Effective Kindergarten Ideas
You Need To Know And Use!!

This page provides kindergarten ideas for different aspects of kindergarten teaching that that have worked well and have really made the class run smoother. On this page you will find suggestions for:

1. Effectively Organizing Classroom Space

2. Effectively Organizing Classroom Time

3. Materials For Kindergarten Activities

4. Planning and Curriculum

5. Assessment and Evaluation

Effectively Organizing Classroom Space

* Define different learning centers in the classroom. There will be a balance between quiet and noisy areas. For example:

1. sand; water; big block and construction materials
2. dramatic play (home center or based on current topic)
3. visual arts center including an area for painting, collage and design (cut and paste), sculpting (play dough, plasticine, or clay)
4. writing, reading and listening center
5. math center/math manipulatives
6. science center
7. computer center

* Position the learning centers so as to promote socialization, interaction and sharing among students.

* Organize the learning centers so that the students are visible to the teacher when they are working/playing in their centers.

* Set up an area in the classroom for all the students to get together as a group but keep the gatherings to a maximum of 25 minutes.

* Children should have easy access to materials in the learning centers.

* Children should understand routines and be able to follow them. e.g. for putting things away. Routines should be reinforced or retaught when they are not working. Use visuals or a quick rhyming song as prompts.

* Encourage the development of reading, writing and the understanding of numbers by displaying appropriate pictures, alphabet strips, number lines, models of letters and numerals, etc. in the learning centers.

Kindergarten Ideas - Effectively Organizing Classroom Time

* A large block of time, about 30 minutes or so, should be allocated for children to work in the learning center that they prefer.

* Activities that involves the whole class, should be limited in time to 20-25 minutes or less. Small children get very restless, very quickly.

* Schedule some time during the day for children to share.

* Scheduled time should be set aside for physical education, library and the computer lab (if the school has one).

* Very important to allot a time for "Snack Time". Some kindergarten teachers cut up fruit and/or another healthy snack. Other teachers have their students bring their healthy snack from home each day.

* Your schedule should follow a consistent routine, although you must be flexible to allow changes due to circumstances or for improvement.

Kindergarten Ideas - Choosing Proper Materials For Kindergarten Activities

* Materials must be safe, in good condition and developmentally appropriate.

* Materials should reflect the diversity of the classroom and the community.

* Provide children with access to concrete materials to encourage their learning.

* Provide children with access to different materials at the Visual Arts center to allow for exploration.

* Encourage both girls and boys to use the provided materials and learning centers.

* During children's physical activity periods, provide materials that support the development of their fine/gross motor skills.

Kindergarten Ideas - Planning and Curriculum

Teaching kindergarten does have some similarities to teaching the other grades. Read about planning and curriculum below and compare.

* Plan a curriculum that is developmentally appropriate, engages children as active learners and is relevant and within the context of children's lives.

* Take into account children's needs and interests to guide the planning.

* Give children real and meaningful input into their learning opportunities.

* Base your planning on the overall expectations and the general themes or topics from The Kindergarten Program.

* Long range plans should include the broad topics or interests that may occur during the year. Kindergarten teaching plans should be flexible to adapt to changing needs and interests.

Kindergarten Ideas - Assessment and Evaluation

Assessment and evaluation is a continual process in any grade and writing kindergarten report cards is also no different.

* Use observation as the main tool of assessment.

* Use your assessment information to plan appropriate programs.

* Have an organization or system for recording anecdotal comments about children, because there will be a lot of them.

* Collect relevant and appropriate samples of your children's work as evidence of their (drawings, paintings, samples of writing from the various learning centers).

* Allow children to have input into the samples that are kept.

* Both you and your students should document the learning in a variety of ways, e.g. "what we learned" charts, documentation panels, newsletters home, etc.

* Continually monitor and track children at risk.

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