A "Keepin' It Kool in KinderLand" Guest Post!!

Happy Wednesday my lovely ones! I am thrilled that the beautiful and talented Elizabeth has taken over my blog today and is guest posting below! PLEASE go check out her blog, she is uber amazing and I love her :)
_____________________________________________________________________

Hi all! It's Elizabeth from Kickin' it in Kindergarten.
I am so ecstatic that Khrys has asked me to guest blog for her this week! We are, what you might call, bbf (stands for bloggy best friends :) I've got lots of people that I know through blog-land that I consider to be wonderful friends and Khrys is one of them!

This is the week of guest blogging. I wrote my first "official" guest blog post over the weekend to send on to Jeannie at Kindergarten Lifestyle and I wrote all about how it was my first guest blog...etc etc. 

Khrys e-mailed me right after I sent that one so this is officially my first time to guest blog and I am honored!

Today, all of our upcoming Kinders are walking in and doing a "sneak peek". I am not lying when I say this causes me more anxiety than wearing white pants to school (big mistake btw). The well oiled machine that I have trained all year is going to first grade in two weeks and then I have to start all over!

I always say there is no tired like August Kindergarten Teacher tired. The kind of tired that just knocks you to the couch for three hours after school (with a nap) and a minimum of 10 hours of sleep. It got me thinking about behavior and classroom management because that is always the theme for the first few weeks of school. I have a few tips that might help you starting off next year!

The first thing I introduce my kiddos to is the "Good Work" board. I tell them that they get to come in on "Good Work" no matter what. They are doing a great job the second they walk in. I bought the crayons at Parent Teacher and hot glued clothespins on the back of them. I typically give one warning before they have to move their clip to "oops". I have 4 rules in my room (be a good friend, be responsible, be respectful and always do your best) that pretty much cover any and all behavior issues. I circle their behavior for the day in their parent communication folder. If they get 3 "Wows" they get to go to the treasure box.

A "wow" happens when you catch them doing something "wow" and I don't just hand them out like candy. This friend that got to move up read her 100 books so that was a "wow". If I catch someone doing what they are supposed to do when everyone else is talking or being silly, they might get a "wow". If they are cleaning up or helping a friend, they could get a "wow" for that. The reason I love this system is they can redeem themselves if they are on "oops" and move back to "good work."

I have seen boards similar to this one but I don't like having more than 4 boards because it can get to be too much.

I've only have 2 kids go to "Red Choices" ever and it wasn't pretty. That always warrants a trip to visit the principal :-/

I like having broken pencils and sharpened pencils for the kids to grab and go. If there is something they could break or play with then I try to come up with an alternate way. I have morning helpers (2nd and 3rd graders) come in the morning a few minutes early and they take care of this little pencil station for me. 

Done and done...I don't like sharpening pencils :)

This is always fun...

I like teaching them hand signals so there isn't crazy blurting and stories going on for the first half of the year.
The "me too" is my favorite sign because it alleviates 15 kids screaming..."I HAVE A DOG TOO!!!!!" anytime you read a book about a dog and they make a connection.
You can click the picture and grab the signs for free :)

I say "Show me your Slant" and the kids know they are in a position ready to learn. My classroom is revolving door this year so I had to find something to keep their eyeballs focused. Their entire body position changes when I say "show me your slant". If you click the picture, it will take you to the TpT seller who has it for free. 

Last but not least, the compliment chain. It starts at the ceiling and each time they earn a compliment from a specials teacher or they get a compliment in the hall, we add a link. When the chain hits the floor, they get some sort of compliment party. They had 3 chains hit the floor this year! 

We did a PJ day, ate lunch in the classroom and no shoes. It's a great whole class celebration. 

I hope that you were able to get some helpful ideas for the beginning of the year. 

I am also giving away five of my products this week in honor of teacher appreciation week. Visit my blog (if you're in to that sort of thing) to enter if you want. Or you can just stop by and say hi :)