Being a kindergarten teacher is no easy job. It can be very hard to keep the children under any age group that you are responsible for entertained, educated, and safe all at once. The challenge always remains in keeping the appropriate balance between these three factors because if you let one slip up, it could lead to many problems for both yourself and your students.
These tips will help you become the best kindergarten teacher by keeping your students active, learning new things each day, and having fun while doing so.
So what are you waiting for?
Start The Day Off Right With A Good Morning Routine
Most children will be excited to see you when they come in, but some kids might not be ready to play just yet, even though they are excited to see their friends. So make sure that when getting your students settled down, you keep them busy with things like crafts or opening small presents before sitting down to do any learning activities.
Try Having A Daily Schedule Of Events For The Kids
This can include snack time, outside playtime, storytime, and arts and crafts. When putting together this schedule, make sure that all three factors are kept in mind about how long each activity should take (activities that encourage learning, activities that keep the students active, and activities that your students love to do).
Try Something New Everyday
One of the best parts about being a kindergarten teacher is seeing the kids learn something new each day. New words, numbers, or shapes can be hard for them to understand sometimes, but if you make it fun by singing songs or doing hands on activities like painting with their fingers, they will remember it much better than trying to sit down and listen to you talk about it all day.
Give Them Breaks
For some children, it may be hard for them to sit down all day long either because they are too excited about being around their friends or are just bored listening to simple words being repeated over and over again.
So why not offer a free period once a day where your students can do whatever they want within reason? During this time, you can complete your test online, and you might be surprised at how many times one of your students will ask if they can go to the restroom, make a new craft or read a book.
The best part of this is that you are building confidence with your students that they know how to ask for something instead of just doing it without asking.
Always Be Organized
Classroom organization is key when it comes to keeping everyone safe and staying on task with what you need to be doing. First, make sure that everything has its own place.
Hence, kids know where to find all of their art supplies without asking you every day, and also make sure that your furniture arrangement allows everyone enough space for both learning activities and breaks between lessons.
In Conclusion
It can seem daunting at first, but finding playdates with other kindergarten teachers and talking about your different teaching methods, difficulties, and successes will make it feel much more normal. You are now part of an exclusive group that understands exactly what you are going through so take advantage of this support system whenever possible.
