Let's Talk Circle Time

Need some ideas on what to do during circle time? Read on...

1. Start the day with a big happy smile and a rocking good morning song! Here are some of my students (and mine too!) favorite good morning songs:

Nursery Rhymes - Good Morning. A cute little song animation from firozmunshi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZJHtZeMOUI

Good Morning Song. Very catchy! Howdy how do you do? Hello good day! Thanks Children's Music for the upload. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L89IDDq30J8

Good Morning Everyone. I played this on the guitar for my students everyday for two weeks. They can almost sing it completely without my help. We should be performance-ready soon ;) Great song by Miss Caroline's Music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuy-ntgSNJM

Hello Hello. Short, simple, and sweet. Thanks to wendysingandplay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-oZC8hcUrA

Monkey See Monkey Do - Pilot Episode. Not exactly a good morning song but it's great way to wake up and start the day... my students adore this! You may jump to 00:40 to begin the routine. Warm up time fun uploaded by SmarToonz. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ct3YaeRkcRE

Hello to All the Children of the World. Learn how to say hello in different languages with this catchy tune! Top morning greets uploaded by Monik Setyawan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpTR1wF4M6k

Good Morning by Greg & Steve. And let's not forget this... Thanks dagr8vixster for uploading. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFFbWH3niaI

2. After waking up our bodies and voices through a lovely morning song, I greet the children individually and encourage them to greet me back.

3. We then do a bit of counting like how many boys and girls are there, how many are wearing red or a specific article of clothing - sure to encourage interaction and awareness of others.

4. We then update our calendar - sing songs about the months, days of the week, and the weather. We have a blank calendar which we fill in with the corresponding number. To spice things up (since we count every day), we use different voices i.e. small voices to count from 1-10, big voices to count 11-20, monster voice, mouse voice, etc.

5. Then on to the focus lesson for the day - letter sounds, numbers, shapes, or any concept - done through stories, games, singing, dancing, but please don't let them sit down too long!

Just make sure to alternate sitting/listening time with dancing/wiggling time. Most of all, enjoy yourself! If you are having fun, your children will follow suit. Happy Circle Time!