The Flow of Our Day, Part One: Morning

I often hear other educators and administrators ask about our "daily schedule". I start out by explaining that we prefer to think of our day's events as a "rhythm" of the day, or as "the flow of the day". The rigidity of a schedule just doesn't fit the natural flow of a small child's day.

When the children come into the classroom, we have "transition" time. This is a block of time that varies in length depending on the day, where the children are encouraged to make a gentle transition from home to school. Some of the children begin their day at daycare, and perhaps ate breakfast two hours before getting to school. During this quiet play time, the children are encouraged to go to the washroom, eat a healthy snack, and play quietly at a centre of their choosing. 

When we started this new routine, we were amazed at how calmly the day began. Instead of tired, hungry little ones sitting at the carpet waiting for the other students to gather, we saw smiling faces. The whining that often started as soon as the children came in was no longer an issue. We use this time to circulate and greet each child warmly, check home bags and collect milk money, and do a check in with the children and each other. We take note of anyone who seems more tired than usual, or is feeling lonely for home. We have time to cuddle up in the big comfy chair for a story with any little ones who are needing some extra time to settle into the day. We also have time to listen to all those stories the children carry to school with them!

After 15-30 minutes (again, depending on the day), the children are cued to tidy up and gather together on the big carpet. We begin our day with a prayer, add a sticker to the ten-frame where we count the days in the month, check in with the Star of the Day, sing a song or do a finger play, and then a very important aspect of our day takes place: Turn and Talk.

As I mentioned above, children this age are always bursting with stories to share! I plan ahead to share something interesting or exciting with the children (such as seeing an animal on the way to work, or going to the beach on the weekend, or what we did when the power went out, etc.). Before I share, I ask the children a provocative questions, such as "Last night there was a thunderstorm! What do you know/feel about thunder and lightning?" I then ask the children to "turn and talk", knee-to-knee with a partner.

The children know that they must use their blossoming listening skills, because once they've had a chance to share with each other, they will report back to the class about what their partner said! In a very short time of incorporating daily Turn and Talk into our rhythm, I've seen a lot of growth in the children's ability to focus, interact in conversation, and express ideas verbally. 

Once our circle time winds to a close, we usually go off into small groups to focus on specific skills. 

For example, this morning the EA in my room took one group off to brainstorm their ideas about how we could begin building castles. They reviewed terms, drew a labelled picture together, talked about safety when using cutting tools and glue guns, and got very excited about their plans! 

I worked with another small group, reviewing a story we read yesterday about a castle under siege. We also reviewed terms (siege, battlement, drawbridge, and catapult), and read a new passage about a young boy becoming a page, then a squire, then a knight. I followed up by dubbing each of the students as they knelt before me! They loved it!

The third group worked independently at the creation station and played with the wooden castle. We rotated three times adjusting the length of each session according to the children's interest and attention. 

The groupings are always fluid, reflecting the interests, developmental stages, and needs of each student. 

Please tune in again tomorrow when I'll give you a peek into what our afternoons are like!

Our Afternoon: The Flow Continues

I have my ideas of how our flow will work next year. I hope to book two gym periods so that I can divide the JKs and SKs according to their energy levels. Every child will get gym every day, but sometimes they'll go in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon. 

Especially in the early part of the year, I find that many of the JKs need a rest right after lunch. The plan is to take the JKs to the gym in the morning when their energy levels are high, to give them a body break and to allow for some deeper focus groups with the SKs. The SKs will go in the afternoon when the JKs need some quiet time. 

As it stands, our afternoons look like this:

Right after lunch recess, the children come in and go to French. I spend my prep preparing blogposts, sending notes home, exchanging story books, and updating notes on the iPad. I pick the children up and we head to the gym (or outside) for some movement! 

When we return to our classroom it is Free Choice Play Time. I often do one-on-one assessments at this time to add to the information I gathered in the morning, and to inform planning for the coming day(s) and week(s). During this play time, the children can have a snack at any time they wish. We give them a heads-up when there are 10 minutes left till tidy-up so they can make sure they make time to have a snack. 

We tidy up, gather at the carpet to hand out homebags, then send them out to recess. From there, they catch their buses and head home.

The goal is that each child leaves our room feeling that they were cherished, that they are safe here, and that they look forward to coming back to continue their investigations and social development the next day!

The Flow of Our Day: Morning, Continued

Yesterday I wrote about the Flow of Our Day, focusing on the first part of the morning. It's amazing to reflect upon how much is "uncovered" in these early hours of the day: personal and social skills, oral development, printing and reading skills, numeracy, making connections, sharing experiences...it is almost impossible to keep track of all the wonderful skills small children learn by playing and interacting! It is also when the children are most energetic and open to gathering and sharing knowledge (although that goes on every moment they're awake, doesn't it?).

Our students go outside for recess, then come in for another healthy snack. We keep the lights off for most of the day, as we feel it keeps the overall "feel" of our room calm. We are blessed to have large windows that let in a lot of light. When the children have tidied up their snack, they choose a book to read alone or with a friend at the carpet. I love seeing the Senior Kindergarten students sitting close with a Junior Kindergarten and "reading" familiar stories aloud!

When everyone has finished, I read a story aloud. Sometimes it's just for pleasure, or a story I've read many times before (I've even recited stories, with no book in hand, to the great attention and delight of the children). Other times, it is a deeper, richer text (what we call a mentor text) that we will read again and again through the week to unveil deeper understanding by asking HOT questions (I'll write a future post about these!).

The rest of the morning follows a similar flow to the earlier part...small, flexible groups to work with a grown up on specific tasks, games, and skills. We usually focus on numeracy/math concepts at this time of day. 

Then we gather at the carpet to say Grace, before we have lunch and recess.

I promised I'd share the flow of the afternoon today, but in the interest of keeping these posts of a reasonable length, I'll postpone that till tomorrow!

Thank you all for joining the Inquisitive Children Facebook page...I'm amazed at how quickly it's growing! I appreciate your encouragement and interest, and would like to invite you to leave comments here or on the FB page so I know you're reading!