Back to School Bucket Filling

Even though our fourth graders switch classes and have four different teachers, our team likes to spend the first couple days of school with our homerooms. It gives us time to teach rules and procedures, help get them organized, build a classroom community, and motivate them to be the best student they can be! Last year, I found my absolute favorite book to read on the first day of school: Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud. It will be my favorite for years and years to come. I love it because it's a simple concept with a really deep meaning and a lifelong lesson!

This book is wildly popular with elementary school teachers, but I've had a tricky time finding bucket filling-themed activities that are more appropriate for the upper grades. So, I created a few! My favorite part about these 3 activities (besides encouraging bucket filling, of course) is that they all entail WRITING! Who would have guessed it?

 

 Click HERE to download them all!

The first activity in the 3-pack, "Ways I Can Be a Bucket Filler," can also turn into a small group activity. Last year, I had my students write their best bucket filling ideas on star die-cuts, and we made a really fun hallway display...

I am so giddy all of a sudden... it's almost time to meet a brand new group of fourth graders! I sincerely hope that other teachers out there can benefit from these activities to start the school year off right. Bucket fillers unite! What is your favorite back to school read-aloud?