It’s that time of year again!
Summer is quickly coming to a close, and if you’re a teacher, you know what that means… back-to-school nightmares! *cue screams*
You know the ones. You arrive to your classroom (late, of course!), and the students are already there, tearing the room to shreds and getting into all sorts of mischief. You try to regain control, but they completely ignore you (at best!). At some point you realize you have absolutely no plans and you don’t even know what subject or grade level you’re teaching. How did this happen?!
That’s when you wake up in a cold sweat and start mentally running through your to-do list instead of sleeping like a normal person should do.
If you’re anything like me, these back-to-school nightmares have already started, and that’s where this post comes in! To help you get a little more sleep over the next few weeks, I’m here to share my favorite back-to-school books and how I use them with my students to establish classroom culture while simultaneously incorporating instructional routines and learning standards.
Day 1: Get Out Those Jitters!
Books to Read:
- First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg
- First Day Critter Jitters by Jory John
These books are perfect for nervous students (and teachers!) to read on the first day of school, and both have hilarious twists at the end.
I read First Day Jitters in the morning. Before we start the book, I have students make predictions about who is hiding under the bedsheets. We check our predictions after reading.
In the afternoon, we read First Day Critter Jitters and make connections (text-to-text, text-to-self, text-to-world). Because we already read First Day Jitters, every student will have at least one connection!
Days 2-3: Getting to Know You
Books to Read:
- The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
- Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana-Martinez Neal
We spend a lot of time learning each other’s names on Days 2 and 3. We decorate name plates for our desks, and we read about children who embrace their own names (Day 2) before we take turns sharing our own “Name Stories” (Day 3).
Like Day 1, we read one story in the morning and one in the afternoon and make connections after reading both to reinforce the skills we practiced yesterday.
Two other books you can incorporate (or use in listening centers) on the same theme are…
- Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes
- Your Name is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow
Day 4: Rules and Respect
Books to Read:
- Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann
- Rhinos Don’t Eat Pancakes by Anna Kemp
Day 4 is all about setting our class norms. By this time, we have already practiced several procedures and spent some time getting to know each other. We’ll continue to do both of those things over the next two weeks, but on Day 4, we talk about the role of rules in our classroom: Rules keep us safe!
In the morning, we read Officer Buckle and Gloria and discuss how rules keep us safe physically and emotionally. We also go over our class rules in more depth at this time and talk about how we can be safe, kind, and helpful classmates.
One way we can show kindness and respect is by listening well, and we use Rhinos Don’t Eat Pancakes (which is truly hilarious!)in the afternoon to introduce the concept of Whole Body Listening. Although there are “school stories” that could be used similarly (e.g. My Mouth is a Volcano), I like that the “bad listeners” in this book are the adults! This reinforces the idea that everybody (not just kids!) needs to learn and practice good listening skills.
A few other books that I’ve used that fit nicely with these themes are…
- Our Class is a Family by Sandie Sonke
- We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins
- Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
Day 5: Launching with Creativity!
Books to Read:
- The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
On Day 5, we start our first “official” language arts lesson of the year, but before we jump in, we begin to talk about growth mindset and learning through mistakes. After we read, we take some time to make our own dots using this resource from Reading is Fundamental.
We read several books throughout the year that continue to develop these themes (which I’ll share in another post!), but another book that pairs nicely with The Dot is…
- Ish by Peter H. Reynolds
Now that you have some book ideas to get you started and combat your nightmares, I want to give you four freebies! Last year, I made comprehensive Google slideshows for the first four days of school, and today I’m sharing all of them here with you.
Enjoy!
Note: Copy each file into your Google Drive to edit and use these in your own classroom!
Your turn! What are your favorite back-to-school read-alouds? (Bonus points if you share your worst back-to-school nightmare!)