Looking for meet the teacher night ideas for back to school? Want to have a successful meet the teacher night and first week of school? You’re in the right place! This post is packed full of back to school activities and resources to use in your classroom to start the year off successful!
Starting the year off right is so important! From establishing routines and procedures, to creative a classroom community, to simply organizing paperwork and being prepared! These are all essential back to school preparations you need to be making. But sometimes the list can get overwhelming and you don’t have all the tools and resources you need. That’s why I created this blog post! It’s a simply way to help you find back to school and first week of school ideas all in one place so you can prepare for the best school year yet!
1. Tell them they’re a Smart Cookie
First impressions matter, especially for students walking into a brand-new room. These Smart Cookie Back to School Tags are an easy, no-fuss way to greet your new students. Just attach a tag to a bag of cookies and hand them out at Meet the Teacher night or on the first morning of school. They will light up over a personal welcome, and this is a print-and-go way to deliver one.
2. Say Thanks for Poppin’ In
Meet the Teacher night is your first chance to build a relationship with parents and caregivers. These Poppin’ Back to School Gift Tags let you thank families for popping in with a cute, memorable treat like popcorn, suckers, or ring pops. You may also want to just grab these popcorn themed tags to pair with a bag of microwave popcorn to give to each family for a special treat to enjoy when they get home!
3. Partner Pairing Made Easy
First graders are still learning how to navigate friendships and group work. These Partner Pairing Cards turn “find a partner” into a fun matching game instead of a source of anxiety. Perfect for those first weeks when students are still getting to know their new classmates. Read about how to use them in your classroom in this blog post!
4. All About Me Bags
First graders love sharing about themselves and their interests! Plus this is a great way to build classroom community by letting students share what they enjoy or special things about them. Send home the All About Me Bag letter at the beginning of the year and have students bring back their All About Me Bags the first or second to share with the class.
5. Attention Grabbers
Students thrive on predictability and routine! These attention grabber cards follow a call and response format and are a great way to engage students, grab their attention, and master classroom management! They are the ultimate classroom management tool and will have your classroom running on autopilot by fall!
6. Back to School Paperwork Organization
Using a Google Sheets checklist to organize back to school paperwork is a game changer! You can make your own or grab the one I’ve already made for you. Either way, do yourself a favor and keep track of this digitally so you aren’t left wondering, “Now where did I set that checklist paper down this time?” These also come in handy for assignment tracking, digital gradebooks, teacher to-do lists, and so much more! It will be a tool you can use all year long. Trust me!
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7. Simple Writing Prompts
Give students a chance to write for fun as you begin the school year! This will take some of the writing anxiety away and allow them to be creative, share their thoughts, and get used to writing early on in the year. I love starting the year off with these writing activities:
- First Day Jitters
- All About My Summer Break
- We Don’t Eat Our Classmates (pairs perfectly with the read aloud book for building classroom community)
8. Extra Change of Clothes Notes
Let’s be honest, accidents happen! Even if your students are potty trained, spills at lunchtime are a common occurrence and kids don’t love having to wear borrowed clothes from the school. Send these extra change of clothes notes home and have students keep a bag of extra clothes in their cubby, locker, or backpack. They will come in handy! Trust me! I suggest sending the parent note home in your back to school paperwork folders so students can bring a change of clothes bag back on the first day of school!
9. Student Games and Ice Breakers
Establishing classroom community and helping students get to know one another is so important early in the year! A great way to do this is through games and ice breakers! These are a few of my favorites:
10. Meet the Teacher Bingo
Meet the Teacher Bingo is a fun activity to have students and families complete at back to school or open house night! It helps them get to know where everything is in the classroom and building and is a fun way to make students and families feel welcome.
11. Meet the Teacher Templates
These Meet the Teacher templates are a great way to allow students and families to get to know you! Pass them out at meet the teacher or back to school night, or include them in back to school paperwork folders.
Want more resources? Browse all of my back to school resources in my Learning Lattes and Literacy TPT store!
Happy Teaching!
Megan
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