Centers vary depending on the subject area and grade level. Common centers for language arts could be a computer center, a listening center that includes a CD player or MP3 player, a place for word work or reading in the classroom library. The students may have free exploration in the centers or the teacher may assign a specific task. In kindergarten classrooms, play and exploration centers should be set up and may include a sand and water table, a play dough center and a dramatic play center. Manipulatives and easy-to-complete activities are set up in math and science centers.
It is important that students circulate through all of the classroom centers and some type of management system needs to be in place to help the teacher track which center students visit. Consider having centers set for a week at a time. Assign students to small groups and assign each group a color. Make a chart at the front of the room that shows what center each color group should attend that day. Move the groups to the next center the following day.
Young children have a short attention span, so in many early education classrooms center time will last for about an hour and will involve students moving to several different centers in one day. It is important that the teacher introduces and models proper center behavior for students and that the students practice interacting in a center and switching centers. The teacher needs to have a designated signal to announce that it is time to change centers; a timer could be used.
Centers often involve quite a few materials and it is important to prepare a list of all necessary equipment. For centers that may require more instruction, create a tip sheet explaining the steps, so students can refer to the sheet rather than interrupting you. If you frequently have parent volunteers in your classroom, mark particular centers or groups you would like to have them work with ahead of time.