How to Deal with Kindergartners

When it comes to five year olds, you might just go crazy. That is what many Kindergarten teachers may think. This being my first year of teaching Kindergarten, I have picked up some good pointers for dealing with these little people that just might help others too.

Never let them get away with anything. If you start off letting them get away with things, then the others will soon follow and you will start a complete mess in your classroom. You have to stop them dead in their tracks when they are doing something that goes against your rules. You also have to show them the consequences of violating your rules. Trust me, sometimes they are so cute and sometimes you want to just let them slide just once, but if you do you will start an entire kindergarten frenzy of craziness in your class and it won't be good.

Give them hugs. I know that many people feel uncomfortable with people hugging their children. But I think that it is very important to give your kindergarteners small hugs. They don't have to be super embracing or anything. You can also pat them on the head or on the back or hold their hands from time to time. This lets them know that somebody cares about them while mommy is away.

Give them lots to do. The more you give them to do, the more you can keep them occupied. Playing simple games, doing worksheets, or just giving them a few minutes of free time, keeps them busy and out of trouble.

Challenge them. One thing that I have noticed is that kindergarteners love to be challenged. They love learning new things, and when they catch on and are able to do it on their own, it makes their day, week, or year much brighter.

Don't be too hard on them. Sometimes these kiddies do things that go against the rules and sometimes it is tempting to be extremely hard on them. Don't butcher them. They are only babies. One strong yell and you will have a crying kid all day long. You have to talk to them in kid friendly rhetoric while being firm.

Tell them when they are doing a good job. Nothing works like positive reinforcement. When they see that you are pleased with their behavior they want to do it again and again just to make you happy. Pretty soon they are doing the good behavior on their own without even recognizing or looking for a reward. When your students are behaving, let them know that they are doing a good job and that you are happy they are on task.

Give them rewards and consequences. Rewards and consequences seem to work wonderfully on little kids. They love candy and stickers and they also hate to lose special privileges when they are misbehaving. When they are good, give them good and when they are bad give them bad. Pretty soon they will start to decide which path they want to take.

Look for their talents. You will be surprised at each student's different talents when you look deeply enough. Some kids may be horrible when it comes to listening but they have a wonderful talent for drawing. You also may discover that your children are extremely bright and they love learning math. Whatever talent a student has, try to build on that special talent so that they can have something special of their very own in their future.

Communicate with parents. Let your parents know their child's strengths and weakness in the classroom. Encourage the parents to be apart of their child's learning experience inside and outside of school.

Let your students play. Give them lots of time to be their selves and to have as much fun as possible. Let them act silly, let them laugh and giggle. Give them their childhood with benefits.

I hope that this article will help you God willing, deal with kindergarteners.