Quiet Time

A couple of times a week in the first grade classrooms you'll find us having "Quiet Time." This is different from what may have been called quiet time in kindergarten. It falls in the early afternoon, right after recess or right after Music class. After the noise, elevated activity level, and excitement of those activities, students walk in the door, quickly choose something they would like to do by themselves silently for fifteen or twenty minutes, and head directly to a spot of their own in the room. It usually feels calm and focused during quiet time. While students choose to draw, color, write, read, do a puzzle, sort "treasures," use Legos, or other activities, they are getting a chance to practice self-initiative, creativity, self-regulation. It gives them a break from the challenging work we do all day long and hopefully gives them a chance to restart and collect themselves before the rest of the afternoon. Sometimes if students have catch-up work to do, quiet time is also a time to take care of those “have-tos” before making a free choice.