First+Day

__Speech__ Hello!

My name is Miss Turner, and I am very excited that all of you are in my class this year! First I would like to tell you all a little about myself and then we’ll go around the room and let you all tell us a little about yourselves. I am from Statham, Georgia, which is near Athens. I have on sister. She’s three years younger than me. I recently graduated from North Georgia College and State University. I have a pet dog named Storm. My favorite color is purple and fall is my favorite season. In my free time I like to watch movies, read, and go bowling. My favorite foods are chicken and brownies. Now that you know a little about me, let’s go around and you can tell us your name and three things about yourself (…). Great! Now we’re going to go over our school-wide rules and then we’ll make the rules for our class (…). I hope that you all are excited about starting second grade! You should all know that in addition to the rules we just made, this classroom is a bully-free zone. This is a safe place where you can ask questions and participate in discussions without being afraid of getting laughed at. Also, if you ever have any problems or questions, please let me know.

__Schedule for 2nd Grade:__ 7:30 – Students begin to enter classroom and pick desks; go to get breakfast if they want to; turn in all classroom supplies 8:00 – Go over my name and little about me; let kids introduce themselves; make lunch choices 8:45 – Go over books and notebooks and put in desk 9:00 – Go over any school-wide rules; talk about classroom rules and rewards system (student involvement in decisions) 9:45 – Go on a tour of the school 10:00 – Put names on all notebooks and personal supplies; make sure that all classroom supplies have been turned in 10:30 – Play a few of our transition time games and teach students the rules (this also lets them move around some) 11:00 – Tell each student their respective number (or letter) to memorize for filing, lining up, etc. 11:20 – Lunch 11:55 – Talk about summer activities as a class (let children share), and then let them draw a picture of their favorite part of summer to hang in the classroom 12:45 – Specials 1:45 – Write in agendas; pack up 2:00 – Recess 2:20 – I will read a book to the class 2:35 – Dismissal

__Introductory activities__ I will introduce myself first, during my speech, and then we will go around the room and each student will tell their name and three things about themselves.

[] To familiarize students with the school and personnel, I take students on a hunt for a certain goodie (cookies, watermelon, etc.) around the school. Before school begins I hide the goodie somewhere on campus and write out clue cards. On the first day of kindergarten we read the clues which take us around the school, into the office, the library, restrooms, playground, etc. As we read the clues we look for the goodie in all the places. The last clue leads us to the goodie. After the students find the treat they get to eat it. We also then create a map of the school and create a book about our hunt. Kim, Grade K
 * First Day Hunt**

On the first day of school, I have my students draw and color their name on a large sheet of paper. They add things about themselves, including their birthdays and their favorite things to do. The posters are then displayed on the wall in the classroom.
 * All About Me Posters**

During the first week of school my Kindergarteners help me to make a large tree out of Brown Butcher paper. I encourage parents at open house to send in 2 or 3 family pictures to put on the family tree. We then add leaves–green for the beginning of school, then we change them as the foliage turns. The kids are very proud to have picture of their families in the classroom. It also fits nicely in our “All About Me” theme. Alyssa Robbins, Kindergarten
 * Family Tree**