Preparing for the first day of school has always been
difficult. I want my students to know a little bit about me as a person, I want
them to like my class, but my psychological need for rules and structure makes
it difficult for a fun experience.
Philosophically, I believe it is important to begin as you
want to proceed. About 18 years ago, I changed our first day to include a
collaborative “get up out of your seat” activity that incorporated a
“scavenger” hunt that had students going around the room in teams, finding
information for a worksheet that included the expectations for behavior,
required materials and how assignments would be done. I wanted the students to
know that this class would be different (and hopefully more fun) in terms of
process, but that I still follow rules and regulations. For the last few years,
I quite frankly was bored by that activity and had wanted to change it up, but
until this year, I had not found a suitable alternative.
It took me a total of about an hour and a half before the
first day of school to assemble all the supplies I would need for the first
day. And it was worth every single second of prep time! When students arrived,
I had their box of materials on the desk and a note on the board not to touch
them until I gave specific instructions. I greeted each student at the door
with a “Welcome” and a handshake (it’s a habit I use all year long) and a
reminder to read the board in the front of the room. I used some drama and
greeted the class several times with a loud or soft “good morning!” and
expecting a similar greeting in return.
To start off the actual lesson, I said, “Please find the neon
markers in your box and choose one that you like.” Students are quietly saying
things like “These are cool”, “Which color do you want?”
Next, in a quiet, casual voice I directed them to write
their name and period directly on the table. Their response was louder, at this
point. “You mean on the desk? There’s no paper. Shouldn’t there be paper? I can
write on the desk?? I have never been told to write on a desk before!”
Next, I said, “Take out a container of play dough and roll
it around on your desk to make sure it is soft.” Some students are pretty
freaked out by this time, because many of them have not played with play dough
in school since the first grade.
"Your job is to create something with the
play dough that represents something about who you are.” You cannot imagine (or
maybe you can) how loud the noise level is by this time. I repeated the instructions
and then told them that I was going to finish doing roll and check some things
on my desk and then I would be coming around to check on their progress
individually.
The timing was pretty good on this activity. I got around to
speak to each and every student and find out a little about everyone, using the
play dough sculpture as a prompt for discussion. I told each one a little about
myself, related to the conversation, so we could begin to find some
commonality. I have several inexpensive digital cameras and I directed one
person in each work group to take pictures of the sculptures, including the
name of the person in the photo. So I now have a record (and a momento) for
each student that attended the first day of school in my class. 
Some students finished their sculptures before others and I
just told them to introduce themselves to the peers around them and show off
their work a little. Near the end of the period, I went around and sprayed some
cedar and sage cleanser on each of the desks and had the students clean their
workspace with shop rags so that the next class coming in would have no idea
what was coming when they arrived. I reminded them that their experience was
probably not repeatable in other classes. I made it clear as I told them “What
happens in Mrs. Diver’s class, stays in Mrs. Diver’s class!” Writing on the
desks is forbidden elsewhere. Playing with play dough is just generally not
done anywhere but early elementary school.
I got my ideas for this first day from a nexus of sources. I
read “Teach Like A PIRATE” by Dave Burgess- a must read for any teacher who
wants to create a learning adventure in which kids will gladly want to
participate. The play dough sculpture is his first day activity. I heard about
the use of neon expo markers from someone at a Discovery Educator's Network
workshop I attended at the beginning of summer. I learned about the archival
use of digital cameras from a CUE session I attended back in the spring. Here are the links to these awesome resources:
Dave Burgess
DEN- Community
Computer Using Educators
Dave Burgess
DEN- Community
Computer Using Educators
The
synergistic effect of these blended activities created a huge positive impact
for the first day of school. My students walked away with a fun experience and
looking forward to coming back the next day. There was all kinds of animated
chatter about the sculptures and neon markers on the way out the door. Better yet, I had a great time! I was so excited when the
day was over, I couldn’t sleep in just reviewing what had happened. I actually
spoke to EVERY SINGLE student the first day of school. In 24 years of teaching,
I have never done that.
I would have to say it was my BEST FIRST DAY EVER!
I would have to say it was my BEST FIRST DAY EVER!
