FREE Back To School Activity for Kindergarten

When planning for the first week of kindergarten, I know we are going to be practicing procedures and routines.. a lot.. but I also try to plan as many crafts and activities as possible. This back to school activity for kindergarten is perfect for wrapping of the first week of kindergarten!

Back to school crafts and activities are a great way to practice using our supplies. They are also good practice for listening, following directions, and fine motor skills.

Back To School Activity for Kindergarten – Necklace Craft

This back to school activity is a great way to wrap up a week of practicing procedures! Now that your students are “kindergarten experts” who know how to use their supplies and know the routines (ish), they can make this back to school necklace craft to show the world!

Best of all? It’s fine motor practice in disguise.

Supplies You Will Need For This Kindergarten Back to School Craft

For this craft, you will need: colorful straws, scissors, string, a hole punch, and the “I Am a Kindergarten Expert” badges (grab those at the end of this post).

Cutting Up Straws

You can either have the straws pre-cut or let students cut them. I suggest letting students cut them because it’s fun and it’s great fine motor practice!

Just be warned – the straws will fly everywhere as they cut! That would be my one reason for cutting them myself. You can teach them to hold onto the end as they cut if you want.

I cut about 6 straws for my necklace and I had plenty of pieces left over.

Students Will Need:

Once the straws are cut, each student will need their badge and a long piece of string. You can pre-cut the badges or let students cut them. Punch a hole in the top of each badge.

Fine Motor Activity for Kindergarten

Students will string the straw pieces on the string. If you find that your string is thicker or starts to unravel, you can wrap tape around the end. If you find that the straw pieces are sliding off the other end, you can tape one end of the string to the table so that they can’t slide off.

I Am a Kindergarten Expert Badges

When they have about half of their necklace filled, make sure students string on their “I Am a Kindergarten Expert” badge.

This is the perfect back to school activity for kindergarten to show how much they’ve learned (you could also use it at the end of the year to celebrate the end of kindergarten).

Kindergarten First Week of School Activity

After students finish stringing on their straws, just tie the necklace off at the top! They can wear their new badges proudly.

You can grab the Kindergarten Expert badges here.

If you use this first week of school activity this year, I would love it if you shared pictures with me! Also, let me know in the comments: What other back to school activity for kindergarten are you loving right now?

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