The Classroom
I strongly believe that the first days of school are the most critical in establishing an organized classroom. It is very important to take time to establish procedures and help students understand the reasoning behind each procedure. we will spend time practicing the procedures the first few days of school. The following are some of the procedures of our classroom.
Introductions: I first introduce myself and let the students know a little bit about myself. I talk to them about my family, where I went to college, my hobbies, that I have two dogs and some of my favorite things. I also introduce our Teacher Assistant. Ms. Davis is a very special addition to our classroom and I want the students and parents to build strong relationships with her through out the year.
Rules: I tell my class that we have four very important rules. Every choice that they make should not break any of these rules. I allow the students to stump me and come up with choices that does not follow one of these rules (it's impossible).
- Be Ready
- Be Respectful
- Be Responsible
- Love All People - Our Bucket Filling Program
"Show Me You're Ready:" I tell my students that we have a code phrase that no one else knows. They love having a secret phrase! I use this phrase during transition times. When I say this phrase, students are supposed to stop what they are doing, put away what they are working on, clear off their tables and put everything away in their table buckets, clean the floor and sit quietly in their seats in order to "show me they are ready." At this point the first tables that are ready, will get a point for their table team. The first week of school we practice this several times.
Classroom Mailboxes: Each student has a mailbox. They are responsible for getting the materials out of their boxes and putting this information in their Tuesday folders each week. This is done on Tuesday mornings during morning work. Their mailboxes contain finished work, newsletters, information from the school and myself. Mailboxes also contain work we have completed as a class.
Morning Meeting: After the school morning announcements, we review our daily morning work. This morning work includes math and language skills. After we review morning work, we have a morning meeting at the carpet area. At this point we go over the date, weather, and review our "Parking Lot." This is a time that we review activities or changes in our daily schedule. It is also a time for students to ask questions about upcoming events.
Hoopy Helpers: Our Hoopy Helpers bulletin board is the location of all our classroom jobs. I explain each job to the children and the expectations that go with each job. each week, we switch jobs so that everyone has a chance to enhance our classroom by being a responsible student.