American Psychological Association
Teaching Is Fundamental
It's important for teachers to have a strong support system—especially in the first few years of their career. Help teachers' partners, spouses, and friends understand the most compassionate ways to provide emotional support with a...
Washington Education Association
Preparing a More Useful Sub Plan for Your Substitute Teacher
Make your substitute's life easier by using the prompts on a one-page resource to a craft a profile of your classes and your daily routines. A great-first page for a substitute teacher folder.
Scholastic
Scholastic: Welcome to the First Day of School!
Prepare for your students first day of school with these inviting activities. This site features several great ideas for teachers to incorporate in their beginning of school lessons.
Other
Cape Breton Victoria: First Day of School Activities
Are you looking for some creative activities to get to know your students on the first day of class? This site has compiled a list of great activities, icebreakers, and team-building games to get your classes off on the right foot.
Other
Kim's Korner: First Day of School Activities
Are you looking for some great activities to use in your classroom on the first day? Here are some activities you can do with students on the first day back to school. Some are fun, some are valuable as learning tools, and some are both.
Other
Hsi: First Days of School Desegregation
An interactive site for students to learn about school desegregation. Photographs, oral histories and questions help guide the students to their conclusions.
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: "First Day Folly"
[Free Registration/Login Required] The passage "First Day Folly" focuses on a pre-teen who is nervous about the first day of middle school. It is followed by a comprehension question set and answer key and a vocabulary worksheet for the...
Scholastic
Scholastic: Get Off to a Smart Start
No matter how many years spent in the classroom, every teacher could use some "first week" ideas. Find quick and easy back-to-school tips to help you with seating charts, tackling the first day of school, classroom management and time...
Scholastic
Scholastic: Get Off to a Smart Start
No matter how many years spent in the classroom, every teacher could use some "first week" ideas. Find quick and easy back-to-school tips to help you with seating charts, tackling the first day of school, classroom management and time...
A to Z Teacher Stuff
First Days of School Activities
Several tips for teachers to try during the beginning days of the school year to get things off to a smooth start.
Other
Edublogs.org: The Best Resource for Planning the First Day of School
A blog, written by Larry Ferlazzo, provides information and online resources from his book, Helping Students Motivate Themselves, on getting the school year off to a good start.
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments: The First Twelve Days of School
Students learn to organize data, look for patterns, and solve problems. They will count the number of "coins" in a variation of The Twelve Days of Christmas song. They will also generalize the patterns through symbolic expressions.
Read Works
Read Works: Welcome Back!
[Free Registration/Login Required] This passage shares advice about how to make the first day of school a great one. This passage is a stand-alone curricular piece that reinforces essential reading skills and strategies and establishes...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: First Week of School, Day 5
Sixth graders understand what the bucket of kindness is and how they can use it to earn rewards as a class.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: First Week of School, Day 4
Sixth graders will role play with the teacher to reinforce classroom procedures.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: First Week of School, Day 3
Sixth graders read a poem to see the importance of class rules and behaviors.
Other
Teachers first.com: 50 Ideas for the 100th Day of School
Great ideas for "100th Day" activities. Most of these would be a good challenge for upper elementary school students if you want to include them in your 100th Day celebration. Activities include counting, measuring, weighing, sorting,...
Scholastic
Scholastic: Back to School Planning Guide
Multiple back to school resources. Includes icebreakers, quick first day ideas, and unit plans.
Illustrative Mathematics
Illustrative Mathematics: Number of the Day
Repeatable, daily activities are one of the best ways to instill the counting sequence for children. This activity requires a 100 chart which can be made or purchased. Students will count the "Number of the Day" beginning with 1 on the...
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: "Massive Resistance" and the Little Rock Nine
Read about the famous civil rights protest in Little Rock, Kansas in 1957 when nine African American students attempted to enter Central High School on the first day of school. Despite the presence of federal troops at the school for the...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Listening Game
Students will practice their ability to acknowledge new information expressed by classmates. A good lesson for the first day of school!
Curated OER
Kids Health: Back to School
The first day of school is usually comprised of a mix of anxiety and excitement. Don't let this experience overwhelm you! Look through this article to learn more about what you can do to make this fearfull transition a little smoother.
Just Books Read Aloud
Just Books Read Aloud: Norman Bridwell: Clifford's First Day School
A video of the book "Clifford's First Day School", written by Norman Bridwell. Just Books Read Aloud is a site that includes children's books read aloud by normal (but enthusiastic) readers.
Other
Fdr Project/ the First 100 Days
A school site that shows a collection of editorial cartoons from the 1930s responding to the First Hundred Days of Roosevelt's presidency. Great primary source material for viewpoints of the day.