Those first days of school are a bit tricky and at times a giant blur.  SO MANY routines to teach! You don’t know the students yet and it’s all about establishing routines.  You want to create a warm, welcoming space, but also have some fun activities to get your kids pumped up to be in your classroom! They are easy prep, meaningful and engaging. Here are three of my favorites to open a school year, able to be fit in at any moment in the day:

People BINGO: This is the “find someone who” game where you get signatures, except this one has a little math flavor.

Math Attitude and Interest Survey: This goes without saying, it’s super important to know how kids feel about math! Give the survey and reflect on their responses, giving you a heads up about their mindset. I loved giving it at the start and the end of the year, and I especially love giving it to my intervention groups.
Reasoning Puzzles: Get the kids talking about math during that first week of school. It’s especially a great activity when you want to set up group work expectations. Students study a puzzle and then try to figure out whether the statements given are true or false.