Dr. Jean & Friends Blog

Tuesday, July 14, 2026

DESIGN ON A DIME

As I was looking through old blogs I found some super simple and inexpensive ideas to add a little BLING to your school.

Mirror, Mirror!
You know how much kids love to look at themselves in a mirror. Each day put a positive word or note on your classroom mirror to remind the children how special they are!

Hint! Write a different positive character trait on the mirror each week.

What a clever idea to use a real picture frame to display children’s artwork!

Or how about displaying children's artwork or writing using pants hangers?

I loved this idea from KIRPC Head Start in Indiana. The teacher said she bought sheets, tied the ends with ribbons, and then hung them on hooks around the smart board. Taaa daaa!

Chalk Board Table
Is this cool or what? Ms. Smalls found an old table they were going to throw away. She painted the top with chalkboard paint and let the children write special messages, draw pictures, write sight words, etc. on it. The kids LOVED it!

How about addition facts on the stairs? The science vocabulary leads to the upper grades. Letters, numbers, shapes and so many skills could “step up” learning.

Monday, July 13, 2026

CLASSROOM MAKEOVER

Ready or not, the school bell will be ringing soon!

If you’re starting to worry about getting your room decorated for the first day of school have I got a great idea for you!!!! Wrap yellow caution tape around your door and post a sign that says “Under Construction.” Explain to the parents that you are trying to develop a classroom community and you want your students to decorate their own learning environment. Invite parents to come back at the end of the week to see what their children have created!

Hint!!! Clare Ashford has a great idea to take “under construction” one step further.
“Before Meet the Teacher night (before school starts), I wrap all my bookcases, computers, etc. in butcher paper and then put an ‘under construction’ sign on them. It serves 2 purposes. 1- that way kids don't get into things while I'm busy talking to people! and 2- we ‘unwrap’ the items together as a class when we're ready to use whatever it is. It is very helpful and makes for an organized start to the year!”

Here are some crafts your students can make to decorate the classroom.

Welcome to the Neighborhood
Make a house from construction paper for each child. Fold the paper in half vertically. Open. Fold in the top corners to the middle. Fold up the bottom. Let children write their name on the front of the house. They can open the house and draw their family. You could also ask child to bring in a photograph of their family. Add some trees and a school and you have a great bulletin board.

Class Quilt
Use group art to create a visual representation of the “community” in your classroom. Give each child a 9” square and have them decorate it with pictures of themselves, drawings of their families or favorite things, collage materials, etc. Punch holes in the corner of each square and tie together with yarn to make a quilt to display in the classroom or hallway.

Friendship Chain
Give each child a strip of construction paper to decorate with their name, symbols of favorite things, or designs. Staple the strips together to make a chain. Remind the children that your classroom is just like that chain. Everyone must work together to keep it connected and strong. Drape the chain over the doorway.

Display Pocket
Make a display pocket for each child from a file folder. Cut a 1 ¼” border around the top half of the file folder. Let children decorate it with their name and pictures. Laminate. Fold in half and staple to a bulletin board or tape to a cubby. Children can display their own work by slipping drawings, stories, etc. in the pocket.

Hint! You can also use a clear sheet protector to display children’s work.

Banners, Pennants, and Name Plates
Use construction to let children create banners or pennants that reflect them. They might include hobbies, favorite foods, pets, family members, goals, etc.

Fit Like a Puzzle
Take a large sheet of poster board and cut it into puzzle shapes. (You will need one puzzle piece for each child in the room. Mark the back of the piece with an “X” so they will know which side to decorate.) After the children have decorated their piece, challenge them to put their pieces together to make a puzzle. Glue pieces to another sheet of poster board to create a picture puzzle for your classroom.

I saw these positive bulletin boards several years ago when I visited a school. Aren't they great?

Sunday, July 12, 2026

CENTER MANAGEMENT

I am frequently asked about center management. There is no “right” or “wrong” way, but you do have to adapt to your district’s requirements, the age of your students, and your standards. Here are some strategies that I have used in the past.

Weekly Contract
Each week my students received a “contract” with ten centers they “got” to visit during the week. We did center rotation for 45 minutes at the end of the day when they were too exhausted to sit and listen. They got to choose where they went and how long they stayed in each center, but the goal was to do all ten activities by the end of the week. If they finished they got “Fabulous Friday”! What was Fabulous Friday?? They got to take their shoes off and do whatever they wanted. They LOVED it!!!

After visiting a center they colored it in and then raised their hand. My assistant walked around with a hole punch and would punch the activity after they explained what they did or learned. (During this time I could pull one or two students to give them extra help.)

Yes, I did limit the centers to 2 or 4 at a time. On Monday we’d go around the circle and they chose where they’d like to start. If a center already had four people they had to make another choice. When someone left a popular center then they could go there. This really worked itself out. If they wanted to stay in blocks all day Monday they could, but then they’d have to work a little faster the rest of the week to complete their center cards. It was amazing how they became self-directed learners by the end of the year!

Black and white version of the center contract.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vZDUXcND9hjVewlJLkmdEg3E-25eS7tW/view

Color version of the center contract
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15ToM6nqTjRomfwH-MuKC9OcskocyIWa5/view

Numbered Centers
I visited another kindergarten that had something similar. Children had index cards with numbers 1-10 on them. These were tied to a string that they wore around their necks. Scattered around the room were the numbers 1-10 with something to do at each station. As children completed the activity they raised their hand and the teacher punched their card.

Check List
Another idea might be to have a class list with the children’s names at each center. Write the focus goal at the top. As children complete assignments they make a smiley face or other comment next to their name.

Choice Board
Make a choice board with the different learning centers you have in your classroom. Put dots to control the number of children who can play in each center at a given time. Write each child’s name on a clothespin or put Velcro on the back of their photo. Children take their clothespin or photo and clip it by the center where they would like to play. If all the spaces are used, then they must make another choice. They may stay there as long as they want. When they leave they take their clothespin and attach it to another center that is open.

*Use alphabetical order to determine who chooses first each day. For example, on Monday the first five children in the alphabet get first choice. On Tuesday, the next five in alphabetical order, etc.

Documentation
Let children can take photographs of the work and projects they do in centers.

Saturday, July 11, 2026

WHAT'S IN YOUR BACKPACK?

PLAY GIVES CHILDREN A CHANCE

TO PRACTICE WHAT THEY ARE LEARNING!

Fred Rogers

Fred Rogers is my hero! What a legacy of kindness, love, and gentleness he left us! It is so true that children learn through play, but many parents and administrators "don't get it." Here's a poem to send home or to share at your first parent meeting about how children learn through play.

WHAT’S IN YOUR BACKPACK?

What’s in your backpack?
It’s empty today.
Where’s your work?
Did you just play?

When I built with blocks
I learned about shapes.
I balanced and shared –
Our skyscraper was great.

I played in the windy house
And talked with my friends.
I rocked a baby
And played pretend

In science I observed,
Guessed, and experimented, too.
The same things grown up
Scientists do.

Art was messy.
I created and explored.
I solved my own problem
When I spilled glue on the floor.

My fingers got a work out
With puzzles and clay.
Those same muscles
Will help me write one day.

I counted and sorted and
And measured, too.
I used my brain
Like a math whiz would do!

Out on the playground
I ran like the wind.
I learned to take turns
And helped a hurt friend.

Story time is what
I always like best.
I can use my imagination
And give my body a rest.

I sang and danced,
Learned a finger play, too.
I answered questions
And said “please” and “thank you.”

There will be time
For worksheets and tests,
But talking and playing
Is how I learn best.

I love to go to school!
I’m glad I’m me.
An empty backpack
Means I’m learning, you see!

Backpack Book
Here's a little book you can make to send home the poem.

Punch holes in the top of a lunch bag (which is actually the bottom of the bag). You will need to do this for the children. Put a pipe cleaner through the holes and twist to make a handle.
Lift up the flap and tuck the bottom of the bag under it. Glue the poem to the inside of the book.

Friday, July 10, 2026

LEARNING CENTER SIGNS

IT LOOKS LIKE I'M PLAYING BUT...

Just because children are playing, doesn’t mean they are not learning!!! Here are some center signs for you to post in your classroom to help parents, administrators, and other visitors recognize all the skills that children are developing.

Why use learning centers?

Learning centers are the most natural way to organize a classroom and encourage children to become active learners. Centers encourage children to make choices, explore at their own level, engage in hands-on discovery, solve problems, work with friends, use language, and be creative. Centers are also an effective way to use classroom materials, time, and space. Above all, learning centers capitalize on PLAY, which is the most meaningful and FUN way for children to learn.

*Hands-on activities in centers provide many pathways to the brain and are engaging for young learners.

*Children can work at their own pace and level.

*Executive function skills of task initiation and task completion are nurtured with centers.

*21st Century Skills are enhanced as children cooperate with others, communicate, problem-solve, and think critically.

*Centers give children the opportunity to develop organizational skills and responsibility.

*Centers can provide children with purposeful practice for automaticity.

*Children take it in and take it in and take it in…and then something comes out! With centers we are laying a foundation by giving children a variety of rich experiences.

Click to download the signs

Thanks to Carolyn Kisloski for these fantastic center signs.

Thursday, July 9, 2026

CIRCLE TIME UNPLUGGED

HANDOUT FROM THE KICK START SUMMIT!

https://bit.ly/drJCircleTime

It's time to SHUT YOUR DOOR and start remembering why you became a teacher! Love them, play with them, and have fun with them! Oh, yeah, and teach them, too! Carolyn Kisloski and I created a packet called BACK TO SCHOOL HAPPIES a few years ago that we'd like to share with you. We can't solve all the world's problems, but we can give you something to make you smile and be excited to start your best year ever!

https://bit.ly/drJFreeBack

There are over 100 pages of hands-on learning activities with cheers, handshakes, attention grabbers, transitions, Prezis, management tips, brain breaks, finger plays, math, literacy, science, and seasonal lesson plans. There 15+ song downloads with books and visuals, as well as a video where Dr. Jean demonstrates the activities.