Teacher-Tested Tips:

A Variation on Attendance and Lunch Count
Submitted by: Candace, 5th Grade
I take poster board and make a geometric shape based on our number of lunch choices. This year we have 5 choices, thus a pentagon. I use Internet clipart sites to find pictures of a hot lunch, peanut butter sandwich, deli sandwich, salad and lunch from home. The pictures are then glued and labeled, one per side of the ... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Attendance and Nametags in One!!
Submitted by: Kim Brause, grade 4
I bought a long, hanging piece of material for an attendance chart and tacked it near the front door of the classroom. I cardboard-backed and laminated student nametags, and put velcro on the back of each. I put the other side of the velcro (the hook part) on the attendance chart to hang each nametag. I put a little pi... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Attendance, Lunch/breakfast, discipline
Submitted by: Gina Shanks
I use this handy "contraption" that my 3rd graders have nicknamed The Inline (you'll know why by the end). The Inline keeps track of attendance, lunch/breakfast count, and discipline. Each student has a clothespin with his/her name. Each morning all clothespins are on the bottom spool. As the students come in they ... more »»
Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5

Check Emotional Attitudes while Taking Roll
Submitted by: Unknown, Elementary Grades
Have students take a circle and make a smiley face on one side and a frowny face on the other. Glue to a popsicle stick. Make a pocket chart with a pocket for each child. When the child comes in the classroom each day have the faces in a can. The child selects a face and places it in his/her pocket with the appropriate side facing out.
Grade Level(s): Preschool, K

Clothesline Attendance and Lunch Count
Submitted by: Elizabeth Roche
A variation and a quick way to take attendance and lunch count -- String a short clothesline on a wall or bulletin board right by the door. It should be big enough to hold a pin for each child (name and number on each clothespin). (I string line between cup hooks they hold well on bulletin boards.) Below it, I put sma... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Clothespin Attendance
Submitted by: Phillips, 4th
This is a variation of an idea presented in "First Days of School" by Harry Wong. I have designed an attendance chart by hanging ribbon from an inexpensive, round pizza pan. I label small clothespins with each child's name or number. Every morning, as students come in, they move the clothespin from the ribbon to the ap... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Clothespin Attendance Using Your Classroom Theme
Submitted by: Phillips, 4th
My theme is Bradex Busy Bees, so I put a good size beehive with three strips hanging down. What the strips hang from can be whatever your class theme is. One strip says "hot", another says "cold", and the last says nothing. I have written each of my student's name on a clothespin. The morning starts off with everyone's... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2

Easy Attendance
Submitted by: Melissa Windschitl, First
My first graders are delegated into "color groups" from the beginning of the school year. Each day a color group is in charge of attendance and calendar. When it comes time for attendance to be taken I call the color group for the day and they count the lunch sticks, fill in the absences, and bring the slip to the office. This allows me to circulate throughout the room checking work instead of taking the attendance, plus the kids love the responsibility!
Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5

Easy Attendance and Lunch Count
Submitted by: Mandy, 4-5
This works if you only need a lunch count (we don't choose between hot and cold lunch). 1) I purchased a small bulletin board, a box of small cup hooks (like the ones that you might use in your kitchen cabinets), and some of those round locker tags (the paper circles with metallic rims and a ring attached) at Walmart. 2) I screw the cup hooks into the cork in rows, write each child's name on a locker tag, and then hang the tags on the hooks - names facing out. I also cut up 1" squares of paper and punch the top with a hole punch. It sits nicely on my chalk tray just inside my door. 3) When "Jerome" walks in the door, he flips his name tag. If he is getting a lunch, he places a paper tag on top of his tag. At a glance, I can see whose name is showing (absent) and how many lunches we need (count the paper tags)! more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

File Folder Attendance and Lunch Count
Submitted by: Angela Bauer, Kindergarten
I take two white file folders and decorate one with a "lunch tray" and the other with a "bag lunch." I hang them over the edge of our sign in table. Each day the child is required to find their name/photo card and put it in the pocket. It tells me quickly who has done attendance, and what they are having for lunch.
Grade Level(s): Preschool, K, 1-2

Free Parking! Lunch & Attendance
Submitted by: Gerl Kennedy, 3rd Grade
I used decorative vinyl place mats to cut out a car shape on the Ellison die cutter. I put a piece of magnetic tape on the back of each car (one per student). I generate small labels with the students' first and last names. I put a piece of clear packing tape on 3 large tongue depressors. Each afternoon, my Lunch Count... more »»
Grade Level(s): 3-5

Graphing Hot and Cold Lunches
Submitted by: Unknown
I give my students each a small index/flashcard to decorate as they choose. On the front of student closets, I put a small piece of poster board with library pockets... one per child. At the end of the closets, I have a two column "graphing" pocket chart with a card in each side--one HOT and one COLD. Each morning, stu... more »»
Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5

Greeting Sticks
Submitted by: Brian, 4th, St. Joseph, MO
Hi! At my school we meet in the gym every morning before school starts, so I would give my kids a greeting stick (craft stick) with their name on it. The student would keep the stick until they got to the classroom where on a bulletin board, I had a box for "HOT" lunch and a box for "COLD" lunch. As the students got st... more »»
Grade Level(s): 3-5

Learn Personal Info + Lunch Count
Submitted by: Renae, Kindergarten
At the beginning of the school year, I get a lunch tray from the cafeteria and put two small plastic boxes on it labeled "hot lunch" and "bag lunch." I then get a tongue depressor for each child with their first name on one side and their last name on the other side with another color. I begin by having all of the chil... more »»
Grade Level(s): K

Lunch and Attendance all in one
Submitted by: Janet, Second
I tape colored masking tape on a magnetic wall in the shape of a "I". The children are all have a picture of some grapes (printed out from clip art and laminated) with their name on one side and a small magnet on the other. The lunch menu is posted nearby for them to read the two choices from the cafeteria. The grapes ... more »»
Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5

Lunch Chart
Submitted by: SJA, 3rd
I made a class chart with my students’ names on it and columns for the five days of the week. In the spaces under the days of the week, I put a capital R, S, H that stand for regular lunch, salad, or home lunch. I staple this sheet to my bulletin board with my teacher slips that go to the office in an envelope above it... more »»
Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5

Lunch Count & Attendance Secretary
Submitted by: Jane Myer, 5th Grade
A great time-saver for me last year was delegating the responsibility of lunch count and attendance taking to my "secretary." I bought a cheap cookie sheet and some small round magnets. After spray-painting the magnets white, I wrote numbers on them in permanent marker. I also used the permanent marker to draw and labe... more »»
Grade Level(s): 3-5

Lunch Count and Attendance - Refrigerator
Submitted by: Leigh Ann Fish
My children move their "spoons" to the designated area on a "refrigerator" to indicate their lunch preference (any left over are absent). Here's what you need: more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Lunch Count and Attendance All-In-One
Submitted by: Kathy B., 1st
Since I use a racing theme in my class room, I have a race car with the kid's names on them. Each car has a small piece of magnet on the back and they hang on the file cabinet. Each day, the kids come in the room and they move their race car underneath their lunch choices (choice 1, choice 2 or lunch from home). It's a... more »»
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Lunch Count Graph
Submitted by: Jean M. Adams, 2nd
I have a picture of a tray lunch and sack lunch placed on a magnetic chalkboard with a dividing line of tag paper between them. Purchase some calendar squares and cut out the design (I used the apple) laminate and put some magnetic tape on the back. When students enter the room they place their apple under the correct ... more »»
Grade Level(s): 1-2

Magnetic Name Cards
Submitted by: clarnet73, Originally posted at the Discussion Forums
I observed a teacher who had a pretty good policy during her small group reading/individual working time... each kid has a magnetic name card, and there's a spot for one boy and one girl to be out of the room at the bathroom at a time... if they need to go, and there's an empty spot for their gender on the board, if she's working with a small group, they simply hold up their name card, and she nods yes or no... they put their card on the board, and remove it when they come back.
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2, 3-5

Picture Perfect Lunch Count
Submitted by: Trudy, Second Grade
I take a picture of each of my students on the first day of school. I display them in a pocket chart (it usually takes about 5 rows on the chart). Behind each picture is a cardboard apple cut-out that has HOT on one side and COLD on the other. Each day when the kids come in the first thing they do is place their apple in front of their picture showing whether they have hot or cold lunch. When my helpers take attendance, if a picture is still showing we know that person is absent. At the end of the day the helpers place all of the apples behind the pictures for the next day! more »»
Grade Level(s): Preschool, K, 1-2

What IS a Walking Taco?
Submitted by: Lori Andree
Over the years, I have taken photographs of the hot lunch choices our school offers. When the children enter the classroom, they walk to the board, look at the photos and make their choice accordingly. I rarely get any questions like "What is a Walking Taco?" The children can see exactly what it looks like. This also prevents children from changing their minds when they get to the lunch room. There are no excuses like, "I didn't know what a Walking Taco was!" This works very well for me ;>)
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2

What's For Lunch?
Submitted by: Kim Gray, 5 year kindergarten
I am lucky to have a magnetic white board in my room. I have cut pictures out of magazines and laminated them. I put a small piece of magnetic stip on the back for each. Each child also has their name with a magnet on it. When they unpack in the mornings, they go over to the board and look to see what is for lunch. Then they locate their name and place it under the appropriate picture. I also have a picture of a lunch box.
Grade Level(s): Preschool, K