’ve read my other blog posts about back-to-school activities, you know I am a big fan of reviewing expectations in fun ways! My favorite method is through a game called “What’s That?”. To prepare, I take pictures of important things in the room and upload them to my computer. I put the images on a Google Slide and zoomed in as far as couldan using the crop tool. Sometimes, I have to zoom in and crop a few times to get the perfect sneaky image! On the following slide, I have the regular picture and a description of the procedure or expectation. My middle school students (even the shy or quiet ones) really get into this activity! It’s easy to break up and do over a few days as well!
Don’t want to recreate the wheel? Grab a free template for What’s That in the Freebie Library!
Get to Know You Choice Board
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 willing to complete the activities and they really liked getting to pick and choose what they completed and what they wanted to skip! 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!
A Back-Up Plan!
You never know how long students are going to take on activities the first week of school. Some classes take an hour to work on an activity and need more time, while the next class speeds through with 20 minutes to spare! Because of this, I always have a no-prep activity ready to fill that extra class time.
My go-to Plan B are these Ice Breaker Game sets on Google Slides. I originally created them for my first Zoom class during the pandemic, and have used them ever since whenever I have extra time to fill in my classroom. I open them up in Google Docs and project on my smart board or projector. Then, we pick a game and work our way through each question. All of the directions, questions, answers, and navigation buttons are already there, making it a breeze to set up in a pinch. I’ve found them to be so fun for students and teachers alike! Grab them to use as your Back to School Plan B here!
What are your go-to first day of school activities? Let me know in the comments below!
