Further down on the same page, he continues:

Procedure gives structure, which is especially important for at-risk students.  The label “at-risk” has nothing to do with intelligence.  It simply means that these students are in danger of failing or dropping out of school.  Often the lives of at-risk students are chaotic, and the only part of their lives that is stable is school.  The reason they are in danger is simply because they don’t do their work.  A prime reason why they don’t do their work is that they lack structure, and procedures can establish that needed stability.

Because the majority of students in the school where I currently teach are considered “at-risk,” and because another large percentage also have some sort of special need or developmental delay, several colleagues suggested to me during my first September there that using a visual schedule of daily events would be a good idea.  They said they had found that this procedure gave students a strong sense of security.  Previewing a list of daily events avoided “surprises” that might just be enough to set certain students off and other ones to balk.  It would give all students a chance to be mentally prepared for each new segment of the day.

Online, at Set BC, I found the following information, outlining a rationale for using visual schedules with children who have special needs:

Visual schedule systems are an easy way to provide students with consistent cues about their daily activities.  They provide a structure that allows a student to anticipate what will happen next, reduce anxiety by providing the student with a vision of his/her day and promote calmness between transitions.  They are especially important for students who have a profile that includes difficulties with the understanding of oral language and directions.  The consistency provided by a visual schedule is crucial in establishing an atmosphere of trust and security. Visual supports can also provide motivation to work through a less favoured activity knowing a favoured activity is to follow.

In my first year at my new school I actually resisted trying this simple idea for a number of reasons. Overwhelmed with newly returning to a grade level which I hadn’t taught for more than 10 years and being naive about teaching a large number of students with special needs, I felt that I just didn’t have enough energy to “do it all.”  Since in all my previous teaching and schools, I’d never used a visual schedule, I decided it was something that I could do without.

As well, in my first term of full day Kindergarten (which was also new to our province that year,) I didn’t  feel I had a very good grip on the timing of the day.  Often, activities would take either far less or more time than I had anticipated.  Experimenting and learning as I was, I felt I couldn’t actually put a schedule up in the morning that I could guarentee for the rest of the day.  Many times within one day I would have to change my plans on the spur of the moment simply because things hadn’t worked out as I’d originally thought they would.

Another issue also prevented me from jumping on the bandwagon.  Although my classroom is large, I just couldn’t seem to find a satisfactory location in the room that would be good for this purpose.  All the visual schedules I’d seen in the past had been displayed in narrow vertical pocket charts––and I had only a horizontal one. Having already spent too much of my own money in setting up the classroom, I didn’t feel like purchasing yet another item from my own pocket.  Although I tried it out in a few places in the room, the horizontal pocket chart always seemed awkwardly positioned and never in an area where we might easily or naturally gather in the mornings.  So I abandoned the idea altogether, until last spring when I received $500 to spend in my classroom as I chose.

With this money I decided to purchase a moveable teaching chart.  In addition to teaching mini-lessons from this stand, I decided to learn from the experience of my many colleagues and try out their suggestion of implementing a daily visual schedule for the entire class.   It was one of the best moves I’ve ever made!

Here’s what my chart stand looks like, with my visual schedule at the top and a 1-10 math strip at the bottom ready to quickly review a math concept.

You might be surprised to see that in the end I decided to arrange my visual schedule in a horizontal fashion, rather than the vertical direction I had assumed was preferable.  It was our Aboriginal Support Teacher who pointed out to me that horizontal schedules encourage left-to-right tracking and so could provide an additional benefit to children as they developed an understanding of the reading/writing process.  Such a simple idea had never occurred to me before.

Then not long after that, I learned from another local colleague, a little trick that reinforced this same important “concept of print.”  She explained to a visiting group of teachers that she found it useful to put a permanent green dot on the top of her poetry chart to remind her students of  the side on which to begin reading.  Just like a traffic light, the green circle told them to “go.”  Since my visual chart is magnetic, I made my green dot moveable and also added a red dot to indicate where we finish reading.  Every morning I ask different children (from among those who still need practice to master this concept,) to come forward and arrange the dots to show where they would start to read the schedule, where they should go to read more once they came to the end of each line, and the spot where the reading will be completely finished.  On some days I also then reinforce that same information one more time by pulling out a real book to show starting, ending and return sweep concepts.

Here’s a photo that shows the entire daily schedule for one day just prior to Christmas holidays:

You can see that I’ve simply created pictures for my schedule as I go.  They’re not all the same size or commercially purchased but are instead pictures that are meaningful to my particular students.  Some of them come from the well known site, do2learn.com, while others are simply images I’ve found in a magazine or online through a google image search.  When time is in short supply, I just draw a picture as best I can!

Each month I always put up small pictures on my calendar at the carpet indicating special events in each month, for example, holiday parties, field trips or class birthdays.  On those days, I simply move the marker from the monthly calendar to the visual schedule for that one day, thus avoiding the need to make two images for the same event.  I just add a piece of magnetic tape to the back.

Originally I was worried that my students would be upset if the day didn’t go as we had scheduled it during our morning session at the chart stand.  I needn’t have worried.  If the order of the day needs to be rearranged for some reason, I simply discuss the change with the class and ask a child to move the pictures accordingly. It’s interesting to see that that there are some children who don’t care at all, while to others the process of “correctly” representing the day is very important.  With a general outline of the day presented in the morning, I found that all kids are very accepting of changes that can’t be avoided.  This was much different to my experiences in my first year of teaching at this school when unexpected changes in routine could result in the complete meltdown of certain children.

Gradually I started to add other symbols to the schedule as well.  For instance, if the weather looked dismal in the morning, I would put a question mark above the “recess picture” with the explanation that a question mark can indicate wondering or a sense of not being sure, or of asking a question,  ”Will we be able to go out for recess this afternoon?” or  ”Are we going to have time to fit in a story before we go to music class this morning?”  Not only did the use of the question mark symbol act as a pre-reading skill lesson, knowing in advance that some events were only tentatively planned allowed the kids to more graciously accept a disappointment later in the day.  What Dr. Marshall says is true.  Being proactive is much more effective teaching than being reactive.  Sometimes if I could see we were running out of time in the day, I could offer the students some choices.  ”We don’t have enough time to do both playdough and have a story today, so which would you prefer?”

So each morning now, my students do their coatroom chores by changing shoes and stowing away their lunches, coats and backpacks.  The next procedure they follow is to sit cross-legged in front of our chart stand, ready to start the day.  Having the new visual schedule positioned in front of them keeps the faster, more organized children’s attention while we are assembling, and the discussion that naturally results often catches the interest of those who are dawdling in the coatroom.  I’ve noticed it gives them a purpose for joining us as they want to find out what we are talking about and what special things are going to happen at Kindergarten.

I’ve found such success with this simple teaching tool, and am finding more possibilities for it all the time that I wanted to share.  I just wish I’d investigated visual schedules much earlier in my career!

Related postings:

Many more posts on the topic of classroom management can be found at this link.

Initially it was almost all day long––continuous operation on Level B. She didn’t really interfere with the others’ learning too much but she certainly interfered with her own. In the beginning, we tried many things to get her feeling more cooperative. Sometimes it would work but many times it would not. Eventually, we just started making a mental note of all the times in a morning when she was not cooperative and would not comply with the reasonable and simple requests of the teacher. Then when it came to a break time––snack or lunch play time––we would quietly ask her to stay behind when all the other kids were dismissed. With a few reflective questions (in response to her questions about why she was still in the room by herself,) we would ask, “Why do you think you’re still here?”  When she would respond, “But I did do all my work,” or “I did hang up my coat and come to my desk,” we simply asked if she did these things in the same way as all the other kids or “Did you do all these things when you were asked to do them?” or “Did you do these things without a fuss?” Eventually she would agree that she hadn’t.

Then we would explain that the job of a teacher is to make sure that everyone can learn in the room. Part of learning well is doing the simple things that the teacher asks you to do when the teacher asks you to do it. Then we would explain that we really wanted her to learn well.  We would help her by practicing all the things in the morning in a way that was cooperative, so that she could learn to be cooperative. We explained that in any learning some people simply need more practice than others.

Then we would actually go through all the things we did that morning. If she had stood around in the cloakroom and refused to get her shoes changed, coat hung up, etc., we would ask her to dress herself again, as if she had just arrived at school, with backpack, jacket etc. Then we’d have her go outside and “line up” at the classroom door all by herself.  Then the teacher would open the door and welcome all the “boys and girls” to school. If it was my teaching day I’d tell her we were pretending that everyone in the class was there. Then I’d have her come in and I’d greet her just as I do all the students every morning. Then we’d head to the coatroom and practice being cooperative.

After she’d hung everything up, we’d go to the desk area and I would do a quick run through of every lesson that we’d had. I’d ask her (as if I was trying to remember myself,) “When we did the printing lesson today and I asked you to get out your chalk and make the letters, were you cooperative?” If she had been cooperative in that particular activity, I would say, “Oh, good, that’s one thing we don’t need to practice!” Then we’d move on to the next lesson. I’d say, ”When we did binder time, did you get your binder out at the same time as all the other kids?” Then she’d say “No,” and I’d say, “Oh, that’s something we’d better practice––Boys and girls, it’s binder time. Get out your binder and put your finger on number one.”  Then she’d get her binder out and we would count the days in school, count the calendar, do some more tallies, etc.

On we went––a quick recap of the entire morning!  I’d return to the front of the room and I’d say, “Okay boys and girls, now it’s time to come to the carpet for our work on the pocket chart.” By this time, she was starting to smile when I addressed her as if she was a whole group of kids! We actually have built quite a positive relationship in these times we spend together at lunch and recess because I’m bright and cheerful and she’s starting to see the humor in the situation of a teacher teaching one child as if there is a whole class present. She started to say things like, “I don’t know why I didn’t do this job this morning and then I could be outside now.” And I could agree and say that maybe tomorrow she could think of a better plan so that she could go outside and wouldn’t need anymore extra practice times. I’d say that I notice she’s getting smarter about this every single day!”

It’s been on and off like this for a few weeks now and every week it gets better. Mondays are the worst after a weekend away from school. She still comes in and stands around instead of doing her chores, but gradually she is starting to be more and more cooperative earlier in the day and for the following days. Our practice times are getting shorter and shorter and she’s getting happier and happier. When we first met her, she had a sour look on her face all the time and put most of her energy into thinking of negative behaviors. Now that she’s complying more and more, she’s more and more pleasant.

In our noon-hour practice sessions we often talk about this. We talk about how she’s becoming more grown up and becoming a better student because she’s focusing on doing what she’s asked to do in lesson time, instead of focusing on what will be something different than what everyone else is doing. As I said, these noonhour times with just the teacher and the student are actually helping us to build a solid working relationship, and so I’ve been very diligent in following through whenever she’s uncooperative. Once we even had to go over to the gym at recess and redo a bunch of fun relays. (Keep in mind she’s the only one running in the relays and I have a whistle and give all the directions just as I do for a whole class.) This persistence with discussions––that she will actually be happier when she learns to cooperate (comply) and that every day she’s getting smarter about doing her tasks right away––is really paying off!  For the most part she’s beginning to make choices that are leading her in a positive and copperative direction.  Through this experience I have truly learned what Dr. Marshall means when he explains that procedures can be used to handle discipline problems.

At the beginning of every school year (and whenever I introduce a brand new activity/center in my  classroom,) I take the time to proactively think through HOW I want the activity to run.  In my mind I try to visualize how the children will move through the activity from start to finish.  I troubleshoot for problems BEFORE THEY OCCUR.  By doing this, I ensure that my students will have greater success and that actual discipline (behavior) problems will be at a minimum.

I no longer assume that the children in my class will simply know what I expect of them.  These days I go very slowly to build these understandings.  Step-by-step, I explicitly teach my behavior expectations for every school situation.  (Click here for a specific example.)  Then I allow sufficient time for practice.  Day after day in the first weeks of school, I make a point to thoroughly and methodically explain the procedures (rather than the rules) I expect children to follow.   This leads to a very positive climate in the classroom, a smoother running program and more academic progress in the long run.

What follows is an extensive list of detailed procedures that I have been compiling over a number of years.  Whenever I run into a classroom problem that I didn’t foresee, I repair the situation with a new classroom procedure. (Click here for a specific example.)  Then I add that procedure to my master list so that the following year I will remember to teach it proactively.  Each year my classroom management improves as I reap the benefits of being organized and thorough in my planning.

Please understand that these procedures are written down only for my own planning and teaching purposes.  I don’t share them with parents or even substitute teachers (who simply wouldn’t have time to take them all in.)

Although each teacher’s procedures will be different, sometimes it is helpful to see an example from someone else.  (Further thoughts on creating procedures for your own classroom can be found here and on the right hand sidebar of this page.  Look for heading “Procedures in the Classroom.”)

Arrival at  School

• When you arrive, put your backpack in line at the hallway door.
• There are several choices at this time:

- Quietly sit with your things.
- Leave your belongings against the wall and go outside to play.  Return when the bell ring and line up with your things.
- Gently look at books in the hallway bin.  Return them gently when the bell rings.

Coat Area

• We enter the class through the hallway door, rather than the outside door.
• We walk at an “indoor speed” to the coatroom area.
• We leave space between people as we walk.
• Backpacks are hung by the handle on the bottom hook, facing forward, zipper stays open during the day.
• Jewelry and toys stay in backpacks.
• Lunches are taken out of backpacks.
• If your food is loose in your backpack, get a plastic bin from the end of the shelf.  Place all your food inside.
• Lunch bags and lunch bins are stored in upper cubby.
• Place bags/bins so that there will be room for other student lunches too.
• Store lunches/bins directly above your own name.
• At the end of the day, return lunch bins to the stack.  Dirty ones go to the sink.
• Jackets, sweaters, hoodies are placed on top hook, over the backpacks.
• Look for the best way to hang your clothes—by the hood, neck, or loop at neck.
• Shoes are stored in bottom cubby “train style,” rather than side by side (so there will be room for two people to store shoes in same cubby.)
• Outdoor shoes are stored in cubby in the same way, until we get them out at recess time.
• Sit away from cubby area while putting on shoes to allow others near hooks.
• Give any money for milk or soup orders to the teacher at this time.
• When all coatroom chores are complete, sit crisscross on the line (created by the edge of the entry carpet.)
• Turn your body toward the teacher’s chart stand (where we often have a quick lesson.)
• The teacher’s chart stand is just for the teacher’s use.  All the items in the cart and the felt pens on the front are just for the use of the teacher.
• “Sign in” by walking (at an “indoor speed”) to the small yellow table.  Find your name tag and place it in the pocket chart at the carpet area.  Once a name has been placed in the pocket chart, it stays there.  We leave other people’s nametags exactly where they have been placed.

Getting Student Attention

See these links for some ideas I personally use plus many other possibilities:

Attention Management Procedures

Non-verbal Cues for Procedures

A completely silent management signal

Snack and Lunch Eating

• Wash hands at one of two places, bathroom or class sink.
• Wet paper towel goes into the garbage cans, not the recycling can.
• Placemats are placed on the table by the teacher.  Placemats remain where they have been placed.
• Look for your name.
• Food items are placed on the placemat.
• Lunch bins and bags are placed off the placemat.
• To use good manners we sit facing others at our table (rather than turning outwards to visit with people behind.)
• We eat only our own food, rather than sharing with others.
• Put up your hand if you need help (to cut or open something) or water during snack time.
• Spoons are in a cup on the sink; help yourself.

Snack and Lunch Clean-Up

• We keep all items at our spot until we completely finish eating.
• Placemats go back in blue bin at the sink area.
• Juice boxes go in dark blue bucket.  Straws go in the light blue bucket.
• Crumbs go into garbage cans, located at either end of book display shelf.
• To deal with crumbs on placemat, carry placemat with two hands and shake into the garbage.
• Paper towels are on the sink area if you need to wipe something up.
• Rags are under the sink for bigger spills.
• Small dustpans and brooms are kept on the low gray filing cabinet to clean up crumbs under the table.
• Crumbs go into the garbage cans (There are two at either end of the shelf.)
• Plastic containers (from jello or pudding etc.) go into the light blue bucket for recycling.  The teacher washes them out later.
• School spoons or cups go in the sink to be washed by the teacher.
• Spoons from home can be washed, dried and returned to your lunch bag.
• Clean, dry paper or cardboard go into paper recycling box near the art easel.
• Choose a book for “Book Look” time and return to your seat.  Make sure the table is dry so as not to damage the book.
• Push your chair in where you were sitting when you leave.

End of the Day

• When we are dismissed, we check our mailbox for any notices or things to go home.
• We put our “mail” into backpacks.
• We change our shoes and store indoor shoes in our cubbies.
• When we’re ready, we go to the door and sit down in two lines; a bus line and a line for everyone else.
• The lines begin at the edge of the foam mat so we still have room to open the door.
• We stay inside the room, even if we see our parents or siblings outside the door.
• Bus students leave first.  They go with an Educational Assistant who comes to pick them up.
• The “Caboose” for the day turns out the lights and shuts the door as we leave.
• When we reach the front of the school, we line up against the wall until the teacher sees a family member for us.

Manners

• We keep kleenex on the shelf by the dollhouse.  Take one kleenex, fold in half and cover nose. Blow nose gently, clean face and throw kleenex into the trash can.
• We  turn our head away from others to cough.  We cough into a kleenex or  ”into our sleeves.”
• We look at a person when talking to them.
• Saying “Please”,  ” Thank you”, and “You’re welcome” are all important habits.
• If we need the teacher, (but the teacher is already talking to someone,) we place one hand on the teacher’s arm (if she’s standing) or on her shoulder (if she’s sitting.) The teacher will cover the child’s hand to acknowledge the child.  The child waits without talking until the teacher is able to give a turn. Sometimes we have to wait a few minutes for this to happen.

Chalkboard Lessons and Practice Times

• Pick up a chalkboard, brush and chalk from the horseshoe table.
• Have a seat on the foam mat carpet, facing chalkboard easel where teacher sits.  Sit criss-cross.
• We leave the foam mat pieces flat on the floor, hooked together.
• After practice time, erase the chalkboard and return materials to the bins.
• Allow other people enough space and time to put their boards away so no one feels pushed.
• Chalkboards go back in the bin so that they fit right inside and aren’t hanging out.

Table Work Times

• If name cards are on tables, sit at your spot.  We keep name tags where the teacher placed them.
• If there are no name cards on tables, choose your own spot.
• If there is no chair at your spot, just get one yourself from somewhere else in the room.  We keep the legs down as we walk.
• Pencils, crayons and pencil crayons are returned to their separate bins (green for crayons, yellow for scissors, black for glue, clear for pencils.)  Any erasers on the table go into the pencil bin.
• If we need a sharper pencil, we choose a new one from the bin on the table; we only sharpen pencils at Center Time.
• We pick up any cutting scraps etc. and put them in the recycling or garbage cans.
• Name place cards go in the red bucket on the shelf beside our work tables.
• Our work goes on top of our book box when it is finished for the day.
• If we’ve been using glue, we leave our books open to dry.
• When we finish our own work, we clean our own area and then bring a book back to our table to enjoy.
• As everyone finishes, we all pitch in to put away tool bins and clean the floor.  Dustpans and brooms are kept in coat area.

Books

• School library books are kept in the big wicker basket at the edge of the carpet.
• Public library books and our own classroom books are kept on the big bookshelf.
• There are other book buckets on the windowsill that may also be used at any reading time.
• We try to return each book to the same shelf or bucket from where we took it.
• We make sure that the table is dry before we place a book on it.  Drying rags for tables are under the sink.
• We turn the pages from the corners and take care to treat books gently.
• We may use the story retelling bags (with small puppets) at any book reading time.  The bags are also returned to the big bookshelf.
• After eating times, we may move our chairs away from our eating spot, to sit beside a friend and share a book.

Show and Tell

• We pick a name four days a week (Monday-Thursday) from our Show and Tell jar of popsicle sticks.
• When the Show and Tell bag comes back the following morning it is stored on the teacher’s chair at the carpet.
• We keep the bag closed so that the contents will be a surprise for everyone at Show and Tell time.
• We might have questions about the contents of the bag.  If we have a question to ask we begin with “I wonder…”  (This phrasing ensures that the student actually asks a question rather than taking the limelight by sharing stories of their own.)  If time permits, we may share a story of our own.
• After the Show and Tell is shared, the bag goes into the next person’s backpack immediately so it’s not forgotten at the end of the day.

More information and ideas for Show and Tell procedures here.

A literature lesson connected to Show and Tell procedures can be found here.

Going Out in the Hallway

• We get ready to go out in the hall by lining up at the door, using the edge of the foam mat as a guide.
• Just before leaving the room, we pull names to find out who will be “Line Leader” and “Caboose.”  These two people will keep these jobs for the rest of the day.
• All day long we allow the Line Leader/Caboose persons to slide into their positions without any fuss.
• We stay right behind the person in front of us––the same person the whole way.
• On the way we keep our hands to ourselves.
• We stay very quiet while walking or while waiting to enter another room.
• When we meet friends, siblings or cousins in the hall, we smile or wave rather than calling out a hello or giving hugs.
• We get drinks in our room (rather than at the fountains in the hallway as we are walking by.)
• When we use the school washrooms (rather than our classroom washroom,) three boys/girls enter at one time.  As a person exits, the next boy/girl enters.  As we exit, we rejoin the class line.

Library Times

• We visit the library on Wednesday mornings.  We take our old book with us to return.  We put returns on the front table.
• When we arrive at the library, Mr. D. seats us on the storytime carpet.  We go to the spot he indicates.
• We sit criss-cross for the story.
• When picking a book, we use a “browsing stick” to be able to return unwanted books correctly.
• When we have picked a new book, we find our old book and take both books to Mr. D.’s sign-out desk.
• We take our new book to the door, sit down in a line, and enjoy a quick look at our book until everyone is finished.
• We hold our books to our hearts as we walk back to the classroom.
• Library books go into our School Library basket in the class.

Calendar and/or Circle Times

• We sit on the carpet on a number space during Calendar Time.  We don’t sit on the red numbers that are too close to the front.
• We sit on a letter space if we’re making a circle.
• We sit criss-cross and try to leave a comfortable space between ourselves and others.
• People on the edges of the carpet keep it flat at all times.
• If we want to say something we raise a hand.
• We pull names from our “Lucky Duck” for the person who will have the next turn.
• When a person is having a turn, we allow them to answer questions or lead the calendar routine.
• Calendar time is the only time we rearrange or add things to the calendar bulletin board.  We don’t do this on our own at Center Times.
• The following chart guides us in knowing how best to learn at group lesson times on the carpet.

Gym Times

• When we arrive at the gym, we ask the Line Leader to enter first (and alone for a moment) to activate the automatic lights.  If the automatic lights don’t work, the Line Leader is the person to flick the switch on at the far end of the gym.
• We follow the Line Leader to sit at the corner lines of the gym ready to do our first activity.
• The Line Leader chooses the four actions (run, giant steps, airplane, gallop etc.) we will do around the four border lines of the gym floor.  Then we sit again to hear the directions for the next activity.
• Adults get equipment from the PE storage room; children wait on the green line outside the door.
• When a person receives their equipment, they are free to go out in the gym to use it right away.
• When the whistle blows, we sit, without talking, facing the teacher, to wait for the next direction.
• If we have equipment, we hold on to it while the teacher is talking.
• We get drinks after we return to the classroom (rather than leaving individually to visit the hallway fountain.)
• When it’s time to leave the gym, we line up at the gym door on the black line.
• When we get back to our classroom, we sit on the floor at the sink area quietly, while the teacher gets drinks for everyone.
• Even those who don’t want a drink, take a cup (in case they change their mind) and sit with us.
• As we finish our drinks, we put the cup in the sink and go to the next activity.  If we want a second drink, we fill the cup ourselves.

Computer Lab

This link contains many suggestions for developing computer lab procedures.

Recess and Lunch Playtimes

• We wear outdoor shoes when we go outside, leaving our indoor shoes in our cubbies.
• Kindergarten students may visit the sandbox, the playground, the swings and the paved areas.
• We stay within the playground fences.
• The main fields are for the older students.
• We listen for the whistle so we know when recess is over.  At lunch time we listen for the bell.
• We line up outside our classroom, against the window.  Look for the picture of the monkey in the window to be sure which room is ours.
• Our class cleans up the school sandtoys, putting them in the large bins and bringing the bins into the school at the end of lunch play time.
• We allow the Line Leader for the day to slide into the front spot.
• Before we enter, we stamp our feet outside and then slide them across the entry carpet to remove as much sand as possible.
• When our hands are really sandy, we ask the teacher to bring some water outside in a bucket to rinse them off.

Center Times

• We clean our things up when leaving one center to go to another.
• If others are still playing with the same set of toys, they will clean up when they leave.
• We walk from center to center.
• We play purposefully with toys, rather than just scatter them across the floor.
• We walk around things that are being used on the floor or carpet, rather than stepping on top of them.
• When the teacher sets the timer, it means we have 5 more minutes of Center Time.  We stay at the same center we’re at for the last 5 minutes.
• We clean up when the timer rings.
• When we finish cleaning our own area, we pitch in to help others.
• When everything is clean, we go to the carpet for a story.
• The big pillows from the block area can be moved to any spot in the room.

Tool Bench Center

• The box containing real wood and sanders are kept on top of the tool bench.  Use these items on the floor.
• Sanders are used on real wood but not “plastic wood.”
• When you finish sanding, sweep up any sawdust with a dustpan and broom.
• Replace the real wood and level it inside the box so that the lid will close.  Snap the lid closed.  Return to top of tool bench.
• Play safety glasses and tape measure are kept on the top of tool bench.
• The real and plastic bolts are kept in one drawer on the tool bench, while the “plastic wood” is kept in the other.
• The carpenter aprons are hung on the hooks.

Drama Center (currently set up as a home)

• Pull out the little table and chairs from the corner when using them.
• Dishes and utensils are kept inside the sink unit when not in use.
• Play food is kept in a bin in the fridge.  We keep it on the bottom shelf so that the door will close properly.
• The baby cradles are kept under the computer table.  We fold the blankets and place them in the cradle when finished, along with the baby pillow.
• The dresser is where we store:

1.     Jewelry (in blue container in top drawer.)
2.     Cell phones (in the purple box in the top drawer.)
3.     Purses and wallets (middle drawer)
4.     Tablecloths (folded in the bottom drawer)

• Drawers remain in the dresser.
• Babies are stored in the cradles.
• Stuffed animals are kept in large blue bin (stored on the toy shelf.)
• Doll clothes are stored in the small laundry basket.
• Clothespegs are stored in the black wire basket.
• The clothesline is stored on top of the small table.
• Dress up costumes are hung on the clothesrack.
• Hats are kept in the red bin.
• Dress up shoes are kept on the bottom shelf, lined up in pairs.

Little Desk Center

• Two people can use this desk at the same time.
• Paper is kept in the drawer.
• Notepads are kept in the orange bin on the top.
• Scissors and gluesticks are kept in the “groove” at the back of the desk.
• Felt pens are kept in the white bin.
• Pencil crayons are in the blue caddy on the right side shelf.
• Pencils and wax crayons are kept in the round bin built into the desk.
• Stickers and envelopes are kept on the left side shelf.

Little Cars and Trucks Center

• The car mat is stored (rolled so that edges are straight,) on top of the block shelf. It’s used near the hallway door.
• Even if the door is open, we keep little cars inside the classroom.
• The wooden car buildings (fire house, gas station etc.) are stored on the wooden shelf near the door with doorways facing out.  Wooden cars from this set are stored inside the buildings.
• Other little cars and trucks are stored in the wicker basket on the block shelf.
• The clear bin of little people and playmobil is stored on top of the wicker basket.

Playdough Center

• Any of the three classroom tables can be set up as a playdough center.
• Spread out the vinyl tablecloth and put the four clips on the ends of the tables to hold the tablecloth.  When not in use we keep the tablecloth, folded, in the red bin kept under the chalk easel. The four clips are kept loose on top of the tablecloth.
• Take plastic bins of tools and cookie cutters from the chalk easel to the table.  Lids are placed under the bins during center time.
• Playdough is kept in ice cream buckets.  Each bucket is a slightly different size, so matching correct lid to bucket is important at clean up time.  We put the lids on fully so that our playdough won’t dry out.
• At clean up time, we return all bits of playdough to the ice cream buckets.  We use a piece of playdough as a “magnet” to pick up little bits.

Dollhouse Center

• If you need to lift the dollhouse, hold it under the floor, not the roof.
• Three people can use the dollhouse at the same time if the table is pulled out.
• The dolls and furniture are delicate.  We play carefully with them.
• The staircases are stored inside the dollhouse.
• There are two baskets, a big one for dollhouse furniture and a small one for people.
• The baskets are stored under the table and the table is pushed back in.
• The clothes are glued to the dolls so we don’t try to take them off.  The hair is also glued to the heads.  We leave it as it is.
• We can bring other toys to the dollhouse but we keep the doll house toys at this center.

Games and Puzzles

• Games and puzzles can be carried to tables or carpet area for playing.
• Games and puzzles are returned to same shelf from which they came.
• Last shelf in the row is for teacher materials.
• All little pieces are kept together in the same container they came from and the lids are put on tightly so we don’t lose pieces.
• When we finish with a game or puzzle, we put it right away at that time.

Painting Easel

• We paint on paper only.
• Paper is kept below on easel shelf.
• Print your name on the paper before painting.
• We use clips to attach the paper.
• A pencil hangs on a string at either end of the easel for writing names.
• We paint at the easel only during Center Time.
• There’s room for two people (only) to paint at the same time.
• Smocks are kept on hooks on the back of the door.
• Only one brush is kept in each paint pot.
• Painters share colors between them.
• If a new paintbrush is needed, ask an adult to get them for you.
• Finished paintings go on the drying rack.

Individual Watercolor Paint Sets

• If you’d like watercolors during center time, please ask an adult to reach one for you.
• We use these sets at one of the large tables.
• Please get your own water (in a small plastic container kept under sink)and your own brush (from under the sink)
• If any water is spilled, please clean it up with a large rag (from under sink.)
• Print your name on the paper before painting.
• Put paintings on drying rack.
• To clean up, empty paint water and leave container in sink.
• Brushes are left in the sink too.
• Wet paint rags are put in the light blue plastic bucket at the sink area.
• Dry your table with a dry rag when you’re all cleaned up.

Large Sand Table

• Ask an adult to remove and replace the heavy wood lid.
• Four students fit nicely around this table; more is too crowded.
• We try to keep all our expensive sand inside the box.
• If sand is spilled accidentally, please get a small brush and broom to clean up.

Math Manipulatives

• The bins are labeled so we can put pieces back correctly.
• Bins may be used at center times as well as math times.
• We keep bins closed at other times.
• Math items may be used at tables or on the carpet but we don’t take them to play in the other centers.

Fine Motor Trays

• One person at a time uses each tray; others may watch, but the trays are for individual use.
• The person using the tray may keep it as long as they need to during a session.
• Trays are to be used while sitting at a table.
• We use the trays with great care because the pieces are delicate and break easily.
• Trays are returned to the same place on the shelf each time; match the tray with the photo on the shelf.
• Also use shelf photos to rearrange the items on the tray for the next person who will use them.

Blocks

• When building with any type of wooden block, we keep the structure lower than our heads.  Foam blocks can go higher.
• The lids for block bins are stored on the back shelf when we are playing with blocks (so that they don’t get broken from people stepping on them.)
• Blocks are returned to the shelves, bin or box in which they were found.
• We can mix different kinds of blocks, add in little people, animals, train track etc. but we return them all to their own spots/containers at clean-up time.
• We can take blocks away from the block area to any carpeted area in the room but bring them back at clean-up time.

Much like a hungry woodpecker at a bug-infested tree or Sheldon (from TV’s well-known “Big Bang” series,) repeatedly and insistently knocking on Penny’s door––Knock!  Knock! “Penny!”  Knock!  Knock! “Penny!”  Knock!  Knock! “Penny!”––these three little ones in my classroom were constantly coming to poke at my back or tug on my pant leg, all the while droning without pause:  ”Teacher, teacher, teacher, teacher!”

Even though many times it crossed my mind that I really needed to teach a procedure for “politely interrupting,” I kept forgetting––or putting it off in the moment in order to teach “something more important”––and so the badgering continued.  More often than I care to admit, I heard determined little voices at my side, intent on getting my attention no matter what!  ”Teacher, teacher, teacher!”

It’s embarrassing to say how long it took me to do something about the situation. Finally, last week, I created a 5 minute space in my day plan (Yup!  That’s all it took!) and wrote down:  Teach Sandi’s “Get the teacher’s attention” procedure.  (And then, so I’ll never have to endure this particular “behavior problem” again, I went to my master list of September procedures and officially added it to all the millions of others!)

As with most procedures, it’s pretty simple.  What makes it so effective is the actual teaching and practicing of it!

Here’s Sandi’s procedure:

Teach the kids that when they need your attention (but you appear busy,) they should simply place one hand on your arm (if you are standing,) or on your shoulder (if you are sitting.)  Then explain that when you feel the touch, you will cover their hand with your own hand, so that they will know you have noticed them.  After that, the child’s procedure is to wait without talking until the teacher is able to give them a turn.  It works like a charm!

I’ve noticed that this procedure has also helped my three become more independent.  If they get tired of waiting, they often just decide to leave before I have a chance to respond.   Obviously they have come to the conclusion that their question wasn’t all that important in the first place, or that some “pressing problems” can be solved without any help from the teacher at all. (Perfect!)

Thanks, Sandi!

Many other related postings can be found here.

Firstly the students were taught four procedures for how to walk appropriately in the school:

1. Stand directly behind the person in front of you.
2. Face your body forward.
3. Hands stay down at sides.
4. We walk quietly in the hall, without talking.

Then the teacher shared an effective and silent procedure that she uses to help students live up to these expectations.  If a problem occurs as they are moving from place to place in the school, she stops the line and wiggles four fingers above her head. The class remains stopped until the problem is fixed.

As with any procedure, the effectiveness lies not in the particular procedure itself, but rather in the consistency with which the teacher practices it and expects it to be upheld.

RESPONSE:
I taught grade four for many years before I went to primary.  I think you’ll be surprised to learn that most of the procedures you needed in your grade one class will also be needed in grade four.  Don’t be fooled into thinking that grade four students are all that much more mature!  You’ll have to explain and teach many of the same procedures that 6 year olds need to be taught.  Certainly, it might not take them as long to learn as grade ones, but you will still need to let them know from Day One how you expect things to be done in your classroom.  Every teacher has their own special routines and it’s important not to assume that students already know what they are.

Fourth grade students still need procedures for many things!  This link from Dr. Marshall’s site has many suggestions.

Here are a few more that I remember specifically teaching at that grade level:

• Setting up notebooks  (Exactly how do you want their assignments set up?  Name goes where?  Date goes where?)  Do you care if they doodle on the covers of their notebooks?   If doodling bothers you, teach that spare time drawings can be done on paper found at the side of the room or provide each student with a little doodle book.

You might want to create procedures for setting up individual notebook pages as well.   Most students benefit from having a specific set of procedures for organizing questions and laying them out neatly on a page.  This is especially true in Math where each question might have computation and final answers. A good friend gave me a tip:  Teach students to fold each new notebook page in half as they come to it.  Have them to draw a line down the centre where the crease is.   Ask them to put only one math question on each side of the crease––back and forth, back and forth––so that computational work for each question can be read/corrected easily.  After each assignment, teach students to draw a horizontal line across the notebook to indicate the end of one day’s assignment.  I recall that this took many lessons of repeated teaching and practice but also that it was well worth the effort.  Throughout the year student notebooks were a joy to assess and the children were very proud of their efforts.

• Do you care if they write in pencil? pen? red pen?  Set up some procedures surrounding the use of supplies.
• Use of classroom computers (How will they be shared?  When can they be used?  For what purposes?)
• What choices are acceptable activities in free moments?  Giving students a list of guidelines proactively avoids many discipline problems.)
• How to use art materials/ how to clean up after painting or cutting etc.

You won’t regret any time that you spent teaching students how to be well-behaved in your room.  Think of it as teaching your students to be successful at Level C!

A related posting regarding the teaching of procedures for home assignements:

Improving the Quality of Home Tasks

a)    Be polite and helpful
b)    Do not hit, shove, name-call, tattle, or hurt others
c)    Get permission before speaking
d)    Get permission before leaving your seat

RESPONSE:

Here are some thoughts for your consideration:

a) This first one looks like an expectation to me.

b) I wonder if this idea might be worded more positively?  Perhaps:  ”Treat others with care.” or “Treat others respectfully.”

c) and d) Both of these could be expressed as classroom procedures.

Your final two points might invite resistance from some students––simply because they are worded as “rules.”  Dr. Marshall explains why:  Rules often invite resistance because most people (children included) don’t like to be told what to do.  You might engage more cooperation by expressing the same ideas without any sense of coercion:

• To show me that you have something to say, raise your hand (or whatever you want your procedure to be.)
• When you have something you want to tell me, I’d really appreciate if you could _________.
• When you need to leave your seat to sharpen a pencil, please wait until I’m not talking and then raise your hand for permission.

As procedures, these are things you would actively teach (rather than simply expect.)  Many times a day in the first weeks of school, DWS teachers practice the procedures they would like to see followed in the classroom.  Procedures inform students exactly how the teacher wants certain things to be done.  Teaching procedures is actually teaching students how to be successful at Level C in this discipline approach.  I personally don’t have any posted expectations in my classroom but I’m not opposed to having them. One of the main expectations that my teaching partner and I hold is that students should follow the particular procedures that we teach them.  That’s Level C.

The expectations that Dr. Marshall lists in his book are ones he had posted in his own middle/high school classroom:

• Do my tasks
• Have materials
• Be where I belong
• Control myself
• Follow directions
• Speak considerately

Some related postings:

•    Rules vs. procedures – Isn’t this just a matter of semantics?

•    How do you make students aware of your expectations?

•    I don’t understand the difference between expectations and rules.

•    Important information to consider when planning/teaching procedures.

When might a teacher involve students in creating procedures?

RESPONSE:

Although Dr. Marshall outlines in the DWS Teaching Model that it is the teacher’s responsibility to create procedures for the classroom, there are also some situations in which a teacher might effectively involve their students in the process.

1.  As time goes on in the school year students may very well be able to help create sensible and effective procedures for some new activities or events.

Click here for a description of one such example.  Students were asked to help plan “Procedures for Going Swimming”  the day before the class was scheduled to begin lessons at a community pool.

2.  When a problem is centered on student behavior, encourage/allow students opportunities to create their own procedures to solve the problem.

At my previous school, the playground duty supervisors were once having problems with the older intermediate students who had invented a new and rougher version of football.  When the teachers of the older students wondered out loud if they would have to take charge and solve the problem, the students asked if they could have the opportunity to solve it themselves.

The students realized that if there was a “Level B game” on the playground, a Level B teacher would be responding.  In other words, they thought to themselves, “What would a Level B teacher have to do if rough games of football continued?” The students realized that a Level B teacher would likely ban the game altogether!  The kids could see it would be in their own best interests to raise the level of play to something more acceptable.   The students asked if they could find a solution on their own.  And they did!   In a noonhour meeting, they brainstormed a list of procedures for a game of safe football.

Click here for another example from my own primary classroom in which students were asked to find procedures that would allow them to be self-disciplined with the items on their desktop at lesson times.

3.  Nobody’s perfect!  Sometimes the procedures that the teacher plans simply don’t work out very well.  In that case, it doesn’t hurt to ask for student suggestions.

Once in a while I find myself in the position of saying something like, “Kids, my plans for how we could do this big mural project aren’t working out the way I thought they would.  Can any of you think of a better way to take turns with the paint?(or share paintbrushes? or share the space?) Quite often a child will come up with a great idea!  When that happens, I certainly go with their suggestion!

A related posting:

Who should create the procedures? The teacher or students?

Who should make the procedures?  Is this something the teacher dictates or something the kids come up with?  For example, I have been thinking about how I want to teach my first grade class to “turn and talk.”

I want them to:

• Find someone who is nearby (rather than go across the room to find a friend.)
• Politely say yes if someone asks, “Will you be my partner?” (To avoid hurt feelings.)
• Turn their bodies to face each other (sitting “criss-cross applesauce.”)
• Figure out who will talk first. (Not sure how we’ll do this––I need to think more about it.)

Then:

• The person who is talking first will raise a hand.
• Once I see every group has a hand raised I will tell them to begin.  (I am hoping that after a while they will be able to just turn and talk without me intervening at all.)

Is it okay for me to just tell them this set of procedures or is it important that the students to come up with their own?

RESPONSE:

You seem to have a pretty clear picture of how you want your students to operate in this situation. You understand that when students have an exact set of procedures to follow, they  1) won’t waste any time in getting started and,  2) will be empowered to stay on task.

Think about whether or not (in any particular situation or activity) you are willing to negotiate your procedures.  If you are, you could involve the students if you want.  If you’re not, simply teach the procedures you know will work well.  Dr. Marshall explains that it is the teacher’s responsibility to plan procedures. You’re the one with the training, so you make the decisions about how your classroom will operate.

Although in the DWS approach expectations/standards are used instead of classroom rules, the question you pose (and the situation you describe,) is similar to the situation a teacher faces when involving students in formulating classroom rules. By asking students to suggest rules, teachers unwittingly put themselves in the position of asking for student suggestions––but not being willing to accept those that are ineffective. Do most teachers sincerely intend to give their students the freedom to make the rules of the classroom?  In most cases, teachers simply manipulate the conversation so that students are led to the rules the teacher had in mind anyway––prior to the discussion.  What if a child comes up with a ridiculous “rule” (as young children sometimes do.)  Could a teacher accept it?  No, of course not.

So if you’re not really planning to accept something that doesn’t match with what you already have in your head, why involve the students?  Involve students in decisions and choices that truly can be theirs.

A related post:

When might students be involved in creating procedures?

With a story line that reflects real life, Lilly, the exciting main character, has some depth to her personality.  In DWS terms, Lilly doesn’t remain on one level, as some more shallow picture book characters do.  She’s up and down and all over the place––just as many intelligent, exuberant and feisty children are.  Being young, Lily’s choices/actions/emotions swing from high to low––to high again!  This story offers the possibility of rich discussion about how our level of operation can vary from moment to moment, and how choice-response thinking fits into the picture.  After the Hierarchy has been introduced, students could assess Lilly’s various levels of operation.

The book is a natural choice for a read-aloud in connection with establishing procedures for Show and Tell.  After having firmly established your own procedures with students,  you can read the story of Lilly. Discuss Lilly’s Show and Tell challenges.  What young child can’t relate to having something really fabulous to share––and having to wait for the appropriate time to show it?

• How did ignoring Mr. Slinger’s Show and Tell expectations work out for Lilly?
• What would have been some better choices leading to happier results?

(And here’s a good lesson for us teachers too:  How could Mr. Slinger have been more effective in his teaching?  Although he held some general expectations for kids about Show and Tell, he didn’t seem to have any exact procedures for Show and Tell items.  A more experienced teacher would have had a procedure about where to place Show and Tell treasures until it was Show and Tell time!)

The appealing personality of Lilly  provides a perfect lead-in to a discussion of controlling impulses. After reading the book several times, you might use it to introduce:

1. Dr. Marshall’s suggestions for handling impulsiveness, and;
2. The poster he has created to teach students to deal with impulsive urges.

The class could brainstorm procedures that Lilly could use to curb her wilder side!  Discussing impulse procedures for someone else is non-threatening.  On subsequent days––when a child in the class proves to be impulsive––teaching important understandings about impulsiveness has already been completed, proactively.

This Kevin Henkes’ book also allows us to pleasantly discuss another important DWS concept; the rather startling idea (for young people, at least!) that students can choose the type of teacher they want.  In this case, Lilly actually chooses to have her teacher––her beloved, Level D, Mr. Slinger––become a “Level B teacher.”  She doesn’t realize that it was her choice, or even that she made a choice non-consciously through her own behavior.  She blames Mr. Slinger for her problems––but the kids in your class will be able to recognize that in fact, Lilly had all the control in this situation!

Then on a comical note, I can’t resist offering you this funny youtube clip!  Just as kids can easily relate to the character of Lilly and her plight with a special plastic purse, what primary teacher can’t relate to the following typical school day dilemma?  Enjoy!

Some related postings:

Can you give me examples of procedures for Show and Tell?

Choosing your teacher!

Choose your teacher–just for the day!

Primary/Intermediate Book- “Miss Nelson is Missing”

Using the DWS Impulse Poster