I am head teacher in our toddler room, room set up with centers, but kids run in circles. how to discourage?

Question

I am head teacher in our toddler room, room set up with centers, but kids run in circles. how to discourage?

Answer 1

I suggest that you work on procedures and rules.  I assume that each center is set up for a certain number of children.  Perhaps you should place their names above the center you would like them to go to.  Physically place the children where they should be.  Try setting a timer for five minutes.  When the timer goes off, then move them to another center.  Do NOT allow them to choose their center.  If they continue to try to run..just sit them down and tell them they must find a center and STAY there or just sit down in time out.  I'm not sure what age toddlers you are talking about.  So, the name thing may not be a good idea.

Answer 2

toddlers will always run. My room is a big semi circle and we have 5 centers : dinner table, play zone table, creativity table, family/dolls zone, carpet for construction blocks. Toddler will always find a way to run. when they play in the family zone, they get a bag and start running and if u ask them why they run they answer "im running to the store". I'd suggest to organize ur day with many little activities and include a "running" situation too :-)

Answer 3

I shudder at the thought of some of these other suggestions.... where is the child's agency and power of decision making if you tell them what they have to do, what toys they can play with, and take a disciplinary approach?

What image of the child is this creating? That they are incapable of making their own choices and looking after resources... and having open space???

I suggest that you keep the area an open space.... consider what the children are thinking as they are running around in circles... is it something that invites peers to join in? Are they using it as a means of interation with other children? (if so - consider how you can facilitate an environment that builds relationships) Are they doing this because the materials they have available to them are boring / not related to their interests? Is it something that they actually enjoy? (if so - isn't it your job to extend on this? - does it actually need to be discouraged?)

In my experience, when children are empowered to choose open ended and enviting materials, their learning (some need reminding - it does actually occur in birth-3 contexts despite it being overlooked) is much more focused and meaningful - do some research into using the environment as the 3rd educator and some of the work in Reggio Emilia. You will not be needing to "discipline" as much, as the children will be engaged in persuing their own interests.  

Try having some open ended arts materials which the children can freely choose to use - such as paper, crayons, paints, clay / playdough.... most people would think "with toddlers - no way - what a mess!".... but trust me... i've done it! Also, what's wrong with a bit of mess if the children are learning? When you show them the required techniques (such as how to hold the paintbrush), they are CAPABLE of directing their own learning with minimal assistance.  

Critically evaluate you present environment - what image of the child you are creating and what the children could be thinking!!!!!

Perhaps you could focus their interest on using a parachute? Or doing this outside if it is a safer area for them to do this in.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Kids like to be in more confined spaces, so set up your room so that the centers are more defined. For example, square or L shaped centers, try to make some sort of barriers and make as little open space as possible.  The only real open space I have in my room is the book corner becuz thatz where we have our circle time.  

Also what types of things are in ur interest centerz? and how young/old are they? There are alot of thingz that could be contributing to them "running circlez" all day

Answer 5

First, running in circles is one of the things toddlers do. You can rearrange the centers to allow for less open floor space but they need room to move. Don't expect them to stay in centers for more than a few minutes and make sure the materials are easy to find and put back. Don't clutter the shelves. Provide lots of times during the day when movement is part of the activities. Toddlers are not mini preschoolers and need a less structured program. keep the rules simple, and develop lots of ways to redirect all that energy. Make sure there is something in the room they can climb or they'll find something you don't like.

Answer 6

I suggest setting up the centers where there is not open wide spaces for them to run and just make it a rule that running is for outside only. Keep reinforcing it. Also making sure there is plenty fun engaging things to keep their attention which is very short by the way at this age.

Answer 7

Some good ideas above, but if these children are actually toddlers (between ages 12 and 24 m), then they likely will find the concept of centers difficult to understand.  Staying in one centre for a certain period of time or having only a certain number of children in a centre are concepts that are beyond them at that age.

I never had centres for toddlers, really. We had an area for fine motor toys, like puzzles and small blocks. An area for large blocks. An area with bigger toys. We alternated putting out the water or sand table. Had a quiet corner with soft mats and books. That was it.

I found that "drop and do" was more effective than expecting them to choose and use centres. They had free play most of the time, but activities I planned I would just sit down where I wanted to do them and the kids would come to join me.

Answer 8

You need to separate your centers in a way that discourages running - for example, if you have a big open space, fill it with the kitchen set and housekeeping toys. If you have any big open spaces, children are going to run. And, two year olds are hard to tell No to - even though we do, they tend to forget and do what they want the next second -which would be running. My suggestion would be to rearrange the room.

Answer 9

First thing I would do is take careful observation of when they start running in circles and where it happens.  

If you notice it begins happening at a set time, you may begin to reconsider your schedule.  Have they been working for a little while and need to get outside for 10-15 minutes?  Are they running when they first get there and you need to do more of a circle time at the beginning of the day to see how that works?  Note that any schedule change will take time to set in, especially at this younger age.  So if it doesn't work on day (or even week) #1, don't necessarily give it up right away.

If you notice a particular area it is happening in, take some time in that area.  With no children around, get down on the child's level and look around.  Do you see an opportunity to run?  If so, what can you do to adjust it?  Remember that children cannot run into shelves, so if you confine that space a little more and move one of the shelves into the middle rather than the side, you may stop the running all together.

It sounds like they're running because they both need physical movement and they think running is the most interesting thing at that time.  Give them something more interesting, make sure you rotate materials frequently, and make sure you have plenty of physical activities throughout the day to satisfy that need they have.

Sensorial activities will also help with this.  Water tables, a bowl of sand the child can dip their hands into, and other tactile activities actually calm many children.  It may be that you need more sensorial activities.  Practical Life activities, such as spooning things from one bowl to the next or pouring beans are also something that really help with the child's focus.

Hope that helps some!