Hello Everyone, I am a first year teacher, I was offered a position to teach kindergarten in Florida and I accepted it so me and my family are busy getting prepared to relocate from Virginia to Florida. I have been doing tons of research getting ideas on classroom management, ideas for centers, etc. My question is on the first day of school what morning work do you have for students as they are entering in the classroom and parents are saying their goodbyes? I've seen suggestions on having like coloring pages or some type of worksheet but then some say that students can finish those fairly quickly and then may start to roam around the classroom. Any suggestions for me? What type of morning work do you have for your kinders on the first day?
I used to have a coloring sheet that I did each year as the transition in. However, it did often lead to kids being done early and the ones who were already sad started crying even more with nothing to do. Last year I changed and put manipulatives on each table. Legos, unifix cubes, magnet builders, etc.. It was so much better. Plus, if one table seemed a little bored and I was still talking to parents or helping someone get settled, then I just switched out their box for a different activity. I still do a “My first day in Kindergarten” coloring sheet, just later in the day.
On the first day I put out block, puzzles, coloring sheet, and other manipulative. I let the students choose a seat and speak to parents while they explore. As the year progresses I teach the students about the morning routine that include using a journal for morning work.
While I would not do this for my class, I have come up with an idea for the first day of school. Students could create vision boards.
