5 Fun Back to School Activities for Second Grade

Gathering fun back-to-school activities and back to school anchor chart ideas that serve a purpose and aren’t just fluff can be time-consuming. Especially finding fun back to school activities your second graders will find engaging. Below, we are going to give you some engaging activities your students will actually like (gasp!).

The Activities in this post can be found in my Back to School Activities and School Rules worksheet unit! The anchor chart templates in this post are FREE, and you can grab them HERE!

Icebreaker Activities

One of the first activities I have my class do at the beginning of the day is some type of meet and greet or get to know you activity. There are lots of great ideas out there that help students get to know one another. Having students share hobbies, likes, and dislikes can help students build common bonds that will build a strong foundation throughout the year.

Here are two fun ones that I like:

Two Truths and a Lie: have your students write down three things about themself. Two of the things are true, and one is a lie. Students share with a friend in the class, and the friend has to guess the lie.
Class Scavenger Hunt: Call out likes and dislikes or statements about life, then have students try to find people in the room that meet the statement. Ex. “Find someone who has 2 dogs” or “find someone who loves tacos”.

What is a Good Classmate: Back to School Anchor Chart

Back to school anchor chart template image

Another whole group activity that I like to do is talk about good characteristics of a classmate. A simple way to do this is by creating a back to school anchor chart with your class. I have the students share what they think makes a great classmate and student. We focus on what a classmate does, says, is, and is not.

When we finish the anchor chart, I like to have my class all sign the bottom to show that they are all great classmates and have the characteristics that we listed.

This anchor chart template is available in my FREE Back to School Anchor Chart Pack. You can grab a copy HERE!

School Rules: Back to School Anchor Chart

A fun back to school anchor chart I always make is one about our school rules. We make an anchor chart for this, and I give my students their own copy of our rules to keep all year long. I like to have My class come up with rules that they think are important to have. I like to guide them with what ends up on the chart, but having them involved is an important part of developing your classroom rules.

What is a Bucket Filler Activity

back to school how to be a bucket filler activities picture

If you haven’t heard of the book “How to Fill a Bucket,” you may be living under a rock (just kidding). But, it is a great story on how to get students to see that our actions affect others, and we all play a part in how we care for one another feelings.

If you don’t have access to the book, I like to use this YouTube Video:

How to Be a Bucket Filler Read Aloud

Once my class listens to the story, they complete an activity by brainstorming ways to be a bucket filler and ways to be a bucket dipper. I don’t like focusing on the negative, but I do think it’s important for students to see that some actions can hurt others’ feelings.

Following Directions Activities

After my class knows our school rules, I like to have multiple activities that students have to decide if someone is following the rules. We do this in two ways. We role-play, and we use fun back-to-school worksheets. I like having these worksheets because they make great morning work assignments before the class beings. It is a great refresher before the day beings.

Putting it All Together

Planning for back to school can be overwhelming. There is so much to get done, from endless paperwork to organizing classroom materials. Having 4 to 5 engaging activities that teach students about character education and classroom rules will help you kick the year off right.

Also, less is more! Activities at the beginning of the year should be easy, low-prep, and engaging for the kids. They are excited to be there, and summer can make those little minds wander. Keeping your lessons short and sweet will help demising the chances of them becoming bored and uninterested in the activities.

More Back to School Activities for Second Grade

Students will have fun in your class no matter what; they are excited to meet their new teacher and friends. For more back-to-school activities, check out my Back to School Activity Pack for low-prep worksheets and lesson plans your students will love. I also have a digital version HERE!