Back to School Name Design

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Back to school is an exciting time it can also be filled with anxiety. New people, new teachers lots of people that little Mikey will have to get used to and comfortable with. The back to school name design is a great and simple activity if you have a little one that you want to get feeling comfortable in their new environment. Having the child create the design is the perfect way to get the conversation started when it comes to their thoughts and feelings about the upcoming year. This activity could also be adapted for the artroom. Once the activity is complete you may want to display the finished designs along with the list of questions. We wanted to gauge little Mikey’s mood as he enters into the first grade at a new school so we had him create a sample. Creating a sample with the child would be helpful when sharing at the end. You could adapt the questions to suit your needs.

Back to School Name Design

Steps:

Ask your child to write their name on paper. Emphasize to write lightly on paper. Demonstrate how.
Cover the name with strips of tape.
Ask your child each of the attached questions. As they answer the questions with the color, shapes or lines as their answer, encourage them to fill the entire page. They can even overlap their designs and colors. Vary the mark making; heavy light, big small, wavy straight, thick thin. Have them draw directly over the tape to help create their name silhouette.
Remove the tape to reveal their unique name design.
Then ask your little one to share the images they drew and why they approached the question in that way.

If using in the Classroom:

Instruct students to “stand up,” put their ”hand up,”and then “pair up,” with someone who has a similar design/color on their paper.
Have students share their similarities and their differences. Repeat this “pair up” process as many times as you want.
Then take turns sharing something you learned about someone else.
Close by explaining we are all unique but have many things in common.

Materials:

Masking tape

9 x12 tag board or cardstock

Colored pencils

Markers

Crayons

Questions/Prompts: (You can alter and make them your own!)

Do you have any pets? (Yes- color red, No- color yellow)
Do you have a brother and/or sister? (Yes- color purple, No- color green)
Do you speak more than one language? (Yes- color blue, No- color orange)
Whats your favorite subject in school? (Science- draw hearts, Math- draw circles, English- draw squiggly lines Other- spiral)
What is your favorite hobby? (Video games- draw vertical lines, Teams- draw horizontal lines, Art, Music, Dance -draw diagonal lines Other- zigzag)
Have you ever visited another country or state? (Yes- draw happy faces, No-Draw stars)
Are you a shy person? (Yes- draw hash tags #, No draw X’s)
Draw an image that represents your favorite food.
If you are excited for the new school year (draw triangles)
If you are nervous about the new school year (draw squares)

New people and new experiences can cause some anxiety in our kids. The most meaningful learning occurs in a safe environment where people are able to express their thoughts and feelings in both words and pictures. This activity really helps break the ice.