Let’s chat about learning centers today! Many of you have a specific center time. Others may offer centers to early finishers. Still others may incorporate centers into reading or math time—when I met with small groups, my third graders rotated between assigned morning work, center work, and small-group time.
What I’d like to know is what part of the whole learning center thing you find most challenging. Is it the management of the centers? Is it the preparation of a specific center? I’m curious because I’d like to better understand how to help you and how y’all can help each other! Please share!
Happily,
Diane
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The hardest part of learning centers for me is setting them up, changing them and taking them down.
It seems I spend a lot of time setting things up for the children.
The prep I do at home of course so thats not hard.
I also store things in galloon zip loc bags clearly marked so I can find them the following year.
For me, the most challenging part is the preparation. I do my best to make my centers “scream the theme” that we are studying, and it takes a lot of work.
I have plastic storage tubs full of activities for every theme. Staying late on Fridays to put away the old theme items and set up the new theme is the toughest part. I have been locked inside my school more than once because I stayed too long! 😉
I think I am going to have to go with managing centers. I love trying to think out of the box and come up with some great centers that will engage my kiddos. I have 4 year olds and for only 2 1/2 hours so play time and centers are kind of at the same time. While playing with them I will ask them to “play” the centers with me – managing the other centers that I am not at and making sure they are being used the way they are supposed to is my issue – especially this year. thanks!!!
As a first year teacher, my biggest struggle is finding center activities of value that don’t require a lot of prep (or $!), that are easy to explain, that keep students occupied for the whole centers block.
Kinders are so dependent!
This is a great discussion because I’ve tried a few different things in the past. I’ve done centers that go with the theme (lots of prep time), centers that kids can go to when they finish their “seatwork” (not motivating enough)and centers as part of a rotation (mainly during math time). I also struggle with kids producing “quality work”, though I model what should happen in the center.
I’m really digging the rotation in math, but can’t seem to make it work for language. I guess because the language block has so many components (shared reading, whole group lesson, grammar, writing, spelling, phonics, etc…)I don’t feel like I can do a rotation. I’d love some suggestions!
I love going to trainings and finding new ways to play the same old games in centers, but I have a pile of to-do work that I “someday” hope to finish.
I’ve learned the hard way that if I can make one game into many different themes, then I can make several games all at the same time, using the same patterns.
For example, if I make a counting game with flower stickers for the girls in my classroom, I can also make the same game using stickers of cars, horses, frogs, bugs, etc. until I have enough that took minimal time, but that I can easily file away and when I’m looking for something with that theme, it’s kind of like Christmas when I find it!
I’m a volunteer director for a preschool ministry, and learning as I go! Centers are fun for the students, but I have a hard time trying to evaluate their progress. I’m wondering if I offer too many broad options during center time. I have several students that always go to their favorite center and won’t try out other centers. How do I encourage students to branch out without taking away their “freedom to choose”? Also, I’d love tips on how to incorporate a theme unit into our “Imagination Station” where costumes and baby dolls and play kitchen are located?
I have the basic centers(Housekeeping,Art,Block,etc) and then I add to them according to the theme for example: Housekeeping can easily become the store or doctors office by adding a few things. Blocks can easily become the garage or construction site by adding a few items and it keeps the kids excited. I also add foods from China or Mexico to incorporate diversity and multicultural. That way I don’t have to completely change everything. Just remember to label containers to easily find them when you need them.
I agree with Erika and I love the math rotation of games/centers while I’m working with small groups. I teach 4/5th grade.
I also use language centers. My kids love working on the overhead in the corner of the room…looks like a worksheet to me, but they think it is wonderful and they get extra practice. I also let them do some fun vocabulary work on the Smart Board if I’m not using it in a small group.
Have any of you taken a look at “The Daily Five?” We do it from grades 4-8. We love it.
Jill
I have literacy centres and play centres at different times of the day. I had 10 different literacy centres which worked well if the the teacher did not need to spend time conferencing with the students and doing guided reading. Thus I am now looking at doing the daily 5. I am hoping that it will boast my kindergarten students ability to work independently and save hours of work setting up the centres.
In the play centres I have about 12 centres in another room. This way I can limit the numbers of students in any one area and keep the conflicts down. I do my assessments during this time. The centres will reflect what we are studying. We are now working on Weather so we have a weather reporters corner. Experiments to do with hot and cold in our science centre, making clouds in art etc. It can be fun making up the centres and the kids sometimes will make up centres as well and lead the other children in activities.