Is it Time to Start Small Group? Episode Summary As the school year starts, our focus is on getting to know our new little students. We are teaching them procedures, rules and practicing routines. We are playing with students to get to know them and helping children learn how to use the materials in classroom centers. At the beginning of the year, these things are the most important things! So, back to the question at hand... When is it time to start small group? When is it okay for you step bac...
Oct 11, 2023•20 min
Parent Education Boards Episode Summary Preschoolers learn amazing things through play, but this isn't something that is easy for parents to see. Help educate the parents in your early childhood program with Parent Education Bulletin Boards. I wanted our families to better understand all the amazing growth and learning goodness that really happens inside a preschool classroom --- that's when the Parent Education Bulletin Boards were born! With 10 done-for-you bulletin boards, teaching families h...
Oct 04, 2023•12 min
Tips for Teaching Classroom Procedures Episode Summary Teaching young children the procedures and routines of the classroom is important for a safe and (less) chaotic environment. The benefits of implementing visual procedure cards are huge. To get the most out of visual procedure cards, first... * Learn why they are important, then... * How to implement them You can use pre-made procedure cards or create your own by taking pictures of the steps in each routine. Either way, these tips will help ...
Sep 27, 2023•11 min
How to Teach Classroom Procedures Episode Summary Our young learners aren't yet readers. Therefore, posters of written rules, schedules and procedures are null and void. To young children, these posters are just visual noise. But, pictures are a different story. Young children can 'read' pictures. So when it comes to helping young children learn about routines in the classroom- visuals are the way to go. I found a need for visual procedure cards in my classroom several years ago, so I created th...
Sep 20, 2023•12 min
Why you should be Using Visual Procedure Cards Episode Summary Have you ever stopped to think about the amount of things that we have to teach our new little students at the beginning of each year? Coming to the carpet, sitting at the carpet, lining up, walking in the hall, using the restroom, washing hands, how to clean up, how to treat toys, how to pack up to go home.... and the list goes on! <<does this list make you as tired as it does me? If so, good news! I have a tool to share to ma...
Sep 13, 2023•12 min
Visual Schedules for Preschool Episode Summary Schedules are an important way of life. They keep us in our daily routines and get us to the places we need to be. In a preschool classroom, a daily schedule is the backbone to our day. At the beginning of the school year, I create our classroom schedule (using the 5 step method) and have it hanging up in the room. But, of course the young children in our classroom can't read it! I found that many of my students were asking 'what do we do next?', 'w...
Sep 06, 2023•17 min
Center Signs that Work Harder Episode Summary When it comes to play-based learning, sometimes it's hard to see what children are actually learning. Think about it, in a center where children are sitting and doing worksheets or workbooks, we can see the learning outcome. But, in a play-based classroom (the best way for children to learn) this learning isn't as easy to see. It takes a trained eye to see what benefits and results can come from centers or hands-on activities - not much of which is c...
Aug 30, 2023•11 min
Preschool Centers: Free Choice or Rotation? Episode Summary One of the most common questions that I get in regards to preschool centers is "Do you do free-choice centers or a rotation?". While I have my own opinions on the topic, I think it's important to look at the pros and cons to everything you do in your classroom, as to make an educated decision. So, let's take some time to look at both the pros and cons of both - to better help you make a decision on which is best for your classroom. List...
Aug 23, 2023•14 min
3 Must-Do's for the Beginning of the Year Episode Summary The beginning of the school year is such an exciting and exhausting time! Isn't it funny how we forget how little and new our students are when they start?! It's like we have to reset our brains back to beginning after sending on last year's students. There is so much to teach our new little friends before we can have a functioning, well-running classroom. The work at the beginning really does pay off later in the year - however - it does...
Aug 16, 2023•21 min
A Guide to Preschool Centers Episode Summary When you are running a play-based preschool classroom, centers are the core of the program. Carefully planned centers create an environment for learning through play because play is not a break from hard work, play is a child's work! But sometimes, as the teacher, wrapping your head around all the moving parts of play-based centers can be a challenge! There are So. Many. Questions. 'Which centers should I have in my classroom? What are the most common...
Aug 09, 2023•13 min
How to Set Up a Preschool Classroom Episode Summary Setting up your preschool classroom doesn’t sound that daunting… at first. But, year after year I find myself determined to find the perfect (as if it exists) flow. After changing my mind about a billion times, I usually land on a setup that seems to work for me, but (more importantly) is conducive to little learners that learn through play. I’ve found that creating a successful layout isn’t just me drawing squares and labeling them on my ‘map’...
Aug 02, 2023•22 min
A Detailed Look at the Preschool 2 & 3 Year Old Lesson Plans Episode Summary Got three year olds? How about two year olds? Feel the need to help your littlest students learn important social skills, academic skills and build attention to task - all while loving the open-ended environment of a play-based school setting? After my experience with sweet little 3 year olds, I knew I wanted to share the ideas and activities that I had used (and more!). Because, lets face it - there isn't a ton of ...
Jul 26, 2023•13 min
How to Make a Classroom Schedule for Preschool Episode Summary Creating a class schedule can be one of the most important plans you create for your preschool classroom. Setting up your school day to run smoothly takes some thought and consideration. Because the truth is... your daily schedule can make or break the classroom behaviors you see. Children need predictable routines and creating a daily routine can help work against negative preschool behaviors. But, it takes being intentional and con...
Jul 19, 2023•18 min
Finding the Time to Implement Literacy Experiences in the Preschool Classroom Episode Summary Bringing literacy experiences such as interactive read alouds, shared reading or shared writing and interactive writing doesn't have to add more direct instruction time to your day. In fact, adding more direct instruction time would not be the goal when working with little learners! So the questions remains: How can we find the time to implement literacy experiences in the preschool classroom? Simple an...
Jul 12, 2023•16 min
What is Shared and Interactive Writing in Preschool? Episode Summary What is the difference between shared writing and interactive writing? How can use these types of writings to support our young learners? Listen in to find out why these types of writing are important to teaching literary concepts and when and how to use them in your classroom! Topics Discussed: What Shared and Interactive Writing is and why it's important Shared Writing- examples of how to use it in the classroom Interactive W...
Jul 05, 2023•17 min
How to Teach Literacy without LOTW Episode Summary Raise your hand if you were (or are) a Letter of the Week Teacher ✋ I’m raising my hand because I once taught preschoolers using LOTW. LOTW seems so logical. You teach one letter a week and by the end of the year - boom all the letters are covered. You know you covered all the letters - good to go right? Well…. It turns out that what we know now from the research is that LOTW isn’t as effective as we wish it was. Stay tuned to find out why (and ...
Jun 28, 2023•16 min
Episode Summary Join me, host Ashley Rives as I discuss THE 3 THINGS that have helped me have successful small group time again and again. These top tips may seem small- but they are mighty! Topics Discussed: Have A Plan Be Flexible Get Organized Resources Mentioned: Online Conference Tickets - Educate & Rejuvenate Small Group Lesson Plans Buy On TpT Buy in the LCPR Shop Related Episodes or Blog Posts: My Top Tips for Preschool Small Group Connect with Ashley: Follow on Instagram @lovelycomm...
Jun 21, 2023•12 min
Organizing Your Preschool Small Group Episode Summary Whether you love or loathe organization, the act of being organized in our classrooms make us more effective teachers. When we don't have to spend time and frustration looking for materials or lesson plans- we feel better. And when we feel better- we teach better. This is no different when doing small groups in your preschool classroom. The organization piece is what keeps all the ducks in a row. << Cause we all hate the feeling of squi...
Jun 14, 2023•14 min
Preschool Small Group Activity Ideas Episode Summary You know the benefits of having small group time {check} You've got your groups all grouped up {check} Now it's time to figure out what to do when you call those groups to meet together! This episode is packed full of ideas for activities you can use in small group! Topics Discussed: What skills to focus on during small group What types of activities to include during small group Resources Mentioned: Small Group Resources on TpT Small Group Re...
Jun 07, 2023•18 min
How to Effectively Group Preschoolers for Small Group Episode Summary One of the biggest obstacles when planning for preschool small group is figuring out your groups. Once you start planning, questions start festering up, like... -What is my criteria for breaking students into groups? -How many students should go in each group? -How long does a student stay in a group? -How should I refer to my groups? details... so many details! Listen in to the second episode in the Small Group Series as I wa...
May 31, 2023•16 min
5 Reasons to Have Preschool Small Group Episode Summary Do you have small group time built into your preschool day? If no - why not? This episode will give you 5 really good reasons that you should consider adding it in. If yes - how is it going? do you love or loathe small group time? Or... are you required to do small group, but don't really know the benefits? Listen on my friends- small group has some BIG benefits! Topics Discussed: Differentiation : Meeting children where they are at. Connec...
May 24, 2023•10 min
Using Meaningful Experiences to Teach Letters Episode Summary Letter identification is one of the first things parents, administrators and some teachers think of when they think of preschool learning. Truth is there is a TON more that goes into supporting children in the area of literacy before they are readers (we are setting the foundation after all...). But, that also doesn't mean that letter learning isn't important- it's just important to remember that it's just a piece of the bigger litera...
May 17, 2023•11 min
How to Make Preschool Clean Up Time Easier Episode Summary It's clean up time!!! Tell me...did your stress level just go up?! Preschool clean up time is no fun at all. Trying to get lots of littles to pick up the mess they made seems to be getting harder and harder, year after year. It seems like they will do anything to get out of cleaning... like always having to go to the bathroom after clean up time is declared or being SOOO tired they can't get up... I've seen lots of their shenanigans over...
May 10, 2023•17 min
Ideas for Preschool Classroom Jobs Episode Summary Kids love feeling special and I love helping them feel special! That is why in our preschool classroom each and every child has a daily job. For us, having preschool classroom jobs is not just about children helping out in class. Jobs help cultivate a feeling of classroom community. Plus, when each student gets a job everyday he or she fills a special spot within our early childhood classroom. In this episode I will give you tons of ideas on how...
May 03, 2023•23 min
Streamline Your Preschool Assessments Process Episode Summary I remember the time at the beginning of the school year, years ago when I was struggling to map out how my preschool assessments pieces would fit together. I knew I needed some sort of sheet to record data and I also knew I wanted to have student portfolios. But how they connected and the pieces that were missing were bring me that 'disorderly feeling'. Fast forward 5+ years and I again am finding myself having this feeling. This time...
Apr 26, 2023•18 min
Must Have Items for the Preschool Light Table Episode Summary One of our favorite items to use during center time in preschool is the light table. Kids love things that light up - shoes, glow sticks or fun night lights - light brings another element of interest. When I put a light table in our preschool classroom, it was an easy sell. The thing gets used daily and we can do so many learning activities right on the table! Listen to this episode for some great ideas on how to use the light table i...
Apr 19, 2023•17 min
Gross Motor Development in Preschool Episode Summary “Watching a child makes it obvious that the development of his mind comes through his movements” - Maria Montessori Children love to move. Sadly though, Gross Motor Development in the preschool years is often overlooked in classrooms. Many teachers think outside play is enough to develop any gross motor skills that are needed. The truth is, developing gross motor skills needs more attention in the classroom! With a big push for academic learni...
Apr 12, 2023•11 min
How to use Write the Room for Engaged Learning Episode Summary Young children are little explorers. They love magnifying glasses, binoculars and touching everything in sight! As we know, this is how young children figure out the world- through exploration! So, when planning academic activities for young children, why not build off their need to explore? In this episode, I will tell you all about my reimagined version of 'Write the Room', which I call 'Hunt the Room'. I'll tell you exactly how to...
Apr 05, 2023•12 min
Making Preschool Assessments Engaging Episode Summary Oh, assessments and data collection.... such a necessary evil for preschool teachers all over the globe. While assessments and evaluation give us teachers the information we need to construct lessons and small groups, they aren't always very much fun for students. I mean lets be honest... there aren't too many kids out there that like testing. But, that baseline data and growth data really can share some good info - so the probabilities of as...
Mar 29, 2023•10 min
Do This, Not That - Assessment Edition Episode Summary Ever feel a little tightness in your chest at the thought of assessments? Giving the assessments is time consuming, collecting data can be messy and using the results is easier said than done. It all can get pretty overwhelming, pretty quickly. So, in this episode I want to share some do’s and don’ts that I may have learned the hard way with assessing preschoolers. Topics Discussed: How to plan for assessments Being intentional with your ass...
Mar 22, 2023•13 min
