It has been a long time - many of you know the triumph and struggle of being a first year teacher and I have been taking a backseat to being a blogging author, and a front seat to being a blogging reader.
TODAY, however, I have to share with you the best YouTube video I have found all year long. I know... that's a big claim to make - but this gem has wrapped up every day quietly and allowed me to start each new day in an organized space.
Sixty second cleanup was born after constant chaos ensued at the end of the day. The kids were loud, the room was a mess, there were scraps all over the floor, the rug wasn't straight... you know. I searched for weeks and tested out many '60 second timer' videos but this one took the cake and my students LOVE IT.
The best part of 60 second cleanup are the little extra rules I have added: You MUST walk on your tiptoes, you MUST be safe, and you have to be completely silent. Breaking any of these rules instantly gets them disqualified - believe it or not, being disqualified from cleaning is NOT something they want to risk!
This seems small and trivial, but for a newbie like me who spent 20 minutes every afternoon tidying up after the kids have left, I find myself with more time to do the important stuff!
I would love to hear more suggestions you have for ending the day on a positive and organized note - I can't wait to start a fresh year with everything I have learned this year :)
That timer is awesome! I must try it immediately.
ReplyDelete~Heather
The Meek Moose
I am using this TOMORROW! Adding it to my bag of tricks right now! Thank you so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAlison
Rockin' and Lovin' Learnin'
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ReplyDeleteDo they receive some sort of reward for having the room picked up in time? Getting them to clean up at all is a huge struggle for me. And what do you mean by they get "disqualified?" I love the look and intensity of this video. Will definitely be trying it. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis is the greatest idea, and I've shared it with all my 5th grade teaching colleagues. In 25 years of teaching, this is one of my favorite end of day routines! In my class we already had a class point system set up, so it was easy to award them a point (or take one away) for a job well done. I talk about our classroom as a place to be proud of. I also mentioned just yesterday that teachers look in our room and are so impressed with how beautiful it looks. I also have handy wipes and tables, so at the end of the day students wipe down tables to minimize germs. The kids were annoyed when I was counting down, so I just started writing the seconds in 10 second increments on the board, and gave them a 10 second warning. The timer could be fun, but I don't always have my computer hooked up to the screen Thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis is the greatest idea, and I've shared it with all my 5th grade teaching colleagues. In 25 years of teaching, this is one of my favorite end of day routines! In my class we already had a class point system set up, so it was easy to award them a point (or take one away) for a job well done. I talk about our classroom as a place to be proud of. I also mentioned just yesterday that teachers look in our room and are so impressed with how beautiful it looks. I also have handy wipes and tables, so at the end of the day students wipe down tables to minimize germs. The kids were annoyed when I was counting down, so I just started writing the seconds in 10 second increments on the board, and gave them a 10 second warning. The timer could be fun, but I don't always have my computer hooked up to the screen Thanks so much for sharing!
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