Fun in the Library with Centers!

How was I going to survive this year with 25+ kindergartners in a class? That's what I was asking myself the first week of school. I learned quickly that whole group activities were not an option. Believe me, I tried and failed miserably! Then the clouds surrounding me cleared and I had it - CENTERS!!!! I know, I know, centers are a lot of work, but that's just leg work. Once they get use to the management it's pretty smooth and I figured it had to be better than trying to instruct 25 kindergartners at once.

To implement the centers I decided to go with what I already had set up in the library:
Center 1: Smart Board (e-book/ fiction or nonfiction)
Center 2: Book Check-out
Center 3: iPad activities
Center 4: Listening (book on cd)

Once I decided on my centers I began to implement them immediately. I even tried it with first grade too! I was AMAZED! The group size was manageable (about 5-6 per group) and the students LOVED it! Don't get me wrong, it took several weeks for the students to learn the rotation and we still work on that. At this point, I'm still mainly staying in the book check-out center until each transition time; however, after the holidays I plan to lead the ipad center.

So, centers saved me from insanity this year! The cool thing is they can be customized to specific lessons or needs as long as the format stays the same.

By the way, I made paths and waiting areas for transition time by using colorful book tape and attaching it to the carpet!

This is my listening center....