Do not leave dressing in pajamas on Pajama Day to the students. Pull out funny or comfy pajamas from your dresser and join in the day. Doing so will help the students connect with you as you bond over participating in the special day. As an added bonus, talk the school's administrative staff into wearing their pajamas to school on your classroom's pajama day. This will make your class feel special, and will make other students wish that you taught their class. Use the day to share a lesson on authority with the students. Explain how they should respect those over them, such as a teacher, but that authority figures are still people just like them.
Set up the room as a big sleepover throughout the day. Bring movies approved by the school principal, pop popcorn and offer a variety of drinks to the class. Spend the day playing games, watching movies and enjoying your slumber party. If your students still enjoy regular nap time, have the nap time scheduled before lunch and bring breakfast foods in to enjoy for lunch after nap time. Invite parents to come and eat lunch with the students. If desired, watch an educational film on nocturnal animals to add to the feeling of staying up through the night.
Dress up like a train conductor and welcome the students to the Polar Express as they enter into the room. Decorate the entire room to look like a winter wonderland, and offer a showing of the movie Polar Express. For an educational twist, spend some time throughout the day teaching the students different facts about the North Pole. Serve hot cocoa and chocolate bars for a snack. This themed pajama day works the best when it falls right before the winter break.
When kids get into their pajamas at home, it means that bedtime is next. However, before the lights are turned out, many kids enjoy a bedtime story read to them by their parents. Ask your students to bring their favorite bedtime stories from home. On the day, gather the students in a circle on the floor and go around the room sharing favorite bedtime stories. If the students cannot read yet, read the stories for them at different times throughout the day. After all of the stories have been read, teach the kids some facts about sleep, such as why it is important to receive enough sleep each night.