Create an aquarium bulletin board with a "school" of fish. Prior to the beginning of school, prepare a bulletin board with a blue background using blue fabric or paper. Title the board, "Welcome Back to School." During an activity time on the first day of school, hand out one piece of construction paper per student. Tell them to draw a large fish and to write their name on it in large, bold handwriting. Have your students decorate their fish with glitter, felt pens, crayons or any art supplies you have on hand, and then instruct them to cut out the fish design so you can place them on the bulletin board. This simple bulletin board is a great way for students to learn names and get acquainted with the new "school" (classroom).
Create a large mural or bulletin board by drawing a large tree trunk and branches on a light background. Write subjects or class objectives on the tree trunk and title the bulletin board, "Helping Hand Tree." Give each child a piece of fall-colored construction paper, and have students trace their hand twice. Carefully cut them out and place each hand on the tree as leaves.
Decorate the bulletin board background prior to the first day of school with a brown paper background and yellow "caution" tape for the border and throughout. Write important rules and classroom policies on the board and assign one rule for each student. Instruct your students to make signs for the bulletin board by writing the rules on paper plates. Have them decorate the plate borders with whatever art supplies you have on hand, and post the plates, or "signs," on the bulletin board.
Prepare your bulletin board by covering it in red fabric or paper, and place stars around the border. Make a questionnaire that contains several simple personal questions. Have each student fill out the questionnaire on the first day of school. If you have digital photos on file for your students and have access to a printer, print out 4 by 6 digital pictures (one of each student). You can also have your students write out their name in bold print and decorate with glitter and foiled star stickers. Place either the names or student pictures on the bulletin board and announce to the class that they're all celebrities and stars in the classroom. At the end of the first week, ask the students to identify each celebrity on the bulletin board by matching the set of answers from the questionnaire to the correct student. Keep the answers posted so the students can learn about each other.