Last April my husband and I decided to take the 5 kids to the Smokey Mountains for a week. Everyone was excited, we rented a big van, I made lists and we were ready to go. We decided to get up at 4 am and drive so that our twin toddlers would sleep for a good chunk of the drive from New York to North Carolina.
The day had arrived. We set alarms, we dragged the kids into the van and we drove. We get all the way to the Pennsylvania border with a quiet, sleeping van and my husband looks at me and says "I forgot my prescription medicine!" Oh my God, there was no way he could go without it. We had to turn around. We thought we were prepared but we were NOT! So long to a quiet sleeping van. It took me a good half a day to forgive him by the way.
Along those same lines, does anyone else have nightmares the nights leading up to the first day of school that you are not prepared and the class goes wild? How about that you forgot to put on pants or your car breaks down on the way to school? I have had every nightmare there is the day before the first day.
3 Be Prepared for the First Day Tips:
1. Over Plan. Having more plans than you need for the first day is key. Some classes go by really quickly and the kids just get it. You don't want to be stuck staring at the clock wishing it would go faster. Have an extra activity or 2 as back up. If you don't get to them, you can use them the next day or as a sub plan!
2. Have an opener or bellringer to start. By starting off the class with a discussion question or opening activity helps to break the ice a bit. I like to get to know my students as quickly as possible because it helps build a classroom community and helps with classroom management.
3. Gather Information. Have students complete an online or paper questionnaire about their interests, their prior knowledge of the content and their contact information. You are showing that you are interested in them and you are able to look through these papers over the next few weeks to help with getting to know your students. It is also a nice way to use up some class time on the first day when you may be feeling a bit nervous and overwhelmed.
Here are a few resources I use on the first few days of school to help get me started!
This food themed ice breaker is great for culinary arts and family and consumer science classes. It gets the kids talking about food and you can even have them split into 2 groups to make it into a game! There are 30 questions and answers for 30 days of school.
This free culinary inventory activity is a nice way to gather information about the students' cooking background and experience. You can also have them share their answers if they are comfortable.
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