center help

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center help
By Cathy

I only do centers once a week, on Fridays. I teach three sections of Language Arts and we have 80 minute blocks. So we spend the entire block on Friday working at centers which usually focus on the skills we did in class
during the week. This week, I had a center for letter writing, one for summarizing and retelling a story they listened to on tape, one where they had to read an article from our local newspaper and find the main idea, listing the 5 w's and a cursive writing practice center where they wrote a Christmas poem. The rest of the class period is spent finishing up loose ends, journaling or having

a class discussion on what they did at centers and how they felt. I tell them I will collect one piece of work from each person at the end of the session but I never tell them which one. I really don't grade anything they worked on. I just review it and write a few nice comments on it so they know I'm checking!!
The kids spend 15 minutes at each center and when the timer goes off, they check the board to see where they go next. On the board I list the name of the center, the activity and directions and what they should do when they're done. Sometimes I sit at a center and work on a particular skill with them. When I do this, I wear a goofy hat that tells the kids that they are not allowed to disturb the group unless there is an emergency. Sometimes, I rotate around the room to monitor progress at each center. I'm still learning what works and I'm really grateful for everyone's help in getting this board up and running. Thanks!