I am loving my pre-k cuties, but it is sooooo hard to change grade levels. People keep telling me, "You taught kinder, so you will be fine in pre-k!" I agree that I may have a slightly better schema for 4 year olds than maybe a fifth grade teacher, but this is hard work!
This isn't my first grade level change. I taught pre-k from 2004 - 2008, then taught second grade from 2008 - 2011, moved to kinder for two years until 2013, and now I am back in pre-k. It's never easy to change grade levels, but one thing that had been the most difficult is adjusting to the need for more time on fine motor practice.
We need a lot of help with scissor practice. I glued google eyes onto ALL of my scissors so that my cuties would learn to hold them so the eyes were looking at them. I am calling then "see me" scissors.
Each day for the past two weeks, I have been incorporating a small fine motor practice/lesson and today we used our "see me" scissors to perform surgery on paper. The goal was not to cut on any lines. It was just to practice a correct grip on the scissors, while pretending we were surgeons. (We used paper from the recycling bin.)
We will get there! I was just so proud of their confidence in cutting after this activity.
OMG...I am going to glue eye balls on my students scissors right now!!! I am teaching a 4K - 5K split this year. I bet you are thinking I ma so glad I am not you right now...especially since you KNOW the difference in abilities! Thanks for sharing! Amber ~ Kindergarten Rocks
ReplyDeleteLove the surgery!!!
ReplyDeleteSurgery...great idea! Maybe it would stop them from using them on themselves and their clothing (the joys of my first week in kindergarten this year) if they thought of it as surgery! :)
ReplyDeleteAmanda
A Very Curious Class
So cute, googly eyes!
ReplyDeleteHey girl, I understand the grade change. I taught kinder, switched to third and am now in pre-k! It's an adjustment for sure.
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