DEAR READER:
I’m creating this website as a volunteer project in my retirement. It’s a huge undertaking — but I know there are many wonderfully dedicated, talented teachers out there, always looking for ideas to add to their own program.
So even though this section of the website is still under construction, I’m leaving it here. For these strategies took years for me to work out — with the children in my K-2 classroom and with others teachers. So they may be of interest and save the same time and energy of anyone willing to overlook typos, glitches and disjointed pages.
Thanks to those of you who’ve read this far — I understand, respect and appreciate your kind of dedication and would love to hear directly from you about what you do, along these lines. I’m always looking for more examples.
To reach me directly, just join the FB Group dedicated to these kind of approach.
Managing The Active Setting: The Active Work Period & Choice
Writing is so central to everything else that in my K-2 classroom, I had a Writing Work Period every morning. At first it lasted around 30 – 40 minutes, but it gradually expanded to 90 minutes. The children only worked on Key Words and The Steps, which for advanced writers, might include projects. Once finished with their Steps activity, they were to show me their work, then choose another activity.
Some of the older children, working at Step 6, wrote or worked on their project the entire time. So they just showed me the progress they’d made that day.
They all soon learned to manage their own time. For coming up short — with no clothespin to hand to me as they went out to recess — they had to sit out and watch the others play. (I did not have them stay in and do their work. Mainly because I didn’t want work to be a punishment.) This only happened once or twice at the beginning of the year, before a new child learned the habit of getting their work done and checked.
So with this system, children were responsible for finishing their work on time. I never reminded, coaxed or nagged them about it. And one time, just by happenstance, I discovered how important that was.
A Valuable Lesson About Children Learning to Manage Their Own Time
I had an aide in the mornings, and usually a parent volunteer and sometimes a cross-age tutor during the work period for Key Words. The children and I met on the rug before the they arrived. There, I told them who they should go to that day to get their word.
But for a few days — I don’t remember why — I handed the lists to my volunteers, instead of to the children. And that markedly changed the atmosphere in the room. For the volunteers began to remind and coax the children to come to get their word.
As it happened, many children preferred to draw first, before asking for the word that would go with it. But when the volunteers finished with the ones who came to them right away, finding themselves without a child — they began to call other children on their list. This interrupted their drawing, but after some delay, they would comply, anyway.
After a few days of this, I saw several children resist/balk, not get their work done until the last minute. It was as if what they had previously loved doing now soured — became a burdensome task.
So I started telling only their children again, and things changed back. From this I learned how important it was to set a requirement, establish a consequence, and let the child take responsibility for meeting it — instead of coaxing or nagging them about it.
We had many visitors, and the most common remark they said was how seriously the children took their work — that the class in action looked like an adult workshop. So I felt that taking responsibility for managing their own time was a valuable habit the children were gaining from this. And I was surprised by how much they valued it.
Choice Activities
Most of our choice activities were designed to enhance skill development. For math, we had both self-correcting exercises and games they could play together. We also always had arts and crafts materials out on shelving.
I had purchased child-height room dividers and shelving, so we had several areas devoted to things like listening center, library, and a “restaurant.” The restaurant was complete with order pads, a cash register, table/chairs, play food. etc.
To keep interest up in choice materials, I cycled materials and games in and out as the year progressed. I demonstrated — in a total group setting — how to work and care for each new set of materials. This is essential. It develops an orderly environment and keeps materials in good shape. See how to give a Montessori-inspired, Silent Demonstration.
Our waist-high sand table was very popular. It had with it construction trucks, figures and buildings to create towns, etc. Butgiven the noise there, we kept the lid on the Sand Table until our afternoon work period.
For an overview of how a typical day went, see A Day In the Life Of An Individualized Language Experience Classroom.
Managing the Active Work Periods
Checking Work and Keeping Track with a simple clothespin strategy. During the active work period, it was each child’s responsibility to ask to have their work checked. I’d make a positive comment about their work, then pin a simple wooden clothespin on their shirt/dress. Then they would hand the pin back to me as they went out for recess. (I wore a half-apron, with a pocket full of clothespins and my pens.) This was not a reward, just a quick, easy way to signal I had seen their work.
I only needed to see they had accomplished what they were to do, according to the Step they were on. The Step was to practice and hone/perfect what I knew they were able to do. I virtually never saw a correction needed. If I saw a problem, I would send them to me the following morning to get their word.
Classroom Helpers. I had an aide during the mornings who gave words. I also used cross-age tutors — one per session — and usually a parent volunteer. If it happened that we had no extra help, I asked for volunteers from the children who could already write. It didn’t take us long to give words to all the younger ones. It also didn’t happen often, and they were proud to do it.
Establishing and Enforcing Boundaries For Behavior
One Basic Rule and a Time Out Chair. At the beginning of the school year, I brought the children to rug to discuss the importance of their work. I likened it to the importance of their parents’ work and explained our one basic rule: We don’t disturb anyone else’s work.
I had them brainstorm ideas for what “disturbing work” might be. And I put out a chair — facing the work area. This was where a child would sit for a brief “Time Out.” (I would tell the child to let me know when the clock reached a certain time, so they could remind me when it was time to get up. For in the busy work period, I might forget them.) We very seldom needed to use it, because activities kept them involved and busy.
Time Out in an Upper Grade Classroom. I had one boy who exhibited serious problems. (He once actually stabbed another child’s hand with his pencil.) For him, I worked out a system with the 5th grade teacher, who agreed to take him in. Twice I had an adult walk him to that room for a time out. There he sat in the back, where no one talked to him. The second time he went, he came back declaring it was “no fun.” (He improved a bit, but his problems continued.)
An Example of the Entire Day. For an overview of how our day went, see a piece I wrote describing a typical day, A Day In the Life Of An Individualized Language Experience Classroom.