Bring on the Kinders! Day 2 2013

With day 1 accounted for I was ready for day 2!  Here's some basic information/ ideas from Ms C's attempt on day 2, which was also approached armed with the name tags, a pile of books and invisible bag of teacher tricks.

Day 2

Schedule "routine" items for day 2:
Playground rules, quiet sign, attention getter ("bump-ba-da-bump-bump" is the only one I use), clean up bell, fire drill, morning meeting, and jobs.  I also had to re-teach how to use the sink and the process for washing hands before snack.  Day 3 may include another round of this- I really want to get the sink routine under control before I spend the entire year cleaning up puddles and running out of paper towels.


Activites for day 2:
After reading Wemberly Worried we talked about things we worry about in Kindergarten.  Students drew a picture of his/her Kindergarten worry, again with the option to write words if they were ready.  Here's a link if you're interested: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0By1GkRIpToipY0EtNG5mclFySk0/edit?usp=sharing

The second must-do for Day 2 was the start of a project using the Kissing Hand.  This project will take a few days.  Before working on this project students explored scissors.  We talked about how to safely use scissors and then students were asked to cut a piece of paper into strips.  This is a great way to quickly tell who has used scissors before and who will need hand-over-hand support for a while.  The first part of the Kissing Hand project was to cut out a tracing of his/her hand (I did the tracing).

One other teacher must-do is to take the class outside for photos on the playground.  I love the colors of the playground!  Make sure that you take your class outside when no other class is using the playground.  I have my class sit in the shade so that each picture is of only the child and some of the playground.  I do this again at the end of the year (for the slide show).  The beginning of the year photos are used in the Art Gallery, hanging next to each child's self portrait spot all year. 

Books for day 2: 

Day 2 "things to send home": 
The only items I sent home at the end of Day 2 were from the school.   


Good luck everyone!

 

Bring on the Kinders! First Day 2013

Ok- #1 Blogger slacker here.  I have lots of Kinder D5 items to post at some point.  For now, I want to share some first day items.

Day 1

Armed with name tags, a pile of first day of Kindergarten books, and of course my teacher "bag of tricks" (the invisible one), I started off my year with 17 new friends (#18 hasn't arrived yet).

Schedule "routine" items for day 1:
Supply sorting, cubby routines (lunchbox on top, backpack on the hook), bathroom "how to," School Listening Look, School Walking Style, cafeteria rules, school tour, classroom tour, preview of Choice Time (teacher selected choice), quiet time with books, and lots of extra time for dismissal!  I saved a few items for day 2: Playground rules, quiet sign, attention getter ("bump-ba-da-bump-bump" is the only one I use), clean up bell, fire drill, morning meeting, and jobs.

Activites for day 1:
Every year I create a book of self portraits that each student draws, monthly.  The first entry in each book is a drawing from the first day of Kindergarten (the last page is for the last day of Kindergarten).  Before students complete this activity we explore the crayons.  We look at the crayons and talk about what we do and don't do with them.  There is a space on the portrait page for writing- this is not an expectation but I want to provide an opportunity for students who are ready to write or at least ready to try.  My first day portrait paper: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0By1GkRIpToipQ2lsZnBQUlJBWXM/edit?usp=sharing

Books for day 1:

Day 1 "things to send home":
I send home a first day letter to the parents letting them know of some classroom policies and procedures that I need to share prior to Back to School Night (in late September).  Mainly, I let them know about my birthday policy.  I ask that families do not send in gift bags and that if they would like to send something in they can send in something for classroom, preferably a book.   As far as "celebrating" birthdays, I ask that parents send in a special book (they are also welcome to come in and read the book).  Attached to the letter is a copy of the supply list/ wish list, a dismissal log, and an allergy alert (from the nurse).  I also send home a small home project, a "me bag."  Each student is asked to bring in 3-4 small items in the bag to share the following week.  Lastly, a small postcard from me, saying some of the things we did on our first day.

I had a great, exhausting day with my new batch of Kinders and I hope everyone else did, too!


Happy School Year!