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Classroom helpers tend to be a hot topic  in early childhood classrooms during back to school! Is there a job chart to match your classroom decor? Should you have a job for each child in the classroom each day? How are you going to keep track of it all?



I am here to tell you throw away the job chart! If you struggle to keep track of all twenty jobs on any given day, LOOK NO FURTHER!
Let me introduce you to... My Little Helper. Its as simple as TYPE your children's name (YES, it is EDITABLE!), print on Astrobrights colored paper,  cut out squares and add them to your  Monthly Calendar Pocket Chart!



My Little Helper does it all!      He/she is the line leader, calendar helper, Go Noodle song picker  and just about any other job you can think of! EXCEPT... the door holder.  
So what is one to do? The door holder is always the second child in line. When the class line passes, that door holder stays at the END of the line.  And then the child that is NOW second in line is the next door holder.  



Each month My Little Helper changes to a seasonal helper that compliment  our monthly Monthly Calendar for the Year with Pattern Cards  like My Little Snowman or My Little Starfish. 

My students love when the month changes and the new calendar goes up!  They see immediately when its their turn and   they are just as excited for their friend's turn each day.

As My Little Helper leads the calendar, we take off the Little Helper tag  and the child gets to wear it for the day and then bring it home.   You can tape it right to the child's shirt or slide it in a badge holder necklace. Some of my sweet friends have even dressed up for their BIG day! 

I have made these editable and am excited to share these with you. You can head on over to my Teachers Pay Teachers store to download   September's  My Little Superstar under the preview of the whole pack HERE. Be sure to click FOLLOW ME on TpT   to receive updates on new and coming activities! My Little Helper AND Monthly Calendar Cards are on SALE through JUNE!

Feel free to use the image below to pin this to your favorite Pinterest board!

Center time in a pre-k classroom can be as varied as the children in our rooms!  I am going to share how centers work in our classroom.  This is what works in our classroom, but there are so many DIFFERENT approaches so PLEASE continue to use what works for you and take any ideas you think might enhance your program.
QUESTION    and answers...
HOW LONG IS YOUR CENTER TIME?
Our center time is one hour each day.

HOW DO YOU MANAGE THE CHILDREN  DURING CENTERS?
We start on the carpet at circle and the child vocalize where they want to go.   At the beginning of the year, we work on naming each center. "Math"     

 to share where they are going and what they want to do.

DO YOU LIMIT THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN AT A  CENTER WITH NECKLACES OR A CENTER BOARD?

Yes and No!   
The children are able to move around freely  as long as there is space in the center they want to go to. I honestly can not keep track of those necklaces or boards.  They stress me out! My students learn quickly the expectations and limitations during centers.
          Do they still  sometimes ask if they can move to the ____ center? YES! But we always ask them, "What to do think?" or "What do you need to do?"
ARE THE CHILDREN ABLE TO SELECT WHAT THEY  WANT TO PLAY WITH AT EACH CENTER?
Yes and No!
Art, Math, and the Alphabet tables change daily.   I plan a different activity for the table top centers each day to keep their interest  as I rotate toys and activities through as well as integrate any themed activities. 
If a child asks for a different activity and there is room at the table,  they are able to take it out and they are also responsible to put it away before moving on.

           Science, Sensory, Blocks, Dramatic Play and the Light Table change weekly or bi-weekly   depending on the theme or interest in the room.

CAN THE CHILDREN MOVE FREELY THOUGH THE ROOM?
Yes!  They are responsible for cleaning up their spot and are then able to select  a new center where there is space.  

ARE THERE ANY "MUST DO" CENTERS?
Sometimes...
I like balance and I believe children can benefit form a variety of activities.   So sometimes, I have them complete an art project or a science experiment.  
We might be preparing for a holiday or even a science unit  so I call them over to the activity  and they are able to return to their center of choice when they are done. 
We "hold" their space there and let others know they are returning  when they finish the "must do" activity.

We try to limit this during center time and complete these activities during our Small Group time. For more information on Small Group time click HERE.
WHAT ARE THE TEACHERS DOING DURING CENTERS?

Modeling, playing,  listening, sharing, observing, problem solving, 

assessing, leading activities, and working with students.

WHAT ARE SOME FAVORITE CENTER ACTIVITIES? Here are some of our favorite activities during center time.  Some of these are affiliate links . Just click on the picture of the item you are interested in checking out!

          

It amazes me that in the mist of budget cuts, common core, testing and increased accountability, good teachers continue to build community in our rooms and teach with rigor.

Creating a classroom community is my number one priority beginning on the first day of school.  Children need to feel love, accepted and safe everyday at school.  Until last year, I had an internal struggle with a class behavior system.  I had used a clip chart and colored cards in the past, but knew in my heart they were not for me.  (**There are things I likes and dislike about them and there are children who benefit from them; it was a personal choice.)

Then I read A Teeny Tiny Teacher's post about Gold Tags.  This is the most amazing, simplest classroom behavior management system I have found:)  I love it because anyone can easily adapt it and make it their own.   In a nutshell, students can earn gold tags and even lose them (GASP!) for good and bad choices, work, quiet line and the list goes on.  The one thing that stayed with me as a teacher and a parent was when a mom said to me it was so nice not to see a red box colored in daily for her child's "bad" behavior.  She said she knows her child was "challenging", and they are working on that, but there are lots of good qualities that she has felt in the past were overlooked.

Kristen has them trade their gold tags in on Friday for centers.  I am using Our Best Behavior Prize Pass Catalog from First Grade Fever.  This is a FREEBIE folks so head on over to her blog and check it out!!


My favorite community building activities this summer are from Michelle at Run! Miss Nelson's Got the Camera.  I {heart} her Happy Notes!  You can check them out on TpT HERE.



My second love  slight obsession is Michelle's Behavior Beads.  They can be used for good behavior, homework, reading incentives, math facts and the list goes on!  I have to say my new favorite is her Primary Beads.  You should head over to her store and check out all the different sets.




So what are you doing to build kids up?  I would love to hear about it:)