Mastering the First Day of School
Investigate the teacher
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Inquiry Activities
16 personalities
Career Research Interviews & Presentations
Minute to Win it Games
Minute to Win It Games
Minute to Win it Games
It's that time of year again!
Here are some free & paid resources you can use on the first day/couple days back to EASE back into the school year with NEW students.
#1 Investigate the Teacher via @writeonwithmissg I used this the first day with my students last semester and LOVED IT! It is an easy way for the students to get to know you WITHOUT just going through a Powerpoint because they go around the room and gather inferences about you based on your classroom. Students get to MOVE on the first day & practice research skills! Find it here!
#2 Back to School Escape Room @nouvelle_ela Two years ago I used this to introduce my classroom rules and syllabus. You can purchase the product and it is 100% editable to fit your classroom. Another awesome way to get the kids up and moving and learning things you HAVE TO teach ANYWAY...but making it more engaging (and less hands on for you, after you get it set up!)
#3 Back to School Stations I did this year and LOVED it, I got the idea from @writeonwithmissg (you can purchase her product, I ended up making my own). I made 8 stations for the students to rotate around the room and complete. Some examples were goal making station, Meet with Mrs. Nerswick station, Student information Google Doc, FFA "post it" question poster, etc. You can make whatever stations fit your needs :)With OLD Students
#4 Inquiry Lab I was part of the National Agriscience Teacher Ambassador Program a few summers ago (if you haven't done it....DO IT). But, one of the things they made us to is IMMEDIATELY get our of our comfort zone into the world of inquiry. If you are teaching a science class that will require students to think like scientists/researchers etc... you might want to start out the class with some uncomfortable growing to get the kids used to what you expect of them! I tend to do the "does bubblegum can/lose weight as you chew?" but there are TONS of other ideas like "are Oreos "really" double stuffed?" You basically give them the question, they DO THE REST! They create the experiment and do it! I give them a ONE SHEET lab report called a VEE Map. This includes ALL the things you need (materials, steps, results, etc) in an easy to follow sheet. I usually do this on the FIRST or SECOND day!
#5 16 Personalities Ever heard of Myers-Briggs testing? I am a leadership NERD (insert hand up emoji here). There is a free test from 16 personalities that I love doing with my students. EVERY TIME students are like "that is TOTALLY me!" the website is very in-depth in many categories like careers, relationships, things that we like, teamwork etc. Students can gain A LOT of insight about themselves. I have given them a quick worksheet to complete and even once had students do a presentation on their findings using this Google Slides prompt. One of the prompts was to find funny pictures/memes that associate with their personality, below is an example.
#6 Career Research/Interviews I LOVE starting the year off with careers. I can hear you sighing and about to skip to the next idea...but stick with me. Instead of taking a test, or a web quest online. I HAVE STUDENT INTERVIEW a REAL PERSON about their ideal career. YES, they have to actually TALK ON A PHONE (or skype/facetime). I basically provide the contacts (you could do this for just one unit, ex. Animal Science-Find a bunch of people you know (via networking, contacts, social media) get their contact information and provide it to a student (or partners/groups). Then the students take the reins, they contact the person (via email) to set up a phone interview. They make the questions, have an interview, ask for follow-up questions/photos for them to make a presentation to class on their findings. This provides students an opportunity to learn about careers BUT also practice professional correspondence.
#7 Resolutions/Goals There are A TON of resources on Teachers Pay Teachers for New Year resolutions and/or goals worksheets/activities.
#8 Letter to Me in 2023 I was thinking I wanted to do something similar to a resolution/goals activity, but wanted to make it a little different. So, I came up with an idea for the students to write a letter to themselves reflecting on the past year. They get a prompt to write three paragraphs, complete the letter, seal it in an envelope and they will get it back at the end of the school year. I will be doing this in some classes next week :) Here it is.
#9 Podcast I LOVE podcasts! Mainly for my own development and inspiration like the School of Sales by GUIDE Culture and Goal Digger by Jenna Kutcher. But, there are SO many good ones out there you can use in your classroom. Maybe the kids ALREADY listen to one. Pick one, or leave it open-ended for the kids to pick their own. Listen to the podcast and provide a reflection component (you could use the worksheet in #10).
#10 Retiring Address/Ted Talk Worksheet I am a sucker for a good retiring address or Ted Talk. I love hearing people's unique perspectives on life. You can get a free Ted Talk worksheet here from Laura Randazzo. I also made a similar one for Retiring Addresses (find it free there) as part of my Emergency Sub Plan documents (6 different ONE PAGE worksheets (printable/electronic) that can be used in ANY UNIT in ANY class)!
#11 BONUS--Leadership Initiatives/Team Building Activities Fun activities are the best activities! I love having some fun activities to get the year or semester started! It's also an EASY way to weave in some teamwork and communication skills! I've done a fair few of these--Here is a quick list of examples...Balloon Tower Building, Spaghetti Tower, Minute to Win it Games, Team marker writing/drawing,team cup stacking, and so many more! Phew, now I just need to choose which one to do on my first day back next week!Hope you find something that give you a day to reset and the kids to get engaged!
Get Your Classroom Under Control With These 4 Management Strategies
The new year is here and after a few weeks out of the classroom, it can be a bit difficult to reign your students back in and get them fully engaged in your lessons.
After all, students have just gone from being hyped up on Christmas candy, holiday fun and staying up too late to jumping back into early alarm clocks and are expected to be on their best behavior from 8am-3pm Monday through Friday.
Not to mention, it’s that time of the school year that seems to drag on with very few breaks in between, so it’s completely understandable that, as a teacher, you would be in search of new classroom strategies to implement so that your students feel excited and ready to learn.
The good news is that there is absolutely a way that you can make the second half of the school year work for you, not against you!
As you ring in 2023 in the classroom, we encourage you to implement one or all of these 4 classroom management strategies in order to create a collaborative learning environment for your students.
Non-verbal Classroom Management Techniques
If you’ve ever felt like your classroom is completely out of control, your students aren’t listening to your directions or you feel like you’re answering the same exact question 10 times a day, non-verbal techniques can be your life saver!
Here are 3 of Mrs. Wedger’s favorites that go hand-in-hand together
1. Freeze Body
For this technique, simply choose a place in your classroom where every single student can see you and hear you - this will be what you call your “freeze body” spot and this is the spot you will stand in anytime you need to gain (or regain) your students attention or deliver important directions.
When you stand in this spot, make sure you have a firm, confident stance and follow your stance with an attention getting phrase.
This phrase should be something that you have previously trained your students on to know that you need their attention when you speak this phrase.
Mrs. Wedger keeps it simple by saying, “eyes and ears up here!” It’s short and sweet, but gets the job done.
There’s two keys to remember with this technique:
WAIT! Don’t try to talk over your students during this time, but instead wait until you have their attention. This will train them that you aren’t going to move forward until everyone is listening.
Remain still while delivering directions so that your students can hear and focus on everything you’re saying. When you wander around or pace back and forth, it can be hard for students to keep their focus on you, so do them a favor by staying in one spot!
Release phrase & wait 20 seconds
In addition to an attention getting phrase, you also want to make sure you have a “release” phrase that students know. This is the phrase you will speak after you’ve delivered directions and this lets them know that they can move forward with their work.
Again, the two key with this technique is that you:
WAIT! Before you move from your freeze body spot, wait at least 20 seconds so that students know that you are serious about them starting their work. If you have students that are not getting started, simply make eye contact with them and it will usually move them into action.
Stay silent. This allows your students to remain focused and actually get to work versus being distracted by conversation in the room.
Above, Pause, Whisper
When you’re ready to regain your students' attention after their working time, you want to go back to your freeze body spot, raise your hand high and pause.
During this time, students will naturally start to pay attention to you. Now, of course there may be some that you need to reign in further and you can simply do so by calling their name.
Once you have every student's attention, speak your first sentence in a whisper. This causes everyone to lean in and it really grabs their attention because they want to know what you’re going to say next.
Now that you have their attention, you can speak in your normal voice and trust that your students are truly listening - a teacher’s dream, right?!
2. Exit Directions
Have you ever given your students directions and released them to work, only to have multiple kids ask you what they’re supposed to be doing? 😅
I think it’s probably happened to all of us and it can be a real frustration in the classroom as a teacher. To prevent this from happening on an ongoing basis, you can implement exit directions.
Exit directions bring true purpose and clarity in the classroom and quite honestly give you your sanity back!
Picture this: you’ve just delivered directions for what your students should work on next and you’re ready to exit the teaching stage. You project a slide on your board that everyone can clearly see and read.
Your students have little to no questions and are ready to get to work. The rest of class time is filled with students doing exactly what was expected of them and you end class feeling confident in yourself as a teacher!
That’s a picture you want to see, right?!
You can achieve that ⤴️ when you implement exit directions, friend!
What they are not: step-by-step written directions for the assignment - that’s what you give during your teaching time.
What they are: what they should be doing during and after they complete the assignment
For example, exit directions could be something like:
Get into groups of 4
Complete notebook assignment
When completed, get stamp
When done, [insert options they can do]
In order to do this well, we encourage you to couple your exit directions with images or emojis so that it captures your students' attention in a new way and so that it trains them that when they see the image, it sparks something in their brain and they know exactly what to do.
Implementing exit directions allows students to really lead themselves with a little guidance from you so that you aren’t the one having to do all of the heavy lifting throughout the entire day.
3. Start Class Strong With Routine
Have you ever gotten held up in a meeting or in the hallway before the bell rings and you can’t make it back to your class in time to greet your students and get them started?
And then once you return, the class is absolutely bonkers, no one is in their assigned seats and it takes an extra 10 minutes to calm everyone down before you can actually start class? 🙃
Yeah, those days aren’t fun and it definitely doesn’t start things on the right foot. But what if we told you that there is a way your students can start class WITHOUT you there?!
It's totally possible friend and it can happen when you establish a solid routine and structure for your students to expect and keep it consistent. Here’s what this can look like ⬇️
Routine: something that your kids are used to doing in your classroom every single day.
The routine for your classroom should be established at the start of the school year and should remain fairly consistent from that point on. This allows your students to know what they can expect as soon as they walk in and after a few weeks, they don’t have to wait on you to guide them.
A routine for your class can look something like this:
Come in and turn in homework
Complete 5 minute starter assignment
Get out notebook to take notes on lesson of the day
The routine for your classroom will be totally unique to you, but the point is that establishing a routine allows for a much calmer environment and sets your students up for ultimate success.
4. Student Encouragement
Did you know that you have the power to impact your students with JUST your words?!
Just like we as adults need and appreciate encouraging words, our students do too. And while I know this sounds simple and like it may not need that much intention, the way that you encourage your students can be designed as something you do very strategically and when you put more thought into it, it can have a lasting impact!
So, how can you pour love, energy, excitement and confidence into your students?
There are plenty of ways you can do this and it can be as simple or as complex as you want!
Some ideas include:
Place sticky notes with specific compliments on their desk before they enter your classroom
Give additional feedback with encouraging words on a graded paper
Offer public praise in front of the whole class when they’ve done something exceptional
Mail a letter home to honor their work in front of their family
Do 2-3 minutes 1:1 student teacher meetings during class time and follow the start, stop and keep formula
Implement jacket quotes - Mrs. Nerswick explains more about this in THIS podcast episode
At the end of the day, the whole point is that you are intentional with the encouragement you give to your students. When you do this consistently, their confidence will grow and there is a solid chance they will remember you for it long after they are a student of yours.
These 4 classroom strategies can set your classroom, your students and YOU up for success as you tackle the last half of the school year and ultimately help you create an environment that is conducive to real learning and leadership.
We’d love to hear which one you’re going to try out - let us know in the DM’s!
The Green & Growing Fam 💚
3 New Year Activities to Get the Year Started With a BANG
You walk into your classroom after two glorious weeks of sleeping in, using the bathroom when you want, and binging Emily in Paris (or Jack Ryan).
You totally thought you had all your lessons ready to go before you shut the classroom door way back in 2022!
But, alas. You were a little too eager to get out of the classroom with your armful of holiday treats and gift cards. No worries! Below you can find THREE simple new years activities you can print and have ready for the kids knocking on your door quicker than you can say “Welcome Back.”
1. New Year-One Word
These simple tartants have graced the walls of Sarah’s classroom since 2019. A quick 30 minute activity for students to brainstorm words they want to emulate in the new year, pick one, explain why they want to embody that word this year, then creatively decorate the tartant.
You can grab this takeaway from the takeaway library and check out a past blog with more details.
2. Vision Boards
Did you know January 14 is National Vision Board Day? Based on the concept that “seeing is believing” allow your students some time to create their own vision board for the new year.
Use choice to have students express their vision boards in ways they feel comfortable. Maybe they draw it, or cut out magazine pictures or even hop on Canva and create it digitally.
If you are wondering how to include categories for these vision board to make them more holistic than just “school goals,” try these categories: Health/Wellness, School, Home/Family/Friends, Financial, and Personal Growth.
3. FFA Emblems from Cam Frazier
Past Germinate Speaker, Cam Frazier started the Personal FFA Emblem Craze two years ago. He suggests using it when you are teaching your FFA unit to help review the parts of the emblem (you know the ear of corn and plow right?).
Now, the personal FFA emblem is created using symbols that represent what means the most to that student. Imagine a soccer ball for your sports lover, a deer for the hunters in the crowd, and paintbrushes for those who love to create visual art.
You can check out some examples on Cam’s Instagram and you might even be able to snag his template if you say “pretty please” in his DMs.
So, take a moment to think about which of the three activities would be best for your kiddos. That might be based on their age, maturity level or even the class prep (Emblems may work better in a Basic Ag class and maybe Vision Boards for your Seniors).
These 3 New Years Activities can help you start the day with some fun and time to reflect on what the student really wants out of the new year. That reflection can help the students look into the future and envision who they can be not who people tell them they are.
And that my friend is the power of taking a moment to reflect and set some personal goals. You have the power to provide that time to your students this month!
We’d love to hear which one you’re going to try out - let us know in the DM’s!
The Green & Growing Fam 💚
Holiday Hazards for Your Pets: Downloadable Inside
It’s the most wonderful time of the year… but did you know it can be the most hazardous time of the year for your pets?
Holidays always allow for fun classroom activities and give your students the chance to do something that matches their energy versus forcing them to sit and listen to a 30 minute lesson when they’re hyped up on chocolate and the excitement of the upcoming winter break..
I mean let’s face it - holidays as teachers can be challenging, but we must remember that it isn't our students' fault!
Kids are naturally excited 🤪 about holidays (regardless of their age and regardless if it’s Valentine’s Day, Christmas or Groundhogs Day 😂), so instead of wasting your time and energy on trying to correct their behavior, you can lean into it by planning for fun activities that relate to the holiday at hand!
This activity goes hand in hand with the holidays, so it creates the perfect opportunity for you to still teach something on this day while relating it back to what’s actually going on in their life!
For this Holiday Hazards activity, your students will research hazards that are common around the season. From the beautiful (and toxic) poinsettias to the tantalizing (and shocking) twinkling lights, students find those hazards that might cause our furry (and not so furry) friends stress on the holidays.
To add an extra layer to this activity, you can assign one hazard per group, have them research in groups, present their findings to the whole class. Another extension activity is to have student create informational posters to hang around school!
Holiday Hazards is quick activity (approx. one 45 minute class) that will keep those students occupied despite their distractions on the holiday!
You can grab this activity for FREE by clicking HERE.
Happy Holidays!
The Green & Growing Fam 💚