No matter what grade you teach, the first day of school can be scary – for students and teachers alike.  Check out some of the gentle reminders below and share them with your children to remind them that everyone gets a bit nervous.  Have a great year!

by Elizabeth Supan, Monthly Columnist Just the phrase itself sends shivers. Doesn’t it? I still get so nervous and excited on the night before the first day back that I have a hard time sleeping. I think the reason I am a bundle of nerves is because I want to make sure that I cover
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by Cara Carroll, Monthly Columnist Visions of newly sharpened pencils, crisp folders, untainted glue bottles, and fresh crayons are swirling in my head right now. It’s time to go back to school! Even after spending 10 years in the classroom, I still get butterflies in my stomach to this day just thinking about the first
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by Hadar Maor, Monthly Columnist With another school year around the corner, I’m sure there are many things on your mind! Setting up the perfect bulletin boards, making new name tags, sharpening hundreds of pencils! And on top of all of that, making sure that your students feel welcome in their new classroom. What’s a
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by Marissa Kiepert Truong, Guest Blogger With the new school year approaching fast, anxiety is sure to be running high. Teachers are busy planning every detail of the first few months that lie ahead, while parents and young children are nervously awaiting an important transition in their lives to preschool or kindergarten. For many children
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Embrace the first day of school with the wonderful ideas that the amazing #TeachChat teachers shared during the chat on Wednesday, August 1st, 2012. Need ideas for activities, supply organization, and managing the first day? Read the transcript below to find all of that and more! Remember, scroll to the bottom and read UP! Join
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Idea by Teresa, 5th Grade Teacher, North Canton, OH I use Really Good Stuff® Hands Up Dry Erase Boards to generate a fun activity that lets students learn more about me. I place a Y on one side of each hand and an N on the other to indicate Yes/No. (You can also use T/F
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Idea by Rosio, 5th Grade Teacher, Turlock, CA On the first day of school we divide the class in half and ask students to stand in two parallel lines facing each other. Students then have one minute to take turns introducing themselves and offering one cool, “bet you didn’t know this about me” fact to
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Idea by Farrah, Kindergarten Teacher, Nanuet, NY Each year, before the first day of school, we hold a “Back-to-School Kindergarten Social.” At that time, parents and students can come in to meet me, greet classmates, and explore the classroom while I help soothe any jitters. It’s also a great time for parents to meet other
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Idea by Michael, 5th Grade Teacher, Delmar, NY To help break the ice in my class, I have students play a game I call “2 Truths and a Spoof.” To play, students must write three items about themselves, two that are true and one that is false. I tell them to really think carefully so
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