2. Walk quietly in a straight line in the hallway.
3. Raise your hand when you have a question.
4. Use kind words and actions towards others. 5. Respect property by carefully handling books, iPads, and other materials.
Class Procedures
Morning routine/attendance: When students come to class in the morning, I will greet each student by name. Students will then proceed to do their morning routine. The students’ names are laminated and on a Velcro strip labeled “Absent.” The students move their names to another Velcro strip labeled “Here” for attendance. Then they put their backpacks in their cubbies. After they have finished this routine, they may choose a “morning center” which are located in clear blue bins. These contain fine motor skills such as picking up small objects with plastic tweezers, building with Legos, and stringing raw noodles onto a string. Lining up and walking in the hallway: To line up, numbers 1-25 will be on the floor for my students to stand on so they can easily see where they need to be. As students are finishing and putting away their activity, they should go stand on the next number available. To keep students engaged, I will sing songs and play fun games like Simon Says in the line. This will encourage students who may lag behind to hurry up and get in line. Students are expected to walk quietly when walking in the hallway. When leaving to go back to the classroom, students will use the same routine. This may be a little harder for students because they do not have the numbers on the floor, but they will soon master it.
Distributing and collecting materials and graded work: Each week, a student will be responsible for distributing materials. At the end of each paper activity, students will be instructed to either leave the paper at their place or put it in the finished work bin. Finished work will be in a metal bin mounted near the teachers’ desk. This bin will be labeled and at students’ reaching height, so they can easily put finished work in it. Students will be responsible for putting their work in the bin whenever the student is finished. The teacher can then easily sort and assess the work that is in the bin.
Getting help with an assignment: Normally, when the teacher is doing an activity with the whole group, students can raise their hand for help, and the teacher can immediately help them. However, if a student needs help when the teacher is busy with a small group, the student should not interrupt the teacher. The student should ask a friend. If that friend cannot help, the student should ask one more friend. After asking two friends for help but still stuck, the student can go and grab an “I’m stuck” slip. These are laminated. Students write their name (or initials if they don’t know how to spell their name yet) on the slip with a dry erase marker. Quietly, the student lays the “I’m stuck” slip next to the teacher and can choose a center to do until the teacher is available to help him or her.
Make-up work: Students who have missed assignments and lessons because of an absence will need to make up work. When possible, I plan to have students make up work in class instead of sending activities home. I believe children should have maximum time to play and explore at home and should not have to worry about completing homework activities, especially at such a young age. To make up work, I will have students work on make-up work instead of completing centers. They will eventually have a chance to play with the centers before the centers are rotated, so they will not be losing educational instruction.
Going to the bathroom: When students go to the bathroom, students need to raise their hand in the air with their fingers crossed. When I look at the student’s hand, I will immediately know they need to go to the restroom. To let them know I see that they need to go to the restroom, I will make the sign back, which allows them to go to the restroom. I will only allow one student to go to the bathroom at a time, though. We will stop for the bathroom on the way to art/music and after P.E., so students should not usually need to go to the bathroom during an activity.
Working in groups: When working as a group, students will either be at their tables or on the carpet. The carpet is divided into squares. When it is time to meet for whole group instruction on the carpet for a story or activity, students are expected to find a square and sit with their hands and feet to themselves. Some students may find it hard to sit still, so it is alright if they move a little if it is not disruptive.
Working in centers: Centers are divided into morning routine centers that focus on fine motor skills, math centers that allow students to independently explore math concepts, and language centers that explore letters and sounds. The first day, students are introduced to three different centers in each category (there are several of the same center). I will start with very simple centers, and slowly rotate through and add new ones throughout the year. I will show students each center and very briefly demonstrate how to do it. Students are able to choose the centers in which they wish to participate and can either do it by themselves or with a friend. When they get tired of a center, they must clean it up and grab a new one. Instead of instructing a small group the first few days, the teacher will engage with the entire class to ensure students understand how to work independently on centers. As students become familiar with the centers, the teacher will begin to pull students aside for small group instruction.
Exceptional Needs Provisions: If possible, students with exceptional needs will be expected to meet all the above procedures. It may take them a little longer to learn the procedures, but the teacher and other students can kindly help them remember. Students with exceptional needs will be given any modifications or accommodations that are listed in their IEP. Each student will be met at his or her level and be challenged according to his or her individual needs. Provisions will be made for exceptional needs students depending upon their needs.