Whether you’re welcoming students for the very first time or beginning another exciting school year, the first few weeks of school are so important for building trust, easing jitters, and creating a positive classroom community.
While each school year brings its own unique challenges, many young students still arrive feeling anxious or uncertain about what to expect. In this post, I’m sharing simple, thoughtful ways to help your students feel safe, connected, and excited about the year ahead.
Prepare Families & Students for a Smooth Transition
Sending a welcome message or email before school starts can go a long way toward easing student and parent nerves. Include details about classroom routines, drop-off and pick-up info, what to bring, and what the first day will look like. This helps eliminate the fear of the unknown and sets the tone for a warm, organized classroom.
A simple Meet the Teacher template can help you quickly create a warm, professional-looking introduction. I love using mine to share fun facts about myself, classroom expectations, and contact information in one easy-to-read page. It’s a great way to start building relationships before students even walk through the door.
Be prepared for slip-ups – Plan for the unexpected
Young learners are still mastering routines, self-regulation, and independence. Be ready with extras—like spare pencils, tissues, or water bottles—so a small hiccup doesn’t feel like a big deal. Having gentle backup plans helps students feel safe and supported no matter what the day brings. Even little things like a missing crayon or spilled snack can feel huge in the moment for a kindergartener—your calm response and quick solutions make all the difference.
It’s also helpful to create a quiet space in your classroom where students can go to regroup if they’re feeling overwhelmed. This could be a cozy corner with a few calming tools like fidget toys, books, or breathing visuals. By offering predictable strategies and supports when things don’t go as planned, you’re not only preventing meltdowns—you’re modeling flexibility, problem-solving, and emotional regulation in action.
Help Students Navigate Big Emotions
The beginning of the year often comes with a rollercoaster of feelings—excitement, nerves, curiosity, and even fear. Create space in your day to explore these feelings together. Try deep breathing routines, calming music during arrival, or read-alouds that center around emotions. A peaceful, predictable environment helps students feel safe and seen.
Be a good role model for your students by taking care of yourself and staying calm during the day. If they see you being calm they are more likely to stay calm too.
Teach them coping strategies. It is very hard for young children to express big emotions; therefore, it is important to teach them how to self-regulate and deal with them.
Explain that it is OK to be upset or scared, but it is not OK to cause harm to another person or to kick and scream when feeling this way. Teach them to keep their hands to themselves and take a deep breath. Deep breathing can calm the nervous system. There are few a YouTube videos that can help:
Sesame Street has a video on breathing to handle emotions.
In this video called Just Breathe by Julie Bayer Salzman you can watch and hear from elementary school students learning to use mindfulness to navigate complex feelings.
Extend your circle time or morning meeting to explore feelings. Talking about emotions can help children process their feelings and recognize them in themselves and others. This discussion time also helps them learn to take turns, listen to others, focus, and build connections.
Build a Strong Classroom Community from Day One
One of my favorite strategies for this is the bucket filler strategy. It is a concept that is simple for young students to understand and encourages good behavior and kindness to others. The basic gist of the bucket filler theme is that we all carry around invisible buckets that represent our level of happiness. The objective is to keep everyone’s bucket full by being bucket fillers. Bucket fillers fill each others’ buckets by being kind, following the class rules, sharing, and caring for each other.
It is based on Tom Rath’s How Full is Your Bucket? For Kids book and Have You Filled a Bucket Today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids by Carol McCloud. You can find ideas for implementing the bucket filler strategy in your classroom here.
You can also build connections with each other by making a piece of art together as a class. Handprint art is simple and easy for young students. A favorite of mine is to create a rainbow using the students’ handprints and then hanging it on a bulletin board entitled “Be a Rainbow in Someone Else’s Cloud”.
Another great way to help young students to feel connected with one another is to sing together as a group. There are a number of fun singalongs on YouTube such as this one by The Singing Walrus or you can sing familiar songs together such as nursery rhymes.
Students can also recite this bucket filler pledge together as a class each day.
Create & go over rules & safety guidelines together
Students will generally follow rules and guidelines if they understand the reason behind them and if they had a hand in creating them.
Creating the rules together as a class shows your students that you care about their feelings and also value their opinions.
Come up with a set of rules together as a group and explain the WHY for each of them.
Welcome them back with a small treat or surprise gift
This is something that I have done for years and my students have always loved it! It has helped them feel more at ease and less anxious about school and leaving their parents. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant, just something simple and special from you to show them that you are happy to have them in your class. You can see some examples of back to school gifts here.
I hope these ideas help you start the year with confidence and connection. Whether it’s your students’ first experience in school or they’re returning with a fresh mix of excitement and nerves, your care and thoughtful routines will help set the tone for a successful year. If you have other ideas that have worked well, I’d love for you to share them in the comments below. Wishing you a joyful and smooth start to the school year!
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