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Fun Ways to Practice Classroom Procedures

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An important activity at the start of every school year is teaching classroom procedures. Here is a great way to make it fun!

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7 Classroom Procedures Games that Students Will Love - Fun in 5th Grade & MORE

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Classroom procedures review can be dull and boring. This post is loaded with fun and engaging games that will make students want to practice the all important classroom procedures. The more they practice them, the more smoothly your classroom will run.

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The first day of school is your best opportunity to set the tone for a positive school year. Share your vision for the school year with your students!

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The first day of school is your best opportunity to set the tone for a positive school year. Share your vision for the school year with your students!

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Get To Know Your Students (social media)

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Get To Know Your Students (social media)

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Back to School Icebreaker, Getting to Know You

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Start the year off right by engaging your students in something that they’re interested in - Social Media! Pass these out on the first day of school to use as an ice-breaker, a bell-ringer, or a quick homework assignment. Students will draw or glue a photo of something they did over summer vacat…

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https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Back-to-School-Getting-to-Know-You-Activity-1976190?st=4e3ec94b7c531d1e708da1c0d803e529

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Back to School Getting to Know You Activity

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It’s so important to get to know our students as soon as we can, so we can start building those all-important relationships. However, students in middle and high school will see multiple teachers on the first day, and it can be a little mind-numbing for them if we all do the same thing, like the typ…

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Modality Questionnaire

The modality (learning channel preference) questionnaire reproduced here is by O'Brien (1985). To complete the modality questionnaire, read each sentence carefully and consider if it applies to you. On the line in front of each statement, indicate if the sentence never applies to you (1), sometimes applies to you (2), or often applies to you (3). Respond to all questions in all sections of the questionnaire.

Preferred Channel: Visual

1. _____ I enjoy doodling and even my notes have lots of pictures and arrows in them.

2. _____ I remember something better if I write it down.

3. _____ I get lost or am late if someone tells me how to get to a new place and I don't write down the directions.

4. _____ When trying to remember someone's telephone number, or something new like that, it helps me to get a picture of it in my mind.

5. _____ If I am taking a test, I can "see" the textbook page and where the answer is.

6. _____ It helps me to look at the person while listening. It keeps me focused.

7. _____ I had speech therapy.

8. _____ It's hard for me to understand what a person is saying when there are people talking or music playing.

9. _____ It's hard for me to understand a joke when someone tells me.

10. ____ It is better for me to get work done in a quiet place.

Preferred Channel: Auditory

1. _____ My written work doesn't look neat to me. My papers have crossed-out words and erasures.

2. _____ It helps to use my finger as a pointer when reading to keep my place.

3. _____ Papers with very small print or blotchy dittos or poor copies are tough on me.

4. _____ I understand how to do something if someone tells me rather than having to read the same thing to myself.

5. _____ I remember things that I hear, rather than things that I see or read.

6. _____ Writing is tiring. I press down too hard with my pen or pencil.

7. _____ My eyes get tired fast, even though the eye doctor says my eyes are ok.

8. _____ When I read, I mix up words that look alike, such as "them" and "then" and "bad" and "dad."

9. _____ It's hard for me to read other people's handwriting.

10. ____ If I had the choice to learn new information via a lecture or textbook, I would choose to hear it rather than read it.

Preferred Channel : Kinesthetic (Haptic)

1. _____ I don't like to read directions; I'd rather just start doing.

2. _____ I learn best when I am shown how to do something and I have the opportunity to do it.

3. _____ Studying at a desk is not for me.

4. _____ I tend to solve problems through a more trial-and-error approach, rather than from a step-by-step method.

5. _____ Before I follow directions, it helps me to see someone else do it first.

6. _____ I find myself needing frequent breaks while studying.

7. _____ I am not skilled in giving verbal explanations or directions.

8. _____ I do not become easily lost, even in strange surroundings.

9. _____ I think better when I have the freedom to move around.

10. ____ When I can't think of a specific word, I'll use my hands a lot and call something a "what-cha-ma-call-it" or a "thing-a-ma-jig."

Kinesthetic (Haptic) Total _____

Once all 30 items have been completed, add up the scores for each of the three sections. The maximum score in any section is 30 and the minimum score is 10.

Score and Evaluate The Modality Questionnaire

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Muskingum College - Center for Advancement and Learning (CAL)

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Modality Questionnaire The modality (learning channel preference) questionnaire reproduced here is by O'Brien (1985). To complete the modality questionnaire, read each sentence carefully and consider if it applies to you. On the line in front of each statement, indicate if the sentence never applies to you (1), sometimes applies to you (2), or often applies to you (3).

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Setting the Tone: Engaging Lesson Ideas for the First Class of the Year

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For many high school students, the first day of school is - all too often - a monotonous time loop. They move from room to room, listen to numerous teacher introductions, collect a pile of course curricula, hear rules and expectations, and have to answer that predictable how-was-your-summer question (again, and again, and again).

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Teaching Blog - Science and Math with Mrs. Lau

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Karen and I are back together again, excited to be working with teachers again in new courses for Summer 2021. This summer we wanted to focus on helping teachers face the challenges of 2021! The science teacher professional development courses we built really have a common theme: scaffolding and working with individual students with individual [...]

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Citizen Math used to be called Mathalicious. If you have a current account on Mathalicious, you can use those credentials to log in to your Citizen Math account. Learn more here.

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citizen math lessons teach standards-based math through real-world topics that students care about.

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Citizen Math lessons teach standards-based math through real-world topics that students care about.

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Engaging middle and high schoolers can sometimes be tricky. How many times have you planned (what you think is) a cool and exciting lesson, only to walk away feeling pretty bummed and discouraged when your hip activity is a bust?

Believe me. I get it. I've tried creating lessons that I am positive (most) of my kids will love and appreciate. I've attempted to make English relevant and fresh. I've even tried to choose vehicles (like social media) that fit into their lives. As I plan, I often think, "Man, I would have loved having this kind of stuff when I was in school!"

Sometimes, my efforts fall flat. At others, I hit a home run. After a lot of trial and error, I've finally figured out some techniques that consistently work. Here are my favorite English activities for high school.

1. Read, solve, and create murder mysteries.

My students in both middle and high school love true crime. I've created murder mystery lessons that fit really well with literature units and that focus on making inferences, writing, and using textual evidence. Once the premise of the mystery is determined, students create their own case files, evidence, and clues for their classmates to solve. I've had them pull from bags of evidence, locations, and possible suspects to add another element of fun and challenge. It's simple, but they really like pulling things from mystery bags. This activity is also an excellent support for students who struggle with finding a starting point.

Not all teenagers are familiar with podcasts, but it's a great way to introduce lessons in an interesting way. And so far, my students have reported really enjoying them. In fact, I've even had students come back and tell me they've continued to listen to a podcast series on their own after we've concluded our lesson.

Podcasts encourage students to be actively engaged, because the information being shared must be processed and visualized by the students as it's being said. I usually prepare questions for them to answer as they listen, and then facilitate a discussion afterward. In my classroom, this sometimes leads to mildly heated debates, which is a learning experience in and of itself.

3. Introduce "chapter chats."

My students love being in charge of leading "chapter chats" in small groups. By encouraging them to be leaders in discussing specific book chapters, they take ownership in a whole new way. I've really enjoyed watching my kids come up with thoughtful questions, bring food to connect to something that happened in the text, and even create fun games that encourage their classmates to recall information from the chapter. It's been a fun experiment recently, and I definitely plan to use again.

4. Throw parties with a purpose.

We just finished reading The Great Gatsby, and since throwing lavish parties was Gatsby's thing, we threw our own 1920s soiree. I divided my students into small groups to do research on their assigned topic (historically accurate fashions, refreshments, ambiance, guest list, etc.) and then deliver presentations. The students were responsible for assigning each other parts, complete with instructions on how to dress and what food or beverage to bring. They even provided each participant with a lexicon (specific vocabulary) to use at the party. This assignment was fun, and it also covered many standards, which is a win-win for me!

5. Give speeches as characters.

After watching a number of TED Talks and studying what contributed to an effective performance, my students wrote and delivered speeches of their own. They drew prompts for characters with different occupations giving different types of speeches (e.g. Beyoncé giving a Grammy acceptance speech). I found that my students were much more confident and comfortable speaking when given permission to act like someone else. This activity was a hands-down favorite event for my 8th grade students. Those speaking and listening standards can be tough to master, and this assignment helped us get there.
What are your favorite English activities for high school? Please share in the comments below!

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English Activities for High School You'll Want to Try Right Now

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Engaging middle and high schoolers can sometimes be tricky. How many times have you planned (what you think is) a cool and exciting lesson, only to walk away feeling pretty bummed and discouraged when your hip activity is a bust? Believe me. I get it.

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Looking for meaningful ELA lesson plans that will engage students? Read on.

Any and Every Teacher: What are you doing today?!? I don't have anything planned!

It's happened to every single one of us. We have the best intentions and try to prepare in advance, but sometimes things - life, testing, clothing malfunctions, sickness, you name it - foil our lesson plans. It's a good idea to have a folder or binder of back up plans for this exact reason.

Today, I chatted with my friend Lauralee who teaches high school language arts, and we came up with a list of ten activities that will engage students any time of year. Whether it's the last month of school or the first, these ELA lesson plans won't take long, but students will learn. Best of all, they don't take much prep.

Meaningful ELA Lesson Plans in a Pinch

1. Play Games

Play an ELA game! Games that ask students to interact with figurative language, grammatical terms, poetry forms, vocabulary words, and writing concepts are the perfect way to actively engage all learners. Most students have played Truth or Dare, but they've probably never had the honor of playing Truth or Dare Classroom style!

2. Media Literacy

Students love to eat, so bring in snacks for a meaningful activity. Before students dig in, ask them to analyze the colors, language, and fonts with this media literacy activity. Enlighten students with the marketing behind food products and packaging.

3. Creative Writing

Ask students to read a text of their choice. Any high-interest nonfiction article will work! Then, have them create an original response to the article. Everything you need to teach your students how to combine nonfiction and poetry can be found in this creative writing assignment. Give students voice and choice!

4. Public Speaking

This freebie gets students talking the entire class period. Students will analyze how tone changes the meaning of phrases. This public speaking activity is great for partner or group work.

5. Use Podcasts

Podcasts are perfect for one-day lessons. They help to build students' listening comprehension, and they are also great practice for analysis. Try this chilling, high-interest podcast lesson on body farms.

6. Commercial Analysis

Watch commercials! What? Yes - show students that these highly curated and specialized advertisements target certain audiences. Teaching audience analysis with commercials is unexpected and fun.

7. Oxford Comma

Take time to teach students about the ever-so-controversial punctuation mark: The Oxford Comma. The examples in this free print and go lesson allow for plenty of discussion (and laughter).

8. Brainy Vocabulary

Get brainy with some brain-based vocabulary practice. Use your existing word list, or (if students do not have a current word list) use previous vocabulary lists to review. These activities will help students retain new word meanings. Here's a digital friendly version.

9. Paired Text Analysis

Pair poetry with short films to make for an engaging paired-text analysis lesson. Check out this post for a handful of ideas regarding which poems and short films might pair well together. These graphic organizers help with scaffolding analysis of any fiction or nonfiction text.

10. Use Play-Doh

There are so many ways you can use Play-Doh! Have students create molds that represent important symbols in literature. Or, ask them to play "pictionary" with Play-Doh for vocabulary words. They could also practice punctuating practice sentences by making end marks and commas out of the dough. If your students could use an introduction to or review of the writing process, try this kinesthetic Play-Doh activity for teens. Don't have Play-Doh? No worries! You can try all of these activities with aluminum foil, pipe cleaners, or cardstock. Teaching remotely? Here's the digital writing process lesson I use to decrease frustration and maximize learning!

After Lauralee and I sat down to brainstorm this list, we realized we had way more than ten ideas to help teachers who are in a bind. If you want more, check out her post for ten more language arts lesson plans to keep students engaged - in May or any time of year!

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10 ELA Lesson Plans that Engage Students Any Time of Year - Reading and Writing Haven

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Looking for meaningful ELA lesson plans that will engage students? Read on. Any and Every Teacher: What are you doing today?!? I don't have anything planned! It's happened to every single one of us. We have the best intentions and try to prepare in advance, but sometimes things - life, testing, clothing malfunctions, sickness, you name it - foil our lesson plans.

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If you're looking for some fresh new ideas to reinvigorate your classroom with engaging, rigorous lessons, we have you covered. Here are some of our most effective, innovative ELA ideas for the middle/high school classroom.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, surely a music video must be worth a few million! Some of my most engaging lessons have been when we analyze, write about, and discuss narratives in music videos. Indeed, a good music video can add a layer of meaning on top of a song through visual literacy. If we can get our students to analyze this, they are surely exercising a whole host of language, speaking, and comprehension skills... and thoroughly enjoying it in the process! Why not try and hook students into the analysis process through music videos. In my lessons, I have curated a set of truly engaging, poignant, and thought-provoking videos which come with all sorts of activities: making inferences, reflecting on theme, writing reviews, and so much more!

Introduction to Shakespeare Digital Breakout - Danielle at Nouvelle ELA

When my students were ready for more independence with annotating and interacting with texts, I started implementing more station-based activities. I was afraid they'd get off-task, but students were really engaged with the tasks at each table and were surprisingly willing to tackle annotation, finding theme, and learning new literary devices with less direct instruction from the teacher. I was then more free to intervene with the students who actually needed assistance instead of slowing down students who were capable of going faster. We did this with Edgar Allan Poe's " The Raven " as well as Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, and both went extremely well!

If you're looking to promote reading in your classroom or if you are having a hard time finding the right book for your students, one of my favorite (any time of year) activities is my Reading Escape Room. Your students will work together to discover new authors, well-known characters, different genres, books that eventually became movies, and popular quotes found in various YA book choices. Once the challenges have been completed, students will be rewarded with a variety of books suggestions for their own personal reading repertoire and you will have a better idea of not only what books they have read in the past, but also what they might be interested in reading this school year.

Poetry is one of my favorite units to teach but I know many teachers and students alike hate it. I try to make the unit fun and engaging and show my students that, like music (which most love), poetry can be entertaining. One resource I use that never fails to engage is my "Is it...? Or ?" presentation and bulletin boards, asking students whether the quote is from a famous musician or a famous poet. We start with the presentation and handout, then I put up the bulletin board the next day to reinforce and remind students of the fun we had guessing. They even enjoy making their own! It's a sneaky way to get them excited about poets and poetry and read a lot in a short amount of time.

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If you're looking for some fresh new ideas to reinvigorate your classroom with engaging, rigorous lessons, we have you covered. Here are some of our most effective, innovative ELA ideas for the middle/high school classroom. If a picture is worth a thousand words, surely a music video must be worth a few million!

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If you're looking for ESL getting to know you games for the First Day of Class, you've come to the right place. I'll give my top 10 first day ESL activities so you can get your semester started off on the right foot.

By the right foot, I mean the awesome way-students and teacher start getting to know each in a fun, engaging and interactive way. Set the tone for the rest of the semester during that first day and have a productive English classroom right from the start.

Without further ado, here are my favourite ESL icebreakers for the first day. Some are suitable for teenagers and adults, while others are great for young learners. Of course there are some first day English class activities that work for all ages.

ESL First Day of Class

The goal of the first day of an ESL class should be for the students to get to know each other and the teacher, as well as feel comfortable. The teacher can also explain the classroom rules and expectations for the upcoming year as well as explain about tests and assignments.

Top 15 ESL Activities for First Day

Check out some of these activities to break the ice in your English classes. And then get ready for a great school year ahead! I'll used all of these with success over my years of teaching. Get beyond the "Jolly Jackie" and "Sleepy Steve" adjectives introduction and use these ones that are just so much better.

#1 First Day of Class Icebreaker: Ball Toss

Ball toss is an extremely versatile activity that lends itself to just about any topic or context. It also happens to work particularly well as an ESL activity for the first day of class. Use get to know each other type questions, dependent on the age and level of your students. This activity is best for children or younger teenagers though and not adults. Kids love it!

For a big class, you can create two teams, with two balls, roughly divided down the center of the class.

Quick tips: A beach ball is ideal for this in order to prevent injuries! And, you can also require students that have played to sit down in order to be sure that each student has had a turn.

Another quick tip: Use permanent maker to write the word on the ball, or it'll rub off too easily when the ball gets thrown from student to student.

Do you want to find out more about one of the best first day of school activities for ESL students? Check it out right here for all the details you need to know:

#2: Group Therapy-ESL Icebreaker Activities for First Day

Group Therapy for English learners is a fun way for adults to introduce themselves. It's done in the "AA" style, where students have to say something like, "My name is ______ and I _______." The last part of the sentence is what students struggle with in English. I usually give students a minute or two to think of their idea so that you don't put anyone on the spot on the first day.

It's ideal for helping students feel like they're not alone in their struggles with English. Don't forget, you can have a turn too, with whatever language you're studying.

It's one of of our top activities for the first day of English class. You can learn more about it right here:

#3 English Introduction Games: Find Someone Who Bingo

This is one of my favourite ESL introduction games. It's a really fun way for students to learn a little bit more about their classmates, and you as well.

Find Someone Who Bingo is a classic get to know each other activity on the first day. It's a great activity for children as well as adults. But, it's not ideal for very low-level students because they may struggle to understand the instructions in English. It's not so difficult to explain, but it does require some focused listening in order to understand how to play it.

As far as what terms students can use for each square, the sky's the limit. You can either allow them to choose their own, or allow them to select from a list of questions.

You can find out all the details about this getting to know each other activity here:

#4 First Day English Class Activities: The Expert ESL Speaking Activity

If you teach higher level adults students, "The Expert" is the perfect ESOL icebreaker. It requires students that are capable of holding 5-10 minute conversations with a partner. The best part about this activity is that students talk about things they're an expert in, making the conversations very interesting and fun. Be sure to point out that students should try to divide their time talking evenly about each person's interests.

Another thing that I love is that preparation for this one is non-existent. It's always good to have a few of these in our back pockets as teachers, so keep this in mind for higher-level, advanced learners in case you get an extra class thrown at you last minute.

If you have some way to contact students before your course begins, you can ask them to bring in some pictures or objects related to these things. It makes it a bit more fun than using just words.

At the end of the activity, you can have students present about 1-2 of the most interesting things they learned from their discussions.

Does it sound like the right ESL icebreaker for your class? Click the link below to find out more about it, including all the steps to set it up, and some teaching tips so you can avoid the most common mistakes:
The Expert ESL Activity
#5 ESL First Day Icebreaker for Beginners: Toilet Paper Icebreaker Activity

I'm sure you've played the popular Toilet Paper Icebreaker before (perhaps with candy). It's fun for ESL students too! You're students will have to guess why they're being asked to choose a number of squares of paper. It's quite mysterious and fun, simple and easy to set up.

I like to add a twist to it and get students to ask questions too. Check out the link below for how I do this. Playing games like this makes learning interesting.
Toilet Paper ESL Icebreaker Activity
#6 ESL Icebreakers First Day of Class: The Name Game

If you have low level students and want to help them learn and remember each other's names, the name game is a good choice. You have to say the sentence, "My name is ____ and I ______."

The last part can depend on the level of students, but it can be something they like, what they did last night, etc. Then go around in the circle, repeating the sentences and adding another one. They have to use the correct names, as well as words/verbs so it can be challenging.

This is also a nice ESL vocabulary or English grammar game. Just adjust it so that it suits whatever you're teaching.

#7 First Day of School Activities: Just a Minute ESL Speaking Activity

This speaking activity that focuses on fluency lends itself to just about any topic under the sun. However, for the first day. you can ask that students introduce themselves.

Then, require the rest of the students in their group ask at least 1-2 follow-up questions for person for some fun interaction and to make it a bit more than just a speaking activity (also requires close listening). Then, at the end of the activity you can have each person introduce someone in their group to the class (works best for smaller classes).

You can find out more about Just a Minute, suitable for a variety of topics in this short video:

#8 ESL First Day of Class Activity: Introduction Survey

I love to use ESL surveys in my classes and this introduction is one of the best ESL games for a first day icebreaker. Students have to stand up and get out of their seats to talk to all their classmates. They have to find someone who answers "yes" to each question. Once they get that answer, they have to ask a follow-up question or two and just down a few words about it.

You can use surveys for various things-jobs, home life, hobbies, travel (More ESL Travel Ideas here) etc. but this one should have questions related to introducing yourself and personality.

My favourite thing about ESL surveys is that they hit all four skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) as well as grammar. It's also a good way to reinforce new vocabulary. We love that here at ESL Activities! Language teaching made fun.

However, it's not for total beginners, and is best suited to intermediate to advanced level students.

Check out the link below for an example survey and more details about how I use them. It's one of the best activities for a first English class with adults. Find out more here:
ESL Introduction Survey
#9 First Day Activities for English Class: Puzzle Finder

Puzzle Finder is a fun ESL activity that gets students up and out of their seats, mingling with their classmates. The best part about it is that it gives students a reason to talk to each other. It's challenging too!

Students have to describe the piece of the puzzle that they have in order to match with someone else in the class. I prefer this style of activity, as opposed to a race or board game of some kind. The goal of the first day is for people to get to know each other and create an atmosphere of cooperation.

You can find out more about it this warm up for English class right here:
Puzzle Finder ESL Activity
#10: Human Bingo

#11: Me Too!

Another activity to consider for the first day of English class is this simple one that requires absolutely nothing in the way of preparation or materials. If that's not some ESL teaching gold, then I'm not sure what is.

The way it works is that students have to say a fact about themselves that they think some, but not all students will have in common with them. Want to know more about it? Find out all the details here:

Me Too! ESL Speaking/Listening Activity.

#12: Small Talk Activities

Small talk is how people get to know each other at work or other social events. So, why not do some small talk activities on the first day of English class, too? It's also an important skill for our students to master. Here are some recommendations that you'll want to take a look at:

ESL Small Talk Activities.

#13: Opinion ESL Games and Activities

What better way to get to know someone than to share some opinions about things, right? If you agree, then you'll certainly want to check out some of our best ideas:

ESL Opinion Activities.

#14: Categramble ESOL Icebreaker

#15: Introducing Yourself Activities: Show and Tell, With Pictures

Show and Tell is one of my favourite ESL getting to know you activities.

This is often a good ESL activity to do in the second class, after you have a change to tell students to bring some pictures from home. I usually tell them to bring 3 pictures that show things that are important to them. I give some examples of family, a pet, their house, a hobby, etc.

Then, if you have a very small class, each student can show their pictures and share a couple sentences about each one. Or, put students into groups of 4-5 if you have a bigger class.

Alternatively, if you want to do this on the first day of class, you can have students draw by hand a few small pictures. Of course, this one is very easy to adapt to various levels by changing the length of time that students are required to speak for (2-3 sentences or 1-2 minutes).

39 ESL Icebreakers: For Teenagers and Adults

Finally, if you can't get enough ESL first day activities, then you'll need to get this book: 39 ESL Icebreakers for Teenagers and Adults. It's a quick resource guide to help you get those first day of classes planned in no time at all. ESL awesome: there's plenty of it in there!

Available in a Variety of Formats

Keep a copy on the bookshelf in your library for a quick reference tool when planning on your English lessons. Or, keep the digital version on your phone for lesson planning at your favourite coffee shop. It's filled with tips, tricks, and ideas for teachers so that you can have better classes.

Easy to Use in your Lesson PLans

You'll love how easy it is to find an icebreaker for the first day or class, or a fun way to start off every single one of your classes. Lesson plans for the first day? No problem!

Get your Copy Today

The book is available in both print and digital formats. You can check it out for yourself over on Amazon, but only if you want one of the best resources out there for ESL icebreaker games and activities.
->39 ESL Icebreakers on Amazon<--
ESL First Day of Class FAQs

There are a number of important questions that people have about the first day of an ESL class. Here are the answers to the most common ones.

What Can I Expect on the First Day of an ESL Class?

On the first day of an ESL class, you can expect plenty of nervous students who are uncertain about what the course will be like and if it will meet their needs. As a teacher, the most important thing is to make a good first impression, set the tone, as well as establish a good rapport and connect with the students.

How do you Introduce Yourself on the First Day of Class?

If you're required to introduce yourself on the first day of class, you can do the following. Stand up, smile, speak with confidence, share your name and why you're taking the class as well as a hobby that you have.

What are the Qualities of a Good ESL Get to Know You Game or Activity?

There are some excellent ESL ice-breakers and also some terrible ones. Hopefully the ones on this list are some of your favourites. Here are some things to look for when choosing what to do on the first day of class with your students:

Choose activities that require low risk. For example, have students talk 1-1 with each other instead of in front of the entire class of students they may not know that well.

They require students to mingle and get to know at least a few of their classmates.

They don't require students to divulge very personal information. Things like hometown, hobbies, favourite foods are ideal. Things like religion and political opinions or family situation are not.

They're fun! Nobody likes doing cheesy, lame ESL ice breaker activities so make sure they're fun, and also that they give students a reason to talk to each other.

What are the Goals of the First Day of Class for ESL?

There are a number of things you'll want to accomplish on your first day. It's important because this class can kind of make or break the rest of the semester. During that first class, you'll want to:

Make sure that students know your name, and at least some of their classmates.

Ensure that you're on your way to memorizing students' names.

Assess the level of the class so that you can gear your lesson planning towards that.

Build rapport and trust, as well as make a good impression. Hopefully the students will have confidence in your abilities as a teacher. Wear professional clothes!

If it's a for credit class at a university for example, you'll want to make sure that students know your policies, as well as how information about assignments, attendance, tests, etc.

Quick note: if you're never been in that specific classroom before, arrive early so that you can get familiar with the technology and other equipment like lights and air conditioning. Or, check it out the day before.

What to Do on the First Day of Class?

There are a few key things to do on the first day of any class. They include the following:

Arrive early and welcome the students

Get to know each other with some ice breaking activities

Establish key routines and rules so that the rest of the semester runs smoothly

Reinforce positive behaviour

Deal swiftly with negative behaviour

Have your Say about these ESL First Day Activities

What are your thoughts about these ESL introduction games that go way beyond hangman? Leave a comment below and let us know. Or, do you have any ideas that you'd like to share with us? We'd love to hear from you.

Also be sure to give this article a share on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest. This will help other teachers, like yourself find this useful resource.

Last update on 2020-04-15 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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ESL Activities for First Day | ESL Icebreakers and Introduction Games

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If you're looking for ESL getting to know you games for the First Day of Class, you've come to the right place. I'll give my top 10 first day ESL activities so you can get your semester started off on the right foot.

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I hope that you had, or are having, the most amazing summer break ever. For me, my break is over because my first day of school is this week. By now the end-of-summer dread is over, and I am excited to be back in the classroom with a fresh batch of students.

Here is a quick list of activities I'll be using in my classroom this back-to-school season.

Back to School Stations

Back to School Activities

This back-to-school resource packet has so many great activities and icebreakers for you to use. My favorite activity is a collaborative quilt. Students love contributing their square to the quilt, and it helps brighten your classroom from the first week of school.

Growth Mindset Escape Room

What better way to introduce a growth mindset and encourage collaboration than challenging your students to an escape room activity during the first week of school? This growth mindset escape room includes multiple tasks and challenges for students to unlock as they learn about growth mindset, goal setting, and famous failures.

Email Etiquette

Without fail, students fill our inbox with horribly written emails. It's a considerable teacher pet peeve and annoyance, but so often we forget that this can be a teachable moment. Last year I taught this email etiquette mini-unit during the first week of school, and it was a complete game-changer. About 99% of the student emails I received were pleasant, polite, and well-formatted.

For Digital Learning, try this: SMARTePlans Digital Email Etiquette Teaching Unit.

Sentence Combining Bell Ringers

I am a stickler for routines, especially routines that are meaningful and help students become better writers. I highly encourage teachers to include some form of sentence combining in their curriculum because it helps students actively focus on improving their syntax and writing. There are enough sentence combining bell ringers in this resource for the entire school year, and by spending just five minutes a day on combining sentences, your students' writing will improve exponentially.

For Digital Learning, try this: SMARTePlans Digital Sentence Combining.

Free Back-to-School Student Survey

If there is one thing that you should definitely do the first week of school, you should spend some time getting to know your new students. Here is my FREE back-to-school survey that will help you get to know your new students.

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I hope that you had, or are having, the most amazing summer break ever. For me, my break is over because my first day of school is this week. By now the end-of-summer dread is over, and I am excited to be back in the classroom with a fresh batch of students.

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10 Best Social Studies Tools for High School | Common Sense Education

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10 Best Social Studies Tools for High School is a list of 10 apps, games, and websites curated by Common Sense Education editors.

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When it comes to lesson planning, it can be a challenge to make information feel fresh and exciting (for both teachers and students). In an effort to mix things up, we're taking a look at some novel approaches to teaching a variety of subjects. In this blog, we're looking at resources for social studies.

You probably won't be able to incorporate all of these resources into your classroom, but hopefully they'll spark your creativity and inspire you to think about your curriculum in a different way.
Have more fresh ideas? We'd love to hear about them! Share your own classroom successes in the comments section below.
Best for Elementary School

Best for Middle and High School

Check out this video on the colonization of the United States:

It's suitable for all age groups and can be used to teach subjects like geography, history, languages, mathematics, and science.

Another excellent site related to civics is Generation Citizen, which encourages students to participate in the democratic process. Generation Citizen provides teachers with a Common Core-aligned, action-based civics curriculum, a trained college co-facilitator, and supplementary resources to help create meaningful, hands-on experiences for their classes.

6.The Smithsonian'sIdeaLabson Artifacts and Analysis: This site presents a strategy for incorporating historical artifacts and documents into the teaching of US history. Designed as a companion to the Advanced Placement Program US History course, it is also effective in any instructional setting that emphasizes analytical thinking and writing.

8.Simulations and Role-Playing: One way to bring history to life is to assign students the roles of historical figures and have them debate a unique issue from the time period. For ideas on specific scenarios, as well as an online tool to help develop arguments for the debate, check out the SCAN tool.

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When it comes to lesson planning, it can be a challenge to make information feel fresh and exciting (for both teachers and students). In an effort to mix things up, we're taking a look at some novel approaches to teaching a variety of subjects. In this blog, we're looking at resources for social studies.

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Download these great lesson plans, activities and classroom materials for your social studies class.

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The Essential First Week of School | Social Studies Success

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The first week of school, before you even begin to teach history, is more important than most teachers realize. It can make or break your year. Unfortunately, it is the week most beginning teachers have the least experience with and the most questions about. This is the week when you teach your expectations and set [...]

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When it comes to lesson planning, it can be a challenge to make information feel fresh and exciting (for both teachers and students). In an effort to mix things up, we're taking a look at some novel approaches to teaching a variety of subjects. In this blog, we're looking at resources for social studies.

You probably won't be able to incorporate all of these resources into your classroom, but hopefully they'll spark your creativity and inspire you to think about your curriculum in a different way.

Best for Elementary School

Best for Middle and High School

Check out this video on the colonization of the United States:

It's suitable for all age groups and can be used to teach subjects like geography, history, languages, mathematics, and science.

Another excellent site related to civics is Generation Citizen, which encourages students to participate in the democratic process. Generation Citizen provides teachers with a Common Core-aligned, action-based civics curriculum, a trained college co-facilitator, and supplementary resources to help create meaningful, hands-on experiences for their classes.

6.The Smithsonian'sIdeaLabson Artifacts and Analysis: This site presents a strategy for incorporating historical artifacts and documents into the teaching of US history. Designed as a companion to the Advanced Placement Program US History course, it is also effective in any instructional setting that emphasizes analytical thinking and writing.

8.Simulations and Role-Playing: One way to bring history to life is to assign students the roles of historical figures and have them debate a unique issue from the time period. For ideas on specific scenarios, as well as an online tool to help develop arguments for the debate, check out the SCAN tool.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When it comes to lesson planning, it can be a challenge to make information feel fresh and exciting (for both teachers and students). In an effort to mix things up, we're taking a look at some novel approaches to teaching a variety of subjects. In this blog, we're looking at resources for social studies.

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Are more and more students looking a little bored and bleary-eyed during history and geography lessons lately? As a first-year teacher, it's easy to become so focused on covering all the necessary content that you overlook opportunities to bring social studies to life. These easy-to-do, hands-on activities will help you put a quick end to social studies doldrums.

Mapping Your Way From Home Sweet Home

After teaching about map symbols and directions, invite to students create a map showing the route from their home to school. A fun motivator is to tell students that they have won a contest but the only way to receive their prize is to provide the delivery service with a clear and accurate map to their home. Maps should be neat, easy to read, and contain proper map symbols, with a key and compass rose. Let them know that landmarks will help the driver make a speedy delivery. Most middle school students will be familiar with the route from home to school. However, if you give students advance notice about the project or a few days to complete in class, then they will be better able to recall details that would enhance their maps. When the maps are completed, you may want to "deliver" students some type of prize or reward.

Three Cheers for Sports Teams!

This activity gives students a chance to show off sports knowledge and geography skills. Organize students into groups and provide them with a list of sports teams. The list should include only the nickname of the team, for example: Dolphins, Red Sox, Mariners. The students have to first figure out what city the team is from, and then locate the city on a map. As an additional challenge have students explain how the team name relates to the geography, culture, or history of its home town. If your community is not already home to a major league team, ask students to imagine that it soon will be. Have students think of appropriate names for the team based on geographical, cultural, or historical information. Students may also pick other cities without professional sports teams and think up names for them too.

Travel Time Brochures

One way to energize teaching about U.S. cities or countries around the world is to have students look at them as travel destinations. The first step is to bring in examples of travel brochures (readily available at most travel agencies, AAA, and tourist bureaus) and discuss what makes them interesting, exciting, and informative. Then, based on places you have been teaching about, have individual students or student groups create travel brochures for a particular location. Students should include at least three reasons why this place might attract visitors and use a simple tri-fold format. Students can illustrate their brochures with drawings or pictures from magazines or the internet.

Person of the Year

In this activity, students become journalists for a famous news magazine. Their assignment is to select a "Person of the Year" for the next issue. As journalists, they need to convince their editor-in-chief that the person they have selected is deserving of this title. Students write a brief article that explains their choice based on research. Students should also design a magazine cover honoring this person. When the projects are complete, consider having students give oral presentations and then take a class vote to decide which person they learned about is deserving of the title "Most Outstanding Person of the Year."

People Poems

Have students write poems about people or places they have been learning about in social studies. The poem can be in the form of an acrostic, in which the first letter of each line begins with a letter of the person's name. The lines consist of words or phrases describing the person's characteristics. Another type of poem is the diamante, which takes its name from the diamond-shaped form it makes. Here's the formula:

person's name
two adjectives to describe the person
three "ing" words related to the subject
four nouns that describe the person
three verbs that tell how the person acted or felt
two adjectives to describe the person
person's last name

These ideas were adapted from Making Social Studies Come Alive! by Marilyn Kretzer, Marleine Slobin, and Madella Williams (© 1996, Scholastic).

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Classroom Activities: Making Social Studies Come Alive With Middle Schoolers | Scholastic

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Are more and more students looking a little bored and bleary-eyed during history and geography lessons lately? As a first-year teacher, it's easy to become so focused on covering all the necessary content that you overlook opportunities to bring social studies to life.

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Every teacher has a different approach to the first few days of school. Whatever your approach, Education World has an activity for you! Included: Thirteen activities to help teachers get to know student strengths, set the classroom tone, observe student interaction, or just provide a little fun!
What are your goals for the first days of school? Some teachers use the time for informal activities designed to help students get to know one another. Other teachers introduce class rules or establish new routines. Still others design activities that help them learn about student strengths and needs. There are as many different approaches to the first days of school as there are teachers!

Whatever your goals for the first days of school, the 13 activities in today's Education World article will help get the year off to a great start! You're sure to find a new activity or two to use, adapt, or share.

The 13 activities are divided into four categories:

Getting to Know Student Strengths and Skills

Setting the Tone

Discovering How They Work Together

Having Fun!

GETTING TO KNOW STUDENT STRENGTHS AND SKILLS

Following directions. How well do your students follow directions? Provide instructions for folding a drinking cup from a piece of paper, and see how many students can make a cup. You can use the printable template and instructions at the Origami Japanese Paper Folding Web page. Fill each complete cup with apple juice to see how many students correctly followed the directions! (You might want to conduct this particular assessment on the playground, however!)

Learning styles survey. How do the students in your class learn best? Do they learn by seeing, hearing, or doing? Invite students to discover their most successful learning strategies by taking the Modality Questionnaire provided by the Center for the Advancement of Learning at Ohio's Muskingum College.

A world of change. On the first day of school, provide students with an 11-inch by 17-inch piece of drawing paper. Challenge students to draw a map of the world and label as many countries and bodies of water as they can. Collect the maps and put them away. At the end of the school year, repeat the activity. Has a year of lessons focused on world geography and current events increased your students' knowledge of the world? (If this activity isn't appropriate for you, why not share it with a social studies or history teacher in your school?)

Time capsule. Turn empty Pringles cans or paper towel tubes into miniature time capsules. Ask each child to create a time capsule that includes such items as a handwriting sample, a hand tracing, a self portrait, and so on. At the end of the school year, compare samples from the beginning of the year with new samples.

A video keepsake. At the start of the school year, or before school starts, if possible, provide parents with a list of supplies to send to school with their children. Include on the list a blank videotape for each student. At least once a month, invite a parent volunteer to come in and videotape each student reading aloud from a favorite book. Send the videotapes home at the end of the year as a memento and as a reminder of the reading growth that happened during the course of the year.

SETTING THE TONE

Sticks and stones ... This simple activity has been making the rounds of mailing lists recently: Provide each student with a small paper cutout in the shape of a human, or have students cut out their own paper figures. Ask each student to write his or her name on the cutout. Have students form a circle. Then tell students to pass the cutouts to the person on their right. As the cutouts are passed around the circle, have each person make a small crumple or tear in the cutout or add a pencil mark. When the cutouts have made their way around the entire circle, have students try to repair their own cutouts by flattening, erasing, or taping. After the cutouts are repaired, discuss the activity. Talk about the effects of unkind words and hurt feelings. You might display the cutouts on a classroom bulletin board as a constant reminder of the effects of hurtful actions.

Illustrated student reflections. Students in middle school and above can reflect on their dreams and accomplishments with this First Day of School activity provided by an Indiana teacher. A simple illustration provides a backdrop students can use to share their dreams, their interests, and the high and low points in their lives. The activity can provide teachers with important information about students' interests, concerns, and goals; teachers can use the information to determine how best to direct students and provide for their individual needs.

I Wish I Were a Butterfly. Students across the grades will enjoy this book, written by James Howe and illustrated by Ed Young. A cricket longs to be a pretty butterfly until a spider teaches her that all friends are beautiful. Read the book aloud, and then discuss the story's message.

DISCOVERING HOW THEY WORK TOGETHER

Surveys and graphs. Start the year with a survey activity in which students get to know one another as they create simple bar or picture graphs. Students work in pairs or small groups to collect responses to a class survey, and then they graph the results. Older students can develop their own survey questions; younger students might collect data in response to questions provided by the teacher. Questions might include the following:

When you bring lunch to school, how do you carry it?

If you were to carry a thermos bottle to school, what would be in it?

What is your favorite sandwich?

How do you get to school most days?

What is your best subject in school?

How many miles do you live from school?

What is your favorite snack?

What was your favorite summer movie?

After students collect the data, they create a simple graph to display the results of their survey. One student in each pair or group can then report the findings while another explains the graph. Display the graphs on a bulletin board for all to see!

An average day. Challenge students to compute class "averages." Have students work in pairs or small groups to collect, calculate, and report on the average age, shoe size, height, family size (and so on!) of the students in your class.

HAVING FUN!

Personalized classroom calendar. Every classroom has a calendar. Why not personalize your classroom calendar with photographs of your students? First, make a calendar pocket chart with seven columns (one for each day of the week) and five rows (so the chart can handle months with five weeks). Then have students make signs with the numbers 1 to 31 on them. The numbers should be large enough to be clearly seen from a distance. Use a disposable camera to take a picture of each student holding one of the numbered signs. Slip the photographs into the pockets on the calendar. Change the calendar each month!

Back-to-school ABC book. This is an activity that can be done across the grades! Share with students some ABC books from the school or town library and tell them that they will be working together to create a Back-to-School ABC Book. Assign a letter of the alphabet to each student. Brainstorm with students possible words for each letter or allow each student to choose his or her own word. Explain that the words must be related to activities associated with school. Of course, the difficulty of the words will vary, depending on the grade level of the students. For example, A might be represented by the words art, abacus, attendance, algebra, addition, advisor, athletics, auditorium, alphabet, answer key, apple, arithmetic, announcement, award, A-V, aide, or assistant principal. Finally, have each student illustrate his or her word. Combine the pictures to create a book. Display the book in the classroom or school library. As an extra challenge, you might limit older students to choosing adjectives; no nouns allowed!

Back-to-school word search. Print a Back-to-School word search and challenge students to find the school-related words hidden in the puzzle. Or create your own word search puzzle containing the first names of all the students in your class. Go to Puzzlemaker.com's Word Search Puzzlemaker to create your puzzle.

Links updated 07/09/19

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Get the School Year Off to a Good Start | Education World

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Every teacher has a different approach to the first few days of school. Whatever your approach, Education World has an activity for you! Included: Thirteen activities to help teachers get to know student strengths, set the classroom tone, observe student interaction, or just provide a little fun!

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While next-generation assessments and instructional data can help educators gain a deeper understanding of students, the sheer amount of information available can prove challenging. As I discussed in a prior post, educational technologies can amplify the impact of proven formative assessment strategies. But in doing so, educators must often navigate various platforms and other sources of student information that, in many cases, do not seamlessly align or integrate together.

So how can we make sense of all this information about our students' abilities and interests?

Enter the concept of "learner profiles." In general, a learner profile provides a practical way for educators to make use of assessment results, student interest data, and other relevant information. Although they can come in many forms, effective profiles have two main characteristics: they are coherent and actionable. If the information available in the profile is unclear or at times contradictory, it leads to confusion. And if the learner profile does not lead to action regarding changes in instructional practices to further personalize instruction, then a key rationale for the profile is lost.

Many educators and schools that make use of learner profiles are also focusing on including students in their development and revision. Including students throughout the process fosters agency and ownership of the learning since they have a clear say in their strengths, interests, goals, and steps needed to improve certain skills and academic competencies. Several edtech products and platforms are also aiming to simplify the process for teachers so that accessing actionable information in a student's' learner profile is as timely and seamless as possible.

Below are key resources, practical examples, and questions to consider when creating learner profiles.

"If we really believe that teaching is about the student, then it sure would help to actually get to know the students in deeper ways."

Getting to Know You: Learner Profiles for Personalization (EdWeek)

In this EdWeek article, the author provides specific examples from schools around the country regarding ways that educators are gaining valuable insights about students' skills, backgrounds, and interests through learner profiles. She also explores how, as opposed to traditional data meetings or interest surveys, learner profiles go a step further as they can foster personalized, student-centered pathways toward student-selected goals.

Learning Profile Grid (ReSchool Colorado)
This tool developed by ReSchool Colorado provides practical resources, strategies, and guidelines to help educators build personalized learning profiles across age spans.

Otus Student Performance / Learning Profile Platform ( Video 1, Video 2)

Otus is an example of a new edtech platform that aims to provide teachers with a holistic view of student performance by streamlining student data, teacher feedback, and student learning artifacts from various sources.

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Exploring Learner Profiles: Resources, Examples, and Questions to Consider - TomDriscollEDU

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As next-generation assessments and instructional data can help educators gain a deeper understanding of students, the sheer amount of information available can prove challenging. As discussed in a prior post , educational technologies can amplify the impact of proven formative assessmen

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Here's Everything You Need to Know About Learner Profiles

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Spread the loveIt's no secret that relationship-building is a key component of effective teaching. Getting to know your students not only increases trust and engagement, but it also helps you differentiate instruction and personalize learning. The more a teacher knows about a student's background, strengths, knowledge, and learning style, the better he or she can target instruction toward the child's learning needs.

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Understanding our learners can not only help a teacher to better design instruction and materials, but it can also offer learners a way to develop agency as they become more and more aware of how they learn best.

Understanding students better through learner profiles

Things to thinking about when getting started on creating personalized learner profiles:

Focus on knowing your students and helping students know themselves: Before diving into selecting a template, think about what learner profiles are for and how you will use them. A template that is created just for you as the teacher is very different than a template that is designed to help students understand themselves as learners.

Think differently about data: Learner profiles can be an entirely new take on the idea of data notebooks. Why not let students use these to track their own progress, reflect on their learning styles and strengths, and set individual academic and non-academic goals?

Give the work back: Learner profiles do not need to be one more thing you have to do as a teacher. You don't have to create 30 binders. Think about how you could help students create their own learner profiles.

Revisit and revise: Over the course of the year, students are going to change and grow. Allow space for them to record self-reflections on a regular basis.

Resources and templates for creating learner profiles:

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What Are Learner Profiles and Why Are They Important?

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Understanding our learners can not only help a teacher to better design instruction and materials, but it can also offer learners a way to develop agency as they become more and more aware of how they learn best.

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Getting to Know You: Learner Profiles for Personalization | NGLC

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As more educators work to replace factory-model schools with personalized, student-centered learning experiences, knowing students has taken on new meaning.

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The New Teacher Advisor

The first day of school is absolutely one of the most important days of the year. It's the day you set the tone for your classroom for the entire year.

Every teacher wants to have a smoothly running classroom, but that's difficult to achieve when you don't know where to start. As a new teacher, you might be feeling as though you're groping around half blindfolded, with only bits and pieces of information, rather than the whole picture. What you need is a vision of what you want your classroom to look like as a positive learning environment. Then you need to take that vision and use the first day of school to lay the groundwork for making it a reality.

Before school starts, take some time to sit down and brainstorm all your expectations. That includes how you want students to behave toward you and one another; how you want the day-to-day activities and transitions to be performed; and how you want your classroom to feel. Within each of those categories, think about different scenarios from your own days as a student, and plan how you will deal with each one. Some questions you might ask yourself include: how will students enter the classroom, leave the classroom, turn in homework, work in team situations, work as individuals? Picture what you want to see happen and then write it down as a statement.

When you've mapped out that information, create a poster of basic classroom expectations for everyone to follow. Your poster won't include every single expectation, just the ones that guide student behavior. You'll also want to create some posters that illustrate procedures for various activities during the day, such as entering and leaving the classroom. Write those procedures in a very basic step-by-step manner, with no more than five steps each. Post those posters where all students can easily read them. When you have a clear idea of how you expect students to behave, and of what you expect them to do from the moment they enter the classroom until the moment they leave the classroom, then you are prepared to explain those expectations to your students.

Now, we lay the groundwork. When planning your first day of school, be sure to alternate between fun ice-breakers and getting-to-know-you activities that build a positive classroom community, and discussions of your expectations and procedures. You need a mixture of both throughout the first several days; students can absorb only so much information at once. By alternating fun activities with practical and serious ones, you give students time to internalize the information. When transitioning from a fun activity to a lesson on expectations or procedures, be sure to review previous information before moving on to new information. For example, you might ask students to show you the quiet signal and explain what it means before discussing more classroom procedures.

When discussing classroom expectations and procedures, be sure to speak slowly, establish one-on-one eye contact with each student, and pause significantly after each expectation. That reinforces the impression that the information is important, and it gives students time to listen, understand, and internalize what you are saying. When you rush through and speak quickly, students tend to dismiss the information as unimportant.

You'll also want to practice with students such procedures as the quiet signal, and entering and leaving the classroom. Continue to practice them throughout the next two weeks. By practicing procedures and expectations with students on the first day and through the first few weeks of school, you lay the groundwork for your vision and build habits that will last all year long.

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Education World®
Copyright © 2011 Education World

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First Day of School: Laying The Groundwork | Education World

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The first day of school is absolutely one of the most important days of the year. It's the day you set the tone for your classroom for the entire year. Every teacher wants to have a smoothly running classroom, but that's difficult to achieve when you don't know where to start.

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Do you review the syllabus, rules, and procedures on the first day of school? Many teachers do.

It's important to make sure students understand the rules and expectations from the start. But, it doesn't have to happen through reading a syllabus and giving a quiz. Instead, do something different and set yourself apart from the crowd. Teach students through creating and communicating.

From day one, teach students how to think like an artist.

Let's look at what that means. Here are a few things artists do.

Artists make choices.

Artists experiment.

Artists take risks.

Artists push boundaries.

Artists fail.

Start to get students thinking in these ways with your first day procedures.

In the high school art room, students often have to make choices about which medium to use or subject matter they wish to explore. Beginning on day one, have your students learn to make both big and small choices. One easy way to do this is by allowing students to choose their own seats.

If you like having a seating chart because it helps you to learn students' names, start by allowing students to select their seats, then create your chart. You can also tell students they need to sit in the same seats when they have a substitute.

You'll find students are creatures of habit and they'll naturally end up sitting in the same seats every day.

Next, surprise your students.

Instead of telling students the rules, have them uncover them through creating. Or have them create the rules themselves.

If you decide you want to have students create art on day one, here's an idea for you.

Split students into groups of four, telling them they have one class period to create the tallest tower possible that also has the most negative space. Give each group fifteen sheets of scrap paper and fifteen pieces of masking tape. Limit students to the supplies provided.

You'll find most students aren't sure what negative space is, making this the perfect time for them to begin to learn how to help themselves and do some research. Resisting the natural urge to answer every question will reinforce student independence and resourcefulness. Guide them by asking questions. Through this activity, students will learn to work together and problem solve.

As students build their towers, move throughout the room demonstrating your behavioral expectations.

Use the last fifteen minutes to have students share the processes they used and why they feel they've best demonstrated negative space. Here, students learn about the practice of self-reflection. If you have time, you could also incorporate a critique.

Ask questions like:

How did you determine your process for building your tower?

Did anyone in your group take the lead? How did that work?

Looking at other groups' towers, is there anything you would do differently if you were to do this again?

What tools would have made this assignment easier?

Have groups write a 6-word story about their tower as closure, getting them into the practice of writing about their work.

If you want your students to come up with the art room rules, try this method.

Giving students ownership of the classroom rules is a powerful classroom management tool.

1. Start by telling students all classrooms run better if there are agreed upon expectations for both the students and teacher.

Break students into groups and have them brainstorm rules and expectations. Have students create a list of both for themselves and for you. You might be surprised at how easily high school students will come up with rules and expectations for themselves.

However, having rules and expectations for you, the teacher is often a new concept, so students may need a bit more encouragement or a few examples.

For example, if you expect students to take their work seriously, then you, as the teacher, should promise to provide timely relevant feedback and support.

Another example I share with my students is about getting to class on time. At my first position, I had two classrooms at opposite ends of the building. I was often switching classes along with students and didn't always make it to class before the bell rang. It didn't seem fair to penalize students for being late when sometimes I was going to be late. We agreed we all needed to make our best effort to make it to class on time. We agreed we would be patient with each other if every once in awhile we were a minute or two late.

2. After groups finish brainstorming, have them select 2 ideas they feel are the most important from each column.

As groups share their ideas, record them.

3. Once all group ideas are compiled, ask deeper questions.

Asking questions helps to make sure you all understand the expectations. If students say they should respect classroom materials, record examples of what this looks like. It might mean all paintbrushes are washed and put away at the end of class.

If students suggest you, as the teacher, should show them respect, ask them to provide examples of when they felt respected by an adult. It can also be helpful to ask them to share times when they didn't feel respected by an adult. (Make sure they don't mention names during this process.)

4. Try to narrow each list down to 3 and adopt those as your class rules.

You're probably wondering what to do if each of your classes comes up with different classroom rules. In my experience, I let them. Each list is labeled and hung in the room for everyone to see. Usually, they're similar but may differ in wording or explanation.

Remember, even though students helped to create the rules, you're still going to have to revisit them throughout the year.

Both students and teachers can fall into bad habits. When students begin to consistently break a rule, instead of going straight to punishment, have a conversation, pointing back to the rules you developed together.

For example, in my class students can use cell phones for research and taking photos. If they are not using their phone for one of these two reasons, it needs to be put away.

Inevitably, we'll get to a point where students continue to pull their phones out to text friends. When this happens, we come together as a class and discuss why this is a problem.

When you bring students back together, share how their behavior makes you feel and impacts the learning environment. Then give them a chance to respond. You'll likely be surprised at what they have to say.

Rarely do students want to be disrespectful, they simply want to talk to their friends and have developed a bad habit of always texting.

You can take this further by turning it into a prompt for a problem to solve. Students might create posters or graphics arguing for or against the use of cell phones.

Or challenge them to come up with creative ways to communicate and connect with their friends that aren't disruptive to their learning or disrespectful to others.

Overall, follow the golden rule and treat your students how you want to be treated.

We know first impressions matter. What you do on the first day of class matters, too. Think about what kind of impression you want to make and create a plan to make it happen!
What's something you do on the first day to make a positive impact on your students? What's one thing you want to change about your first-day lesson?

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How to Plan Your First Day at the High School Level - The Art of Education University

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Do you review the syllabus, rules, and procedures on the first day of school? Many teachers do. It's important to make sure students understand the rules and expectations from the start. But, it doesn't have to happen through reading a syllabus and giving a quiz.

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Where do I sit? Will I like this teacher? Do I have any friends in this class? Is this class going to be hard? Will I have a lot of homework? These are all questions swimming around in the brain of a middle school student on the first day of school and it is your job to answer these questions and put the insecurities to rest.

Your students need to know a little bit about you and have a chance to bond with their classmates in a fun, relaxed environment because those personal connections and relationships are what will keep the positive momentum and mutual respect going throughout the year. But, in my opinion, one of the best things you can do during the first week of school is establish very clear, high expectations and be consistent with them. Students need to know what to expect when they enter your room every day.

During my first year of teaching, a veteran teacher told me "Don't let them see you smile until Christmas." Not the best advice I've ever received, but I think I understood her intentions (or at least I morphed her advice into an interpretation that worked better for my spunky personality). Being consistent at the beginning of the school year isn't always fun (for you or your students). But I promise, if you stick to your high expectations and don't let anything slide in the beginning of the year, those middle school students will know that you are the kind of teacher that is consistent and fair in how you run your classroom and they will grow to appreciate it as the year continues. Besides... deep down, every child wants to be challenged and needs to grow, although you will rarely catch a middle school student utter those words. A lot of students come from homes that are lacking in structure, clear expectations, and consistency, so it may be a struggle in the beginning, but you will see the rewards by the end of the year.

The expectations you set as a teacher will greatly influence the success of your students in both your classroom and in their lives. So why not expect more and raise the bar higher? Spend some time thinking about some procedures that will occur most often in your classroom (entering the classroom, working in groups or with partners, turning in homework, turning in classwork, turning in tests/quizzes, turning in late work, conducting lab investigations, eating/drinking in class, supplies that are available to students, etc...) Think of everything you possibly can and make sure you have a plan for each procedure. These expectations and procedures need to be in place before school starts because they begin on day 1.

Suggested Day 1:

Greet your students at the door. Introduce yourself, make sure they are in the right place, and give them an assigned seat. (For some seating tips and free seat labels, check out this FREEBIE.) During the first week or so of school I seat my students alphabetically. It helps me learn names more quickly and makes passing out/collecting all of the paperwork easier. If I notice any "bad combinations," I can make an easy move, but for the most part I like to keep everything alphabetical. I think this seating method also sets the tone that the expectation is that you, the teacher, will regulate everything in YOUR classroom. I have found that if I give middle school students the power, even on something so small, so early in the year, they end up running with it... and eventually thinking they have more control than they actually do.

Have something for your students to get started on while you continue to greet students at the door. This could be some basic paperwork (Get to Know You, Facebook profile, Interest Questionnaire, etc...) or some sort of quick challenge activity like THIS or THIS. The biggest thing is you don't want a lot of down time. Down time with middle school students = chaos in the classroom = stress on the teacher = no bueno.

Introduce yourself to the entire class and tell them a little about your life. Show pictures, tell a quick story (they LOVE to hear stories about your family, children, and life in general).

On the first day, briefly let them know about your class, but don't make it the main focal point. That will come in the next few days. For now, just go over the big picture (how they will be graded, supplies needed, some basic policies, etc..) Don't spend more than 5 minutes on it, if you can. Send home a parent letter or other form of communication that will introduce you to the family and go over your basic classroom guide, like THIS brochure I have my students take home, get signed, return, and glue into their Interactive Notebook.

NOTE: Later in the first week (day 2 or 3) I send home a Parent Letter. But to help mine stand out from the other 4-6 parent letters that have gone home in every other class, I created a tri-fold brochure. Check it out HERE.

Lastly, end with some sort of Get To Know You Whole Class Activity or Team Building Exercise. I like to do a Back-to-School BINGO activity because it is a chance for students to mingle, get to know each other and myself at the same time. It isn't too serious and I actually go out of my way to make it fun and goofy.

Suggested Day 2:

Continue to greet your students at the door on a daily basis. This is a great time to kindly remind them of your expectations when they enter your room. I like to use this a time to remind my students to read the Daily Agenda Board, start a warm-up, cut out a foldable, turn in their homework, etc... (depending on the day and what I have scheduled). Bottom line, always have something for them to start doing upon entering your room. They need to know that the expectation is that they enter your room and begin to work; not come in, hang out and socialize. Time is precious and every minute needs to count. And because these are middle schoolers, you may find yourself "reminding" them (kindly and not so kindly) of your expectations up until December, but you will be the teacher relaxing at the end of the year because your students respect you and know the expectation, while your neighboring teacher may be pulling out his/her hair at the end of the year because their students are out of control by that point.

Now, it's time to start getting into the "meat" of it. How should you start presenting these expectations and procedures to your students? Over the years I have tried several methods, but my favorite has been the classroom scavenger hunt. I found it to be most effective because it allows students to walk around the room, finding task cards and checking out the classroom in general. They work with a partner, so there is a chance to discuss or have some assistance if needed. And the best part, you ask? The teacher doesn't do all of the talking! For several years in a row, I had NO voice by the end of the 3rd or 4th day of school. I was talking WAY too much and I needed to make a big change. To check out my Expectations and Procedures Scavenger Hunt, click HERE or to read my blog post about it, click HERE.

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Where do I sit? Will I like this teacher? Do I have any friends in this class? Is this class going to be hard? Will I have a lot of homework? These are all questions swimming around in the brain of a middle school student on the first day of school and it is your job to answer these questions and put the insecurities to rest.

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The first day of school is the most important day of the school year, at least when it comes to getting started on the right foot. Because of the importance placed on the first day, many teachers begin the year with a big list of rules. For some students, this can be intimidating, especially if they have experienced challenges in the classroom in the past. In fact, most students are well aware that there are consequences for poor behavior. However, you can turn the first day on its head by doing something a little different - instead of rules and consequences, begin the new school year by setting expectations.

What to Expect When Setting Expectations

Some students might not know how to react to this change of pace. If you aren't talking about rules, does that mean there are no rules? What does undesirable behavior look like? How will you react to misbehavior?

Put your students' minds at ease by providing them with boundaries and expectations, focused on positive behavior, instead. Setting expectations is at the heart of a PBIS framework, changing the focus on behaviors from the negative to the positive. Ideally, you will have a list of three to five expectations for behavior. Explain what each of these behaviors will look like in different situations.

Instead of presenting the rule, "don't talk while the teacher is talking," set the expectation of being respectful toward one another by being quiet when you or another student has the floor during a lesson.

Establishing the conduct you wish to see in your classroom is extremely important on the first day. How you teach these expectations will depend on the size of the class as well as grade level. You can't go wrong with modeling and role-playing with most classes.

Where Setting Expectations Can Go Wrong

Even after you have taught and modeled your expectations, there is still great potential to mess it all up. One tiny little mistake on your part can put the tone of your year in jeopardy.

That mistake? Letting the little things go.

As soon as the very first day, you will find that your class will stray from the expectations that you so carefully set for them. Something as small as a whispered conversation during line-up time can become, over time, a complete disregard for class expectations. Small infractions are easy to let go, especially if the class is behaving well otherwise. However, ignoring even the smallest deviation from your expectations can spell trouble for the whole school year.

"Let it go" as a philosophy only works in an animated movie ( you know the one). When you let something slip by you without redirection, you send a signal to your students that your expectations aren't as rock-solid as you say.

Start the School Year Strong

Make no mistake, your students will test you. They will test you in large and small ways, and they will do it purposely as well as unintentionally. Whatever their motives, you will need to stop that testing in its tracks. Often, the first day will be your first opportunity to demonstrate that your expectations are important.

Routines and behavior are very important to the daily success of a class, and setting expectations will help your class run more smoothly. This is where a PBIS framework is invaluable. A successful PBIS program relies on setting expectations. Teaching these expectations and modeling the behaviors that reflect these expectations will help improve behavior. Gentle redirection when students fall short of expectations establishes trust.

Moreover, a successful PBIS program can result in...

The most effective PBIS program begins strong and remains consistent, from the first day of school to the last. PBIS Rewards can help with setting expectations, allowing you to recognize expected student behavior as soon as the first day.

Redirect even the smallest misconduct on the first day and set the stage for a great school year!

Here are some related articles you may find interesting:

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Rules vs. Expectations: How to Win the Whole School Year on the First Day

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The first day of school is the most important day of the school year, at least when it comes to getting started on the right foot. Because of the importance placed on the first day, many teachers begin the year with a big list of rules.

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Ways to get your kids interacting with the math, talking about math, and productive struggle. It connects to team building

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Classic WIM (Week 2, Grades 9-12) Archives

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This is an activity for the first day or as an introduction to the scientific method or to just allow students to work in groups so that you can get to know them better. I usually do all instructions verbally and don't require any written documents for turning in. This is great for a first day activity or for an introduction to the scientific method.

Setting Up the Scenario

Sam is stuck on a boat, and how he got there is not important, but Sam can't swim and the boat is capsized. To get to shore, Sam needs to retrieve a life jacket from underneath the boat so that he can float to shore. You and your partner's job is to save Sam by retrieving the life jacket from under the boat and putting it on Sam. Unfortunately, the only tools you can use to accomplish this task are paperclips. (1 per person, or you can give them 2 per person). You cannot touch Sam, the boat, or the life preserver with your bare hands.

A gummy worm is used to represent Sam, a gummy life saver is the life preserver and an overturned cup represents the boat. *It also may enhance the activity to mention that worms are hermaphrodites, and Sam is technically both boy and girl, which makes the name rather appropriate.

Discussion Questions

1. How did you and your partner figure out how to save Sam?

2. Would it have been easier if you were working alone? Why or why not?

3. Was there a clear leader in your group? Did someone call the shots or make decisions about how to save Sam.

4. Could Sam be saved if you had only one paperclip?

5. How could you make this activity more challenging?

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This is an activity for the first day or as an introduction to the scientific method or to just allow students to work in groups so that you can get to know them better. I usually do all instructions verbally and don't require any written documents for turning in.

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I've enjoyed seeing everyone posting lately about their first day of school ideas. The first day definitely sets a tone for the year. I think that a teacher's first day activities can be quite reflective of what they value and can give a very good idea of what the year will be like. Some people jump right in and start doing math, some do icebreakers, some opt for other games, and some start right away with class expectations.

I have used the same exact first day activity every year so far. During my new teacher training we learned that we shouldn't start with rules and stuff on the first day. Now I don't think that this is necessarily the "right" thing to do, but it is something that stuck with me.

I remember stressing out SO much over the first day that first year. I wanted to find the perfect thing to do and I didn't really know what kids would like or whether they would think whatever I came up with was lame or boring. In hindsight, I stressed out over it way too much. I finally came across this game the night before school started. It involves playing cards so the morning of my very first day I had to try to hunt down as many sets of cards I could find (which happened to be miniature Snoopy, Mickey & Winnie the Pooh cards that I still use).

When the kids walk in the desks are all in tables and they can sit wherever they want. If necessary I will even out the tables a bit before we begin. The name of the game is 31-derful. I think that this might actually be a solitaire type game, but I had never heard of it.

The kids are allowed to look through the deck and choose whatever cards they want. I go over the rules using the slides above, but I offer no suggestion on strategy because I want to see what they do. The groups that put some forethought into it and use a strategy are inevitably more successful. Kids that go one card at a time will usually end up with one empty spot where no card will fit. This will then send them backwards to try to adjust.

In my honors class whichever group finishes first earns a HW/extra credit pass for each person (in these classes usually everyone finishes so I do the first group to add some competition). In my regular classes I will usually give passes out to any group that finishes.

I like this for the first day because it sets a very low key vibe, which is completely me. They can come in and sit wherever they want, I'm not lecturing for the period, and they get to chat with friends a little bit as they are engaged in some math work that definitely requires thinking. As they work I walk around and float in and out of groups and chat a little about what is/isn't working. Sometimes they get totally off track and we laugh as they decide to just start all over. Giving up isn't an option. Hard work is rewarding. All of this actually sums up my class in general pretty well.

The other part, which I'm willing to admit, is that this makes for an easy first day for me which I need. There's enough going on the first day as is and I just don't want to have to worry about making copies and talking about my class for five periods which is exhausting (I hate rule/expectation/syllabus day). By doing this, all I need to worry about is explaining the activity and getting my cards off the shelf. Simple.

So does anyone have a first day activity that you think sums up what your class is like?

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Interactive notebooks, math, Blog, teaching, high school, interactive student notebooks, standards based grading

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On the first day of class in AP Calculus and Pre-Calculus Honors I'll give out the following list of puzzlers that they'll have a limited amount of time to work on. The students will be working in groups on the new $2 interactive whiteboards.

Google Doc link. PDF link.

Btw, I still haven't figured out the pentagram puzzler. Maybe they'll beat me to it!

This entry was posted in Full Posts and tagged puzzler. Bookmark the permalink.

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On the first day of class in AP Calculus and Pre-Calculus Honors I'll give out the following list of puzzlers that they'll have a limited amount of time to work on. The students will be working in groups on the new $2 interactive whiteboards. Google Doc link. PDF link.

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The start of a new school year is fast approaching and as we begin to plan for our first days back with students I thought I'd share one of my favorite first day activities. Editor's Note (August 2020) - See Kristin Gregory's post, Build a Boat Collaboration .

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This activity is perfect for a first day or as an introduction to the scientific method. Though there isn't quite as much cooperation as the " Saving Sam" activity, the fortune telling fish allows students to explore the nature of science together.

The handout linked can be given to students, or you can also project them or just have students to the activity in an informal way. Sometimes, students come to our classroom with a concept that experiments in science include specific instructions, and few students are exposed to the idea of science as exploration.

In this case, students put the fortune telling fish in their hands and it will curl. The sleeve contains some personality information about what the movement means. Students play with the toy and then propose natural explanations for the fish's movements. They will usually come up with things like the warmth of the hand, or moisture on the hand.

Students are then asked to design a way to test their hypothesis. Here, you can use things you might have available in a lab, like water and paper towels. For students that propose it's heat, I borrow the lizard's heating pad for testing.

The cellophane that the fish is made from is actually hydroscopic, so it absorbs sweat or moisture from the skin. When the cellophane absorbs the moisture, it causes it to swell and curl away from the palm.

Depending on your students, you may need to give them guidance and leading questions, but overall, the goal is to get students to look at science as a way to answer questions and explain things we observe. NGSS lessons will use the word "phenomena" to guide a lesson where students build their understanding by exploring some kind of phenomenon observed in the world.

Fortune Telling Fish are cheap to purchase on Amazon.

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This activity is perfect for a first day or as an introduction to the scientific method. Though there isn't quite as much cooperation as the " Saving Sam" activity, the fortune telling fish allows students to explore the nature of science together.

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Planning the content and assessments for your semester is one thing; planning the first week of school is entirely different. Most of the time we have standards to meet and curriculum to get through. But during the first week, we're pressured to establish procedures, build relationships, and set the tone for the rest of the year. Choosing your back-to-school activities can be so stressful!

How do you decide what to do? How do you balance "fun" with meaningful activities? In this post, I hope to offer a few ideas that will do just that! Many of these back-to-school activities can be used in any high school class, but they'll work especially well for high school English courses.

Back-To-School Activities #1: Classroom Scavenger Hunt

This is my favorite first day of school activity and you can use it for any high school class-not just English.

The Classroom Scavenger Hunt requires a little bit of prep work. You need to know your own classroom expectations and procedures first. Then, you'll need to create labels with those procedures on them to place around the classroom. Lastly, you'll need to create a worksheet with a question about each label on it.

If you create ten or so labels for around the classroom, you'll have a pretty good scavenger hunt! This is a great way to go over classroom procedures without lecturing students for the whole first day.

Students get up and get moving, get to chat a little with their new classmates, and grow familiar with their new space. Plus, if you hand out some small treat for finishing the scavenger hunt, you'll get some "favorite teacher" points from kids nice and early in the year!

How To Prep

For example, one item I label in my classroom is my pencil bucket. I have "Pencil Bucket" typed and centered in a large font. Beneath it, I describe my procedure for borrowing pencils: "This is the pencil bucket. You do not need to ask to borrow a pencil; just grab one! Be sure to return it at the end of class when you're done."

In order for students to correctly answer the question, they'll need to move around the room, locate the pencil bucket, read the label with the procedures, and then write down the answer.

On the student worksheet, I might have a question that reads something like, "True or false: you should always ask to borrow a pencil first."
If the classroom scavenger hunt sounds like fun, but the prep work doesn't, you can grab my template for the labels and the worksheet for free right here!

Back-To-School Activities #2: Back-to-School Stations

Back-to-school stations pretty much single-handedly helped me deal with my own back-to-school anxiety. I hate having to lecture for an hour or read through a boring syllabus during the first week. What a lame way to start a year, right?

But then I started doing back-to-school stations. I t's a way to get through all of the first week's "must-dos" without losing momentum right away. Stations allow students to get up and move, gather information for the semester, and start getting to know each other (and you!).

Plus, stations are super customizable! For my English classes, one station is looking through the classroom library to choose some interesting titles for independent reading. You can add whatever activities make sense for your content area.

How To Prep

To prep your own stations, first, decide how many stations you'll have. This will depend on how long your class periods are and how many things you want students to do. I recommend having at least three: a getting-to-know-you station, a getting-to-know-the-teacher station, and a preparing-for-class station.

But you could of course have many more!

Each station will need directions as well as supplies for each activity.

One of my stations includes reading a letter from me to the class, so I leave several copies of my letter at that station. After students read my letter, they are to write a letter in response to me. So there's also blank paper and pencils at that station.

Another station I do is a reading inventory questionnaire. Students must log into our Google Classroom and complete a survey through Google Forms. In my directions, I leave the classroom code. Not only do I get valuable information about what my new students like to read, but I get them all logged into my Google Classroom as well.
You can create a station for anything you want students to do early in the year. If you'd like to try some back-to-school stations, but aren't sure what kind to create (or simply don't want to create any!) you can grab my Editable Back-to-School Stations right here!
Back-To-School Activities #3: "I Am" Poem

Having students write an "I Am" poem is an especially great first-week activity for English or Creative Writing classes. I personally hate fluffy getting-to-know-you activities; this one at least gets students doing some thinking and writing!

"I Am" Poems follow a very simple structure. Even students who hate poetry can write one easily. All they have to do is fill in some blanks about themselves.

Once students have finished writing their poems, they can be displayed for everyone in the class to see. I have students hang up their poems (if they want to be anonymous, I let them). Then, I give all of my students several post-it notes.

They fill out positive comments or personal connections on the post-its and stick them to the corresponding classmate's poem. (This gallery walk at the end of class is another way to get students up and moving during that first week!)
To prep for this one, you'll need an "I Am" Poem graphic organizer for each student. You can grab mine for FREE right here!
How To Prep

You should also write your own "I Am" poem about yourself to share with students as an example before the day they write their poems. Not only does this provide some scaffolding for students through modeling and an example, but it lets them learn a little something about you!

Back-To-School Activities #4: Email Writing

As I said, I hate fluffy getting-to-know-you activities. Having students write an email to the teacher, however, is not fluff. It's a great way to engage with students, establish communication, and set up procedures and expectations for communication.

During the first week of school, you can have students send you an email. Students can tell you about themselves, their prior knowledge in your content area, or even share information you may want to know-like their workload outside of school or their interests.

Secretly, though, you can use student emails as a pre-assessment for their writing abilities. Are they capitalizing sentences and using end punctuation? Are they correcting spelling? Reading through student emails may offer a heads-up on essential skills that need to be reviewed.

How To Prep

Before you assign an email to students, make sure you go over the email writing process. You'd be surprised by how little some of our students actually know about technology (even though they really should know better than us!).

You'll want to go over expectations for sending emails to a teacher, as opposed to a friend. You may even want to go over the parts of an email. Formal emails should still include some kind of salutation and a sign off. And many students have no idea what the difference between "bcc:" and "cc:" is at the top of emails.
If you'd like to skip the prep of making this lesson (plus have a great handout for students!), you can grab my Email Writing Lesson right here!

Then, give students a reason to email you. Give them a topic or a questionnaire to fill out and send. (Students will never be able to say they didn't know your email now!)

Back-To-School Activities #5: "Why Grammar?" Lesson

This back-to-school activity is specifically for English teachers, but it's a great first-week activity. If you plan on teaching grammar throughout the year or semester, it's helpful if students first know why they should bother with conventions and mechanics at all.

If students value clear communication and correct punctuation use, they'll be much more likely to sit through grammar drills or sentence diagramming.

You can approach trying to build up an appreciation for grammar within students a variety of ways. It's good to discuss why students will want to be able to communicate clearly through writing. But showing them funny mistakes is an effective way to make the point.

How To Prep

There are an endless amount of memes and gifs online that demonstrate how tiny mistakes can make for funny miscommunication. I recommend sharing some of these with students.

You can even assign students with the task of finding and bringing in one of these memes to share with the class!
If you'd like a done-for-you introductory grammar lesson like this, you can grab my "Why Grammar?" Lesson right here!

I always give students an unpunctuated letter that can be interpreted differently, depending on the punctuation. I let them try to punctuate it to the best of their ability before showing them different ways punctuation would change the meaning.

Conclusion

Knowing your first week priorities is important for choosing your back-to-school activities. Is building relationships the most important to you? Setting expectations? Establishing the tone of the class?

A great first week will incorporate a little bit of all of the above. But it will also show the class a little about you as a teacher. Be sure to choose activities and lessons that feel authentic to you, your teaching style, and what makes you passionate in your content area!

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5 Engaging Back-to-School Activities for High School Students | It's Lit Teaching

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Planning the content and assessments for your semester is one thing; planning the first week of school is entirely different. Most of the time we have standards to meet and curriculum to get through. But during the first week, we're pressured to establish procedures, build relationships, and set the tone for the rest of the year.

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Wow...my hat goes off to those of you who blogged regularly throughout your first week back to school. I literally was lucky to make it home without falling asleep at the wheel! Teaching procedures to 8th graders is SO much easier than teaching them to 6th graders. In fact, since I am new to the school, many of them were super helpful in telling me how things are done there and so on. The bell schedule is a little different than the one I was on last year, so I have new dismissal times to memorize. I would just ask my kids how much time is left and wouldn't you know...most of them ACTUALLY know how to read a clock!? Amazing.

I was so impressed with how my students behaved all week. These are some of the most polite kids I have ever taught. My classes are widely diverse, but the kids don't even acknowledge it, which is awesome. I am so privileged and blessed to have these kiddos to call my own.

After our first day of getting to know you activities (I actually saw all of my classes for about 30 minutes a piece that 1st day!), I knew we were ready for team building on day 2. I had already gone over my syllabus on the first day which I hadn't ever done before, but I felt like I could since I didn't have to give a school tour, etc. I am the one who needed the school tour! (True story...my kids walked me down to the textbook room so that I could issue them textbooks!)

I know I have COMPLETELY rambled, so let me get right to it! I read about The Marshmallow Challenge earlier this summer and KNEW that I wanted to try it in my class! If you want to read more about The Marshmallow Challenge, click here.

I spent about $10 on supplies for 6 classes which equates to about $0.06 per student. I am so willing to spend that on any lesson that students are going to get something out of. Here is the basic challenge:

Students use the following materials:

I also include scissors for easy cutting

The challenge is that students must create the tallest freestanding structure out of these materials with the marshmallow on top--in 18 minutes or less. It is super easy to do this, but the marshmallow is the key to keeping it upright. Many students build the structure as tall as they can and then put the marshmallow on top...and then watch it collapse before their eyes. We all think of marshmallows as light, airy, and fluffy, but in this challenge, they might as well weigh as much as a brick!

I did have several groups that were successful, but sometimes I was too excited that I forgot to take a picture! The tallest one was in 7th period and it was 22 inches. I did not let the students tape anything to the desks and that is what was harder as well. Here are some of the successful groups:

This was the first one done in 1st period, and they were so proud. They had started doing some large contraption that of course fell right over after putting the marshmallow on top. This must have been Plan B. Or Plan E. Either way, they were only 1 of 2 groups that were successful in that class!

This was the winner in 1st period at 18.75 inches. They said their inspiration was the Eiffel Tower!

I was so shocked that this one stayed up! This one was the 3rd period winner.

This was the winner in 7th period and overall! 22 inches...super proud of these boys!

I can't wait to see what else I can throw at these kids to do this year. They are all begging me to do this again so that they can fix their mistakes--I promised that we would do it in the spring to see how much they had improved!

The best part was the recap at the end of the challenge where we discussed that most everything in life has a "marshmallow aspect" to it where it kind of throws a wrench in the plans and how we can overcome it in math. Did I mention I love my kids?!?

Looking for more Back to School activities to use in your math class? Check these out!

Be sure to drop me a line and tell me how it went in your class!

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The Marshmallow Challenge - Day 2 Activity

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Wow...my hat goes off to those of you who blogged regularly throughout your first week back to school. I literally was lucky to make it home without falling asleep at the wheel! Teaching procedures to 8th graders is SO much easier than teaching them to 6th graders.