The First Week...Complete with Play-Dough, Shoes, and Pom Poms

Everyone starts the first week differently. I have learned over several years of teaching that the single most important thing you can do in your first week is develop relationships with your students. We all need to establish expectations and prepare for teaching academic lessons, but it is imperative to get to know your students. I attempt to learn about my students and develop relationships 100 percent of my day with the exception of lunch and specials during the first 5 days. Below I have outlined a number of activities and lessons I complete in the first 5 days to meet this goal.

Helpful Tip: Create a chart with your first week plans. Then put all the needed materials in a binder to pull out year after year.

"Do Now" or "Bell-ringer" Ideas:

• Play-Dough Representation - Provide students with a container of play-dough. Ask them to create something that represents them. Wait and see what your students create. Have them share their representations with each other.

• About Me Survey - There are numerous survey's to find online, or create your own. Have students complete the survey to tell you more about themselves.

• Squiggle Pictures - Give students a blank piece of paper with a random squiggle mark or shape. Have them create a picture using the given lines.

• Custom Handshakes - I always like to see the creativity in my students with this activity. I simply post the message to create a custom handshake to do with your teacher. Give students about 10 minutes to create their handshake idea. Practice the handshakes with the students and do them each day as they enter the classroom.

Morning Meeting Activities:

• Shoe Swap - Have students sit in a circle and put one shoe in the middle. Then, have every student grab a random shoe. They should find the partner who owns the shoe and share one interesting fact with each other.

• Greetings - Model positive ways to greet each other in the morning. Have students offer ideas of how to greet each other and practice these greetings. I then have one or two students greet other students at the door each morning following this activity.

STEAM Activities:

• Help Harry - This activity can easily be found online. The idea is to provide random construction items (cardboard, plastic cup/plate, straws, tape, etc.) in a baggie for students. The students are given a few minutes to brainstorm and then 10-15 minutes to create a perch to hold Harry (a pompom). They want to get the perch as high as they can to hold Harry safely.

• Puzzle Building - Divide the class randomly into two groups. Give each group a puzzle with the pieces upside down. Have them work for a few minutes to try the puzzle and then talk about the challenges of completing it. Next, have them flip the pieces over and try again. After several minutes, talk about any additional struggles they had putting the puzzle together. Finally, provide them the picture and discuss how beginning with a plan and setting goals can help in completing an activity or solving a problem.

• Apple Tower - Provide groups of students with building materials (cardboard, pipe cleaners, paper plates, etc.), but no tape. They should work for a given amount of time to build a free-standing tower that would hold an apple. After completing their tower, they should work with their group to draw pictures or make a list of the steps they took and changes they made as they developed their tower. (Also a great time to discuss how we learn from mistakes!)

Growth Mindset Lesson Ideas:

• Quotes - I always have motivational quotes related to growth mindset posted in my classroom. I choose one or two quotes each year and discuss them with students. We talk about the meaning of the quote and then discuss how the quote can be applied to our lives in school and outside of school.

• Salt in His Shoes - This is an idea I borrowed from either TPT or a blog online (I honestly can't remember). I read the book to students and we talked about Michael Jordan pursuing his dream. We discussed the goal he had and his plan to reach that goal. This lead into the following activity on SMART goals.

• SMART Goals - Goals are a huge part of students owning their learning. I set goals with my students every year! We are really focused on SMART goals this year. I could easily share my resources here, but go find something you like. We take at least 30-40 minutes in the first week of school to plan academic goals for the school year. See "A Goal System that Works" for more ideas on making goals with your students.

• Fixed vs. Growth Sort - Another way to reinforce growth mindset with students in the first week of school is to give them statements that representing having a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. They then work independently or with a partner to sort the statements. Review the statements with the whole class and clarify and misconceptions.

There are many more activities out there to have your students complete...just search on TPT or Google. I also spend additional time on other get-to-know-you activities and setting expectations. We talk about respect and the expectations for math and reading workshops. I also teach a few mini-lessons on choosing the right books and reading spot in the classroom. All of these things are important, but ultimately learning about your students, and letting them learn about you, is the most important part of your first week of school.