3 Introduction Activities for the First Day of School
The first day of school is one of the most important days of the year. It’s the day when teachers and students meet, when they make first impressions and create expectations, when they form their first bonds, etc. Accordingly, teachers should prepare group presentation activities.
In this article, you’ll find some ideas for fun and playful exercises to carry out in the classroom.
“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”
– Henry Brooks Adams –
Benefits of introduction activities
Class introduction activities allow all students to get to know each other in depth while playing fun games. In addition, this will be helpful to:
- Create an environment of positive coexistence.
- Promote self-knowledge.
- Build trust among students.
- Encourage group cohesion.
- Promote mutual respect.
- Work on empathy.
- Understand diversity.
- Facilitate communication.
- Improve the quality of student’s relationships.
“Getting along well with other people is still the world’s most needed skill. With it…there is no limit to what person can do.”
– Earl Nightingale –
3 introduction activities for the first day of school
My name is very pretty
This activity is perfect for children over 4 years old. First, you have to give students a card with the shape of a kid on it. Using the shape, they’ll have to draw themselves and paint their names with colors, so that they’re very pretty.
When everyone has finished, they have to show the card, while introducing themselves to the rest of the group. Thus, one by one, they’ll answer out loud a series of questions, such as:
- How old are you?
- Do you have any pets?
- Do you play any instrument?
- Do you practice any sport?
- What’s your favorite color?
When doing this activity, students must form a circle, so everybody can see and listen to each other clearly.
The spider web
This activity is ideal for students over 7 years old. At first, children must form a circle. Then, one of them is selected at random and handed a ball of yarn. Next, the student must introduce him or herself (name, age, hobbies, etc.) and throw the ball to another classmate, keeping a part of the yarn.
The next student must repeat the previous student’s introduction, add their own and then throw the ball, keeping a part of the yarn as well. Once they get to the last student, they’ll have formed a spider web.
After that, they have to unravel the web by throwing the ball backwards. This time, the students will only have to mention the names of the classmates they’re handing the yarn to. This activity is carried out until they get to the first student who has the beginning of the ball of yarn.
Looking for a partner
This activity is recommended for students over 9 years old. To start the activity, you have to have a bag and put inside a series of objects in pairs, such as colored pencils. Then, the children pass the bag around and grab a pencil. After that, they have to find the person that has the same color, so they become partners.
Next, students sit in pairs and talk about themselves (their names, hobbies, what they enjoy doing in their free time, etc.). Finally, each student introduces their partner to the rest of the class.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- González, E. (2000). Recopilación 456 juegos y dinámicas de integración grupal. Santiago de Chile: U. Concepción.
