Center time is such an important part of first grade! Each day the children will go to one learning center after they complete their Safari writing journal, math journal, and fun job. During this time period I will also be calling small reading groups at the back table.
They will spend about 15-20 minutes reviewing and reinforcing the skills at their center. The skills pertain to what was learned that week and the weeks prior.
Each day they will attend a new center, so by the end of the week they would have completed 5 centers.
Every Monday, I will introduce the 5 centers of that week. All activites will be described and the children are responsible for looking at the center board to see where they need to go each day.
The children will remain with their group for the week and groups can be changed as needed.
As the children participate in the center activities, they are asked to perform tasks in cooperative learning groups and sometimes independently. Often, a log sheet needs to be completed. This serves as an informal assessment for me to gauge their understanding of the topics and skills that were taught that week.
Often the tasks are differentiated to promote learning at each child's level.
During center time, I am able to work with small groups of children. By circulating around the room and meeting with the students, I am better able assist them and provide assistance if needed. Clear and concise rules are established early on in the year so that the children understand the expectations placed upon them. We review these rules prior to participating in centers.
