New Teacher needs help!

[stone2603]

Hi! I'm a 24 year old brand new Pre-K teacher. I was hired 3 days into the school year when the original teacher had a bout with depression and sadly decided not to return.
I have 13 children in my class, however, the most I have in one day is 12, 2 days a week. The rest of the days I have from 8-10 kids.

The school I work in is private, and also a daycare in the afternoons. We only have school for children 2 1/2 - 5. I work with the 4's and 5's and am also the school music teacher.

I'm on here because I need advice in a lot of different areas. I have a short amount of time during my days with the kids. We are on a tight schedule and have a small classroom. Every child has their own desk... and you can only imagine the fun that comes with that. I am longing for tables...

We don't have enough room for centers. My days are organized into open with calendar, weather, ABC's, switching jobs for the week, etc. Then circle where we focus on the letter of the week, a number, and a theme for the day. Then usually art, math, snack and listening story, then some sort of free play and small motor skill activity, and back to circle for letters and numbers on their chalkboards, and story. Then we go to music.

I'm feeling both time crunched, a little lost on how to engage each student with such a tiny room and so many kids, and also how to get them to work independently. They rarely talk to each other, and because it's so small in there, every conversation is directed at me. And I feel bad not answering in hopes they will begin to talk to their peers and foster relationships, but I can't get anything done in class because I am either being told a story or asked for help by 6 kids.

I have no teacher's aide either.

So I just need to find some really strong support on here, people who are willing to listen and offer great advice, which it looks like is what this board is all about. I want to be a teacher they remember fondly, not the one that they never got to speak to because there were so many kids and I only got to discipline them.

Thanks for any suggestions and I welcome more questions on specifics! This post might have been a little vague but I just feel a little lost overall

[Boxcar]

I'm sorry you feel so overwhelmed. Try to hang in there!

Can you push the desks together to form tables? That is one solution to that problem.

More suggestions to come, but I've got to run at the moment. Good luck today! :)

[Boxcar]

From what I understand, your class is a 1/2 day program. Is this right?

You might be able to have some centers. I'd try pushing the desks together into tables. Then each morning when I arrived I'd set out on each table my art/math/small motor activites. The children can rotate in groups from table to table completing each activity. I'd do a quick Circle in the morning where I'd do the opening things you mentioned. After Circle I'd explain briefly what activity was on each table, let the children take turns picking which table to start at, and circulate the room to help them do the activities. I'd use things like the ABC song, counting, ect. to help transition the table rotation and cut down on what I had to do in Circle. For the Free Play period I'd set out bins with more materials and let the children chose items to take out into the room. I'd also use the outside as much as possible for Free Play. Materials can be taken outside, after all.

This is obviously a very rough sketch of what might be done. I know there are things that need ironing out, but maybe it will help you start thinking of some new angles.

[stone2603]

Thank you for your help! My class is a 2 hour program with 20 minutes after that for music. So very little time. I've pushed the desks together before, I probably need to try it again in a different way as the last time it took up so much space no one could move around. When I say tiny classroom, I mean tiny. As in I have no desk. :)

And coming in to the school year, having no idea I would be a teacher as I was hired as just music teacher/afternoon daycare supervisor, I haven't had the summer to plan, decorate, gather things, and am now scrambling trying to get everything in order and get ahead of my cirriculum.

Thanks again!!

[mopar]

Do the students have to have desks. Could you keep a few desks so that when you do a writing activity as a center you have a place for them to write. Then, you could give each child a bin to keep their supplies in and then store the bins either in a cabinet or outside the classroom door on a shelf. The students can listen to stories or have center time on the floor.

[Boxcar]

I was also thinking that you could try combining a lot of subjects into one activity. For example, say you are talking about why the leaves fall. You can do an art/math/science activity all at once. Take your kids outside to pick up leaves, sticks, ect. When you come back in count how many leave everyone found, how many sticks, ect. and make a tally chart of the amounts. Then explain in a developmentally appropriate way why the leaves fall. Finally, have the children make pictures using the things they found. It is actually kind of fun to see how many things you can discuss about one activity. :)

[minimiracles]

My one thought is to "think outside the box" and not really use the desks. Use floor and walll space instead. Hang paper and felt on walls, use black paper as a chalk board for the floor, and start mobile stations. Use boxes to organise (talk to local choe and grocery stores for donations.) and have the kids help decorate.
Good luck. It can be tough even when there is enough room and centers.
Get the kids involved as much as possible.
S

[stone2603]

Thank you for all the suggestions! I love the one about combining several activities into one, so much time saving right there!!

I spoke honestly with the school's director yesterday. I told her I really needed a different cirriculum because of how far behind the kids are in letters and numbers, and how I wanted to do learning centers during the week. She completely agreed. Then I said that Tues and Thurs I had to have an aide, with 12 kids it was almost impossible for me to accomplish any one on one time, and most of the children only come on those days, and they are really far behind in their skills. So we brought my day care aide in the afternoons in to be my teacher's aide 2x a week in the mornings. :)

Then I brought up tables, saying next year we really did need them as desks were the bane of the classroom. Little fingers snapping crayons, smearing glue, hiding kleenex... and she said, "Order them now, order whatever you need and we'll get it here by next week." :D So I ordered a rectangle and kidney shaped table, a pocket wall chart for papers, math manipulatives, art supplies, and then set up the whole classroom for centers.

And now I'm off to post on what could make having centers easier and smoother!!

[minimiracles]

Good for you. I am glad your have such an understanding director. Good luck

[Boxcar]

Oh, I'm so glad things worked out!!! Your director sounds great. It is good that she truly listened to what you needed. You must be really excited about the changes you are about to make. Good luck. :)

[sunnylane]

Hi!
I feel for you and it's hard enough when you have plenty of time to plan so being thrown into once the year has begun is even more difficult.

At this age, my opinion is the kids will get bored sitting at individual desks. You want to try to focus on hands-on group activities. Consider pushing the desks together or even removing some of them from the class and keeping a group of 4-6. This way you can work with smaller groups and they can still have that table time to do their work.

Even if you have a small classroom you can still incorporate learning centers into your learning environment. Try making centers that you can store in rubbermaid containers and pulling them out as you use them. This way you won't be cluttering your room but you are still giving the chidlren the materials they need to learn.

If you are a music teacher you probably know loads of great songs and fingerplays that you can use and incorporate into your lesson plans. Kids learn the best when they are having fun and all of my kids love nothing more than when we are singing. They especially like it when I sing, mainly because it is so off key!! Say for example you are singing Itsy Bitsy Spider. Why not focus the rest of the day's activities around that song? You can make a craft project with a spider and from there you can teach that they have eight legs. I'm sure you get the idea.

Most importantly, have fun with your class. Establish the rules of your classroom and a reward system and you'll be fine. I wish you the very best of luck and hope that all goes well.

Take care!
Tracey
Sunny Lane Learning