To have a successful preschool classroom that meets the needs of all of the children, you have to be able to keep your preschoolers engaged. Otherwise, you will start to see some unwelcome behaviors in your classroom. Follow these 8 sure-fire ways to engage your preschool students and your students will be more engaged then ever!
1. BE SILLY
Preschoolers love to be silly. Anytime you feel as though you are losing their attention, just add humor. Adding humor to your day has many other benefits, too. It requires the use of multiple parts of the brain, including the parts responsible for happiness. When these pleasure centers of the brain are activated your long-term memory is also activated, which boosts retention. Every time that you get your preschoolers laughing you are also building meaningful connections with them.
2. TAKE MOVEMENT BREAKS
Sometimes preschoolers get a bit restless. They really should not be expected to stay focused on any lesson for long. Whenever you notice your preschoolers becoming distracted or restless, it is time for a movement break. It doesn’t have to be anything too involved. Just turn on some music and dance!
3. PROVIDE OPEN ENDED MATERIALS AND TOYS
Open ended materials do not have a predetermined use or outcome. Loose parts are particularly good examples of open ended materials. You could put small baskets of acorns and pine cones in your dramatic play center. They have no predetermined use, so your preschoolers could use them as anything from play food to pretend medicine for their baby dolls.
Open ended art materials should be provided as well. Tissue paper, scissors, glue, and recycled materials are just a few good examples of open ended are materials that your preschoolers can use for their process art projects. These materials give the children a chance to plan their own projects and see them through.
Closed toys are not inherently bad. They are great for practicing specific skills. However, if your preschool classroom has too many or mostly closed toys, the children will become bored.
4. LET THEM GET MESSY
Preschoolers love sensory play. Whether it be water, goop, or colored rice in the sensory table, you are bound to have very actively engaged children playing. This kind of active play is especially great for kinesthetic learners. Sensory play also helps children who are sensory-seeking.
5. PLAY GAMES
Not only are games engaging for preschoolers, but they also learn a lot through games. There are so many different types of games that you can play with your preschoolers, too. Imitation, or copycat, games are particularly engaging for preschoolers. You can clap a pattern and them copy it. This works on patterns, auditory processing skills, and turn taking. Don’t forget to let your preschoolers have a turn being the leader, too!
Board games can also be very engaging for preschoolers, but they need to be very simple. The amount of time it takes to get a turn, as well as to finish the game, must be relatively short. If done right though, your preschoolers can practice any number of skills through board games.
6. HAVE A PREDICTABLE SCHEDULE
Keeping your daily schedule consistent will help your preschoolers know what to expect. When children know what to expect from their day they spend less time worrying about when they will get to do specific activities. It would be difficult for a preschooler to stay engaged when they keep thinking about when they will get to go outside. If they know that they go outside every day after circle time though, they will be able to focus better.
7. MAKE IT CHILD-CENTERED
When using a child-centered approach in your preschool classroom the children are far more engaged because they are learning about things that deeply interest them. They are also able to create their own theme related projects that they work on over time, too. This freedom to choose what they learn about and how they interact with the materials gives your preschoolers a sense of control as well as an emotional connection to what they are doing.
8. TELL ENGAGING STORIES
Reading is invaluable and should always be a part of your preschool day. That isn’t the only way to tell stories though, and isn’t necessarily the most engaging way either. Storytelling grabs their attention in a completely different way. As you use different voices for each character and move about as you tell the story, the children are using their imaginations to create the images in their minds, too.
Any time that you find you have a child who is struggling in your classroom, you have to ask yourself why they are not engaged. Often times, there are things that the teacher can do differently to keep their preschoolers engaged, rather then trying to change the children.
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