My students need a space in the classroom where we can come together as a community. I introduce every lesson in class on the rug and would estimate my students spend about half of our instructional time there. Currently, in our class, we have one large carpet that has no detail or pictures; it is a solid blue and offers no visual support when asking students to sit so they can see the board or sit in a circle.
I am looking to buy a carpet with squares and a marked boarder so that students can find a well-defined spot in order to use learning time efficiently. When I ask the students to sit on the rug they find it hard to pick a spot with no direction from me. We spend time moving around, finding space for ourselves and our partners, thus taking away from my lessons. I have tried many different tools such as tape on the carpet, chairs, and carpet squares. However, these required more maintenance and did not support our overall learning. At this age it is difficult for the students to recognize when they are 'squishing' peers. My students are working on giving each other more space and keeping their hands to themselves. The five and six year olds have difficulty maintaining their personal space bubbles. If we had a carpet with squares that each child could sit in, they are able to contextualize their 'space bubbles' with the visual support. I also appreciate sitting in a circle during various parts of the day to foster our classroom community. Moving into a circle where everyone has enough space and can see is a challenge. The carpet I chose has pictures and letters that would make this transition seamless. I appreciate your consideration!
About my class
My students need a space in the classroom where we can come together as a community. I introduce every lesson in class on the rug and would estimate my students spend about half of our instructional time there. Currently, in our class, we have one large carpet that has no detail or pictures; it is a solid blue and offers no visual support when asking students to sit so they can see the board or sit in a circle.
I am looking to buy a carpet with squares and a marked boarder so that students can find a well-defined spot in order to use learning time efficiently. When I ask the students to sit on the rug they find it hard to pick a spot with no direction from me. We spend time moving around, finding space for ourselves and our partners, thus taking away from my lessons. I have tried many different tools such as tape on the carpet, chairs, and carpet squares. However, these required more maintenance and did not support our overall learning. At this age it is difficult for the students to recognize when they are 'squishing' peers. My students are working on giving each other more space and keeping their hands to themselves. The five and six year olds have difficulty maintaining their personal space bubbles. If we had a carpet with squares that each child could sit in, they are able to contextualize their 'space bubbles' with the visual support. I also appreciate sitting in a circle during various parts of the day to foster our classroom community. Moving into a circle where everyone has enough space and can see is a challenge. The carpet I chose has pictures and letters that would make this transition seamless. I appreciate your consideration!