Do you assign classroom jobs to your students? You may be thinking… “This is more work than it’s worth.” But I promise you that using student jobs helps to create a classroom community. It gives your students a purpose and responsibility in the classroom. Their job is something they can take pride in. So… What jobs should you include? We polled a variety of teachers to see which student jobs they use in their classrooms and are sharing their answers here. #15 is definitely one we all need to include. ?
As with every routine in your classroom, it takes time and practice to get it running just right and student jobs are no exception. There is some legwork that goes into teaching each job in the beginning, but the payoff… A clean classroom, students that respect each other, helpers to do your little daily tasks, and student ownership of the routines and procedures you have in place. Not to mention, that you will be able to teach with fewer interruptions. ?
Things to Remember About Classroom Jobs
How are you going to display your jobs?
Will you use a pocket chart? Will you have students wear “job” necklaces? Maybe you can clip their name to a chart on the wall…? Just make sure that your system allows for you (or your students) to easily switch jobs when the time comes.
What system will you use when you choose students for their jobs?
Are you only going to have a few jobs in your classroom or enough for every student to have a job at the same time? How will students rotate through their jobs? Will your students keep their jobs for one day, one week, or some other set amount of time? How will new students be chosen to take over a job? Are you going to just rotate them through in alphabetical order, will you choose, or let your students choose who takes over their job?
Which Jobs Will You Have in your Classroom?
Here is a list of possible jobs and their descriptions (if needed) that you could use in your classroom. Remember, you may choose to name the job title something else. Many teachers choose the names of their student jobs around their classroom themes.
- Line Leader
- Caboose
- Restroom Monitor (usually used in classrooms that contain a bathroom)
- Paper Delivery
- Paper Pick-up
- Trash Monitor (makes sure the floors are clean)
- Recycle Carrier (takes the recycle bin out to the large bin for pick-up)
- Pet/Plant Keeper
- Lunch Count Runner
- Attendance Deliverer
- Classroom Technology Monitor (makes sure tech is returned to the cart and plugged in for the night)
- Schedule Monitor (checks off activities on the daily routine)
- Light Switch Assistant
- Heater/AC Assistant
- Class Greeter (greets visitors to the classroom)
- Door Holder
- Tiny Teacher (helps lead the class through calendar and grabs supplies when teaching during whole group)
- Table Captains (responsible for making sure all supplies are organized on their table at the end of the day)
More Jobs You May Want to Use
- Class Announcer (leaves the note on the outside of the classroom door letting visitors know where you are… specials, lunch, recess, etc. )
- Messenger (takes any notes to other teachers or paperwork to the office)
- Class Librarian (organizes the books in the class library and returns library books to the school library)
- Nurse Transporter (walks friends to the nurse’s office when needed)
- Welcoming Committee (walks a new student around the school and helps them with the rules of the classroom)
- Keys Keeper (keeps track of the teacher’s keys… LOL ?)
- Backpack Assistant (makes sure all backpacks are hung up either in cubbies or on backs of chairs)
- Soap Dispenser (gives each student one pump of soap)
- Paper Towel Monitor (gives each student one paper towel)
- Germ-X Pumper (gives each student one pump of hand sanitizer)
- Table Washer (wipes down tables at the end of the day)
- Date Changer (changes the date on the daily schedule at the end of each day or in the morning)
- Meteorologist (checks the weather each day and updates it on the calendar)
- Flag Holder
- Lunch Box Assistant (passes out lunch boxes before lunch)
- Substitute Helper (if we have a substitute, they are the student to answer any questions – probably be strategic on this one ?)
- Chair Stacker (stacks all of the chairs at the tables at the end of the day)
Benefits of Having Jobs
Besides teaching your students about responsibility and being a contributing member of a community, student jobs make the classroom run much more smoothly. Everything will be in its place ? and you and your students will know where everything is and how the procedures and routines run in the classroom. There won’t be confusion or arguing over which student is doing which task either. And you won’t have to ask for volunteers anymore, just ask that student to do their classroom job.
Your transitions will also be better. Many jobs occur around these times during the day (coming in to start the day, leaving the classroom to go somewhere else in the school building, moving from one subject to another, and packing up for the day). Your students will be busy doing their jobs and not have time to misbehave or cause chaos. Just remember… take your time and explicitly teach your students HOW to do each job properly. Spending the time, in the beginning, will repay you with ample instructional time throughout the school year not having to reteach procedures for your classroom jobs.
So, grab a notebook and start jotting down all of the tasks that your students could have as classroom jobs. I guarantee you will be surprised at how many there actually are! And if you have any other classroom jobs you want to add to this list, please drop them in the comments section below. ? Maybe we can increase this list from 35 to 50+ classroom jobs to create community. ?
Written by – Janessa Fletcher
At Education to the Core, we exist to help our teachers build a stronger classroom as they connect with our community to find trusted, state-of-the-art resources designed by teachers for teachers. We aspire to be the world’s leading & most trusted community for educational resources for teachers. We improve the lives of every teacher and learner with the most comprehensive, reliable, and inclusive educational resources.
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