First Day of School Plan

Full Day Schedule (8:00 - 3:30)

First Block: 11th Grade English (8:00 - 9:30)

Welcome and Seating Arrangements (8:00 - 8:05)

As students enter, I will greet them at the door.
I will tell students to pick up the jump start activity and point them to the smartboard with the seating arrangement so that they may find their seats.

If a student needs to be moved based on various circumstances such as difficulty seeing the board, etc., they can talk to me after class, and I will move them accordingly for the next class.
The way that I will assign seats in my classroom during the first unit will be by alphabetical order. As the class goes on, I will gauge student interests/learning styles and place them with like-minded peers.

Jump Start (8:05-8:15)

As soon as students take their seats, I will tell them to get started on the jump start activity.
As students are working, I will say my name and the class to make sure students are in the right room.
This jump start activity is a worksheet that will include the following:

A new daily vocabulary word, including the definition and part of speech
Space for students to formulate an original sentence using this new vocabulary word
A question to elicit critical thinking that pertains to the lesson for that day (On the first day, this question will be: Who are you, and what are your hobbies and interests?)

Transition: I will explain the seamless transition procedure: I will have a timer going during this activity. I will put the timer on the projector screen to provide a warning for students to wrap up. When the timer goes off, students are expected to be ready for the next activity. Then I will give students the opportunity to practice this transition in between the jump start activity and the introduction.

Introduction (8:15-8:45)

I will introduce myself using a short powerpoint presentation (5 minutes).
I will explain the passing out/in of papers procedure and give students the opportunity to practice with this introductory activity.

Students will list three goals for the year.

What do I want to learn?
What do I want to accomplish?
What is something new I would like to try?

The Cryptic Clue Guessing Game - Students will write their name in the middle bubble and three numbers/proper nouns connecting to their life. They will take turns sharing with a partner, and the partner must guess what that clue relates to. Each student will create an answer key on the back.

For example, a student may write 1211. Their peer has to guess what the significance of this number is. Is it a birthday? Is it a house number?

I have included a worksheet I created on Canva.

I will implement the seamless transition procedure.

Syllabus (8:45 - 9:00)

I will go over the class syllabus including expectations, procedures, and what will be covered in this class.
The procedures I will cover are the beginning of class procedure, the teacher getting the students’ attention, the students getting the teacher’s attention, and the turning in assessments procedure.
I will go over the turning in homework procedure and assign homework for the next class.
I will briefly talk about my grading policy as it relates to formative assessments. I will go more in depth with this each day as I assign various things.

Vocabulary Pre-Assessment (9:00 - 9:25)

Students will have another opportunity to practice the passing out papers procedure. They will also be able to practice the procedure for turning in assessments.
This will gauge what students already know so that it will better inform my classroom instruction.

End of Class (9:25-9:30)

After the pre-assessment, I will explain the end of class procedures.
I will remind students of the homework I assigned and what to do if they have any questions about it.
I will tell the class to have a great day to dismiss them.

Second Block: 11th Grade English (9:45 - 11:15)

Repeat

Third Block: Accelerated 11th Grade English (11:30 - 1:30)

(Lunch: 11:30, 12:00, 12:30)

Repeat, add the break for lunch

Fourth Block: Accelerated 11th Grade English (12:45 - 2:15)

Repeat

Study Hall/Homeroom (2:30-3:30)

Welcome and Seating Arrangements (2:30 - 2:35)

As students enter, I will greet them at the door.
I will point students to the smartboard with the seating arrangement so that they may find their seats.

Introduction (2:35-2:50)

I will introduce myself and have students introduce themselves and share one fun fact about themselves.

Procedures (2:50-3:15)

I will go over the beginning and end of class procedures, asking to use the restroom, see a teacher, go to their locker, or other reasons a student may need to leave the room.
I will also go over classroom expectations and how study hall will be structured.

Important Information (3:15-3:25)

I will hand out any first day of school paper students need to have.
If students have any scheduling conflicts, I will explain how to iron out some of those conflicts.
This will be a time for students to ask any questions they may have.

End of Day (3:25-3:30)

I will remind students what the end of the day procedure is before they leave.
I will tell students to have a great rest of their day to dismiss them.

Half Day (8:00 - 11:50)

First Block: 11th Grade English (8:00 - 8:50)

Welcome and Seating Arrangements (8:00 - 8:05)

As students enter, I will greet them at the door.
I will tell students to pick up the introductory activity and point them to the smartboard with the seating arrangement so that they may find their seats.

If a student needs to be moved based on various circumstances such as difficulty seeing the board, etc., they can talk to me after class, and I will move them accordingly for the next class.
The way that I will assign seats in my classroom during the first unit will be by alphabetical order. As the class goes on, I will gauge student interests/learning styles and place them with like-minded peers.

Introduction (8:05-8:30)

Due to the shortened class period, the jump start activity will be the introductory assignment rather than the typical quiz.
As students are filling out the top portion of the worksheet, I will explain the seamless transition procedure as well as the expectation for the second half of the worksheet.

Students will list three goals for the year.

What do I want to learn?
What do I want to accomplish?
What is something new I would like to try?

The Cryptic Clue Guessing Game - Students will write their name in the middle bubble and three numbers/proper nouns connecting to their life. They will take turns sharing with a partner, and the partner must guess what that clue relates to. Each student will create an answer key on the back.

For example, a student may write 1211. Their peer has to guess what the significance of this number is. Is it a birthday? Is it a house number?

I have included a worksheet I created on Canva.)

I will implement the seamless transition procedure.
I will introduce myself using a short PowerPoint presentation.

Syllabus (8:30 - 8:45)

I will immediately transition to go over the class syllabus. This includes expectations, procedures, and what will be covered in this class.
The procedures I will cover are the beginning of class procedure, the teacher getting the students’ attention, the students getting the teacher’s attention, passing out/in papers, and the turning in assessments procedure.
I will go over the turning in homework procedure and assign homework for the next class.

Due to shortened class periods during a half day, this homework assignment will also include the vocabulary pre-assessment we would have done for the day. This assessment will be online and will be locked so that students can not open another window as they take it. This eliminates the possibility for cheating. I will give students the benefit of the doubt in regards to other methods they may use for cheating.
This vocabulary pre-assessment will gauge what students already know so that it will better inform my classroom instruction.

End of Class (8:45-8:50)

After the pre-assessment, I will explain the end of class procedures.
I will remind students of the homework I assigned and what to do if they have any questions about it.
I will tell the class to have a great day to dismiss them.

Second Block: 11th Grade English (9:00 - 9:50)

Repeat

Third Block: Accelerated 11th Grade English (10:00 - 10:50)

(No Lunch on Half Days)

Repeat

Fourth Block: Accelerated 11th Grade English (11:00 - 11:50)

Repeat

No Study Hall/Homeroom on Half Days

Critical Reflection

Prior to learning about the necessity of a first day of school plan, I never considered just how valuable it truly is. I definitely thought that teachers showed up on the first day of school, and their only aim was to get to know students and introduce the rules and objectives for the school year. Now I realize that having a plan is especially important for a new teacher.

My biggest problem point was figuring out a time frame for each activity. This was especially difficult when planning for the half day. There are so many crucial things to fit into the first day, and I want to allow an adequate amount of time for each activity. For my jump start activity each day, I wanted to implement something that will not only get students working right away but also something that will make a genuine contribution to their learning within the context of the unit we are on. For the half day plan, there was just not an adequate amount of time for this, so I made the jump start activity the start of the introductory activity. In doing so, students are still getting to work right away so that I can set the tone for the rest of the school year. They are also completing an activity that will be necessary for establishing healthy peer relationships throughout the year. In a sense, I am killing two birds with one stone, but I worry about not using the jump start activity that we will be using throughout the rest of the school year. I want to make sure that students know what to expect right away. I believe that the typical jump start activities I will use are so important for learning that on the half day, I chose to assign it for homework so that students can familiarize themselves with the format prior to the next class.

As a future educator, I have learned so much about the importance of the first day. Every single minute in the classroom counts, and not a moment should be wasted. In regards to the six concepts related to effective teaching, having a plan on the first day of school demonstrates the teacher’s ability to take up a professional disposition. Teachers who have a well-structured plan will be treated with respect, as it is their professional duty to do just so. When teachers start the year with a plan, this shows that they know what they are doing, and they treat their job seriously. This also makes it clear that students ought to treat their learning seriously as well. All of this ties into the role of the teacher. It is the teacher’s job to be prepared. Not only so, but they need to plan every activity meticulously so as to add to student learning. The first day of school activities should be conducive to student learning for the entire semester.

The first day of school is the day to set the tone for the entire school year. Teachers who effectively manage their learning environments will introduce expectations and procedures on the very first day. They will also provide students with opportunities to practice immediately as well as persistently over time. As for creating a positive learning environment, teachers also need to take the time to get to know their students on a personal level so as to develop healthy relationships. Students need to know that they can trust their teacher so that their learning will go beyond just the classroom.

I am so grateful for this project. So many of these projects have helped me to refute the saying, “those who can’t teach.” There have been times where I feared that my talents would be wasted because of this saying. This class is showing me over and over again the true value of teaching. Teaching is not for the faint of heart. It is for the strongest of people who wish to create a generation of even stronger people.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL PLAN