Coming back to school after winter break can feel overwhelming—for teachers and students. The excitement, the chatter, the forgotten routines… it’s a lot. Before you dive back into academics, remember this important reminder:
Go slow now so you can go fast later.
Spending time resetting expectations and rebuilding routines will save you weeks of frustration down the road.
Here are 5 easy and effective ideas to help your Kindergarten or 1st grade classroom transition smoothly back to school in January.
January is the perfect time to pull out those beloved classroom community books you used in August and September. Even if students should remember expectations, they benefit so much from revisiting them.
Some favorites to reread Our Class Family, The Recess Queen, and We Don’t Eat Our Classmates. Check out this blog post to see some of my favorite activities for these books and more. They are my favorite back to school books. My favorite winter book for when we return from break, is The Magic of Friendship Snow. It’s a wonderful story for talking about kindness and friendship. You can find it on Amazon, or there’s a read-aloud version available on YouTube. After reading, we do a pocket chart sort about how to be a good friend, followed by a simple writing activity titled “Snow many ways to be a friend.” The kids absolutely love it—and it sets such a positive tone for the rest of January.
👉 You can grab all the activities I use HERE.
2. Give Students Time to Talk About Winter Break
Let’s be honest—most students come back bursting to talk about winter break. Giving them a structured way to do this helps them feel heard and gets them excited about writing again.
I use a free winter break writing activity where students can draw or write about what they did over break. Afterward, we set aside time to share. One of my favorite things is letting students place their paper under the document camera to share with the class—it makes them feel so proud.
That said, not every student had a happy or memorable break. For those students, I quietly pull them aside and offer support by saying something like:
- “If you could have done anything over break, what would you have done?”
- Or I give a silly example: “I rode a train to the North Pole and met Santa!”
I’ve been using this activity for years and have only had to do this once. Many students naturally make up fun stories—and that’s okay! The goal is to build confidence, excitement, and a love of sharing, not perfection.
3. Talk About New Year’s & Setting Goals
There are so many fabulous children’s books about New Year’s, making this a great opportunity to talk about fresh starts.
Start by asking:
- “Does anyone know what New Year’s is?”
- “Did you do anything special for New Year’s?”
Then guide the conversation toward goal setting. I explain that the New Year is a time to think about what we want to learn or improve.
Together, we create a circle map as a class to share goals for the year. This works beautifully in Kindergarten and 1st grade and keeps expectations age-appropriate.
👉 You can use this free New Year’s goal-setting freebie to guide the discussion.
Yes, the picture shows 2025—but don’t worry, it’s been updated for 2025!
4. Learning with Hands-On Activities
Hands-on learning is everything in January. Students are still adjusting, and crafts are a great way to gently bring academics back into focus. I love using math crafts when we return from break. They’re engaging, low-pressure, and feel fun while still reinforcing skills. One of my favorites is a winter addition and subtraction math craft. It’s:
- Low prep
- Easy to differentiate
- Perfect for addition and subtraction within 10 and 20
Students stay focused, feel successful, and you get meaningful math practice without the struggle. BUY HERE.
5. Refresh Your Behavior System
January is also a great time to reflect on your classroom management system. What worked before break? What needs a reset?
I love using whole-class incentives, especially for tricky areas like the hallway and bathroom.
One system my students love is a snow globe classroom management incentive:
- Laminate the snow globe and post it on the wall
- Every time the entire class follows expectations, they earn a snowflake
- Once they earn 10 snowflakes, they vote on a reward
Some favorite rewards
- Stuffed animal party
- Popcorn party
- Pajama day
👉 You can grab this free snow globe classroom management system to try it out.
A Final Encouragement 💙
The first week back in January can be rough—but I promise, it’s nothing like August. My team and I always laugh about the “winter break growth.” Somehow, kids come back taller, more mature, and ready to learn… at least until spring break.
Then all bets are off. 😉
Take it slow, give yourself grace, and know that this reset will pay off in a big way for the rest of the year.
