Managing a room full of early elementary students can sometimes feel like juggling a dozen glass balls all at once. From keeping students engaged to ensuring smooth transitions between activities and managing troublesome behaviors, the task can feel overwhelming at times for sure! But, FEAR NOT… incorporating classroom jobs and visual schedules into your daily routine can revolutionize your classroom management skills!
Read on to learn all you need to know about classroom jobs and visual schedules including how they’re actually helpful for better classroom management and what you need to get started with both!
Assigning jobs to students not only helps keeps them engaged but fosters a sense of student responsibility and instills important life skills from an early age.
Classroom jobs are anything that you can use a helper for throughout the day– think both small and large!
Examples:
Find these classroom jobs plus 50+ more in the done-for-you colorful classroom jobs resource! You can also grab this set with black font.
Leave your email below and we’ll send you the good stuff right away!
Classroom jobs have so many benefits! They promote accountability, encourage students to stay engaged, build class community, develop important life skills, AND reduce your workload.
Assigning different jobs to each student in your classroom promotes a sense of responsibility. When everyone knows they have a very special role to fill, they are more likely to take ownership of it and contribute positively to the overall classroom environment!
Not only do students feel a sense of accountability when they have classroom jobs, but they also stay more engaged throughout the day!
When students know what to focus on when they aren’t actively doing classwork, they are less likely to become uninterested or disruptive. Their engagement leads to more focus and productivity– a win for everyone!
Classroom jobs also encourage teamwork and cooperation among students. As they work together, they see the value in everyone completing their tasks. Students begin to encourage others or offer support when they see them forgetting or struggling with a job because they understand the importance each job brings to the classroom
When students support each other, it is natural that fewer behavior problems will arise. This all leads to a beautiful sense of community!
Classroom jobs teach students important life skills like time management, organization, responsibility, and teamwork.
As students work to complete various classroom tasks, they will be practicing these very important skills that will help your classroom run smoothly and foster lifelong success!
Finally, classroom jobs help YOU!
Delegating tasks to students can help lighten your workload. Instead of you having to manage every aspect of your classroom (from lesson planning to handing out tissues to turning the lights off each time you leave the room to getting students where they need to be on time), you can share some of those responsibilities with students.
This delegation allows you to focus more brainpower on classroom instruction and individualized support for your students!
You can seamlessly incorporate classroom jobs into your daily routine using 2 easy steps!
*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Use a big pocket chart to easily display job cards. Assign each student a job using their name cards or pictures.
Rotate student names or pictures periodically to ensure everyone gets a chance to experience different roles. You can change roles daily or weekly depending on the dynamics of your classroom.
*Trust your teacher gut— you know what will work best for your students!
Visual schedules are another game-changer in helping you manage your classroom full of young students! These visuals provide your students with a clear outline of the day’s activities.
Visual schedules provide clarity, promote independence, support different learning styles, and make transitions so much easier!
Visual schedules help students easily know what to expect each day. Using real pictures also helps support emergent readers, developing writers, and English learners.
This clarity helps reduce confusion and anxiety too!
Visual schedules also empower students to take control of their own learning.
Instead of asking and wondering “what’s next?” or “when is ___?”, students learn that they can refer to the visual schedule independently to figure out the answer to their schedule questions.
Visual schedules also cater to students who are naturally visual learners and may struggle with traditional verbal instructions.
*Let’s be honest though, most little ones can benefit from these visuals for support!
Last but not least, visual schedules are amazing for making smoother transitions happen. When students can see these schedule pictures, they can more easily understand exactly what comes next when one activity ends.
This means fewer disruptions and redirection moments!
Preparing a visual schedule doesn’t need to be difficult.
First, you need your visuals! Grab these 88 editable schedule cards in color or with black font.
Next, display them! Use either a narrow pocket chart or magnet dots to display your schedule cards on your board.
Review the schedule together with your students each morning and remind them to check back throughout the day when they ask “what’s next?”.
Keep track of completed activities throughout the day to help keep your students engaged and teach them to become familiar with the visual schedule.
Ideas for Tracking Completed Activities:
Especially when thinking about classroom management, there’s no need to try to reinvent the wheel!
Use this mini-bundle classroom jobs and visual schedule resource that includes almost 150 editable cards with REAL LIFE PICTURES to make classroom management a breeze.
It’s never too late to implement classroom jobs and visual schedules in your classroom. Give yourself permission to start these classroom management tricks this week– you’ll start to see a world of difference sooner than you think!
Looking for more classroom management ideas? Check out this post about The STAR TABLE!
I’m a teacher who believes in creating a classroom kids love and activities that keep them engaged all day!
©2019 Polka Dots Please. All Rights Reserved. Designed by Ashley Hughes.
2 Responses
Emily!
where can I get the pictures of the mouths making the sounds of each letter?
I love your ideas!!
Hi Carina,
Thanks so much for reaching out! My alphabet posters now include mouth shape cards that you can add to support reading development. Here is a link to check them out: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Posters-with-Real-Pictures-Mouth-Pictures-Colorful-Classroom-Decor-3157578?st=749ed75152e175169796fad33c165ccf
Happy Teaching!
Emily