Transition+Ideas

Transition Ideas from Field Placement:

 * == **Have students write their 1st name with a vis-a-vis on a lamenated folder. Tell them to quietly line themselves up in alphabetical order with NO talking. You can also use birthdays, last names, the 2nd letter of their name, etc. to help them line up quietly.** ==
 * ==Have a poster at the front of the classroom with a section for Lunch, Activities, Recess, and Other. Each time they line up quietly for one of these activities, put a sticker next to that particular activity.Have classroom helpers for passing out papers, taking up papers, sharpening pencils, line leader, line caboose, messenger, etc. to make transitions easier.==
 * ==Students must follow these rules to obtain a sticker: 1. Line up quietly, 2. Face the door., and 3. Keep your hands to yourself.==
 * ==Rewards include: Candy for students (10 stickers), Extra Recess (20 stickers), Ice Cream (30 stickers), and Movie (40 stickers).==
 * ==Have classroom helpers for passing out papers, taking up papers, sharpening pencils, line leader, line caboose, messenger, etc. to make transitions easier.==

**{Time Fillers from Scholastic.com}** Mascot Toss-Across Energizes Creative Writing Alice Garner pulls out the school's mascot — a stuffed leopard — to add energy and excitement to a let's-write-it-together activity. "The leopard is loosely stuffed, about five inches long, and has a voice box; it roars if dropped or squeezed too tightly," explains Garner, a teacher in Leland, North Carolina. "We use him while we orally ‘write' a story." She starts by announcing the first sentence of the story and gently throwing the leopard to one of her students. The student comes up with the next line in the story and then gently tosses the stuffed animal to a classmate. "If the leopard roars, the one who caused the roar sits down," explains Garner. "We have come up with so many zany stories. Plus, we're practicing important story-writing skills and behavior skills at the same time. "

Fishbowl Songs For a quick activity when her young students are waiting for dismissal or an assembly to start, Geraldine Fogle relies on a plastic fishbowl filled with fish-shaped cutouts in a variety of colors and patterns. Each fish has the name of a song or finger play. "I usually use seasonally appropriate titles and have some year-round favorites, too," says Fogle, a teacher with Parents as Teachers in New York. "The children take turns taking a fish out of the bowl and that is the song we sing. "To ensure that "we are not singing the same songs every time," Fogle has a fish net hanging nearby. It holds all the fish the class "caught" earlier in the week.

The Price Is Right! The local classifieds come in handy when Lori Shinerock needs a spur-of-the-moment math activity. After drawing a T-chart on the board, she reads a classified ad description of a house for sale. "Then I ask students to guess the price of the house," says Shinerock, who teaches in Three Rivers, Oregon. She records guesses that are too high on one side of the T-chart and guesses that are too low on the other. "Eventually, they will guess the real price by looking at other guesses and adjusting accordingly," she says. "I am always amazed at what they think a house sells for when we start. The exercise makes them think mathematically and gives them a much better sense of what things really cost." For a change of pace, consider reading ad descriptions for cars and other big-ticket items. To modify this activity for lower grades, use a supermarket or discount store circular and describe less expensive items.

Pose Like a Statue! "We love to play Statue while waiting in line for lunch or specials," says Ruth Ewell, a first-grade teacher in Lone Tree, Colorado. "One person is ‘it' and calls out ‘Statue!' All of the other kids freeze and try to look the most like a statue. The person who is "it" selects the one who looks most like a statue to start a new round. This is a fantastic, imaginative, and quiet game."

The Numbers Are Snowballing Debbie Herman, a fourth grade teacher in Fowler, California, likes to play "Snowball" with her class when she finds herself with a few extra minutes. The main rule is everyone must remain quiet unless she points to them. "I begin by pointing to one student and stating an addition fact such as 7+ 9," explains Herman. "The student can think all he or she wants but must not say ‘uh,' ‘um,' or anything other than the answer. When the student replies, ‘16,' I quickly turn to another student, point, and say, ‘plus 5,' and that student must add 5 to the previous answer." If a student does not hear the answer, was not following along mentally (and therefore cannot reply correctly), or says anything other than the answer, the game starts over. "Our goal is to reach 100 with no mistakes and nothing spoken other than the correct answers," continues Herman. "We keep track of how far we get without a mistake and always strive to at least surpass our highest score." The game works well because students struggling with math can be called upon early in the game and given simpler problems, while the math wizards can be challenged. She points out that the game can also be played with subtraction, except you start with 100 and work your way to 0.

Creative Ways to Line Up Next time you think your students are too noisy when they line up, take a tip from Lora Mulstay, a teacher in Holbrook, Arizona. She's figured out a way to get them to line up quietly and build teamwork, communication, and leadership skills at the same time. "My students like to ‘migrate' to the door before lunch and at the end of the day before the bell rings. So, I let them line up, but with one catch . . . ," explains Mulstay. "I have them line up in some sort of unusual order — sometimes by height (big to small, small to big), by shoe size, maybe alphabetical order by middle name. They have to figure out the correct order by themselves, with no help from me. Sometimes I have them figure it out without talking! Since the students can't leave until they have the correct order, they have learned to work well with one another." She uses the activity once or twice a week and it's usually followed by a debriefing the next day or after lunch to discuss what went well, what didn't, and what could have been done differently to make the activity go more smoothly.

** A Sound Idea ** // Submitted by: // L. Stone Make a tape of sounds from the environment. I have one with crickets chirping, cell phones ringing, water running, a thunderstorm, a kitty mewing. When the tape is played the students are asked to identify what the noise is. Keep a numbered list for your own reference so you don’t forget what’s on it. The younger children especially like this activity.
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Grade Level(s): 1-2, 3-5 ** Card Name Game ** // Submitted by: // Hrshy210 When I have a few minutes to spare the students love to play the “card name game.” I have all of their names written on a playing card. While seated at the carpet, I distribute one card to each child (making sure no one has their own name). When their name is called they have to say something positive about the person on the card. This has really helped them to learn about respect and treating others how they want to be treated. It is fun and only takes about five minutes.

** Shorten Transition Times ** // Submitted by: // Cynthia Valdez, 5th Grade I would like to share a wonderful and effective transition strategry that I use. On a big green poster board, I drew a football field. (0 yards in the center and 50 yards at each end) In the beginning of the school yera, I introduced the football chart. I placed a small football on the 0 year line. I told theme that we were going to play a game for six weeks. . I was one team and the students were another. I told them that every time we had to change from one subject to another, they were going to be timed (1 min.) If everyone was ready within the time, they score 10 yards. If not, I score. The quarters are divided within weeks. At the end of the six weeks, if I win, they have to write a comprehensive report. IF they win, they get a whole day of fun educational activities and snacks. This strategry is effective, fun, exciting, and motivating.

** Silent Math ** // Submitted by: // Mr. Johnson, 2nd & 4th A transition activity I have useful in both 2nd & 4th grades is Silent Math. During the times your entire class is lined up and waiting, have one child start by using fingers and hand signals to give math problems. (Example: Hold up one finger (1), then make a plus sign (+), then two fingers (1+2). Lastly, put one hand above the other facing in opposite directions for the equal sign(=).) If a student wants to answer, he/she must raise their hand to be called on. They must give the answer using fingers and hand signals. The kids love it and it keeps the noise level down!

** Sponge Activities for first grade ** // Submitted by: // C. Letkeman Once the students have left for recess, I set out a bucket on each table. The buckets contain materials the students can use independently at their tables, ie play-doh, lego, peg boards, pattern blocks, tracers, felt boards, I Spy books etc. When the students come in from recess, they know there are activities at their tables, and they settle in to them quickly. This gives me a few extra minutes in case I was unable to return to the classroom immediately after recess because of outdoor supervision, a staff meeting, or dealing with an issue that arose during recess. It also give me a couple of minutes to get the next lesson’s materials organized! Each table gets the bucket for a day, and I rotate activities every week or two.