How do you feel about the first week of school? Excited? Stressed? Tired? Overwhelmed? ALL the feels?
Every year when the new first week of school rolls around it can be SO exciting, but of course overwhelming. I am going to introduce you to my secret for a STRESS FREE and better yet, FUN first week! Are you excited to learn more? You’re going to want to save this post so that when you’re ready, you are going to have your ENTIRE first week of school planned out with students. Sounds too good to be true? Keep reading to learn how!
First Week Focus
There are SO many goals we set during the first week of school with students. Between learning everyone’s names to helping everyone feel welcome and safe, it’s A LOT to accomplish. To help with the overwhelm here, I decide to focus on two simple, yet extremely crucial things: building relationships and setting expectations.
Honing in on these two things will help you start off on the right foot, building a solid foundation with your new group of students. So let’s get into some tips for these two focus areas!
Easy Ideas for Building Relationships
I always say if you have strong relationships with your students, everything else comes easy. Of course, to get to that strong relationship, we have to spend ample time working hard to get to know students and begin building those connections. In addition to our solid relationship with students, it’s also our job to foster healthy peer relationships as well. Below are a few of my favorite EASY ways to begin building those important relationships!
- The Cup Stacking Challenge
- Find a Friend Bingo
- Would You Rather
- Name STEM
- Hot Seat
All About Me Bags are another great way to get to know students while also involving their families. Students collect a few small items from home that represent themselves or is special to them and put them in their bag. Throughout the week, students take turns sharing the items from their bag so that the class can get to know each other a little better. This activity is also a great time filler during any down time you may have that first week. Grab your FREEBIE below!
Grab this free resource now!
Setting Expectations
In addition to building relationships, we must also set high expectations right from the get go. This is EXTREMELY important. We must be really clear on our routines, rules, and procedures. Below are routines and procedures I begin teaching students from DAY 1!
- Arriving and Unpacking
- Using the Bathroom
- Using School Supplies
- Lining Up
- Dismissal Time
I have an ultimate hack for teaching all your routines and procedures and it’s a simple four word strategy- “Looks Like, Sounds Like”. If you want to transform how your classroom runs and get all your procedures down like magic, read more about it HERE!
At this point, you may be thinking, this all sounds great… but where do I start? Well here’s the best part… I’ve done ALL the hard work for YOU! Are you ready to ROCK the first week of school while also being STRESS-FREE?
Prep Made Easy
This First Week Kit is an absolute MUST HAVE!! It has been designed to include EVERYTHING you need for the first 5 days of school. We’re talking
- Detailed Lesson Plans
- 20+ Activities for Building Relationships and a Sense of Team
- Paired Mentor Texts and Activities
- Easy to Follow Assembly Instructions
- And SO Much MORE!
I have taken YEARS of learning, hard work, mistakes, and activities to compile this amazing tool to help plan out your entire first week of school with NO hard work for you. You’ll walk into your classroom day one with an overabundance of activities and plans so that you know exactly what to do. This way you can focus on what really matters- spending the time getting to know your amazing new group of kiddos.
You’ll have the first 5 days of school planned out and I guarantee you’ll have activities leftover to get you through the first month of school. I’ll show you how and when to teach important procedures during the first week so that you will have a solid foundation built with students.
There are even editable plans included so that you can change and edit to meet your specific classroom needs. You’ll be amazed how much has been taken off your plate the first week of school so that you can actually ENJOY your time with your new class.
And don’t just take my word and experience for it. Here’s what other teachers just like you are saying about this kit!
“Obsessed is an understatement! This is the best resource one could buy! The bonus of the first week tub is AMAZING! I got it all printed and bound and I can’t wait to build and have the best classroom ever!!” -Alexandra
One of my best purchases. It made starting the school year so effortless! – Suzanne
This resource was SO valuable for planning the first weeks back and finding fun, engaging activities to promote community in my classroom. I loved how adaptable the plans were and how simple they were to carry out, and my students really loved the activities (the name STEM activity was so fun and it allowed for a lot of valuable conversation). Thank you thank you thank you. This is my first year in second and the read aloud suggestions and connected activities were perfect. – Molly
Check out this sneak peek video of how to assemble this awesome kit!
So what are you waiting for? NOW is the time. Grab your First Week Kit and make it the BEST YEAR EVER. The best part? Once you prep your kit, you’ll have it FOREVER. I even teach you some simple and easy tricks so that you can save your masters so that all you have to do each year is make your copies and you’re good to go!
Want to learn more tips and tricks for making back to school a breeze? Check out some more helpful blogs below!
Rocking the First Week of School
How to Crush Classroom Procedures the First Week
The Ultimate Back to School Guide for Teachers
I really hope you enjoyed learning more about tips, tricks, ideas for totally rocking the first week with students! Don’t forget to subscribe to my email list! Not only will you get the most up to date tips, tricks, and classroom projects… and of course more fun FREEBIES including the All About Me Bag FREEBIE! If you would like to learn about this and other things happening in my classroom follow me @sweetnsauerfirsties on Instagram.
To follow me on TPT and get all the latest updates on HALF OFF new products, click HERE!
Love these ideas but don’t want to lose them? Don’t forget it, PIN it below!
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