Returning to In-Person Instruction: Creating a positive environment

     Planning for this year is turning out to be especially challenging! Teachers will have students who haven't been in a classroom for over a year, students who have been in socially distant classrooms, and students new to the district....it's quite a range of situations.

     I've been thinking about the new challenges that we'll face and what kinds of resources will be best. From the first hour of the first day, my priority is creating a classroom where kids feel safe and valued. But this is easier said than done, and the work that gets us to that dream classroom is difficult and tedious in the first days.  

Low-risk activities

    An important way to frame these first days of school is to focus on activities that have a low social risk. None of us like sharing deep information about ourselves with an unfamiliar group of people! For many students, sharing their innermost hopes and dreams is a risky social move. It's much more approachable to talk about their favorite breakfast foods or what they like to do at recess. When I plan ice-breakers for the first week, I consider the social risks that students are taking, and make sure that I offer lots of low-stress, surface level activities. If you've ever asked students to share about their hopes and dreams and been met with absolute silence, you know what I'm talking about!

     As students walk into the classroom on that first day, I like to have a quiet, desk-based activity for them to do. Some years I make individualized name tags for students to color; in other years I have puzzle pieces that build to a group puzzle. Students can sit down and immediately do something while also checking out the room, their classmates, and the view to the window. 

     But I don't ask them to engage in academic work or anything that might make them feel anxious. I always have an inclusion classroom with students who have a wide range of abilities. I want to get past that first day with good feelings all around, and I don't want anyone to feel badly or worried about the upcoming year. 

Getting everyone talking

     The routine of "Greeting" from Responsive Classroom has become one of my go-to first day activities. Greeting everyone means that each child hears their name spoken, and everyone experiences a norm-building activity of greeting and acknowledging one another. (You can read more about this in the Morning Meeting Book.)  On the first day, we stand in a circle. Each person says their name, and then the whole class says, "Good morning, ____!" We talk about the power of making eye contact and how important it is. 

     On subsequent mornings, students greet each other in 3 minutes of smiling, laughing, and sharing. Each time, I begin by emphasizing the importance of taking time for each other, looking each other in the eyes, and letting our classmates know that we care for each other. By sixth grade, students can understand the distinction between being friends and being friendly. We don't expect our students to all be friends with one another, but our class functions much more smoothly when students are friendly with one another.

Books in hands

     My other big task for the first day is to get books in students' hands. I put together tubs of student-friendly, welcoming books, and set up a short period of time for silent reading. For more on this process, check out my resource "Start the Reading Year".

     The first reading session is short, breezy, and fun. It's meant to be exciting for students! I use sticky notes to put names on books, because I'm not yet ready for students to take books home. Some students want to read on, but others set their first choices aside for new ones on the second day. After we read, I have students share their recommendations and what they look for in books. I enjoy getting to hear from students!