5 Tips for Center Success
Math and literacy centers used to give me a headache. I’d be trying to run a small group while the rest of the class looked like the local zoo! I realized very quickly that centers would be a huge waste of instructional time if centers weren’t explicitly taught, and clear, easy to understand expectations were given. With some trial and error, I finally came up with the BEST possible way to run my centers and I’ve been running them this way for YEARS! Read my 5 tips for center success below.
Tip 1: Introduce one center at a time, and practice all together
This tip is CRUCIAL. It may seem like it will take forever, but I always say “go slow at the beginning to go quick at the end”. If you have 5 centers, you’ll be taking 5 weeks to introduce them all (or however long it takes your class to work through each center smoothly).
Whether we are talking about math or literacy centers, I choose one center and teach it explicitly, model, and set expectation guidelines. The entire class practices that center all week long. The next week, I introduce the next center. I divide the class into two groups. I set a timer and one group practices the center that we learned last week, while the other group practices the new center. Once the timer is up, the groups switch. While the groups are practicing, I am walking around watching, praising, and correcting behaviors. I also make sure to explicitly model how to quickly clean each center, put the materials away, and get the materials ready for the next center when we switch.
The next week I introduce the third center, divide the class into 3, and we do three rounds of rotating. We keep doing this for 5 weeks until we are doing all 5 centers.
We have 5 math centers, and 5 literacy centers. To read more about all of my centers you can click here for math and here for literacy.
Tip 2: Use clear expectation visuals to teach each center
I use these expectation visuals for math, and these for literacy. There are tons that are included in both packs. While teaching, explaining, and modeling each center every week, I refer to these visuals. After teaching, I hang the visual up in the corresponding center area so that students can see and refer to it throughout the year.
I also use these when correcting behavior. If I see a student that isn’t on task in their center area while I am meeting with a small group, I may quickly call them over to my table and say “can you please go take a peek at that expectation visual for your center and then come back and let me know which part you are going to fix?” The student can quickly see that they were acting out and not on task, which is harmful to their learning. They take a peek at the visual and see what they need to do and get back on task.
Tip 3: Use digital automatic rotation boards
This is the game changer right here! I input my centers onto these boards, type student names underneath each center, and let the automatic PowerPoint run by itself while I meet with small groups. The visuals on the rotation boards match the visuals in each center so students can quickly look at the board when the timer begins, see where they need to go, and start in that center. When the time is up, a bell rings and a clean up slide appears. It gives students 1 minute to clean and put away their center and then the next slide appears with the new rotation for students to see where to go.
These boards come with tons of center options and timer options for you to use in your own classroom. It’s so nice not having to switch center cards or anything like that. The boards just run by themselves!
Tip 4: Use matching visuals throughout your centers, expectations, & boards
My center areas, rotation boards, and expectation visuals all use the same images throughout so that students can find where to go quickly, and find their materials quickly too. Ex: the word work image on the rotation board matches the word work image on the expectation visual, and the word work image on the word work tray matches them too. There is absolutely no confusion among students when using this process.
Tip 5: Have a good classroom management system in place
I use CHAMPS to set Conversation level, How students ask for help, Activity type, Movement type, and Participation for each activity in our classroom, and it works perfectly for centers. You can find the CHAMPS board here.
Let me know if you end up using any of these tips to set up your classroom centers this year. I would be so happy to hear how it went for you and your classroom!
