Graphics by Clips Ahoy |
I set up learning "zones" in my classroom. All of the zones are free-choice areas. This means the children are free to choose when they would like to play in there and for how long. The materials in these zones can be used in whatever way the children want to (as long as they are being used sensibly and with purpose). I believe it is very important to have many free choice areas so that children are free to explore and socialise at their own pace within a safe environment. I like the zones to be child-friendly - I prefer them to be carpeted or to have rugs, and have child-sized shelving and furniture so that children can comfortably make their own choices about the materials they want to use. The zones I like to have are as follows Book Corner - also doubles as the language corner for reading, music and show & tell sessions Puzzle and Manipulative Corner - for puzzles, sorting games, matching games and other manipulative materials Block and Construction Corner - for large building blocks and other construction kits such as lego, duplo, waffle bricks, popoids etc. Dramatic Play area - I try 1 or 2 themes every school term. Construction Table - for junk materials and boxes with PVA glue for children to glue together their own junk constructions Interest Table - for items of interest such as felt boards and felt pieces or new items for children to play with that they haven't seen before. Sometimes it is a science table for items of interest on a specific topic. Audio - Visual Table - a radio and headphones for children to listen to stories on cassette or play listening games |
TABLES FOR FREE-CHOICE AND COMPULSORY ACTIVITIES I prefer to have a mix of free choice and compulsory activities. I have the free choice learning zones around the classroom and some tables are free-choice areas. One free choice table always has playdough as it is very popular with the children. Other free-choice tables have an activity based on the theme we are looking at for that week - it might be a game, an art/craft activity or something similar. Another two tables are "compulsory activity" tables. On these two tables we have skill-based activities which children must complete for their portfolios. All the children must complete the activity but they are free to come up to the table whenever they are ready to. We usually allow two days for all the children to have a turn at the compulsory activities. Therefore, the child has two days to get to those activities. If they dont complete it on the first day, then they are told that they will need to come and do the activity the next day. This system works well, as the children are able to work at their own pace and have plenty of time for play. Having the compulsory activities also allows us to keep track of the skills that children are completing and allows us to ensure that all the children are trying different skills. This is important as often there are children who like to play for the whole kindergarten session and are not interested in doing things such as cutting or drawing. This means that they are missing developing important skills. By having the compulsory activities we can be assured that they are having exposure to these skills. |
Graphics by Clips Ahoy |
Here's a bit about how I prefer my classrooms to be set up... |
