Kindergarten, Here I Come!

Kindergarten, Here I Come!

:Related Mini Units:

The Kissing Hand	Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Colors	Shapes

Books:

:: Click the books for MORE books about school. ::

:Poems & Songs:

Buzzy, Buzzy Bee [tune: "Itsy Bitsy Spider"] The buzzy, buzzy bee flew down on _______'s head. It buzzed all around then made a nice soft bed. It buzzed down his/her shoulder and flew down to the floor. Then the buzzy, buzzy bee flew right out our door! The "animal" in the ice-breaker song changes according to whatever your classroom 'theme' is. I have a little bee puppet that I use to act out the song and move around to each child. They LOVE having the puppet touch them and it really opens them up when they hear their name!	There Was a Class [tune: "B-I-N-G-O"] There was a class that had a gir/boy, and ________ was her/his name-o, Jump, jump ________ (child's name), Jump, jump ________ (child's name), Jump, jump ________ (child's name), We're glad you're here today.
In Our Class [tune: "It's a Small World"] We will study hard And we'll make new friends. There's so much to do 'til the school year ends. We will read, write and spell, And do math very well, In Mrs. Anderson's Kindergarten class. In Mrs. Anderson's Kindergarten class. In Mrs. Anderson's Kindergarten class. In Mrs. Anderson's Kindergarten class. There's so much for us to do! [song found at KinderKorner]	Rules Rap Rules can be helpful, Rules can be good. They help us behave, The way we should. We follow the fules, And we don't do wrong. The world's a happier place When we all get along.
All Ready For School Summer is over! But I'm nobody's fool! I really like summer - And I also like school! I bought new clothes And brand new shoes. I saw so many pretty things It was hard for me to choose. I have a box for my lunch And for my books, a pack. I'll have to carry everything Right there on my back!	First Day of School Hey! Hey! Look at me! I'm ready to go to school to learn to read and write and spell and learn all the rules. I'm going to be very smart - You just wait and see - And when I become the President You'll know it's really me!
The First Day - Elise Lindgren See me skip, See me run, I'm going to school like everyone. See me smile, See me grin, When the bell rings, I walk in. See me work, See me play, I'm in Kindergarten - My first day!	We're Ready Chant 1, 2 ... Here's what we do. 3, 4 ... Bottoms on the floor. 5, 6 ... No talking lips. 7, 8 ... Sit up straight. 9, 10 ... Now let's begin! Kids love this and I've used it for 6+ years!

:Bulletin Board Ideas:

Kindergarten Rocks

I have a jukebox bulletin board set from Carson Dellosa. It comes with paper cd's, but I used some of the ones that come in the mail free and other real ones that I've collected that are damaged. (Plus my husband is a Programmer Analyst!) I add a name to each cd and put them on the bulletin board with the heading - "Kindergarten Rocks!"

Look Who's Hanging Out In Kindergarten

Create a bulletin board with a yarn clothesline and a cute character - like a monkey - hanging on it. The clothesline should run from end-to-end. The monkey is in the middle. On either side of the monkey, write children's names on different colored t-shirts (you can use felt or craft foam too!) and hang them on the clothesline with the colorful mini-clothespins you can get at Michaels craft store. You might need to make two lines of clothesline.

The Mailbox, Kindergarten, Aug/Sept 1999 has several t-shirt ideas for show-and-tell, a song, art activity and a artsy emergent reader.

We're Popping Into Kindergarten!

I enlarged a picture of a commerical popcorn popper and then wrote children's names on pictures of popcorn pieces. Label the bulletin board with "Look Who's Popping Into Kindergarten!"

Buzzin' Into Kindergarten

I made a summer tree, fence, and sun to decorate a bulletin board. Then I added names on Carson Dellosa bee cutouts for each child. I added them to the bulletin board and labeled it, "Buzzin' Into Kindergarten!"

:Open House Ideas:

Unity Poem

At the conclusion of my Open House session I always read the Unity poem to my parents. Every year I have had at least one parent who comments on how much they enjoyed hearing that poem. It does give them a positive feeling that they are leaving their child in a positive learning environment they are part of.

Unity I dreamed I stood in a studio and watched two sculptors there The clay they used was a young child's mind and they fashioned it with care. One was a teacher, the tools he used were books, and music, and art. One, a parent, with a guiding hand and a gentle loving heart. Day after day, the teacher toiled with touch that was deft and sure. While a parent labored by his side and polished and smoothed it o'er. And when at last their task was done, they were proud of what they had wrought. For the things they had moded into the child could neither be sold nor bought. And each agreed he would have failed if he had worked alone. For behind the parent stood the school, And behind the teacher, the home.

Parent-Child Glyph

As you are talking to individual parents - or other parents are trickling in - you can have the parents and their child do this fun little glyph. I did this at my son's school a few years back and thought what a wonderful idea! Leave on each child's desk two copies of a head pattern. Parents will answer (and help their child) the following questions and color their face pattern accordingly. 1. What is your favorite meal of the day? Your answer determines your eyes: breakfast, lunch, dinner. 2. What is your favorite snack? Your answer determines your nose: cookies, candy, fruit, other. 3. Would you rather read a book or watch tv? Your answer determines your mouth: read, watch tv. 4. Would you rather play indoors or outdoors? Your answer determines your hair: indoors, outdoors. You can decide what you want each answer to look like!

Open House Scavenger Hunt!

Create a list of things for the parents and children to find in the classroom. This frees you up to talk to parents and give parents a chance to look around. 1. Find your child's cubby. 2. Find your child's birthday cake, etc. You can also hit key things you want by adding, "Join PTA" and "Sign Up For Snacks" and "Parent Conferences."

:Getting To Know Each Other:

Back To School Memory Game

Collect a bookbag, a pack of crayons, a bottle of glue, a pair of scissors, and a pencil (and/or other school supply objects from your classroom). Show the supplies to the children; then ask them to cover their eyes while you remove one item from the group. You can also use the items in the bookbag to introduce back to school vocab words - and add them to a word wall. Ask a volunteer to guess which item is missing; then return that item to the group. Continue until each child has a turn to guess or until interest wanes. Store the supplies in the bookbag; then put the bag in your games center for small groups to play during center time.

All About Me Big Book

I created a big book about myself to include my family, my pets, my favorites, my hobbies, and a picture of myself when I was in Kindergarten to tell the kids a little bit about myself. It is good to let them know that I have favorite colors and foods and hobbies just like they do. They always think it's cool that I was once 5 too!

All About Me Big Book

Classroom and School Rules

I continue to do the "stoplight" method for classroom management. I use 5 general rules in my classroom. We discuss these class rules individually and I have children talk about why they think each of the rules is important. My co-worker has a song called, "The Road To Resonsibility" that I use in my room too. We sing it after we have discussed what the stoplight means. It incorporates the red, yellow, and green. We sing this daily for the few couple weeks of school. I also like mixing it up with Victoria's "Rules Rap" in the poems and songs section.

The Name Game

Having children warm up is sometimes an issue on the first few days of school and this name game is perfect to break some ice. Circle will sit in a circle on the floor. Have a beanbag that coordinates with your class theme - such as a bee. Model the game by saying, "My name is Mrs. Anderson, and I like pizza." Pass the beanbag to the child next to you and have him repeat the sentence, putting in his own name and the food he likes. Go around the circle until all children have had a turn. If you want to play another day, change the type of sentence to favorite color, animal, sport, etc.

Playdoh Icebreaker

Make a white batch of playdoh. Then make small balls and flatten it out a little. Then add a few drops of food coloring in the middle. Fold the ball over so you can't see the color. Put in a ziploc baggie. Use green, blue and yellow for the best results. Tell the children when they open and play with the playdoh that if it changes colors they will have a great shcool year. [Idea from: Kara Chancellor

:Reading:

Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come!

Read the story, Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come! by Nancy Carlson. Discuss some of the things that Henry did while getting ready for school. The Mailbox, Kindergarten, Aug/Sept 2000 issue has a great worksheet you can use for sequencing pictures of the story.

Mouse Sequencing

Read the story, If You Take a Mouse to School. Using key pictures of items in the story that the mouse asked for/did, sequence the events of the story. Put the pictures in a pocket chart and allow children to put them in the correct order by choosing from all the pictures in the chart.[See The Mailbox, Aug/Sept 2003 for patterns]

:Math:

Hugs or Kisses?

Most children leave for Kindergarten with a hug and a kiss from their parent/caregiver. And, most children LOVE chocolate. So, this fun graph is sure to get your new class' attention. I give them each a Hershey Hug and a Hershey kiss. They get to taste both. I then ask them which one they like best. When they tell me, they either get a white cutout with brown stripes for the hug or a brown cutout for the kiss. Then we make a large floor graph using our hugs and kisses and see which one had the most. At the end of the day I give each child a little note that says, "Here's a Hug and a Kiss on you first day of Kindergarten" and add another hershey hug and kiss to it.

Graphing names

Read the book Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. Talk about how she didn't like her name. Count the letters that are in her name. Give each child a sentence strip with his/her name on it. Have them count the letters that are in their own names. Next make a graph of every person's name according to how many letters they have.

Transportation Graph

Provide each student with a round sticker with their name on it. Create a graph with a bus graphic, a car graphic, daycare van, and walker graphic on it. Have students put their name stickers in the appropriate column to answer, "How Did You Get To School Today?"

:Social Studies:

School Helpers

Before school starts, take pictures of all the helpers in the school - secretaries, media specialist, principal, lunchroom manager, coaches, and music teacher. Create a class book to introduce them to the students. Have a brief description about the helpers and the special jobs they do for the school.

My Teacher

When students come to school they love to call you "teacher" instead of your real name. I observed a co-worker doing this wonderful mneumonic activity with her class, so I adopted it myself! It has definitely helped children remember my name. I tell children that I have a secret about how they can remember my name. I share a picture of my son and tell them that I am known to talk a lot - especially about my family and my son - when I'm with my family and friends. If they want to try to remember my name they can remember my secret that "she likes to talk about her family 'and-(h)er-son.'"

:Science:

Class Pets

If you have a class pet - you can share facts about your pet. You can also talk about repsonsibilities we have of caring for our class pet.

:Art:

Student Work Magnets

Purchase some inexpensive wood pieces, such as stars, from Michaels or any other craft store. Spray paint them if they aren't already colored. Using a sharpie marker, program each star with "(student's name) Work". Allow them to decorate the edges with sequins, stickers, etc. Add a strong circle magnet to the back of the wooden shape. Let them take these home and place on their refrigerator so they can display their work throughout the year.

Name Puzzles

This idea came from the KinderKorner list several years ago. Cut poster board. (I made mine on the computer using Print Shop 20) Decorate the edges with markers leaving the center blank. When you receive your class roster, write the children's first names on the cards. Cut them in a simple fashion. You will have a name puzzle for each child to take home at the end of the day. Put the pieces into a baggie.

Name Recognition

Prepare a class supply of card stock strips with each child's name with thick black lines. Have children paint their names with glue and decorate them with dried beans.

:Writing:

First Day Handwriting

I always have the children write their name on a programmed piece of paper stating, "This is how I wrote my name on the first day of school." I keep them in their writing folders and compare them on the last day of school. I love hearing, "Who wrote my name on that?"

Getting Ready for Kindergarten

Read Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten. Talk about all the things that she did - and that you did - to get ready for all the Kindergarten kids to come to school. Have children draw a picture and then dictate what they did in order to get ready to come to school. There is a leveled reader at www.readinga-z.com called Getting Ready for School that shows children preparing for a new year of school.

The Very Busy Kindergartener

Using the format from The Very Hungry Caterpillar, take pictures or have children draw pictures for each of the following sentence formats: In August, the very busy kindergartener ________________. In September, the verybusy kindergartener _____________, and so on. You can have children dictate what they did that month or make all the sentences the same. The August/September 2003 issue of The Mailbox has details of a version of this project.

:Websites:

Kinder Korner

The Virtual Vine

Back to School Lesson Plans and Ideas

A To Z Teachers Stuff

Back To School Bears

Teaching Heart

The K Crew

Want to be notified when this page updates? Sign up for the mailing list below:

Credits:

Javascripts courtesy of