With all of my local stores putting up their back-to-school displays, it’s hard to shake the feeling that the new school year is just around the corner. Whether that makes you want to happy dance or gives you the heebie-jeebies, there is no avoiding the back-to-school season! Even though I’m going into my seventh year of teaching, I still get a bit anxious when I see the ads for pencils, folders, and notebooks! I always feel better when I have a plan in place and can look forward to fun activities to do with my future students instead of the back-to-school stress! The first week of school is so important for building relationships with your students and setting up your classroom community, which in turn, both play a huge role in your happiness and your students’ success throughout the year. Here are my favorite activities to start the new school year off strong!
- No Prep Get To Know You Choice Board
I have to be honest. By the time school starts, I am already exhausted from open houses, lesson planning, paperwork, professional development, and meetings! I need an activity that lets me get to know my students AND is easy for me to assign, while also engaging my students! I know, that sounds like a tall order! Something that most teachers and parents know is that most students of all ages love to talk about themselves! We also know that it’s important to give students choices. The perfect marriage of these two concepts? A get-to-know-you choice board! Last year, I couldn’t find exactly what I needed, so I created this version! The challenges are unique, meaning your students probably haven’t completed them in every other class! The best part? It has a completely digital option, so I don’t have to spend ages waiting at the copier like other teachers at my school, giving me more time for all the other things on my to-do list! While students are working on the activities, I like to rotate through the class and talk with each student about which activity they are working on and make conversation about a few of their answers. This shows them that I am truly invested in getting to know them. Remember, get-to-know-you activities only help if you actually look at or use the information you are collecting!
- Classroom Scavenger Hunt or I Spy
No first week of school is complete without a classroom procedure activity! Students need to know where the important areas of your classroom are, where to get needed supplies, how to sign out for the bathroom, and about other areas they will frequent in your class. However, reviewing this stuff doesn’t have to be boring! I love to set my students up with a classroom scavenger hunt on the first day of class each semester. I created a two-sided page of questions that were all very unique to my classroom that had students up and exploring my room! Students would need to locate student supplies, the bathroom sign-out, school-wide expectations, trash cans, I can statements, the date on the board, and the ‘No Go Zone’ in my room (behind my desk). I also had students write down two facts they could infer from my “All About Ms. Franklin” bulletin board, estimate how many books I have on my bookshelves, and describe their favorite place in the classroom! Giving students an independent activity like this means that I can take time to talk with students and observe their personalities at work! I love to see who takes charge and who waits for help to come to them! While students are working, I can spend more time talking with students and building those relationships!
During Covid, I wasn’t able to use a classroom scavenger hunt, so I had to find new ways to deliver the same important information, without having students up and out of their seats! I created a game through Google Slides that I called “What’s That?”. In order to set it up, I took pictures of important places and objects around the room and zoomed in closely on each one. I projected the zoomed in pictures and my students were challenged to guess what it was in the classroom. After they guessed, I showed the correct answer and we discussed the procedure or rule for that object or place. My students were still identifying where supplies and important places were located, and I was able to talk about the procedure that went along with each clue. This activity put a fun twist on talking about expectations and procedures, and I love to use it to review expectations after breaks from school! Below is an example of this activity that I have used in my classroom! Grab a free template for setting up this activity in the Freebie Library!
- All About the Class Kahoot/Blooket
Are your students as obsessed with Kahoot or Blooket as mine are? Every day, I hear ‘Ms. Franklin, are we playing Kahoot today?” – even if I haven’t said anything about Kahoot for weeks! It’s an addiction at this point. However, we can use it to our advantage to build a classroom community! To prepare, I give my students a survey to collect random facts about them or use information gathered from the get-to-know-you activities we’ve completed in class. Then, I create Kahoot questions about the students in our class! For example, I may ask ‘which student has a dog named Snickers’, or ‘what is Megan’s favorite pizza topping’. I try to make sure each student has at least one question about them. Sometimes, more than one student has the same answer to a certain question, so I simply set those Kahoot questions to have more than one answer, allowing students to see what they have in common with others! My students love this activity, but it can be time-intensive to set up! However, you can come back to this Kahoot throughout the year, making it a worthwhile investment! You’ll also get to know your students better by reviewing their answers!
Grab a free copy of the Google Form I use to gather student information in the Freebie Library!
- Easy Ice Breaker or Team Building Games
Timing is the most difficult part of back-to-school activities because each class is so different! The first hour may speed through one activity in 15 minutes, while the third hour is only halfway done at the end of the class period! I need something that I can use at the drop of a hat to fill extra time but isn’t just a busy work activity. I want a quick activity that helps build classroom community but that doesn’t take ages to prepare. Digital Ice Breaker Games are the perfect activity to have in your back pocket! I open them on my computer and have the students vote on a game to play. My students’ favorites have been Fact or Fiction, What’s That?, or Random Questions! My favorite is always LOL since it’s all about corny jokes.
- Google Slides Boot Camp Digital Task Cards
In my classroom, we use digital resources all the time! They are perfect for differentiation and are a lifesaver when I can’t get down to the copier! Whether it’s digital task cards, choice boards, or WebQuests, my students need some training in order to be successful with these kinds of activities! So, early on, I make it a priority to teach my students to use common tools in Google Slides so they can easily manipulate digital activities. Even if they’ve used the skills in other classes, a little review never hurt anyone!
To use this activity, I just need to assign it on Google Classroom! Each slide has visual cues of each tool students will need to complete the prompts on each page and written step-by-step directions. Students review over 20 digital tools, like how to edit and change text, copy and paste, resize, and insert text boxes! The questions are simple enough for all students to be successful but unique enough to keep students interested.
Bonus Activity: If you are co-teaching, have a student teacher, or any other adult in the room, a fun activity to do the first week is “Which Teacher”! With your co-teacher, brainstorm facts that are true about one of you or both of you. Put them in a slide show, using the phrase “Which teacher…” to turn it into a question! For example, which teacher has a dog? Which teacher has more shoes? Which teacher graduated from Grand Valley State?” To play with your students, give them a notecard and have them write each teacher’s name on opposite sides in large writing. As you show each question, students will hold up the name of the teacher they think it applies to! You can then show your answers and talk about what makes you, you! Your students will get to know both of you and see you both as equals from the start! Below are some examples that I’ve used with my co-teacher!
Whew! I already feel better about back-to-school season knowing I have these activities ready to go! Which activity are you most excited to try in your classroom? Let me know in the comments!
