Looking for activity ideas for 4 yrs old on their first day of school--in fact, first week.?

Question

I am beginning my teaching internship this year with a PreK-4 position. I plan to be at the door greeting the students and parents as they arrive; and while I am doing so, I plan on having an activity that they can be working on until all the students have arrived and I have completed roll. It keeps the noise level down and gives them a chance to settle in. Of course, I want it to be a very simple and achievable. Any ideas? I had considered having a color sheet with a picture of a school house and children with backpacks, etc.

The parents will be dropping off the children. They will be asked to go in with their child to fill out a "contact information" sheet. A few things are achieved. One, the child is guided to a sitting area and feels safe. Two, the child is given a task to maintain their attention. And, finally, the parent will complete the information sheet.

Answer 1

The cutest first week project I have ever seen with first week pre-k or kindergarden students, is very simple, but something their parents will cherish for life. It's basically dipping there hands in paint, and on either side of the sheet, placing their handprints. In the middle of the sheet inside a box is this poem: Sometimes you get discouraged, because I am so small, and always leave my handprints, and fingerprints on the wall. But everyday I'm growing, and I'll be grown someday, and those tiny handprints, will surely fade away. So here's some final handprints, Just so you can recall, exactly how my fingers looked, when I was very small. Slightly messy, BUT, the sheets with the poems written in can be prepared in advance. So, it's not very time consuming, and I don't know of one child that wouldn't love making their handprints at that age, and I certainly don't know of one parent that wouldn't feel that was a keepsake to cherish for life! Good Luck with your future endeavors!

Answer 2

If you are at the door, you definitely don't want the kids working w/paint by themselves behind your back! LOL!

I can't tell...Will parents be working on the project w/their kids? If so, a great idea I once saw was to have the parents help kids decorate their birthday crown. The paper crowns were cut out (laying flat) and kids used markers, glitter glue, stickers, feathers, etc. under supervision of parents to decorate the crowns. The teacher saved the crowns until the child's birthday (or special day if they had summer bdays) and then on birthday she'd staple them to fit the child's head.

If parents will be dropping off, I'd have several stations for kids to choose from... puzzles or some kind of manipulative, books, playdough or sensory table if you have one, maybe your coloring idea. Offering choices gives the child some measure of control if they are having anxiety about being dropped off.

Answer 3

Make some play dough and have it at one table with utensils to roll it and cut it.
On another table- Have scissors with magazines to cut up and glue on paper.Both activities are good for small motor development.
Crayons with blank paper is fine too.
I try to do things parents hate to do at home - like lots of painting and messy stuff. Kids love it.
Using coloring pages on the table will be a dead give away that you don't know what you are doing. Coloring pages with pictures to color in are anti creative. Once children color in coloring books they don't want to color pictures on their own. plus parents throw coloring books at their kids at home all the time.

Answer 4

Set up playdoh and playdoh tools at each table that they can play with until the class is all there. Be sure to allow the last child to get to play before cleaning up to start your day, even if it's only 5 minutes.

Answer 5

I would set up a variety of stations they could work on, playdough, drawing, puzzles.

Answer 6

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