25 Ideas, Resources, and Projects for Learning Together in September

Inside: Looking for ideas for your September kindergarten plans? Here are 25 ideas to help you create a more meaningful month with kids.

Our September Kindergarten Plans

September can feel like a marathon as we are busy kicking off the school year and launching so many new procedures and routines. But one thing you can let go of is “decorating” the classroom, because the charts and projects you create with kids in September can be hung up around the classroom, making the space one that reflects the kids who spend time there.

As you look over the ideas I share below, think how you might use them to make your learning space feel more personal and student-centered.

But first, here are a few special September dates that you might use as a springboard for some fun learning opportunities in your own classroom.

September 9: Teddy Bear Day
September 11th: Patriot’s Day (National Day of Service and Remembrance)
September 11th: Grandparent’s Day
September 15th: Dot Day
September 16th: Play-Doh Day
September 17th: Constitution and Citizenship Day
September 22nd: First Day of Autumn
September 26th: Johnny Appleseed Day

25 Ideas for Creating a Super September

Why not try something new this month by adding one or more of these ideas to your September kindergarten plans.

Take kids on a Five Senses Walk to learn how scientists use these “tools” to help them find out about their world.

Help kids practice learning their birthday using Jack Hartmann’s Birthday Song and then invite them to paint a birthday cake with the number of candles that match their age. Hang the cakes up to create a birthday timeline.

Invite kids to explore their facial features while looking in a mirror and drawing a self-portrait. Save these portraits and repeat the experience at the end of the year. Kids and families will love seeing how much their drawing and fine motor skills have grown.

Celebrate Dot Day on September 15th and talk to kids about what it means to “make your mark” in the world. Give children a circle shape along with some circular objects that kids can use to make “dot” marks and designs.

Read A My Name is Alice by Jane Bayer and draw children’s attention to the capital letter at the beginning of their name. Create those letters out of tape and show children how to paint over them. Kids will love removing the tape to reveal the white letter shape that was untouched by the paint.

Bring sunflowers or mums into your classroom and let children draw or paint them.

Place a sunflower head in your Take-Apart Tub and invite kids to remove the seeds.

Begin collecting baseline work samples from kids on name writing, coloring, cutting, letter and number writing and more by creating Show How You Grow Books.

Sort pictures of natural and people made objects (or use real objects) and then take kids on a Living and Nonliving Walk to find evidence of both outdoors.

Create a question jar that kids can use to ask questions. Designate a time once a week to pull a few questions and model the research process that kids can use to find the answer.

Let kids decorate their own birthday crowns that they can wear on their special day. Staple them to a bulletin board to create a fun birthday display.

Play the Name Game with children to learn who your class helper or “caretaker” will be for the day. Use this daily literacy routine to reinforce concepts of print, phonemic awareness, and phonics.

Choose a class motto and let kids work together to create a sign or poster of that motto for your classroom.

Let kids create their own name cards by first painting them with watercolors and then using letter cut- outs to spell their name. Use these to label cubbies or create a name chart.

Build curiosity by bringing in a Mystery Object to share with kids. Ask kids to write down their guesses. Once the object is revealed, learn about the object’s properties, structure and function.

“Adopt” a Class Tree on your school property to observe and sketch seasonal changes throughout the school year.

Create a chart of things you might see on a Fall Nature Walk using the categories of plants, animals, people, and weather. After the walk, invite kids to create drawings of the things they actually did see.

Teach children about the difference between “positive” and “negative” talk and how one builds you up while the other brings you down. During read-alouds of books such as Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes, cite examples of characters using both.

Build number sense skills by using counting hands to model number order, counting forward and backward, and 1:1 correspondence within a base-ten system.

Help children see the value of their hands and all the things they use them for including “helping hands” to serve others. Read Beautiful Hands by Kathryn Otoshi and invite kids to decorate their hands using a variety of art materials. Tape the hands into a circular formation to create a class wreath for your door to remind kids each day of the importance of working together.

Begin using your felt board for daily math warm-ups where children can visualize number staircases, configurations, and solve story problems.

Begin a Daily Affirmation Routine during morning meeting and pair it with a yoga pose. Repeat the same one all week and then begin a new one the following week.

Create All About Me Class Graphs to help kids get to know more about each other during your first month of school. Display the graphs at open house or curriculum night for families to enjoy.

Send home a “Rhyming Bag,” that kids can fill with two objects that rhyme. Let kids take turns pulling out one object while the class guesses the other.

Offer a Makerspace Building Challenge that invites kids to find ways to combine two materials, such as straws and pipe cleaners, to build something new.

That’s it for September!

What new ideas will you try out this month and add to your September kindergarten plans? How can you make children’s thinking visible and post that on your walls and bulletin boards?

Download these free monthly center calendars to find more ideas for September as well as the rest of the months of the school year.

Check out the Roots & Wings Resource Library for more kindergarten goodness!