The first day of school is always a busy day for teachers, as they are meeting new students and trying to get organized for the year. But there are also a number of fun activities that teachers can do with their students on the first day to help get the year off to a good start. Here are some fun ideas for the first day of school activities for middle school teachers.
Icebreaker Games
One fun activity for the first day of school is an icebreaker game. Icebreaker games are a great way for teachers to get to know their students and for students to get to know each other. There are many different icebreaker games that can be played, but some of the most popular ones are name games and getting-to-know-you games.
Name games are a great way to start off the year. In a name game, each student takes turns saying their name and then saying the names of two people they know. For example, if Anna’s first two people she knows are John and Sarah, she would say “Anna, John, Sarah”. This game is a fun way for students to learn each other’s names and to get started talking with one another.
Another popular icebreaker game is the getting-to-know-you game. In this game, students take turns asking each other questions. Some good questions to ask in a getting-to-know-you game include: “What is your favorite book?”, “What is your favorite movie?”, “What is your favorite food?”, etc.
This game is a great way for students to start learning about each other and to get comfortable talking with one another.
Classroom Scavenger Hunt
Another fun first day of school activity is a classroom scavenger hunt. In this activity, students will search the classroom for various items that the teacher has hidden. This is a great way to familiarize students with the classroom and to get them moving around and talking to each other.
To play this game, the teacher will hide a number of small objects around the room before the students arrive. The number of objects should be equal to the number of students in the class. Once the students have arrived, the teacher will explain that they are going to be searching for these hidden objects. The first student to find all of the objects wins the game.
This game is a great way to get students moving around and talking to each other. It is also a great way to familiarize students with the classroom and to get them comfortable in their new surroundings.
Classroom Bingo
Another fun first day of school activity is classroom bingo. This game can be played with any size class, but it works best with larger classes.
To play this game, the teacher will need to create a bingo card for each student in the class. The bingo cards should have a variety of different items on them such as: “I have a pet”, “I like to read”, “I have siblings”, etc.
Once the bingo cards have been distributed, the teacher will explain that the object of the game is to find someone in the class who meets each criterion on their card. For example, if a student has “I have a pet” on their card, they would need to find someone in the class who has a pet. Once a student has found someone who meets each criterion on their card, they will yell “Bingo!” and the game is over.
This game is a great way for students to learn about each other’s interests. It is also a lot of fun and it gets everyone involved.
First Day Self-Portraits
Another fun first day of school activity is first-day self-portraits. This is a great way for students to get to know each other and to learn about their classmates.
To do this activity, the teacher will need to provide each student with a piece of paper and a pencil. The students will then have a certain amount of time to draw a self-portrait.
Once the time is up, the students will pass their portraits to the person next to them. The student who receives the portrait will then write down three things that they learned about the person from looking at their portrait. For example, if a student drew a portrait of themselves playing soccer, the student who received the portrait might write down “likes to play soccer”, “is active”, and “enjoys being outdoors”.
This activity is a lot of fun and it gets everyone involved.
One Word at a Time Story
This is a fun activity that can be done on the first day of school or at any time during the year.
To do this activity, the teacher will need to write down a sentence on a piece of paper. The sentence should be something short and simple, such as “The dog chased the cat”. The students will then take turns saying one word at a time until the whole sentence has been said.
This activity is great for building vocabulary and for helping students to learn how to put sentences together. It is also a lot of fun and it gets everyone involved.
I Spy
This is a fun game that can be played inside or outside.
To play, the teacher will choose something in the room or area and say “I spy with my little eye something that is…” and then give a clue about the object. The students will then have to try to guess what it is.
This game is great for building observation skills and for getting students to use their imagination.
Charades
This is a classic game that can be played with any age group.
To play, the students will need to divide into teams. One student from each team will come up to the front and choose a card with a word or phrase on it. They will then have to act out the word or phrase without speaking. The other students on their team will have to try to guess what it is.
This game is great for building vocabulary and for helping students to learn how to communicate without speaking.
What’s in the Bag?
This is a fun game that can be played with any age group.
To play, the teacher will need to fill a bag with small objects. The students will then take turns reaching into the bag and feeling the objects. They will then have to guess what the object is.
This game is great for building observation skills and for helping students to use their imagination.
Telephone
This is a classic game that can be played with any age group.
To play, the students will need to stand in a line. The first student will whisper a message to the person next to them and so on until the message has reached the last person in line. The last person will then say aloud what they think the message was.
This game is great for helping students to learn how to communicate clearly and for building listening skills.
20 Questions
This is a classic game that can be played with any age group.
To play, one student will think of an object, person, or place. The other students will then take turns asking yes or no questions about the thing that has been chosen. The student who guessed correctly first wins the game.
This game is great for building vocabulary and for helping students to think critically.
Two Truths and a Lie
To play this game, each student will need to write down two true statements and one false statement about themselves on a piece of paper. They will then fold the paper so that their statements are hidden and pass it to the person next to them. The students will then take turns reading out the statements and the others will have to try to guess which one is the lie.
This game is great for helping students to get to know each other and for building critical thinking skills.
Last Words
These are just a few ideas for the first day of school activities for middle school teachers. There are many other great activities that teachers can do with their students on the first day of school.
Do you have any first day of school activities that you love? Share them with us in the comments below!