One core value of Bixby is that we practice and teach responsibility to the children. Responsibility is a big focus of the school because it allows children to learn how to take action and become accountable for it.
In the preschool, we support the children through this growth of learning by using a job board. On this board, there are boxes with labeled pictures of jobs that need to be completed around the classroom. Each child has a popsicle stick with their laminated picture on the top. Every week, they are able to slide their popsicle stick into a helping box and try to accomplish this job with the help of their teachers. The jobs vary from We Care Bag Helper, Well Wisher, Fish and Plant Helper, to Sweeper.
Lunch Helper is a very popular job. The requirements are that the children set a lunch plate at each chair for their classmates. Our main lunch teacher is Alison and she will count out plates, cups, silverware, and napkins which are placed in a pile on the tables for the children to set for their friends. Alison then proceeds to give the children bowls of the food served that day. The children then use a serving spoon to supply each plate with all the items listed on the menu. They then leave the leftover bowls of food on the table for the children to serve themselves during lunch when they want more of something. The children do a wonderful job focusing on placing these items at each spot and checking to see that each plate has gotten the appropriate amount of food. With Lunch Helpers, Alison is able to supply the items needed for the children to set the tables and she can then focus on some of the home lunches that need to be set out as well.
Helpers in the classroom teach responsibility to the preschoolers. They have a duty to accomplish and can obtain positive outcomes by fulfilling that duty. This gives them a feeling that they’re needed around the classroom and that they need to work hard at a job that they have chosen themselves. It practices part of our school mission and it is a goal that leaves them feeling great about themselves by helping others.