It is that time of year again when you need to start thinking about the first day back activities. This time of year is filled with all the emotions. Sad that summer is coming to an end. Scared for what the new school year will bring. Excited to meet a whole new set of students. You name it, you are probably feeling it.
If you are planning for your first few weeks back to school, sign up for my free resource library where you can access all sorts of free science resources to use in your classroom.
Every year I have tried out different first day activities in my high school science classes. I have put together a list of the activities that I like best when it comes to those first few days back to school. These activities will surely get your students engaged and excited about your science class!
Investigate the teacher
This first activity is one I have done every single year since my first year of teaching and will probably continue to do until the last. Being a science teacher, I want students to be doing science on the first day of school, but I don’t want to necessarily begin the year with hard core content. Instead, I introduce (review) some very basic science skills with my investigate the teacher activity.
This is such a fun way for your students to get to know you as their teacher while using some science skills. There are a few different ways to structure this activity depending on your preference.
The idea is that students will need to make 10 observations about you or your classroom and then make an inference about the observation. You could have students simply walk around the room and make their observations. Or you could provide them with 10 clues about yourself, and with each clue, they make an observation and an inference.
I have tried out both ways and it is really up to you which you use. No matter what, my students always have so much fun trying to get to know me.
Syllabus scavenger hunt
Next on my list is a syllabus scavenger hunt. Undoubtedly, you will want to go over some basic expectations, procedures, and policies during the first weeks of school. But often, this part of back to school can be so boring and unengaging for students. Get students more engaged with a little scavenger hunt of your syllabus.
For this activity, I simply take my syllabus, and come up with 10 questions of the most important things I need them to know or take away from the class syllabus. I put those 10 questions on a piece of paper and then have students work in groups to find the answers.
I love to make things a competition to add to the fun so usually I have prizes for the first three groups to find all the correct answers. After we get the winners, we then go over the answers as a class. Again, the point is to make sure students get the important info while also being engaged.
About Me Classroom Scrapbook
I don’t know about you, but I really hate icebreakers. They feel so cringy to me and so forced. But the thing is that I want to get to know my students and to have my students get to know each other in my classroom to create a more positive overall environment.
So to get to know my students, I created a classroom scrapbook activity. Basically, each student gets one single slide to share at least 10 facts about themselves. Their slide should use images, digital stickers, quotes, lyrics, colors, etc. to teach the class about each student.
Once each student has created their own slide, I compile them into a digital scrapbook (Google Slideshow). Then I post it in our Google Classroom. I encourage the class to view it to get to know their classmates better.
This scrapbook is my way to get to know my students. I can quickly look over each slide and remember little facts about each student. I try to use this information throughout the year to help build relationships with my students.
Scientific method scenarios
Being a science teacher, I want to make sure my students have a solid foundation of science skills when they leave my classroom. Most of the content that I teach can easily be found online. Therefore, I really try to focus on teaching science skills that students may need in future science classes, whether it be AP or college level.
Usually in the first week, I try to incorporate a lesson or two on the scientific method. This is something that students have been taught before, but I want to teach it in the context of creating and designing experiments.
In all my science classes and at all levels (college prep, honors, and AP) I have students conduct experiments. And I do not mean “labs”. I mean experiments where they come up with a question, chose their variables, collect data, and analyze the results. So I find it is important to use the time at the beginning of the year to teach the foundations of scientific experimentation.
I have students complete an activity where they are given different scientific method scenarios. They are responsible for identifying the aspects of the scientific method in the experiment.
Many of the resources mentioned above have freebies that can be accessed when you sign up for my free resource library! I hope these ideas help make your first day of class activities so much fun and that your students are excited about your class.
