Managing Taking Turns in the Classroom

I just love how enthusiastic little learners are to volunteer in the classroom! What I don't love is their waving and begging hands as these little learners indicate their willingness to help. And I find it even more difficult to see their disappointed faces when they are not chosen. To keep it fair and encourage even the shyest little learner to participate, I like to use systems in the classroom to manage taking turns.

For this system I bought some little white boxes from the cheap shop. I split the class into gender groups, but you could use the whole class or group the students according to reading groups etc. depending on your needs. Then I simply typed each little learner's name, cut to size and placed in the box. When a volunteer is needed in the classroom, simply choose the top name from the box and call their name. Then place that name at the bottom of the pile. Because I have two groups, I then place that box to the bottom, so I know which box I am choosing from next time (anyone else suffer from amnesia in the classroom at times?). To keep the suspense, I also like to include a colored paper at the beginning to mark when each child has had a turn. This way I can shuffle the names after one rotation (or a couple) and the little learners don't get to know the order.

This is just one of many systems I have used to keep those little faces smiling and the classroom running smoothly. Would love to hear how you manage turn taking in your classroom!

Fast Finishers and Meticulous Incompleters {Finished & Unfinished Trays}

Does it happen to you too? For the vast majority of your students you hit the nail on the head. They get it and they finish their work in the time you have allocated. You pat yourself on the back and you smile! Awesome lesson, you say to yourself. Well done! But wait, there are two sweeties over there working meticulously on their activity and they are just not going to finish before break. Then there is another who will have the same outcome, but for a whole different set of reasons! And don't forget the ever so eager one who completed the task as you finished explaining it. One of the most difficult things I have found when teaching a class filled with differing abilities and learning styles (which is every class you or I have ever taught), is managing the rate at which work is completed. What to do? Enter the finished/unfinished trays.

This is such a simple strategy! When the students finish their independent activity they simply place their work in the finished tray. They can do this as and when they finish the activity without interrupting me. They then work on their 'fast finishers' tasks. One of these tasks is to check the unfinished tray.

If any of the sweeties don't finish their independent activity in the time allocated, they simply place it in the unfinished tray. When a spare five minutes arises through the day, students can collect their work from the tray and continue the activity.

The great thing about this strategy is that all the sheets are in one place for marking! I can also see who is struggling (or taking extra care) with a particular concept at a glance. It has made a huge difference in managing this tricky classroom issue.

If you would like a copy of these free labels click HERE or on the images.

So what are your classroom management tips and tricks? I would love to hear them!