The first day of school is always tricky. Everyone is so excited to get back into school, but at the same time – are you really ready for it? You – and your students – have no doubt, had a lovely holiday away from school. This means most routines may actually go out of the window – you know, the usual, go to bed time, wake up time. So, the first day back can be a shock for many of our students.
On top of this – there could be other things that may throw a spanner in the works for our children. Is it a new school they are going to? A new class? Is there a new teacher? New support staff? That’s a lot of new for a child, especially when diagnosed with autism and who likes their routine.
So, what do we do on the 1st day of school? Read on to find out..
So, I don’t know about you, but the first day back I always find so exciting. I love seeing all the children and welcoming them into class. Below are 10 tips from my personal experience of what you can do with your students on the 1st day of school.
1) Have breakfast together
Having breakfast together is a great opportunity to get to know your students. It also provides you with a positive start to the day, you know everyone’s had something to eat or drink and you’ve been able to sit down together. It’s important to keep this quite informal to start. Treat it as a ‘getting to know you’ and socialising time. If you carry this on every morning through the year (which I recommend), it gives you the chance to introduce some healthy breakfast choices for your students to enjoy.
2) Go on a Scavenger Hunt!
Create a scavenger hunt for your students to find items around the class. This will help them get to know your classroom, where things are, thus making them feel more confident and at home in your classroom. Plus, scavenger hunts are so much fun! Your students can work alone or together and it’s great to watch them trying to find and tick off all the items on their list. You could make it into a bingo game or check list and have students mark off the items as they find them. The items can be things like pens, pencils, sharpeners, toys etc.
3) Go over the rules
It is important for your students to be aware of right/wrong and the rules of the classroom. Students may not always understand these rules and so it’s a good idea to keep using your positive reinforcement throughout the year to help your students become more aware of the rules. If you need a visual resource, you can use these classroom rules resources below. Even though your first day of school is going to be more relaxed and all about settling the children in, it’s important to introduce and carry through with your rules straight away. Students will understand that you are consistent and know what is expected of them. Just click the images to be re-directed to get these resources and start introducing classroom rules into your setting straight away.
4) Be supportive
Many students will be used to leaving their parents and coming to school, but you may have a new child who has never been away from their parents before – or never accessed a school setting. This can display itself in a variety of different ways in children, especially when they are unsure of what their emotions mean. Having a story time or circle time is a great way to comfort our students. You can allow the students to choose a book from the class library or have one that is dedicated to the first day of school. If you have a student – or students – who are still struggling to be at school and away from home, you can try a visual social story. Click the image below to be redirected to find out more about this social that is great for students who may be missing their parents.
5) Have fun!
You will want to use the first day to have fun with your students, build relationships and trust with them. If the children know you can have fun with them too – then the ‘boring’ bits to them are made that bit easier. If you build a relationship with your students, they’re going to want to work with you and please you. This is the best way to start a new school year! Don’t be afraid to get down onto the floor, join in games, play with your students and share information about yourself – professionally of course such as likes, dislikes etc – to get a relationship building.
6) Have different stations/centers set up
Set up a variety of different activities – but not too many! – in different areas of your classroom. Watch your students interact and take part in different activities. See what they enjoy – what do they dislike? Certain textures? Look at their interests. These are all things you can use throughout the year – especially as reward systems if you know they really like something. It’s also interesting to watch if they interact with each other on centers, and how they are on the centers – fine motor skills etc.
7) Take photos!
You can make a ‘My First Day’ scrapbook page, put some ‘First Day’ photos onto the website – but best of all, you can look back at these first day photos at the end of the school year and look just how much everyone has grown. If you’re feeling extra creative you could set up a photo booth – or green screen area where the children can have photos taken. You can involve the children more by giving them cameras or iPads to take photos with too.
8) Create something to take home
Have an art area where students can get messy (with aprons or old clothes!) and create a picture. They can take this home with them as a momento of their first day and show to their parents.
9) Create for a bulletin board display
At the start of the year our bulletin boards often look quite bare, because we like to display the children’s work here. Have an activity set up – structured – so the children are having some structure and lesson through their first day. Once they’re finished – put the activity up on display – they’ll be able to see their completed work and your display will look great!
10) Brain Breaks
Your students are probably bubbling over by the end of the day and full of excitement. So end it with some brain breaks and cool down songs. Then, all come together as a circle to watch some ‘goodbye songs’ for dismissal.
Now, breathe – you survived your first day!
