Beginning Of The Year€¦ · Summer Vacation Matchup Looking for a new way for students to share...
Transcript of Beginning Of The Year€¦ · Summer Vacation Matchup Looking for a new way for students to share...
Beginning Of The Year
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Summer Vacation Matchup Lookingforanewwayforstudentstosharestoriesabouttheirsummervacations?ReadthebookHowISpentMySummerVacationbyMarkTeague(CrownBooksForYoungReaders)totheclass.Thenhaveeachstudentbrieflywriteonethinghedidoverthesummeronaslipofpaper.Typeeachchild’ssummerexperienceononesheetofpaper—leavingablankforthestudent’sname—andduplicateacopyforeachmemberoftheclass.Directeachchildtointerviewhispeerstomatcheachstudentwithanevent.Haveeachstudentaskthreequestionsineachinterview.Ifheisunabletomakeamatch,instructhimtomoveontothenextperson.Withthisactivity,everyonegetstotalkabouthissummervacation!
AndreaBayroff—Gr.5WashingtonSchoolWestfield,NJ
Goals For A Successful Year! Teamupwithbothparentsandstudentstosetgoalsfortheschoolyear.Afewweeksbeforeschoolstarts,maileachchildinyourincomingclassanews-lettertointroduceyourself.Intheletter,askeachstudenttosethergoalsfortheupcomingschoolyear.Duringthefirstweekofschool,haveeachstudentputhergoalsinwritingandsharethemwithherparents.Askparentstoaddtheirsetofgoalsfortheirchildandreturnthemtoschool.Onceyougettoknowthechildren,usebothliststohelpyouformafewgoalsforeachchildinyourclass.Useconferencetimetosharewithparentsyourstudents’progressto-wardreachingthosegoals,andtogetheryou’llmakeawinningteam!
JoAnnRobinson—Grs.3–4MarlboroughSchool,Marlborough,NH
My Goals For 4th GradeComplete my work on time.Study my spelling words.Read more library books.
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Celebrating Birthdays Howwouldyouliketocombinemathandwritingwitheachstu-dent’sbirthday?Beforethefirstdayofschool,drawablankgraphonbulletin-boardpaper;thenlabelthebottomofthegraphwiththemonthsoftheschoolyearasshown.Staplethegraphtoabulletinboardandcovertheremainingspacewithbirthdaygiftwrap.Then,onthefirstdayofschool,giveeachchildacupcakepatternfrompage145andhavehimwritehisnameandthedateofhisbirthday,excludingthemonth.AssignaJunebirthdaytoanystudentwhosebirthdayfallsduringthesummer.Reviewbargraphswithyourclass.Thendirecteachstudenttoposthiscupcakeonthebulletin-boardgraphabovethemonthinwhichhewasborn. Oneachchild’sbirthday,havehisclassmateseachwriteafriendlylettertothestudentwishinghimahappybirthday.Suggestthatthelettersalsomentionthewaysinwhichthisstudentisspecial.Presenttheletterstothebirthdaychildinalargecolorfulenvelope.Studentswillgohomefeelingextraspecialwhentheycarrythesebirthdaylet-tersfromtheirclassmates!
JoAnnRobinson—Grs.3–4MarlboroughSchool,Marlborough,NH
Walk A Mile In My Shoes Helpstudentsrecognizeandappreciatethedifferencesinoneanotherwiththisbeginning-of-the-yearactivity.Ashomeworkonthefirstdayofschool,askeachstudenttobringinashoethatrepresentshimselfinsomeway.Thenextday,haveeachstudentfilloutatagfortheshoeusingthepatternduplicatedfrompage145.Thengiveeachchildalengthofstring.Havehimusethestringtoattachhiscompletedtagtohisshoe.Displaythetaggedshoesintheclassroom.Createadisplaythatisevenmoreinterestingbyinvitingtheprinci-palandotherimportantpeoplearoundtheschooltoaddtheirshoestoit!
MiriamBecker—Gr.5DuJardinElementaryBloomingdale,IL
Name:
Personality Traits:
Goals:
Concerns:
Things That Make Me Happy:
Pet Peeves:
John Reynolds
Jan. Feb. March April
30Sheila
6Alan
2Casy
4Wanda
25Tom
13Shelby
27Regina
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They Ought To Be In Pictures! GetthefilmrollingonanewyearwiththisspectacularOpenHouseidea!Createavideotapeofallthestudentactivitiesandprojectsgoingoninyourclassroom—startingwiththefirstdayofschool.OnthenightofOpenHouse,setupaVCRandtelevisioninyourclassroomsothatparentscanviewthetapewhiletheyarewaitingtospeakwithyou.You’lldiscoverthatpicturesareworthathousandwords!
KimberlyMcCormick—Gr.6,WilmingtonAreaMiddleSchool,NewWilmington,PA
Computers To The Rescue Doyouhavetoomuchtorememberduringtheopeningdaysofeachschoolyear?Justsavethelessonplanyouuseonthefirstdayofschoolalongwithyourbeginning-of-the-yearto-dolistonyourcomputer.Theneachyearsimplyopenthesedocu-mentstoadd,delete,ormakechangesinthemasnecessary.Whatatime-saver!
SusanJohnsonSteinerRanchElementaryAustin,TX
USA32FREEDOM OF CONSCIEN
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Mr. & Mrs. Wallace1 North St.Ellis, PA 17345
Mrs. MendelParker Elementary School124 Santos WayEllis, PA 17345
To-Do ListFor The First Day Of School
Noteworthy News Shortenthetimeittakestosendpositivenoteshometoparents.Simplyaddtwoself-addressed,stampedenvelopestoeachstudent’ssupplylistatthebeginningoftheyear.Afteralloftheenvelopesarein,alloweachstudenttodecoratethebacksofhisenvelopesusingmarkers,stickers,etc.Then,onceduringeachsemester,writeapositivenotetoeachstudent’sparents.Mailthenoteinsideoneoftheenvelopespersonalizedbythatstudent.Parentsandstudentswillglowwhentheyseethecolorfulenvelopesbeingdeliveredtotheirhomes!
SandiNorton—Gr.4ValleySpringsElementaryValleySprings,AR
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Postcard Photo Albums Howwouldyouliketostarttheyearwithahandysocialstudiesresourcethatrequireslittleefforttocreate?Requestthateachchildaddapostcard,apicture,orabrochurefromanyplaceinthecountrythathevisitedoverthesummertohisschoolsupplylist.Thenar-rangeallofthemementosinaphotoalbumtobeenjoyedthroughouttheyear.Refertothepostcardalbumduringrelevantsocialstudieslessonstomakethisyear’sstudyofgeographyreallytouchhome!
MarianStearns—Grs.4–5OlympicViewElementaryOlympia,WA
Note The Quote Createabulletinboardthatstudentswillreallytakenoteofonthefirstdayofschool.Duplicateonemorethanaclasssupplyofthenotepatternonpage146.Printthefollowingquoteontheextranote:“Lifeislikeapiano.Whatyougetoutofitde-pendsonhowyouplayit.”Postapictureofapianoonabulletinboardtitled“NoteTheQuote.”Staplethenotewiththequotewrittenonittotheboard.Thenhostaclassdiscussionaboutthemeaningofthequote. Nextassigneachstudentadifferentdayonwhichtopresentasimilarquotetotheclass.Onhisassigneddayhavehimwritehisquoteononeofthemusic-notepatterns,explainitsmeaning,andthenaddittothebulletinboard.Whenallofthequoteshavebeenadded,yourclasswillhaveheardquiteafewnotesofwisdom!
MalkyMandelbaum—Gr.6BethJacobofBoroParkSchoolBrooklyn,NY
MONTANA
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Note The Quote
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Handy Border LookingforawaytokeepstudentsbusywhileyoutalkwiththeirparentsatOpenHouse?Thishands-onactivitywilldothetrick!Setupasmalltablewithsheetsofcoloredconstructionpaper,markers,scissors,andanemptyboxonit.Alsoin-cludeinstructionsthatdirecteachstudenttotracehishandsontotheconstructionpaper,cutoutthetracings,andthenplacethecutoutsinsidetheboxonthetablewhenhefinishes.Usethehandcutoutstocreateaborderforabulletinboardonwhichyoufeaturestudents’work.
DoloresPatino—Grs.4–5St.GregoryTheGreatSchool,SanAntonio,TX
Postcard Icebreaker Getaheadstartonplanningyourfirst-dayicebreakerduringyoursummervacation!Duringyoursum-mertravels,collectpicturepostcardsfromtheplacesyouvisit—onepostcardforeachstudentinyourup-comingclass.Assoonasyoureceiveyourclasslist,maileachstudentoneofthesepostcards.Inyourmes-sageinvitethestudentstoafun-filledyearoflearning,brieflytellaboutyourself,andinstructeachstudenttobringthecardtoschoolwithheronthefirstday.Then,onthatfirstday,discusswhoreceivedidenticalpostcards,whetheranyoneintheclasshasevervisitedthelocationonherpostcard,and,ifso,whatitwaslikethere.Nexthaveeachstudentshareoneortwofactsthatshelearnedfromherpostcard—aboutyouortheplaceyouvisited.Studentswillenjoylearningabouttheirnewteacherastheygettoknowoneanother!
MiriamBecker—Gr.5,DuJardinElementary,Bloomingdale,IL
Tickled Pink Startthenewschoolyearwithlettersthatwillelicithappygigglesfromyourstudents!Attachonefeathertoasheetofdecorativepinkpaperforeachstudentinyourclass.Onthepaper,writealettertoeachstudenttellingherthatyouare“tickledpink”thatsheisinyourclass.Mailthelettersbeforeschoolstartstoletstudentsknowhowexcitedyouareabouttheupcomingyear!
DavidReitz—Gr.4GlenwoodElementaryVirginiaBeach,VA
Dear Stephanie,
I’m “tickled pink” that you
are in my class this year. I
look forward to meeting you.
Your new teacher,
Mr. Reitz
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Brown-Bag Breakfast Lookingforawaytomakenewstudentsfeelwelcome?Afewdaysbeforeschoolstarts,inviteanynewchildrentotheschoolforasimplebreakfastofmuffins,juice,andmilk.Aftereating,takethestudentsonatourofthebuildingandallowthemtobrowseinyourclassroom.Studentswillsoonfeelrightathomeintheirnewschool!
RosemaryLinden—Gr.4,RoyalValleyElementary,Hoyt,KS
VIP Of The Week Makeheadlinesontheveryfirstdayofschoolwiththisbulletin-boardidea!Coverabulletinboardwithnewspaperandtitleit“[yourschool]VIPOfTheWeek.”Filltheboardwithpicturesofyourselfandafewofyourpersonalbelongings.Writeinformationaboutyourselfandpostitonthebulletinboardinthefollowingcategories:family,growingup,futuregoals,hobbies,favorites,etc.Whenstudentsarrivethefirstday,discussthedis-playindetail.Thenassigneachchildaweekoftheyearduringwhichheisresponsibleforcreatingadisplaythatfeatureshimself.Studentswilllearnallabouttheirclassmates—andfeellikeVIPs—duringtheirdesignatedweeks!
KatrinaSears—Gr.6SussexCentralMiddleSchool,Georgetown,DE
It’s All On A Name Usethisget-to-know-youactivityasatimefillerduringthefirstfewdaysofschool.Giveeachstudentalargesheetofconstructionpaper.Havehimwritehisnameinblocklet-ters,largeenoughtofillthepaper.Alongthesidesofeachletter,instructthestudenttowritesentencesthatdescribehimselfasshown.Thendisplayallofthenamesforclassmatestoread!
SusanJohnsonSteinerRanchElementaryAustin,TX
Mayor ResignsStock Market Plummets
Mall Opens
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I have a brother.Scien
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I like to play soccer.
I am ten.
I like tacos!
My birthday is June 11.
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I like my new friends.
Bucks Pull Through To Win
Fire Burns Downtown
New SchoolF i n i s h e dSussex Central
VIP Of The WeekFamily
Goals Favorites
Growing up Hobbies