Like
many of you, I'm very active on various Facebook groups geared
specifically to teachers. Time and again, I see other educators post the same question: "What do you do for classroom jobs?" This
seemingly simple classroom staple has educators all over the globe
stumped, and for good reason. Which jobs are appropriate for my students?
How often should I rotate? What if I keep forgetting to assign new
jobs? What if a kid isn't able to do his/her job? How do I keep things fair? Early in my career, I even found myself
wondering, Is all this effort even worth it?
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| Mike Kemp, Getty Images |
Of course, you know the answer is a resounding YES! Classroom
jobs build a community of learners and teach valuable traits like
responsibility, leadership, and independence. Even though I realized
this, my traditional, weekly-rotating classroom jobs set up was flat out
not working for me. Some jobs were too boring; there weren't enough
roles for each student every week; I couldn't keep track of who held
which job; and of course...I never remembered to rotate, leaving kids in the same job for weeks on end! I needed a
change. In the middle of a Pat Quinn RTI seminar, it finally hit me...my classroom didn't need jobs. It needed careers!
One
of the most important things we do as teachers is prepare our students
for the "real world." I'm always trying to keep this in mind as I plan
my lessons, and in this case, my classroom structure. As an adult, I
don't rotate to a new job each week...I chose to become a teacher because
it's a career I fell in love with. More than that, I was trained to be an educator, and had the natural skills to
make a pretty darn good one (if I do say so myself!). I wanted to apply
this same idea to my classroom jobs. Assigning littles to a job they are best fit
for - rather than rotating - allows students to realize that each of us has specific skills, interests, and talents.
During
the first week of school, I introduce our Classroom Careers with a brief PowerPoint. We talk about the traits of each career person and start to recognize those skills in ourselves. In the meantime, I keep an eye out for each of my babes' special talents, characteristics, and interests. I'm sure to compliment them, too: "I love how you greet everyone each morning with a smile, Jacinta! Have you thought about applying to be our classroom door person?" Sparks begin to fly as students hurry to apply to their dream job.
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| Caution: Too-big-for-your-face grins ahead |
You know that goofy face kids make when they're way too excited? Yep, that's exactly what you'll see once you start the hiring process! Over the span of a week or two, each student is hired and presented with a certificate at morning
meeting. Their name is very ceremoniously added to our Classroom Career bulletin board.
As you can imagine, this is a Very Big Deal in Room 11. I hire the kids
one, two, sometimes three at a time. This builds the anticipation! Who will be hired next? What will my job be? How can I show my teacher that I'm ready to start my career?
My animal
lover trains to be our Veterinarian. One of my tidy friends becomes the
Custodian. The child obsessed with our computers and tablets is named
our Technician. Each student is matched to a job that fits their special skills and must complete (very informal) job training. I use morning work time or the few minutes
before dismissal to show students how to correctly complete their job
each day by modeling the job myself or simply showing them where certain
supplies are kept. This is a simple task that usually only needs done
once or twice at the start of the year. Remember, we keep these jobs all
year...after all, they reflect each child's special skill!
I've
found that my students take more pride in their job knowing they were
picked especially for it. They also come to rely upon themselves and
each other more quickly. Instead of asking me how to draw a cat, my
students consult the Artist. When we turn on our projector, the
Electrician silently gets up to turn out the lights. In the chaos of a
child falling and scraping their knee, my Doctor knows to quickly fetch a
band-aid or ice pack from my desk. If the ringing classroom phone
interrupts my lesson, my Secretary knows to answer and direct the call,
allowing me to continue teaching. And yes...this all happened with six and seven year olds in my first grade classroom...this year, I'm making a few tweaks, but expect the same results with my fifth graders!
With
their roles established and permanent, my classroom runs more smoothly.
No longer do I waste time picking an eager volunteer to run a paper
across the hall, for this is the job of my Delivery Person. My standard
end-of-the-day chores, like shutting the windows, emptying my under-the-desk
garbage can, and passing out papers are now taken care of by my Widow
Specialist, Garbage Person, and Mail Distributor. These minutes saved
give me more time to work one-on-one with students or plan for the next
day, while also instilling a sense of responsibility in my students. Better yet, subs absolutely love having assistants to help guide the daily routines without being prompted. My classroom runs so smoothly, and it's thanks to Classroom Careers!
Back in 2015, I said 'tootle lou' to
traditional, rotating classroom jobs and I haven't looked back since!
Interested in trying Classroom Careers for yourself? Check out my Classroom Careers starter kit
on TpT! In addition to learning about 20 Classroom Careers, you'll be
able to download the four sets of job cards with matching name cards and
headers to make your Classroom Career bulletin board. You'll also earn
access to pre-made, editable certificates for your newly hired students.
The entire set is editable, and includes various sizes of print outs in
color and B&W.
Do you have a larger class size? I've expanded my Classroom Careers set and added 18 new jobs with three different expansion packs!
I will continue to add more expansion packs (featuring six new careers
each) as more clip art becomes available. More careers means more customized jobs to
fit YOUR classroom needs.
Want to snag everything at a lower price? If the starter pack, job applications, expansion packs, and intro PowerPoint are all calling your name, you'll want to snag my Classroom Career growing bundle. It will be updated annually with new CC products. Buying early ensures the lowest price on this bundle, so click HERE to get started!
Not quite ready to take the plunge yet? Download my Getting Started Guide for FREE on TpT. You'll get to check out a full list of the careers and two sample student applications!
What
do your classroom jobs look like? Is there a career I've missed? Sound
off in the comments below. I always love to hear from YOU!
