COMMUNITY HELPERS WEEK IN KINDERGARTEN

Alright teacher friends, I'm going to be honest. It's difficult for me to fit everything into our daily or even weekly schedule. There are days that I don't get to content (science / social studies) and I feel truly guilty about it because it's not less important than the other subjects.

For this reason, I've made it my goal to integrate various subjects throughout my day. Today I'm sharing with you how I integrated Community Helpers into various parts of our day.

STUDENT ARRIVAL

During our Community Helpers unit, I dressed up as a different community helper each day. I didn't go crazy (this year). I kept it simple with some dress-up hats I had available in the classroom.

Each morning I greeted my students at the door in my community helper outfit. The kids loved it! They really got a kick out of seeing me in different hats and accessories. It also made them curious about why I was dressed differently and what we would be doing.

MORNING MEETING
Typically during the Share portion of our Morning Meeting, students are allowed to choose whatever they'd like to share. For this week, our share topic was "What do you want to be when you grow up?". It was fun to hear the students say they wanted to be a certain community helper after we had talked about a few.

Kindergarten Morning Meeting: Community Helpers Message & Activity

Our Morning Message and Activity were integrated during Community Helpers week. Students had to answer the question: "What community helper is Mrs. Palovchik dressed as?". Then, I passed out cards with various things different community helpers need to do their jobs. If they had a card that I needed, students moved to one side of the carpet. If they had something that I didn't need, they moved to the other side. Then we talked about what I needed vs. what I didn't need and why.

SOCIAL STUDIES
During this time of our day, I kept it simple. I introduced a community helper and we talked about what we already knew. Then I read a book about these community helpers and we filled in a chart using pictures to detail tools the community helper needed and how they helped our community. Here are some fantastic community helper read alouds (affiliate links):
Busy People: Doctor by Lucy M. George
Busy People: Teacher by Lucy M. George
Busy People: Firefighter by Lucy M. George
(ok so really all of her Community Helper Books!)

MATH
We did not have math in our classroom during Community Helpers week! Instead, we imagined that our classroom was a place called: Kinder Community. I created a Community Helpers Themed Math Task that allowed students to practice counting and their knowledge of community helpers. It was a hit! I displayed pictures of community workplaces (thank you, Google) and bags with different community helpers inside.

 

Students worked together to answer the question: "How many community helpers work here?" by counting the community helpers inside one of the bags.

Community Helpers Math Task for Counting

After counting, they filled in a sentence frame for our class chart and completed a recording sheet to demonstrate that they understood the correlation between an amount of objects and a number. How adorable is this students' recording sheet??

Community Helpers Math Task Recording Sheet

We closed the lesson with a math discussion on strategies students used to count (mainly that they didn't leave the community helpers in pile, but spread them out in a line to ensure accurate counting). 

Community Helpers Math Task Anchor Chart

The beautiful thing about this lesson is that you really can do it any time of the year. It would be a fantastic review on Community Helpers. You could even treat it as a "Count the Room" activity, having students visit various workplaces to count and find out how many there are. If you'd like to try this lesson out in your classroom you can find it here! I hope that you and your students love it as much as mine did! 

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CALMING MORNING ROUTINES FOR ELEMENTARY CLASSROOMS

I like to start my school day how I like to start any day: calm, cool, and collected. When I'm home, this means drinking a morning cup of coffee on my couch in peace and quiet. But what about at school with 20+ kindergarteners who are full of energy and ready to socialize?

Regardless of what grade level you teach, you know that school arrival has potential to be hectic. If you're like me, you want to minimize the crazy and maximize the calm. Today I'm sharing a few things you can do to set the mood for the day from the minute your students walk into your classroom.

How do you feel when you play music? Do you get energized with upbeat songs? Do you relax with the soothing acoustic ones? It's the same with kids. Put on relaxing, instrumental music when you get settled in your classroom. Why start it when you get there? Believe it or not, it might relax you too. I've been doing this for the past 5 years now, and it always sets the stage for a calm classroom environment (and a calm teacher). Use a CD or my favorite: YouTube. Some of the videos have kid-friendly images that play. You can display that video or minimize your browser to display anything else you need to.

Here are a few of my favorite instrumental music options from YouTube:

• Happy Relaxing Guitar Music by OCB Relax Music
• Morning Relaxing Music by OCB Relax Music
• Be Calm and Focused by KidZen
• Positive Music with Dinosaurs by KidZen

I have found that using visuals in the classroom is helpful for both students and teachers. Visuals show students what they need to be doing, which increases their independence. They also minimizing the amount of talking that you, as the teacher, need to do. The first morning visual I use is a "Good Morning" Procedure slide. I add my specific morning arrival and unpacking routines using words and pictures. Students see this displayed on the board and are reminded of what they need to do without me having to say anything. 

If I see a child that has begun their morning activities, but hasn't followed all of the arrival procedures, I point to the visual and ask: "Have you done these things?". They go down the list and typically realize within seconds what they still need to do. After a few days of using this poster, I don't even need to say anything to my students. I simply show them the poster and it's a nonverbal reminder of what they need to do. 

Want these themed slides for your classroom? You can find them as part of my Morning Meeting Slides resource. 

Another visual I use is this Unpacking Poster. I format it to match the slide above and hold it as students walk in. It's their first nonverbal reminder of what they need to do before going to their tables. You can find the editable poster for free here. 

In addition to music and visuals, I also have morning tubs set out and ready to go. I always prep these on the Friday before the new week to make sure that I'm not scrambling on Monday morning. At the beginning of the year, I also set the bins out on tables either in the afternoon before I leave (as long as I remember) or first thing in the morning when I arrive. If you're scrambling and feeling frazzled, then your kids will be too. Once my students have their arrival routines down solid, I leave the tubs on labeled spots where they can retrieve them and put them away - but that's for another blog post in the future :) 

Finally, I always make a conscious effort to greet all of my students at the door. I hold my unpacking poster (and my coffee) while greeting them with a "Good Morning" and a wave, high five, or a hug. Greeting students at the door has always minimized the morning crazy. We all have so much that we need to get done, and it can be tempting to be working while your students are coming in (especially as they get more independent). However, I have always found that being present when they first arrive starts their day on a happy, positive note, while also reminding them that you're there to ensure they do what they need to as soon as they walk in your classroom. 

I hope that these simple tips help keep morning arrival calm and positive in your classroom this year!

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