7 First Day of School Activities Students Love The first day of school will be here before you know it. Most teachers face the big day with enthusiasm, but they dread the inevitable challenge: what to do on the first day of school. Every teacher’s approach is different. Goal: Getting to Know Your Students How well will your incoming students know you? If you’re teaching kindergarteners (or high school freshmen, who often seem like kindergarteners), you may need to spend the first day – or the first several days –getting everyone comfortable. Teaching strategies for improving friendship skills at the elementary school... The School of Education at Gardner-Webb University has received national... We examine the classroom management characteristics of effective teachers. A few useful classroom management ways to get information from your students on... 7 great technology in the classroom apps to use this year. Plan a Scavenger Hunt Assess Learning Styles or Multiple Intelligences Do a Self-Portrait Create a Time Capsule Get Them Guessing
Icebreakers Volume 7: Getting to Know One Another | First Day of School Activities | Ice Breakers | Opening Day Activities Education World readers have come through again! Enjoy these teacher-tested icebreaker activities for the first days of school. Included: Fourteen icebreakers from teachers around the globe! Each activity below was contributed by an Education World reader who is identified alongside the activity. It's in the Bag! Over the years, teachers have pulled from their "bags of tricks" a handful of activities employing the common paper bag! Dawn Lasko, who teaches third grade at Cliffwood (New Jersey) Elementary School, starts the year with a game that challenges her students to use their sense of touch. Cheryl Lindo, a teacher at Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, uses paper bags in one of her favorite icebreaker activities. Jamie Ward gives a similar opening-day homework assignment to her students at Clarendon (Texas) Junior High School. The first item must represent something the student loves to do. Cool Introductions Have students write three things about themselves. Options:
Back to School Archive Check out these articles on everything from preparing for the first day to dealing with homework woes, coping as a new teacher and ensuring smooth sailing for substitute teachers. Be sure to explore our 12 volumes of icebreakers and first day of school activities that help students and teachers get to know each other. Icebreakers Archive | Classroom Icebreaker Activities Best of the IcebreakersVolume 1: Tell Me About You ActivitiesVolume 2: 14 Activities for the First Days of SchoolVolume 3: Engaging Activities for the First Days of SchoolVolume 4: Activities for the First Day of SchoolVolume 5: All-About-You Activities for the First Days of SchoolVolume 6: Get to Know Your Classmates ActivitiesVolume 7: Getting to Know One AnotherVolume 8: Who's in the Classroom? Tools for Teaching: Starting the New School Year On the first day of school, the first question in students' minds is, "Who are you?" Fun Activities Get the School Year Off to a Good Start! Party! Ten Games for Classroom Fun!
7 Great Activities for the First Day of School | Scholastic New Year Resolutions Involve students in the creation of a set of classroom new year resolutions to guide you through the coming months. Work together to brainstorm resolutions, and write them on a sheet of chart paper. If necessary, reword them in a positive manner (such as "walk" rather than "don't run"). These may be resolutions for behavioral expectations (take turns) or class goals (learn our times tables). Guess Who Students become detectives in this get-acquainted game, in which they uncover the real identity of a fellow classmate. Switch! Here's a great indoor or outdoor game to get students actively learning about each other! Welcome Bags Use these party favors to send positive messages to students on the first day of school. The Penny Jar Here's a getting-to-know-you activity that really makes "cents"! Hats Off to a New Year! Greet students at the door with party hats and a quick craft activity that will get everyone warmed up and ready for learning. Create a Time Capsule
Icebreakers Volume 1: First Day of School Activities Every teacher has his or her favorite getting to know you activities. Following are a few of EdWorld's picks. Why not explore a few you may not have tried before? Let's jump right into our first circle activity. My name is _____, and if I were an animal I'd be a _____ because.... Then I give the students a little time to think about what animals they might like to be -- and why. Next, I ask the kids to draw themselves as their animals, leaving space at the bottom of the drawing for their first writing assignment. As I call on students during the day, I always repeat their names -- and their animals! We are all unique! Then I use the word in several statements, the last of which is "Each of us is unique." Next step: Out comes the roll of white mural paper. I start out by writing "Mr. Let's play detective. "My favorite hobby is ________." "I want to see whether you're good detectives," I tell the students. Note: If it's a nice day, you might move this activity outdoors.
The Dos and Don'ts of Classroom Management: Your 25 Best Tips Posted 08/20/2014 1:55PM | Last Commented 03/29/2016 9:48AM Classroom management is a delicate balancing act often learned through experience and trial-and-error experimentation. Whether you're a new or experienced teacher, having strategies for effective classroom management is essential for creating positive, successful learning spaces (and staying sane!). In this presentation you’ll find 25 tips for managing your classroom. Without further ado, here are the Dos and Don'ts of Classroom Management: Your 25 Best Tips: Each classroom is different, so please come back and share what you've learned and what works for you! NOTE: If you're having trouble viewing the presentation, click here to view it directly.
Getting to Know You Activity with a Beach Ball! Here is a super simple and fun getting to know you activity! 1. Get a cheap beach ball from the dollar store or Target $1 Spot. 2. Using a permanent marker cover it with getting to know you questions. 3. 4. Here are the questions I wrote on the ball: What is your favorite TV show? Your questions may differ from mine depending on the age of the students, and your dynamics. What are you doing to get to know your students? Icebreakers Volume 8: Who's In The Classroom? | Getting to Know You Activities | Ice Breakers | First Days of School Are you still looking for the perfect activity to help you get to know your students -- and to help them get to know one another? Take a look at these icebreaker activities contributed by teachers from around the globe! Included: Thirteen getting-to-know-you activities for the first days of school. If you missed Icebreakers: Volume 7 -- which included more than a dozen new icebreaker activities -- click here to see it! An Education World reader contributed each activity below. Like Pieces Of a Puzzle! Our Class Puzzle Use tagboard to create a large jigsaw puzzle. Working Together in Room 103 Hang a large sheet of butcher paper on a chalkboard or bulletin board. Puzzle-Piece Pairs This is a simple activity for pairing kids for any activity on the first day of school. Ten More Great Icebreakers! Birthday Timeline Ask students to take out a sheet of paper and write down the month and day of their birth. Color-Coded M&Ms Four Corners of Me Provide an adhesive-backed label for each student.
Back-to-School: First Week Fun! | Scholastic It’s back-to-school time! The most important thing in my mind is creating a safe and fun environment that students will want to return to daily. The first few days are ones you want to capture and share with families. I always try to have an activity out that students can entertain themselves with as they walk into the classroom. For the word search (the kids suggested I used the term "Name Search" because they am looking for names, not words), I use the Armored Penguin website to create a search of all the first names in our class. Every year I write a letter to students and leave it on their desk for the first day of school. The point of writing the letter is to help students feel comfortable in their new learning environment and to help them find a way to relate to me as a person and not just a teacher. I saw this idea in Martha Stewart Living magazine. Take a piece of poster board and measure the length and width you want your frame. Gather students into small groups of 4 or 5.
Icebreakers Volume 10: Back-to-School Activities Most teachers use an icebreaker activity or two to get to know their students at the start of the school year. That's why, each year, Education World provides a forum for teachers to share their favorite ideas. Following are more than a dozen new teacher-tested icebreaker activities. Included: Links to more than 100 additional icebreakers! So what are you doing to break the ice this year? Will you take a close-up digital photo of each student, enlarge the images, and create a "classmate collage?" More Teacher-Tested Icebreakers! Something's Not Right. Adjective Activity. Ugly Words Are Out! Mrs. T-shirt Day. Questionnaire Quilt. A Year-long Quilt. Passing Notes in Class. What's in a Name? First "Homework Assignment." Instant Survey. Summer Memories. Puzzling Welcome. Smell Me. More Classroom Icebreaker Activities