Classroom Helping Hands

I love the idea of using job assignments in a preschool class. It gives each kid a way to own his part in our classroom, and an opportunity to shine doing something that is important. So I put up a new job chart in my room today. I LOVE the way it turned out.

I hate trying to keep up with clothes pins, so I immediately dismissed the idea of charts that require moving pins. I like pocket charts, but many of the job templates that I found weren't sized right for the pocket charts I already have. Then I found this idea on Teacher Created Resources, and I began developing my own ideas from there.

Because I have young three-year-olds, I needed the right jobs and picture cues for them. I looked at lots of different templates at Teachers Pay Teachers, and finally settled on this one because it had lots of jobs to choose from. I found library pockets and tiny little clothes pins that I liked on Amazon, and ordered twine to use as the clothes line.

I put up the clothes line with masking tape safe for the paint on the wall, tying a small knot at the end of each line so it wouldn't pull through. I angled each line slightly, and started the new line on top of the previous one, working my way down the wall. Finally I covered the taped ends with a cute border I had on hand, framing my chart.

I chose about 20 jobs that I thought my kids could do easily and labeled each pocket with the pictures and jobs. Then I laminated the pockets to make them more durable, and cut a slit at the pocket opening. It held up even better than I expected! Using the clothes pins, I hung each pocket on the clothes line.

The last step, which I will do this week is to take a full body photo of each kid holding a chalk board with their name, print and laminate them, and then cut them out to use to assign the jobs. I really like having pictures of kids alongside their names, since most of them aren't reading their names yet.

My plan is to change their jobs weekly. I don't think I can keep track of it more often than that! Many of  the "jobs" are things we have already been doing haphazzardly, however I plan to spend a week or so really defining the jobs for them and training them how to do them.. Even though it is summer, I hope to get the whole thing up and running in the next few weeks so that when school begins and I have new kids join my summer bunch, I'll already have a core of kids who know what they are doing and can lead the others. I can't wait to see how this new addition affects my classroom!

TEN Things I Tell Myself When They're Driving Me Crazy!

When you're locked in a room alone with a kid, it doesn't take long before you start feeling your sanity slipping away. They can just make you crazy. Whether it's the "NO!" that feels an awful lot like a defiant challenge of your know-how and experience, or the constant repetition of "Why?" or some inhuman noise that doesn't ... ever ... stop - kids can push the limits of our patience! ... And sometimes it feels like they are doing it on purpose!

Over the years I have taken care of kiddos as a young woman with no kids, been locked in (for what seemed like DAYS!) my house with my own homeschooled kids, and been stuck in rooms full of preschoolers who cried or whined or RAN non-stop as I tried to change diapers, get hands washed and maybe even teach a little curriculum. Over the years of working with kids, I've learned to tell myself a couple of things when I get near the breaking point of my patience.

1. Breathe! You can't think if you don't have oxygen to your brain. Can you get them to stop and breathe with you?
2. It seems like the clock has stopped moving right now, but actually this will probably be over more quickly than it seems at the moment!
3. Don't assume they know all that you know. They only have a few years of knowledge and experience to your 20 ... 30 ... 40 ... plus.
4. Look in their face and think of three things you love about this kid .... Now let's focus on that.
5. They are watching and imitating what you do. If you get louder, they will too. If you slow down and speak quietly to their eyes, they will too!
6. How are you using their name? That is what they will hear for years to come, so use it carefully and purposefully.
7. What can we do differently ... right now ... to change the course of what is happening right now?
8. What are my face and body telling them right now? Would I "say" that to another adult?
9. Is this thing I'm asking really worth the battle I'm about to turn it into? Am I really willing to do what I'm telling them I will do? (If not, don't say it. Not doing what you say teaches them you don't mean what you say. Being too harsh tells them they can't trust you to be in charge.)

Getting control of myself and my own emotions has proved to be the key to taking control of my kids' behavior and emotions. They "take on" our emotions, so the more agitated and angry we let ourselves get, the more they will feel out of control. In contrast, the more collected and self-controlled we act, the more quickly they will calm down.

In the moment of pending insanity, it seems very hard to calm yourself and to talk yourself into calmer reactions, but it is critical in working with kids. Keep in mind that leaving your scheduled activity and going to a quieter place to get control of yourself can actually accelerate the speed with which you get control of the situation, because the longer you are out of control, the longer the children will be also.


*It is CRITICAL that if you feel like you are close to losing control and hurting a child, that you call someone for help! Call a neighbor to come over for a minute so you can breathe. Call a supervisor or another teacher to let you slip out of your class for a moment. Or take your kids outside and let them run while you get your emotions together. Don't stay in a place or circumstance where you are about to lose it!