First Week Centers and Circle Time

One of the best things about Play to Learn is that our classes and teachers stay together for two, and sometimes even three, years.  Our older Pre-K class this year started coming when they were just 2.5 years old.  So, this is our third year together.  In many ways the first week is not truly a first week because even though they've been off for the summer many of the routines and rules are still familiar.

Here's a little glimpse back at our first week (with our returning students).  

First things first.  We reviewed our 4 simple rules.  These posters are from PreKinders, and they are perfect for preschoolers.

After the quick review, we worked together to sort pictures of behaviors into 2 groups: Good Choices and Bad Choices.  They thought it was so funny to see the pictures of other kids misbehaving.  We have already gone back to this sort and done it again for reinforcement.

Of course, most of our time is spent working at centers.  Our new light table is a huge hit.  We put out plastic links (from the Dollar Store) and the students made a pattern around the perimeter of the table.

Puzzles are easy confidence-builders and require minimal teacher support.  Perfect for the first week!

This is our magnetic white board.  We sectioned it off with electrical tape and placed big bulletin board numbers in each square.  The students place the magnetic numbers (in the white baskets) into the matching space.  It's a great visual discrimination game, and we can also quickly assess the students' ability to identify numbers 0-9.

For fine motor practice, the students cut straw beads and strung them together to make necklaces.  Another good assessment-- this time of scissor skills!

Of course, because it was the first week, our hands were full getting everyone adjusted back to school.  So we definitely could not take pictures of everything, but I hope that this provides a fun and quick peek into our first week.

Have fun playing and learning with your children.

Update:

The Good Choices - Bad Choices sorting activity is a part of my School - Centers and Circle Time Unit on TpT.  Enjoy!