How do you start your first day, or first week, of school? This fall will be Year 8 for me, and I’ve learned over time that the best way for me to grab student attention and build positive relationships is to put aside the syllabus and get everyone talking and moving on the first day.
Here are my five favorite “first day” activities that I have used with success over the years with middle school science students:
1. Classroom Scavenger Hunt: After briefly modeling silent signals we will use throughout the year, the class breaks into small groups to locate safety features and lab safety equipment, close read the syllabus and class policies, and identify sections of the room associated with class routines and procedures. Here is an example of my handout. I printed, laminated, and taped various sections of the handout around the room for students to find. For more technology-rich classrooms, teachers can use QR codes that link to the class website, textbook, and even lab safety videos. We go over the policies and classroom map before class ends, and I ask students to write additional questions about the class, any policies, or procedures on post-it notes and leave it on a “parking lot” chart on their way out. For our first quiz, I sometimes use questions from the Classroom Scavenger Hunt.
2. Breakout Box or Escape Room: With a Breakout Box or Escape Room Activity, students work together to solve a series of critical thinking puzzles in order to unlock a box or “escape” the room. Breakout EDU offers both physical and digital breakout box kits. Once purchased, teachers have access to hundreds of free breakout box games online. Unfortunately, I don’t have the pocket money to purchase the highly coveted Breakout Box, but I did find a more affordable paper version ($5!) by NouvelleELA on TeachersPayTeachers. (Note: I’m not sponsored by BreakoutEDU or TeachersPayTeachers. I like both products and thought I’d share with others.)
3. Science Stations – Science stations are a great way to get students learning, moving, and showing teachers what they know. Students can work in pairs or in small groups and complete tasks as they rotate through timed 6 or more stations. Working with 8th graders, my stations usually focus on lab safety, metric measurement, graphing skills, and using various lab equipment such as graduated cylinders, triple beam balances, and microscopes. Over the years, I’ve added brain teasers, word problems, and even old Regents essay questions to see student samples of scientific writing. Amy Brown Science from TeachersPayTeachers has a wonderful collection called “Science Chat First Day Icebreaker Labs” for Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. I’ve used her Biology version in a previous year, and I like that there are icebreaker questions included in the station tasks so that students get to know each other as they work together.
4. The Rainbow Lab – As a science teacher, I need to make sure that we talk about lab safety and our classroom safety guidelines right away. However, I believe it is easier for students to buy in with lab safety when they are actually doing a lab instead of watching videos and slideshows. The Rainbow Lab from Educational Innovations is an easy (and safe) way to review lab safety, measurement, the importance of following directions, and proper lab technique. If students followed directions and measured correctly, teachers should see a rainbow of colors (created from red, yellow, and blue liquid solutions) all at the same height in their six test tubes. It’s simple, but students get excited when they see the rainbow, and it leads to great conversations about lab safety. Liz LaRosa from MiddleSchoolScience Blog has a great free version that is more student-driven, inquiry-based, and uses Excel or Google Sheets for those with available technology in the classroom.
5. Lab Safety Games and Poster Memes – Games and humor are always a fun way to review! Most students have heard the lab safety song and dance by the time they reach 8th Grade, so I focus more on seeing if they understand the whys. For a bellringer activity, students race each other to identify as many “wrong” things as they can in a lab safety cartoon. The class then breaks up into groups and play a game called, “Safety Heads Up”. Similar to Ellen Degeneres’ “Heads Up” party game, players guess the academic vocabulary word (or lab equipment, or lab technique, or lab safety guidelines) based on other players’ clues. With each correct answer, the team must further explain why there is a lab safety guideline associated with the word and provide examples to earn more points. For an extension, students pick a lab safety guidelines and create a meme for it. Their meme must also have an explanation as to why it is important to follow that specific lab safety expectation. Students can draw or create mixed-media posters, or use meme generators if technology is available. (Note: Some meme generators may show adult content, so monitor carefully or avoid them by using Google Drawing instead.)
6. Group Challenges – Science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) challenges are another awesome way to get students thinking, moving, and interacting on the first day. The Marshmallow Challenge by TEDTalk presenter Tom Wujec is a popular activity. Students are given a bag of items and are tasked to build the tallest structure that can support the weight of a marshmallow on top in 18 minutes. Tower challenges can use a variety of different materials such as pipe cleaners, index cards, paper towel tubes, or newspaper. Teachers can present a box of random materials and task groups of students to build something within a class period. Building bridges, catapults, egg drop parachutes, and marble runs are other examples of STEAM group challenges. For more ideas, check out PBS Design Squad and Engineering: Go for It for design challenges and classroom activities.
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Robinson Science 