Getting Ready for a New Preschool Year

Whether you are a new preschool teacher or a seasoned pro, there is excitement and wonder heading into the new "school" year.  Just like children, we learn from our experiences. I would like to share a few tips to make your year successful (or reminders if you're a pro!).

• Be prepared and organized. This means having materials ready for large and small group experiences as well as for centers. The quickest way to lose a preschooler's attention is having them wait while you gather supplies. Keep things clean and sanitized! Wash hands constantly; yours and theirs! Clean and sanitize tables for meals and before and after activities. Lock up medications and anything that says to keep out of reach of children.
• Establish a daily schedule that provides consistency, but allows for flexibility. Keep large group experiences short. Children have varied attention spans and learn through play and active engagement. Read, read, and read some more. Limit transitions. Follow the children's interests. If children aren’t interested or are acting up, change plans. Build a strong teaching team.  
• Be open to new ideas. See things as fresh and new. Children will pick up on your enthusiasm. Expand your interests. Ask open-ended questions (Bloom's Taxonomy). Respect children’s ideas, feelings and thoughts. Have fun! PLAY! You chose this profession for a reason. Enjoy each day! Don’t stress if something doesn't work out as planned. Reflect and learn from your experiences.
• Get to know every child. It is so important to build a relationship with each child and their family. Children need to feel valued and respected. Discover what their interests are and what motivates them to learn. Find out what their strengths and challenges are. 
• Observe consistently. Observation is a teacher's best friend. Through observation, you learn what children are capable of doing developmentally, how they approach solving problems, how they spend their time, how they interact with others, and what they are learning. For teachers, observation serves a number of vital purposes, including being able to keep track of all your children's growth and development, deciding whether to change or modify the environment, and determining if your learning experience plans need to be altered. The better observer you are, the more skilled you will become as a teacher. 
• Keep your sense of humor. Teaching is a serious job; there's probably nothing more important. But, it's also a fun job! Never lose sight of the joy of being with young children. Laughter is contagious! Focusing on what goes wrong brings stress. Learn from challenges that arise and focus on the positive. Be happy! Smile often! 
• Be yourself. Just as every child has his/her own personality, so do teachers. When you build relationships with the children, you get to know them and they get to know you. Building positive relationships will benefit children socially and emotionally. You are a role model for the behaviors and interactions that the children will soon reflect.
• Experiment and explore. As you follow the children's interest, you will discover new ways to incorporate learning experiences. Don't be afraid to fail! Choose the materials that are working and useable, related to the focus/big idea, and that can be implemented to help children reach goals and objectives.
• Reflect. Engaging in self-reflection always leads to improvement! Through self-reflection you will focus on ways to increase learning and provide deeper learning experiences based on the children's interests. You will also discover ways to improve as an educator.
• Be patient. Be patient with yourself! It takes time to build relationships with children and families. It takes work to build a strong teaching team.