Although teaching
preschoolers could be one of the most rewarding activities in the whole world,
it's is also tiring if you are not ready for their energy and to keep them
engaged. A great thing about this age group is how honest they could be. They
immediately will let you know if something dislike them or makes them feel
bored. They also get excited with simple things too! And yes, their memories
are photographic! There have been a few times when I rely on them to help me remember songs or games we have played
in class.
They all want to get a turn in the same class, so be ready to keep track
of who has gotten turns because they will complain if give turns to the same
people. Get used to see them moving a lot on the rug, because the tiny chairs
don't work for them! We are better off to have our classes sitting in a circle
on a rug.
They really benefit of knowing the rules of the class and what you
expect from them. Constant reminder of what you expect from them is important!
You also have to make you extra plan for them because their attention spam is
short that they will need a rich variety of activities. I say plan a little
extra because you never know what will caught their attention. You need to be
able to read how engaged and excited they are with certain activity.
And yes, let's talk about germs! When one of the gets a cold, everyone
else gets it. If you are using props that you will need to pass around
cleaning after using them will help you stay healthy and stop spreading
the germs.Those cute little
voices singing will fill your heart. Be ready to love them and to feel loved!
Props They Love!
This
is a list of props I know my students really enjoy! Please feel free to add
more in the comments! I would love to hear yours!
Puppets: They
enjoy having puppet friends in
class, but make sure they are not spooky. Some of them are really afraid of
clowns! Here you
can find some tips for using puppets in your class!
Parachute: Parachute time
is one of the activities where everyone can participate at the same time. They
love it, and they can fairly easily get out of control, so make sure you talk
about the rules every single time you use it in class. My rules are simple:
don't get on it or under it, wait for me to shake it, and the let go
of the handles when I sing our clean up song. We use the parachute to count,
placing a ball on it and counting for how long they can keep it going. I also
use the parachute to review vocabulary; for example, I can ask them, what do
you want on the parachute? A fish or a dolphin? I have them chant their choice.
You can find more ideas and a song to use the parachute in this post.
Magic Box/Bag: I
have never seen a preschooler not get excited about what could be inside
the magic box I
bring to class. This is a wonderful way to get everyone engaged. I hide flash
cards, plastic animals, pieces of felt of different colors, whatever can
support what we have been learning.
Small White Boards: I
recently discovered that my kindergarteners love using dry erase boards with
markers and tiny erasers in class. We mostly use them to write numbers.
