Materials
- poster board (22" x 28"), several pieces
- scissors
- markers
- wooden clothespins
- yardstick
- pencil
- masking or duct tape
What to do
1. Create a Job Captain Chart by cutting each piece of poster board into quarters. Write classroom job titles on each piece of poster board. Classroom jobs include:
- Morning Captain (makes sure cubbies are straight, sharpens pencils, and prepares anything not ready for the day).
- Teacher Assistant (makes sure the small group instruction table is straightened before and after instruction).
- Paper Captain (passes out notes and folders).
- Line Captain (leads the line).
- Table Captains (four people make sure each table has work materials and clean up after the activity is finished).
- Center Captains (two people check to make sure each center is neat after activity time).
- Story Captain (checks the classroom library for neatness and selects story to be read at story time).
- Sink Captain (checks the sink area to be sure it is clean and passes out paper towels for lunch preparation).
- Rest Captain (picks the music, wakes children gently with a "magic wand," makes sure mats are stored properly). Rest Captain has the option of sitting in a rocking chair during rest.
- Snack Captain (helps prepare snacks and pass them out, helps clean up).
- Outdoor Captains (two people make sure play equipment is set out and cleaned up afterward).
- Afternoon Captain (checks the condition of the room and hands out stray objects from Lost and Found during the ending group activity).
- Calendar Captain (marks the day on the classroom calendar).
- Flag Captain (holds the flag during the salute).
- Attendance/Lunch Count Captains (two people take paper slips to the office and cafeteria).
2. Label clothespins with the words "morning," "teacher," "paper," "line," "table," and so on. Color-coding the chart and clothespins helps with organization. Clip clothespins to the chart in each category.
3. After the morning opening, place the clothespins on the sleeves of the captains. At the end of the day, the children return the pins to the chart.
4. Begin with one or two job captains at the beginning of the year, leaving room on the chart to expand as children mature and are trained. It is important to train the most able and interested children first so they can become Captain Trainers. The sequence is as follows: an adult trains a child, the child does the job for a week, and then the child becomes trainer for next child who does job for the next week.
-Susan R. Forges, Daytona Beach, FL
Instructions
1. Give each child a squirt of liquid soap and say the following poem.
This little hand is a good little hand.
This little hand is his brother.
Together they wash and they wash and they wash.
One hand washes the other.
2. Dismiss the children one at a time or in pairs to wash off the soap.
