First Day Reflection (by Jacky)

Not that I had an doubts before, but after this morning, I truly know that I have no interest in teaching small children in a formal setting.  Huge respect for Cherie not only organizing today, but running her own Kindergarten in the past!  Eight kids were stressing me out when I wasn't even "in charge,"  so its pretty mind blowing to me how she (or anyone else) handles 20 or more!

I thought our schedule was pretty great.  We had more than necessary planned, which is always a good idea in case something falls through or is a totally flop. 

What stressed me out was my own children.  I struggled keeping track of both of them, and because of that felt like I didn't do a good job with either of them.  While I didn't exactly want to chase after William as he ran around with crayons, for example, I had expected that type of behavior from him and its developmentally appropriate.  But, Natalie seemed out of sync with the group a lot of the time.  She seemed lost when it was time to search for something red, and she didn't offer answers to any questions that she knew answers to.  She has never been in an environment so structured before, so I'm wondering if adapting was the cause.

Here are some initatives I'm going to work on to make the next few weeks run more smoothly.

• Give them both a fair sized snack soon before we leave so that Natalie isn't complaining about wanting to eat in the middle of activities.  While I'm not really sure how truly hungry she was, it did give perspective on the importance of breakfast for school age children.  
• Even if she goes before leaving the house, take Natalie to the potty several minutes before circle time starts.
• Keep Natalie and William's things together in one place.  
• Prep Natalie the night before about the next morning.  Remind her of the structures (like circle time) and tell her the theme. 
• Try to incorperate more transitions into our day.  Thus far, we are organized by routine at our house.  The kids know what to expect next because it is similar every day.  But in a new environment like today, Natalie was lost because she didn't understand the structures.  She was expecting just free play based on our routines.  
• Find a way to help Natalie transition from free play time to the focused activities, including making sure she puts toys back before starting an activity.  This is not for neatness, but because today I observed that these toys prevented her from focusing and occasionally distracted another child. 
• Make a focused effort with Natalie about reducing her crying.  It really got to me that she was reduced to tears several times in just two hours.  Continue talking to her about calm down strategies and using her words to explain her needs. 
• If the activity is appropriate, make sure William gets a seat so he can participate.  Today he was wandering off so I couldn't interact with him or Natalie.