Start Your Math Year Strong: Why the First Week Matters More Than You Think
The first week of school is packed with emotions—for students and teachers. There’s excitement, nervous energy, fresh notebooks, and sharpened pencils… but also a mountain of expectations and routines to set. It’s tempting to dive straight into the curriculum, especially with pressure to stay “on pace,” but I want to encourage you to pause and ask:
What if the best way to teach more math… is to teach less in the first week?
Hear me out.
After 30+ years in the classroom, one of the most important things I’ve learned is this: the first week of math sets the tone for the rest of the year. If we take the time to build solid routines, model expectations, and create a classroom where math feels safe and purposeful, everything that comes after flows more smoothly.
Will you worry about getting behind? Probably. Will other teachers be complaining all year about how their students don’t work together well or attend to lessons? Most likely.
I promise you–invest time in the first weeks for massive payoff. I’ve done it. It works.
What Should That First Week of Math Look Like?
The truth? It’s not about jumping into Chapter 1.
The beginning of the school year should be about setting the stage for a year of learning, talking about math, making mistakes, and GROWING. Here’s what I’m talking about.
Establishing classroom norms and expectations
The first few days of school are when students learn how your classroom works—and math time is no exception. Take time to clearly model and practice the expectations you want to see during your math block. How should students transition to math? What does “being prepared” look like? What are your expectations for noise level, participation, or working with partners? How will YOU be helping and coaching? Students need to feel that trust factor right away.
Instead of jumping into instruction right away, let students see and practice these expectations in action. Use short, accessible math activities, create anchor charts, and use positive reinforcement to make them stick. When students know what to expect, they feel more confident—and that confidence leads to more productive learning down the road.
Getting students comfortable with materials and tools
It’s easy to assume students know how to use the math tools we provide—but that’s not always the case. Spend time in that first week introducing your classroom materials: math manipulatives, whiteboards, number lines, journals, or technology tools you’ll be using throughout the year.
Give students time to explore and experiment with them in a low-pressure way. You might even create a “math tool scavenger hunt” or mini-stations to rotate through. As you go, be explicit about how to store, access, and care for materials. A few minutes of modeling now can save hours of chaos later! I actually believe that the number one reason many teachers don’t want to use manipulatives or games is that they are worried about the management of them. This is “fixable”!
Beginning to build a culture of math thinking and discourse
The first week is also your chance to shape how students see math—and how they see themselves as math thinkers. If we want students to be risk-takers and problem-solvers, we have to start laying that groundwork immediately.
Talk about what it means to have a “math mindset.” Read a math-themed picture book. Ask students to reflect on what makes math feel exciting or scary. Use open-ended prompts like, “What do you notice?” or “What do you wonder?” to get them talking—and then actively model and celebrate different kinds of thinking.
By creating space for discussion and collaboration early on, you’re telling students: This is a place where your thinking matters.
Practicing routines they’ll need all year long
Math block routines shouldn’t be saved for later—they should be front and center from day one. Whether you plan to use centers, small groups, math journals, or independent practice, now is the time to introduce those structures slowly and intentionally.
Start small. Model what a math rotation looks like. Practice moving between activities. Set expectations for getting help or turning in work. Use simple, low-stakes tasks so students can focus on learning the structure rather than the content.
These first few days aren’t about testing how much math your students know—they’re about preparing them to thrive in your math classroom all year long.
Try these first week of math ideas!
Math Warm-Ups: Start every day with a short, low-stakes math prompt to get students thinking. These can be open-ended, discussion-based, or visual. The goal is to build confidence and curiosity—not get “right” answers. I have a post about how I use math warm ups, if you are interested.
Materials Exploration: Give students time to explore and get comfortable with math manipulatives, journals, and tools. Set expectations for how to use and store them—this prevents so many issues down the road!
Talk About What It Means to Be a Math Thinker: Start building that growth mindset early. Use anchor charts, class discussions, or math-themed read-alouds to help students see themselves as capable and creative problem-solvers.
Teach Your Math Block Structure: If you use rotations, small groups, or whole-class instruction, don’t wait—model it from the beginning. Practicing transitions and routines early helps everything run smoother later.
Want Your First Week’s Plans Done for You?
If you’re nodding along and thinking, “Yes! But how do I pull all that together in time?”—I get it. That’s exactly why I created my new mini course, Launching a Week of Math. Having been a classroom teacher in the trenches–I know how CRAZY stressful the beginning of the school year is, and I thought about what I could do to help out my fellow teachers–and after tons of work, this is what I built!
This short, low-cost, on-demand minicourse is packed with the exact lessons, routines, and materials I used in my own classroom to start the year with confidence. It includes:
✅ Video guidance and real examples (it’s like PD on demand–but in short, meaningful bits)
✅ A full week of flexible, printable plans
✅ Downloadable tools and templates (like everything you need–from games to printables and more!)
✅ Routines you’ll use all year long
I designed it to be practical, realistic, and classroom-tested—something you can implement right away without stress. So if you want your first week of math literally DONE FOR YOU, check it out!
You can learn more about this “launching your year” minicourse and see if it might help you out. Feel free to share with other teacher friends who might enjoy the stress relief too!
Final Thoughts
Starting your math year with intention doesn’t have to mean doing more—it just means doing the right things at the right time. By slowing down in those first few days, you’ll save yourself so much time and stress in the weeks to come.
Whether you build your own plan or want to borrow mine, I hope this reminds you that your math block deserves a strong start. And so do YOU!
Want to get even more ready for back to school? This blog post is all about growth mindset ideas for back-to-school. Or you can check out my Growth Mindset Toolkit for easy-to-use activities. This post is full of other great BTS ideas to inspire you!
