Bathroom Breaks

A problem we have each week are the constant potty breaks. Some kids really do have to go, and you can definitely tell when a child really has an emergency, but others just play the 'potty' card when they are bored. I honestly was too scared to have to deal with accidents in the classroom to stand up to these kids about these potty breaks, but in Sharing Time this week, the Primary President was not going to stand for it.

I admire this lady so much, especially because she has a daughter the same age as the kids in my class, so her advice is directly relevant to me and when she has an idea, it always works. After I came back to Sharing Time with the 3rd child who needed a potty break, she drew the line. She explained to the kids that we get drinks and go potty before we come to Primary. If there is an emergency, we can go on our way to class after Sharing Time, and then again after church if we need to, but we do not leave the class room during Sharing Time, Singing Time, or Class Time.

The kids knew she meant business and weren't going to challenge her. She always knows exactly how to say things to these kids so that they understand her expectations, and obey immediately. Partially, I think, because she will many times get down to their level, by kneeling on the floor, and talking with a smile on her face. That change seems simple, but I find it makes all the difference.

We did not have a single potty break during class time that day, and many asked their parents if they could get a drink after class when they came to pick them up. The rules definitely stuck and I'm so happy that they are growing up into these little people who are learning things and remembering them so well. These last 6 months have shown a tremendous improvement with these kids, and I suppose, to a 3 year old, 6 months is like a life-time!

Official Ball Toss

After having to scrounge up something to be able to toss between the kids during a lesson, I headed out to the dollar store that week and bought some water soaker balls. Those are the toys that soak up water and are intended to be thrown at other kids, kind of like water balloons. I found that these were extra soft and squishy, but were still heavy enough for the 3 year olds to throw accurately.

This is something that we always keep in our Primary Bag (that we tote around our lessons, pictures, etc. to church each Sunday) and if we have extra time at the end of class for some reason or another, it's a great activity.

Usually we will talk a little about the lesson and ask each child to say something about the lesson before we can throw them the ball. For the lesson "I Have Feelings", they were to say something that made them happy, show us their 'happy face' by smiling really huge and them we could toss them the ball. I love using this game because it's helping them to remember what the lesson was about, they apply it to themselves, and they have fun without being overly active/irreverent.

Our class is 3-4 year olds and they are still working on the motor skills to accurately throw balls and catch things, so it's getting two birds with one stone. They're learning spiritual things, as well as physical things. The more multitasking we can do in the short 1 hour of class time, always the better!

Matching Game

We struggled for weeks in trying to find some sort of activity that was Sunday appropriate, would teach the kids to share, and teach them what behavior is acceptable during Primary.

What we came up with (after many failures) was a matching game. We simply took what the lesson was about, printed 8-10 pictures on regular 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper, cut them in half, mixed them up and used magnets up on the board to put them face down and let the kids try to match as many as they could.

We usually have 8-10 kids in the class, so we purposefully have at least that many pictures (we used food the first time, for the lesson I am Thankful for My Body, then colored smiley faces for I Have Feelings). This way we can make sure that each child makes at least one match. They know that they need to wait patiently (reverently) in their chairs since we simply go around the room one at a time and let them try to make a match. They get to come up to the blackboard, pick whichever two papers they want, and we flip them over to see if they match.

For some reason this keeps all the kids interested in what is going on, even when they're not the one up at the blackboard and they are actually learning how to sit still and wait their turn. I also like it because it teaches them that it's okay to try something, even if you fail at it (or don't make a match) and eventually if you keep trying you will succeed (by making a match).

This game is easily tailored to each lesson and we use it about every third week or so. They don't seem to be bored with it yet, so we'll keep using it as long as it works!