Circle Time Mat Ideas

[WImom]

What do you use for circle time to get them to stay still? Mine keep getting closer and closer to me until they are on top of me basically. Or they are fighting with each other since one will start touching the other child.

Do you have a rug or mat you use. I've seen rugs for circle time that are $200 and up. I'd like to spend around $50 at most if possible.

[AnythingsPossible]

Go to a carpet store in your town and see if they will sell you dead samples. My husband works are a carpet store and I have used these in the past. They worked well, and could also be used for different things as well.

[AmandasFCC]

When it's time for circle in my home the kids get a pillow and sit in a circle on their pillows. If the pillows need to be adjusted (i.e. moved back so they aren't on top of me) then I move them. I've found this to be a great solution

Then they can use the pillows as crash pads and whatever else during free play. Win win!

[busymomof2]

I use an area rug that I got from Target for less than $30. As long as it is a different color than your bottom rug it should work. During my circle time I have the children put up things (das of week, number color, etc) but only if they sit flat, are quiet, participate and don't ask me. That could be an incentive. Also at the begining of the day I move my area rug back to where I want the kids to stay thay way they are not pract in my lap.

[Blackcat31]

masking tape for individual areas works well too..Cheap and moveable...LOL!!

[BentleysBands]

masking tape for individual areas works well too..Cheap and moveable...LOL!!

great idea!!

i use carpet remnants cut into squares. each child is a diff. color as well

[kendallina]

I use those interlocking carpet mat things. No idea what they're actually called. Walmart had them 5 for $5 this summer.

[Little People]

Target has these fuzzy round rugs (in the bathroom section) they have several colors. My kids love them. I place them on the floor and each child sits on their circle and they like the feel of them.

I will give each of them a book, then in a few minutes we pass books to the right, and in a few minutes we will pass again till everybody has had the first book. Each child tells what they see on 1 page. I use books with pictures, number books, shape books and so on.

Then I have a bag with items in it...hard...soft...fuzzy and so on. The children take turns reaching in the bag to get an item. When everyone has an item, we talk about the item and how it feels. Then we pass it to the right or left ( we have been learning right and left) till everyone has had the item.

I also have 3 sets of flash cards... I will hold up a letter to the first child and ask what the letter is..if they get it right, they keep the card. And we keep going till the cards are gone.

I have jelly bean shape plastic easter eggs. We place a bucket in the middle of our circle, and the children take turns tossing their jelly bean in the bucket. The rule is you throw and not toss...you loose 2 jelly bean turns.

[Abigail]

Our current daycare doesn't do circle time. If they do any guided activities it is at the table. When I was in a laboratory preschool (where we taught and our teacher graded us) we had circles we cut out of paper that were different colors and laminated them. Maybe 8-12 inches round. Then they were taped to the floor in a circle. We had just as many students as we did teachers so we had the kids sit on a circle that was fully taped to the floor (it was very short length carpeting) and all the "teachers" who were actually students just sat behind a kid. Once we got our preschool up and going we had to write out the child's name in Dnealian handwriting and tape it to the floor. They got the chance to learn their color and recognize their name.

[misol]

Placemats

I use placemats. I was looking for some round ones but happened upon some square ones that were bigger and on clearance for .50 each. They are all identical so I wrote each child's name on them and each child has to find their own at circle time. They wipe clean and stay in place.

[boysx5]

placemats are a great idea I will be buying some of those thanks for the ideas ladies

[SunflowerMama]

I found a cute pottery barn rug on craigslist for $25 that has a lamb and stars around the edge of the rug. I just have the kids pick a star and it works great.

Craigslist is always a great place to look.

[VanessaEO]

placemats are a great idea I will be buying some of those thanks for the ideas ladies

Placemats are a great idea! I'm going to buy some... or sew some up with the hoards of fabric that I have.

Thank you for the idea!

[kidkair]

I don't have them sit. We move all over the room. I have them sit individually for about 30 seconds to do math dots and reading cards. We do everything else standing, walking, jumping, crawling. It works out best for me to keep their attention.

[QualiTcare]

masking tape for individual areas works well too..Cheap and moveable...LOL!!

that's exactly what i used for kindergarteners. it would've been nice to have one of those big rugs with the alphabet/shapes on it - but the tape worked just as well. i put it so the kids were close enough to each other that they couldn't move without causing a problem but far enough away that they weren't touching if they were still and sitting criss cross.