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The beginning of the school year is always exciting.  New supplies, new students, new opportunities to try something new.  However, it’s also stressful.  The first couple of weeks always end up being a blur.  One of the most important things that I want to accomplish during those first couple weeks of school is a sense of community.  I think it is so important to teach students how to work together successfully.  We do a lot of group work during the year, so they need to learn early how to cooperate with each other.  My classroom challenges provide the perfect opportunity for students to work together to complete academic challenges and earn rewards together.

What is the Back to School Challenge?

The Back to School Challenge includes 10 academic based challenges for the students to complete in small groups of 3-5 students.  After each group completes one of the challenges, that group earns a Challenge Ticket.  The Challenge Ticket includes a coded mystery word that the group must solve using the decoder page.  The first group to complete all 10 challenges (or however many you decide to use) is the winning group.  You can decide if there will be a prize for each group or not.  I usually hand out something little after each group is finished. (pencils, seasonal erasers, candy, stickers, …)

Each challenge has a picture on the top left of the page.  This picture matches a picture on the Challenge Ticket.  This makes organization of this project very easy.  The academic skills that are included in this challenge include:

-Lowercase Letters
-Numbers or Letters
-Missing Numbers
-Rhyming Words
-Counting
-Beginning Letter Sounds
-Number Order
-Fixing Sentences
-Graphing
-Illustrating Sentences

“I bought your 100th day challenge last year and it was a big hit with the kids! I’m excited to introduce this to my new group of kids the first week of school. I think it will be a great way to promote team-building and cooperation skills, while also reviewing things that they should know from kindergarten.” -Beth

If you love this challenge, you may also want to check out my other Classroom Challenges including The Christmas Challenge, Valentine’s Day Challenge, Spring Challenge, and more.

Every year, a couple of weeks before school starts, I start purchasing things that I need for the school year.  I always seem to find myself wracking my brain to try and remember everything that I need to get.  I decided to make a list of items that I buy EVERY SINGLE YEAR before the school year begins, so I can make sure that I have everything I need.  This list includes all of my must-have back to school items.  I am not including those items that you buy once every couple of years or a new expensive item for your classroom.  I am talking about the consumable items that have to be purchased every year.

This post contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my links, which helps to support the blog.

1. Crayons, crayons, and more crayons

You can never have enough crayons.  I feel like my students must be eating crayons each year.  They always bring their own at the beginning of the year, but most of those are gone by the second week of school.  I always provide crayons in baskets in my classroom, but I am constantly adding more to the tubs.  I usually stock up on the cheap crayon boxes at Walmart during back to school time (ALWAYS Crayola), but if I have to buy them later on in the year, I found that buying a large bulk box on Amazon was cheaper.

2. Glue Sticks

Glue sticks are another item that somehow disappear in no time.  You can never have too many glue sticks.

3. Folders

I always get folders before the school year starts.  I purchase red ones to use as Ketchup folders.  (Students keep these in their desk to place work in that they need to “catch up” on.)  I also love these Resource Folders from Really Good Stuff.

4. Mr. Sketch Markers

I get a new pack of Mr. Sketch Markers every single year.  They last the entire year and are perfect for anchor charts.

5. Chart Paper

I go through at least one tablet of chart paper each year for anchor charts, interactive writing, etc.

6. Astrobrights Paper

I seriously use Astrobrights paper for everything.  I love the colors, and I love the quality.

Find this Interactive Practice Folder in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store.

7. Sticky Putty

All of the walls in my classroom are cinder block.  This definitely makes hanging things harder.  I have found that Sticky Putty seems to work the best for keeping things up.  There are still times when I come into my classroom after the weekend, and I have to pick things up off the floor, but it isn’t nearly as often if they are hung up with Sticky Putty.

8. Name Badges

I love having name badges for my students.  These are great for the beginning of the year when they are still learning their lunch numbers.  They are also great for subs and/or field trips.

9. Pencils

If you’re a teacher, you know how quickly students can go through pencils.  Ticonderoga pencils are definitely the easiest to sharpen and are my go-to pencil choice.

10. Hand Sanitizer

I always purchase the gigantic hand sanitizer container from Sam’s for my classroom.  There is a lot of sneezing, nose picking, and shoe tying in 1st grade.

What are your Back to School Must-Haves?

Are you new to 1st grade or do you just need some new and fresh ideas for Back to School?  Check out my go-to for the first week of school.