As the school year begins, teachers are busily running around their classrooms preparing for another year of new smiling faces. Nametags need to be made, bulletin boards beautified, and circletime areas rearranged.
Circletime is my favorite part of the school day. I feel this is the single most important time spent with our students. I can assess skills, broaden their knowledge of the basics such as shapes, colors, and the ABC's, get jazzy with movement activities and introduce important social skills such as listening and taking turns.
Below is a list of circletime items that help keep our little charges on track to preschool success:
(Lengthen your circletime as the school year progresses. In the beginning, start with five minutes and then increase to 15minutes (as your students' attention span increases))
An Opening song to get children excited about circle. Look up transition songs or circletime songs on the Internet for ideas. My favorites site for these songs are preschooleducation.com.
Flag
Calendar: Try a pocket chart calendar where you can create calendar pieces for every month of the year: hats and scarves for January or flip flops and suns for June and so on. This is also a wonderful way to teach patterning: one day use a flip-flop and the next a sun. Remember to put all the information together at the end of the calendar lesson for example: Today is Saturday, August 24th 2013.
To spice up your calendar spiel, you can add a season wheel which reflects the importance of temperature in the changing of the seasons. This helps you effortlessly flow into the weather chart. Seasons wheel from mommynature.com.
Weather Chart: I have an excellent weather wheel from mommynature.com that really strikes up excitement over this blustery topic.
Storytime Song: I sing "These Are My Glasses" by Laurie Berkner. This fingerplay and song get the kids revved up on reading.
Read a story based on your unit topic.
Activity based on your topic which could include a fingerplay, flannelboard, movement activity and so on. When in doubt, get your wiggles out with movement (especially if your lesson plan is not working out as swimmingly as planned).
End with Attendance. I use a song and a chart with cards featuring the children's photos. The children place their photo in the chart as I sing their names. My song focuses on name recognition of the children in my circle.
My attendance song is found below:
Where is _____________________? (child's name)
Where is _____________________? (child's name)
Point to her/him. Point to her/him. (children point to the student)
There is _______________ (child's name)
There is _______________ (child's name)
Point to her/him. Point to her/him.*
by Jennifer H.
* At this point the student places their photo card in the attendance pocket chart.
Best of luck on an A+++++ school year!
In a future post (drumroll please) I will show you a picture of my circletime area. Please try to contain your preschool teacher excitement (smile).
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