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12 Simply Fun First Day of School Activities for Your Preschool Classroom

Can you believe it’s already time to welcome a brand-new bunch of little learners?

At first, planning your first day of preschool can feel a little overwhelming, especially when you’re trying to create the just right mix of calm, connection, and structure.

You might be wondering:
Do I start with a story?
Do I teach routines right away?
Do I set up centers or go with something low-key?

Whatever your approach, one thing is clear: your first day of school activities matter.

Why First Day Activities Matter

The first day sets the tone for your classroom culture. It helps children feel safe, builds trust, and gives you a glimpse into the beautiful little personalities you’ll be guiding all year long.

That’s why it’s important to choose activities that are playful, purposeful, and grounded in connection. In fact, when you focus on building relationships and gently easing children into the rhythm of the classroom, the rest of your year flows more smoothly.

That’s why, if you’re looking for simple, effective, and heart-centered ideas to start the year strong, you’re in the right place.

Let’s walk through 12 first day of school activities that will help your preschoolers feel right at home from the moment they walk through the door.

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12 First Day Of School Activities

Activity #1: First Day of School Photo

First, start the day with a moment worth remembering! To capture the moment, snap those first day photos before snack time. Then, turn those adorable outfits into works of abstract art.

Grab a balloon, a DIY school bus cutout, or a mini chalkboard that says “First Day of Preschool” with the year. Quick, easy, and parents will LOVE it.

As a bonus: Make a sweet bulletin board for back-to-school night or a memory keepsake later on.

Activity #2: Teach and Practice Routines

This is your golden opportunity to set the tone.

Introduce circle time expectations, transitions, bathroom routines, snack procedures—you know, all the things. Keep it playful and visual. Model both the right way and the silly-wrong way to make it memorable (and fun!).

That’s why the more consistent you are early on, the more confident your students will feel.

Activity #3: Read Books About Back To School

Books are magic on the first day. Not only do they help calm nerves, but they’re also a powerful way to build connection and introduce important social-emotional themes.

There are so many great back-to-school books that help ease nerves and teach social-emotional skills. Choose stories that explore friendship, feelings, routines, and self -regulation.

Need ideas? Check out my list of favorite back to school read-alouds for preschool.

Activity #4: Take a School Tour (Scavenger Hunt Style!)

If your preschool is part of a larger school, a tour helps your little learners feel grounded.

To make it more engaging, turn your school tour into a scavenger hunt! You can give visual clues and let students “find” important places like:

The bathroom 🚽
The nurse’s office 🏥
The playground 🛝
The lunch room 🧃

It’s a gentle way to help them feel more confident in their new surroundings.

Activity #5: Getting-To-Know-You Activities

get to know you games image — The 7 engaging Get to Know You activities in this resource will help your pre-k, preschool and kindergarten students build connections with you and each other, while having fun together!

This activity is where you pull out all the fun getting to know you activities. There are always so many activities on the first day of school. But make sure to take the time to connect with your students! Whether you play games, read books about friendship, ask your students getting to know you questions during circle time, or bring in a first week challenge board. Use these first couple of days to get to know your students and let them get to know each other. I love this time of year and have created easy first-week activities and challenges.

Here are some games you could include:

Name songs at circle time
“Find a Friend Who…” bingo
Rolling a soft ball and sharing a favorite food or animal
A “First Week Challenge Board” with prompts like “Say hi to 3 new friends” or “Play with someone new today”
Would You Rather Questions

Playing Would you Rather is a fun way to get to know each other!

💛 Want something ready-to-go?
Grab my Kindness Bingo Freebie—it’s a fun and visual way to model kind classroom behavior while helping students get to know each other in a playful, low-pressure way.

Connecting with your new students is also a great time to start some curriculum! No, I don’t mean the ABCs or number recognition. I mean social-emotional learning! Little learners need some help identifying and understanding their emotions and what an opportunity coming back to school is to start talking about our first day feelings!

Kindness bingo freebie image 1 — Download this free Kindness Bingo game made especially for preschool, Pre K and Kindergarten students.

Activity #6: Independent Work Time

You know there’s going to be a moment when you need to organize supplies, collect forms, or just take a breath.

Set up some quiet, independent stations like:

Playdough with loose parts
Mindfulness coloring pages
Simple puzzles or building blocks
Sticker art trays
Mindfulness coloring

These calm activities allow students to explore and settle in, and at the same time, give you space to manage the behind-the-scenes bits.

Activity #7: Create a Classroom Time Capsule

This is such a special way to reflect on growth!

Have each child:

Draw a picture of themselves
Trace or write their name
Share a favorite food or color

Tuck it all into a “time capsule” envelope or box. Then on the last day of school, pull them back out and let the giggles (and proud moments) unfold.

Activity #8: Introduce Classroom Mottos

Classroom mottos are like tiny guiding stars. They help your students understand what your classroom stands for in a way that’s simple, positive, and easy to remember.

At the start of the year, introduce 1–3 simple mottos to help set the tone for your classroom culture. These aren’t just rules, they’re affirmations that build belonging and shared values.

Some of my favorites include:

“In this class, we are kind.”
“We try our best.”
“We look after each other.”

💡 You can either brainstorm mottos together during circle time, or offer a few pre-written choices and let students decorate them. Then post them on your wall, revisit them during circle time, and refer back to them when navigating social situations.

✨ Want help getting started?
I’ve created a Classroom Mottos resource with nine powerful mottos that are perfect for preschool. It includes kid-friendly language, visuals, and display options to help you create a supportive, heart-centered classroom culture right from day one. It’s one of those “set it up once and refer to it all year” kind of resources—so good!

🔗 Looking for more inspiration? Check out this blog post:
9 Important Class Mottos for the Start of the Preschool Year—it’s full of ideas to help you choose the right mottos for your classroom.

Image for Classroom Mottos — Introduce classroom mottos at the start of the preschool year to build a sense of community.

Activity #9: First Day Feelings Check-In

It’s a big day with big feelings.

While some students might come in beaming with excitement, others may be holding back tears (or already mid-meltdown). Helping children identify, express, and normalize their emotions from Day One is powerful and sets the tone for an emotionally supportive classroom.

Try using:

A feelings chart or feelings face cards
A mirror activity (“Show me your happy/sad/scared face!”)
Books that explore big feelings on the first day
Morning check-ins with “How do you feel today?” visuals

💛 Want a ready-to-go tool for this exact moment?
Check out my First Day Feelings resource. It’s designed specifically for preschoolers and includes visual supports, emotion labels, and simple strategies to help your students name and navigate their emotions on Day One (and beyond).
It’s honestly one of my favorite ways to create connection, build trust, and open up conversations early.

Image for first day feelings activity — This First Day Feelings lesson, will help your young learners identify their feelings, to label them, to know they are normal and to provide strategies for dealing with those feelings.

Activity #10: Sensory Exploration Stations

Sensory play is a powerful way to ease nerves, calm busy bodies, and build confidence.

Easy, low-mess ideas:

Kinetic sand with alphabet stamps
Pom-poms + tongs
Water beads and scoops
Pipe cleaners + colanders

You don’t need fancy bins, even just a few trays and some curiosity will do the trick!

Activity #11: “My First Day” Drawing Booklets

Invite your students to reflect (in their own little way) on the day.

Give them a half-page booklet or drawing page with prompts like:

“This is me on my first day of preschool.”
“My favorite thing today was…”
“Something that made me smile…”

If needed, you can scribe their responses so their thoughts are captured. Keep the pages to send home or turn them into a class book to revisit during the week!

Activity #12: Play, Laugh, and Just Be Together

You don’t have to over-plan the day. The best thing you can do is help your students feel safe, seen, and excited to come back tomorrow.

💛 Put on music and dance
💛 Play a silly name game
💛 Get outside and run
💛 Just enjoy the magic of this fresh new beginning

After all, fun is foundational.

FAQs: First Day of Preschool Questions Answered

Q: What should I do on the first day of preschool?
A: Keep it simple, warm, and structured. Focus on activities that help your students feel safe, welcome, and connected. A mix of getting-to-know-you games, a classroom tour, fun read-alouds, and play-based centers works wonders. Bonus tip: practice routines early (and often)!

Q: How do you make the first day of preschool special?
A: Snap those adorable first-day photos, read a magical book, and sprinkle in some surprise fun like a scavenger hunt or sensory bin stations. Add a little music or bubbles at pack-up time and you’ve got yourself a memory-maker day!

Q: How do I prepare my preschool classroom for the first day?
A: Think calming, clutter-free, and cozy. Have materials prepped (like name tags, bins, and any paperwork), centers set up with simple choices, and visuals for routines ready to go. And yes, prep a playlist of your fave transition songs!

Q: How do I help preschoolers with separation anxiety on the first day?
A: Greet them with warmth, keep drop-offs short and positive, and gently redirect with engaging activities. Most importantly, keep your energy calm and confident—they’ll feed off of it. Stories about emotions and a consistent routine can help, too.

Wrap-Up Tip
Remember-your first day doesn’t have to be perfect. Just focus on connection, calm, and showing up as your beautifully human self. You’ve got this!

**This post was last updated in July 2025 to keep your first day of school planning fresh and relevant.**