Preschool classroom management is a highly challenging and tricky area. You will have to discipline the kids and make them learn effectively without being harsh or hard on them. While this might sound an intriguing job, there are some proven strategies that can make it happen easily. Here are a few best classroom management practices for preschools in these lines.
Develop clear guidelines for children’s behavior
Whether you choose to call them agreements, guidelines or rules, your preschool must have a set of expectations that are agreed upon that will regulate the behavior in your classroom. These guidelines can be created by taking inputs from the children depending on the age group. These guidelines must be short, simple and practical.
Have clear expectations
It is always better to have specific behavior guidelines for children. The rules you develop must address the specific expectations about classroom behavior. You must also review each of these guidelines from time to time so that they are reinforced into the children.
Have a daily routine
Once reinforced in them, preschoolers can scrupulously follow established routines. It is important to make them know what is expected of them out of their day and during different times. Once you implement and follow the preschool schedule thoroughly most of the behavior problems can be solved with the least effort.
Interact in a positive language
The language you use must be positive and motivating. Praise is something that will make people happy and induce positive response in them. If you master the art of telling something using a positive language, children will be encouraged to follow your instructions and get aligned with your system.
Make the best use of visual cues
Pictures can speak louder than words. This is especially true with the audience who cannot read. Visual cues can significantly help cultivate positive behavior. For example, photos of the children engaging in a positive behavior can help motivate them.
Manage transitions in a planned way
Most behavior issues are noticed during the transition between activities and from one place to another. You can manage such times effectively if you train your children carefully with your expectations. Build transitions timings into your daily routine and implement transition timer or count down.
Stress on empathy and social skills
Social skills are an important topic in preschool curriculum you must give adequate importance to. Make use of circle time to teach mini lessons on positive behaviors like sharing and being a good friend. Reading books that talk about empathy and those that deal with recognizing and regulating feelings can be highly helpful in these lines.
Examine challenging behaviors closely
If you discover that challenging behaviors happen during some specific times of the day, you may think of making a change by analyzing what is happening. Arrange the preschool activities in such a way that they do not cause stress on the children.
Invest in good preschool management software
As a preschool administrator, it is necessary that you have enough time at your disposal to plan, implement and supervise the implementation of policies and activities at your center. To this end, investing in good preschool management software can help streamline your processes and also save on your time and resources.
