Yesterday, I showed you a cool little way to display your center signs and directions, and today (as promised), I will share with you how I manage learning centers in the classroom.
Collaborative classroom centers can get hairy if they are not properly executed, and if students have idle time or don’t have clear directions/expectations, you will soon find yourself spending most of the centers time reprimanding and redirecting rather than working with students. Kind of misses the point, right?
Student Centered Classroom
Well, after having my center signs and supplies all laid about the room, I will take 5-10 minutes to quickly verbally explain the directions to the students and ask for questions about the centers activities and expectations.
When they actually get to the center, they will see the center sign with the directions, and this will allow for reinforcement of “what to do” for student work once they physically get in the learning space.
The first few weeks, I still allow questions about center time directions just because I like to ease them into it, but after those first few weeks, if they have to ask me how to do something in a center (mainly because they weren’t paying attention when I explained it), they get points taken off of their center grade – see below for more about that. They learn very quickly to pay attention during that 10-minute block on the first center day of the week.
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Speaking of easing into it, I would suggest elementary educators start out with 3 small group centers the first week (perhaps a teacher-led, a computer center, and a hands-on literacy center).
Then, once students have that center-based learning under control, continue to add a center a week until you get to no more than 3 or 4 students per center. This is optimal for controlling behaviors in an early childhood setting with various learning styles.
OK – after I explain the learning centers activities for the week to the students, I pass out the centers checklist (see image below) to each student. It is a half sheet of paper that has all the centers written in on it, as well as the days of the week.
They place this paper in a sheet protector pocket that is within the brads of a two-pocket folder labeled “Centers” (of course). As soon as they get the paper, they write their name on it, place it in their folder, and get started.
Managing Learning Centers in the Classroom
Students begin by grabbing a timer from off the wall that I have on pegs or large pushpins. They MUST wear it around their neck so that it doesn’t get swung, hit someone else, or lost.
Each child will start the timer, and have 10 minutes to work on a center of their choice that DOESN’T already have 4 students. If there are already 4 students there, they must choose something else.
They will check mark which centers they have been to each day, and place any work completed at that center in their folder.
If their timer runs out before they are finished, they know to go back to that center the next day.
If students finish the work before the time is up, they must either redo the project to make it better quality, or do more of the same. Otherwise, you will get students who rush through with poor quality just to be finished. Students aren’t learning anything if the work is lackluster.
The timers are handy because then I don’t have to call out to change centers. They are self-managed.
This system continues throughout the week, with students making sure to visit each center on their list, including the teacher-led center.
It is here, I will work on a specific skill that most of the class has been having trouble with. I can also do individualized work if necessary and/or differentiated activities for when the students come to see me.
It is their choice as to which day they come to work with me.
Many will come back several times just to practice my activity again. As long as the other work gets completed, I am perfectly fine with that.
Towards the end of the week, you will also want to have a sponge activity of some sort for those that have completed all the centers to the best of their ability and need something to do. Reading a book on their level, practicing handwriting, a bonus listening center, or working on a vocabulary are all good choices that can always take up more time.
Last, I use the Student Centers Checklist to monitor behavior.
I print off a sheet for the week, write students names, and put it on a clipboard next to me at my center.
Students know that as I look around the room, if I see them not on task, I simply cross off one number (starting with 10). If I look again later and they still aren’t on task, there goes another number.
They get 10 free points just for being on task!
After 1 week of getting marked off for behavior (which I keep for parent conferences as well), they start to shape up and stay on task. All I have to do is look at them, and cross off the number, and they tend to get back on track very quickly.
On Friday, they get points for completing their centers work.
I place the +(however many points they received) on the right of the student checklist for each center, include the points from behavior at the bottom, add them together for a total, and staple it to the work they turned in from their folder.
This equals one grade a week and they adapt pretty quickly to realizing it is important to be on-task to submit best quality work.
This system for running centers works beautifully for me once the students are trained. Grab your copy of the freebie templates mentioned above right here!
If you have questions, feel free to jot them in the comments below and I will try to get to them asap. 🙂 Good luck and enjoy!
~Charity
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What grade level is this for? I have 6the grade and my center time has to be a bit more structured. I have about 15-20 mins that are supposed to be center times. I am having the most difficult time getting it done in a 51 minute fime frame.
I agree with Brenda. I teach 4th grade ELA/SS and I had a very difficult time implementing centers. I think part of my trouble was never having seen it done. Last year was my first year teaching, but I did my program in another state that wasn’t departmentalized (and it was second grade). I asked my admin several times for permission to observe others, whether different grade same subject as me, or my own team members, but was not given permission. Last year was really hard, for this and other reasons, and I don’t want to repeat my mistakes. Help!
I teach 4th grade ELA (came from 6th ELA previously) and do something similar to this, but I, like you both, needed structure with it. Depending on the day or class, we might not always get to centers, I plan for it most days for the last 20 minutes or so of class, but some of my sections have hardly ever gotten center time it felt like.
How it works for me – I have 6 “set” centers – Handwriting, technology, reading, writing, language, and word work (could be spelling or vocab.) The work/activities within these changes each rotation. Since we don’t get to centers everyday, it might be weeks before I have to change them.
Say it’s Monday towards the end of my first section. Center time. Directions have been given and are in the respective center buckets. Table one will pick up wherever they left off last time their class was able to get to centers. Say their center for that day is “handwriting”. Everyone at table one has the whole center time to complete whatever the assignment is in the handwriting bucket. It might be a worksheet, individual cursive name practice, etc (this one doesn’t change a whole lot throughout the year and is probably the most boring…) 20 minutes is plenty of time for most of them to complete the work given, some will need extra time. If they finish handwriting early, but didn’t finish work from another center the week before, they can go find the materials they need, go back to their seat, and complete it. (AR is another fast finisher option, along with a couple other things – but most of my centers will take them a good 15 minutes, if they’re finishing really fast, I’ll pull it out of the basket and check and most of the time they have to redo it.)
I track the “spots” of where each class is (since not every class gets to do centers everyday or even the same days – it all depends) with a big poster board with velcroed index cards on a grid that I move as they move to a new center. (Again, only one center per day is all I would ever have time for in my blocks.) It was super easy to make. (So, table one just finished handwriting. Tuesday if we got to centers, table two would get handwriting and so on.)
I love the set centers because when I change them I can easily think, “okay, I’ve taught main idea, what game could I put in here?” Or I could easily throw a worksheet in to check to see what they remember. Or what app can they use to practice this skill? I can also sit in on any given center at any time and I love that flexibility. I might just stay in writing for a full rotation while we work on topic sentences, but they’re not going to be dependent on me to complete it in case I am needed in another part of the room.
It’s also done wonders for management since I started using them this way. They know centers are there. They know they get to use hot dots or iPads or board games in them from time to time. They also know that if i can’t get through my lesson, we can’t get to them. They know if they don’t give me quality work, we can’t get to them.
This is just what works for me. I hope it makes sense and that you can use some of it!
Thanks for sharing Lisa!
Thank u for sharing. I love this system, dont know how I can adapt it to my needs but I love it.
Is there something the students earn with the points they have left at the end of the week? The grade? I love this accountability. Also, I wouldn’t mind having you look at what I’m doing in my classroom and getting some pointers from you. Do you do custom advice? Haha.
I have used this for 2nd-6th graders. The points left at the end of the week on the behavior chart get added to their centers grade for the week. It will become part of the overall score and shown in the gradebook.
I really like this idea. The accountability is helpful and allows for good documentation. I just need to get some good centers so that my kinders will be occupied and self sufficient. Thank you.