Before and After

There a many things we learn in kindergarten beside our ABC's and 123's. The learning is deep, and wide (but mostly wide). I suppose the deep stuff will come down the road. We've learned about how to be kind, how to be a good friend, how to communicate and "use your words", as well as how to make the best choices and  how to pick up after ourselves and to be responsible for our belongings.

The winter months are awesome in kindergarten, especially when there is snow on the ground. It's a time of teeny kindergarteners bundled-up plump and warm. Hats, scarves, boots, mittens, snow-pants, and coats line the hallway at various times of the day; however, lately we've been slacking a bit in keeping our lockers neat and organized. My  kindergarteners share lockers - up to 4 in each. The winter months are particularly crazy with the added gear - but let me just say, from experience, that it can be done.

I've been getting on my dragons' case lately about keeping their lockers tidy, and closed. I even jokingly threatened to throw away any belongings that were spilling out of their spaces.  That was a bad idea as they turned and stampeded back down the hall in one chaotic mess of loudness. On Friday, I had an idea. My dragons love surprises and will obey at any cost for a "surprise". I told them to wait quietly at their desks while I went into the hallway to do a little project. They were so excited.

So...while they waited in eager anticipation for their surprise, I went into the hallway and snapped some photos of the latest tornado disaster area.  I went back in to the classroom and proceeded to do a little prep work at my computer. In the meantime, kids were shouting "We're watching a movie!", "Yay!", "Awesome", "Sweet!".  Then I showed them the pictures of their lockers on the interactive whiteboard. Silence. 

I wanted to laugh, but it was such a perfect "teaching moment".  You can probably figure out the rest of the story. I took an additional 3 minutes to tell them how fantastic they were, and that they sometimes get so excited when they come in from recess that they forget to hang up their things on hooks and take a minute to organize - the way they learned on the first day of school. We also discussed how our school depends on us to keep our area clear so students and teachers can move safely through the hallways.

It was Friday - and I  challenged them to organize their lockers as best they could. If they could make them look awesome, then they could watch a dinosaur movie (which I had already planned). I told them that I would take the pictures again, and we could compare the "Before and After". And guess what? It worked.  They were so proud. By-the-way, I plan on posting those pictures on their lockers as a reminder of what they are capable of. See the photo evidence below. Parents, your digital camera may be your next favorite tool.  Hmmm...what else can I take a picture of?

Before

Before

After

After

After

After

After