A common way to begin the day in kindergarten involves having students prepare their materials for the day. Have students unpack their backpacks and place any papers from home in a designated spot. Give them a specific place to store backpacks, lunch boxes and jackets brought from home. Provide a place for students to sign in and make a lunch choice, if required at your school, by having them move a picture of themselves or a stick with their name written on it into the correct position, such as under the heading of lunch box or school lunch.
Let your students get into the school day routine at their own pace by providing individual or small group morning work. Provide a worksheet to review skills from the previous day's lesson or have students write or draw in their journals. Keep a selection of books on each student table and invite students to read when they enter the classroom. Place manipulative items, puzzles and quiet games around the room for small groups of students to play with as the day begins.
Welcome your students into the classroom by writing a morning message. Gather your students on the floor and share a note that you have written about the day's activities. Model the proper way to read the message and ask students to help you sound out basic words. As the kindergarten year progresses, use this time to teach children writing and grammar skills by leaving out punctuation marks or spelling words incorrectly. Once students gain confidence in their writing, allow them to compose their own morning messages to share or let them work together to write one as a class.
Host a daily morning meeting to share important classroom information and complete whole group activities. Use this time to tell students about any classroom job changes, look at the classroom calendar and inform students of any special events. Many kindergarten teachers also use morning meeting time to sing a song, read a story or let students share any thoughts they may have, such as exciting events at home or questions about a daily activity.