Page 4
August 2000
The south wall area of the room, with Literacy Center ABC materials in individual containers, stored/arranged in crates to keep them neat and organized. The round table was in the area where I now have the computer work stations, so I had to move it to "the kitchen floor," an area in front of the cabinets and sink where last year's kids enjoyed the open space to work on the floor. This feels a little snug, but KinderKids are small, so it will probably be fine. I'm going to have to work very hard to not pile stuff on this table.
You can learn more about Literacy Centers by visiting the Literacy Centers page on the KinderKorner website. Fountas and Pinnell offer wonderful information about Literacy Centers in Guided Reading: Good First Teaching for All Children. Another terrific resource is Literacy Through Play, from Heinemann, published in 1999. Because this book is rather new for me, I want to quote directly from the description at Amazon.com: "Owocki begins the book by establishing the theoretical rationale for the importance of play in literacy development, then outlines what teachers can do to set up a developmentally appropriate environment." I'm really enjoying the ideas and sound theories in this terrific book. (hint: This is a good source of "expert" quotes to use if you are writing a grant application for Literacy Center materials :o)
Other helpful books include Quick and Easy Learning Centers ~ Phonics and Building Literacy With Interactive Charts, which turns your pocket charts into individual centers.
Another view of the south wall area. The globe "lives" on top of boxes of blocks and Legos, because I don't have anywhere else to put it. It helps to keep the KinderKids away from Mrs. Smith's sink, which they are not allowed to use. I keep that area for myself, so that I have a place where I can wash and sterilize my hands once or twice an hour. The children wash their hands in the restrooms across the playground from us ... we don't have bathrooms in our classroom like most kindergarten classes, because our room is a trailer (a Very Nice trailer, but a trailer nonetheless :o)
Where does all this stuff come from?
I think a note is in order about all the Literacy Center and Math Their Way materials, the books for my Home Reading Connection program, the pocket charts and stands, pictures and posters, bulletin board materials, and all the puzzles and games, baskets, blocks, Legos, etc., because someone always asks ... all of these items belong to me personally, along with three sets of shelves and two large tables.
Like many teachers, I've spent a great deal of money on things for my classroom, to make a nice learning environment for my students, to provide them with the materials I think they need, and to make my teaching life easier. Put simply, children who have enough different learning activities to choose from are happy children who can work independently for extended periods of time, who don't get bored, and who rarely fight over materials, because there is more than enough for everyone. I certainly didn't purchase or make everything all at once, and I continue to add new things throughout each school year.
Organizing these activities and materials with my Literacy Centers workboard allows each child to work at his or her own pace and to stay with an activity as long as they like. All the activities/workjobs reinforce reading/writing/math skills, and are therefore productive in their own right. A child never has to complete all the activities on the day's workboard, but they do have to do their "jobs" in the order listed, and may not rush from job to job. If a child finishes all of the day's jobs for their color bear group, they may choose any activity from the ABC center shown above. This system works wonderfully for me, and allows me to have the time needed to read with every student 3 or 4 days per week.
Moving clockwise to the west wall, which houses my cabinets and big teaching wall. The red easel was built by my husband for our two boys to use when they were small ... now it's the KinderKid's easel during Literacy Centers, and I also use it for teaching math and demonstrating art projects.
Two things in this picture bother me. The first is the huge trashcan, but that's the kind all the teachers have. It just looks ugly to me, and takes up too much space. The other problem for me is the TV cart. I don't have any wall space available to park it against, so like the pocket charts, it's often being moved from place to place as I need to reach something behind it. I have wiring in place near the ceiling above the southeast corner of the room, designed for plugging in TV's and VCR's. I'm hoping to get my TV mounted up high and get rid of the TV cart.
Behind the TV, I've added crates to the counter this year, to help keep materials organized. They're much fuller now than when I took the picture.
This page went online August 27, 2000
