Anyone have tips for a new first grade teacher?

Question

This will be my third year teaching, but only my first year teaching 1st grade, and I'm pretty nervous. I'd like any advice that anyone with first grade teaching experience can give me such as first day of school activities, management ideas, etc. Thanks!

Answer 1

I also begin teaching on the first day of school, but I still make time to introduce rules and procedures, along with getting to know you activities.

Citizenship is our first social studies unit, so it makes it easy to incorporate learning the rules of the classroom. We discuss the rules and I make a booklet with the rules copied into it. As we discuss each rule, we talk about what it looks like (What does it look like when you are raising your hand?). The students then draw a picture for each rule.

For getting to know you activities, I send homework home on the first day. The students are sent home with paper lunch sacks that they may decorate however they choose. They then fill the sack with things from home. When they return the sack to school, they share each thing in the bag and tell why it's important to them. I, of course, share my bag on the first day so they may see an example.

I take a poster board and cut it into several puzzle pieces (one for each student and myself). We each decorate our piece and put our classroom puzzle together. It turns out to be a nice work of art for our room.

I also like to get a writing sample from the students on the first day. I waste no time in starting their writing journals either. That begins on the first day.

We have lots of discussions and modeling of what good friends and citizens look like and act like.

For management, I use a clip chart with different colors. Each student's clip (a clothespin) starts on green and can move up or down throughout the day. The mark they get on their folders depends on where their clip ends up at the end of the day (and my observations, of course).

I usually try to find a good book for the first day of school, something inspiring. Last year I read "Fly High, Bumblebee" because I liked the message it carried and my theme was bees. This year my theme is jungle (monkeys) and I have yet to find a book. :(

Good luck!  

Answer 2

If you don't already own "The First Days of School" go buy it. Or you can visit www.teachers.net

Usually the first day for me I'm teaching. Our district pacing guide requires us to get started. For management, I use "Quiet Coyote" (view the link), ears are listening, mouth is shut, give me your attention is what I use it for in my classroom. I "allow" the students to write their own classroom rules. We do it together on a big piece of chart paper and I help prompt them and ask if I can add a few too.

Answer 3

Remember that you have early learners and their school experiences are limited to 1 or 2 years.

Take time to teach all the HOWs (procedures):

getting a turn, getting a drink, using the pencil sharpener appropriately (this one is HUGE!), permission to use the bathroom, moving from chairs to the carpet (voices, bodies...), lunch procedures...

Raising a hand is important, no crayons or glue sticks in the sharpener,  and I use the ASL letter "t" sign for the bathroom,  they just hold it up and I know.  If you let them say "bathroom"  it becomes a classroom full of "ME TOO!"  

Make management as concrete as possible.  I use a chart with faces- happy, medium, wiggly, and sad.  They each have a clip that moves with behavior.  It also has the consequences DRAWN next to them.  Remember most of them cannot read yet so you need to add picture clues to just about everything!

Have fun!  I really miss my first graders (3rd now).  I'm hoping to go back next year!

Answer 4

It is very easy to use words that are too big for the students. Remember at all times that you are teaching kids with a limited vocabulary.

Answer 5

Kids at this age love marble jars (when they do something good they get marbles in the jar) and then when the jar is full they get a reward.  I would do a lot of review activities because most of the kids haven't done anything over the summer.  Review the 20 sight words, colors, months and days, introduce the calendar.  Let each child draw a picture and share something they did over summer vacation.  Just have a smile on your face because they just want to know you are nice.