First Day Jitters Freebie

Back to school season is officially here! I have lots of fun planned for Wild About Books Wednesday! For the next five weeks, I'll be sharing some of my favorite books to use during the beginning of the year. If you're new to my blog, each Wednesday I will be blogging about how to use a specific book to enhance speech/language skills. It's a new school year and I'm excited to finally get this little blog series back on track!

Today, I'm talking about a classic! First Day Jitters by Julie Dannenberg! The first time I heard this book, my principal read it aloud during a professional development day. Ummm.. I really was shocked at the end. Gotta love a good twist! If you haven't read the book, it's the story of a girl who just doesn't want to go to her new school. She moans. She whines. She reluctantly gets ready. At the end, we find out this girl is *gasp* a teacher!

To re-start this little blog series, I had to create a fun freebie to help save all my teacher friends and SLPs a little time! I know the beginning of the school year is tough.. In fact, I'm already feeling a tad anxious and stressed out. I have some first day jitters!

This is a great book for all ages. There are many language skills you can target: inferencing, sequencing, and comprehension just to name a few! What I love most of all about this book is that it is 100% relatable. We know that text-to-self connections are so important for comprehension and everyone can relate to not wanting to get out of bed on the first day!

I designed a few activities to get those connections connecting! haha.. Students can draw a self-portrait of their first day of school. This is a great way to discuss how students feel, are they nervous like Sarah Jane? Excited?

I've also included a graphic organizer. I love graphic organizers, as they really support all students (but especially students who are struggling).

In this freebie, you can also find a little writing prompt about morning routines. This is a another great activity to work on sequencing - how do you get ready for school? You can continue to foster text-to-self connections too! Students can talk about how their routine is similar to Sarah Jane's.

I've also included a little venn diagram that students can use to compare/contrast themselves with Sarah Jane. Again, another activity to build connections!

If you would like to have this freebie for your classroom, you can scoop it up in my Teachers Pay Teachers store by clicking HERE. Please leave me some love if you snag it!

Have a wonderful Wild About Books Wednesday! Please make sure you're following my blog (you can subscribe on the lefthand side and you can also find me on bloglovin' - just click the link below) so that you never miss a Wednesday!

I'd also love if you would consider linking up! If you're a blogger, feel free to link up with a post that contains your own book ideas! I've discovered so many new books/ideas through Wild About Books Wednesday! Just use the graphic below to link back to me: