I used to rotate my classroom jobs for kids. When I was a new teacher, this looked like changing the job chart each day, but that felt sort of random and like I was wasting time … an expensive commodity in my busy teacher day. It didn’t take long for me to realize that all I had to do was extend the schedule and change the jobs weekly instead. Duh.
That was a little better, but I didn’t like the occasional moan and groan when a child ended up with a job they didn’t want. People-Pleaser Me just wanted everyone to be happy. (Tired Me was a little more like, Gracious, can you just?? I mean it’s only a week. Usually I said that part in my head.)
If I’m being honest, I don’t like random work assignments either. I like it way better when I get to pick the task, the committee, the project, or the chore. My husband hates mowing, but I love it. I can’t stand emptying the dishwasher, but my daughter makes quick work of it. At school, the Literacy Leadership Team is right up my alley, but stick me on the Report Card Committee and I’ll run away screaming.
So why was I randomly assigning classroom jobs to kids?
A Light Bulb Goes Off
That’s when it hit me. What if students applied for the jobs they wanted? We were already empowering children in so many other ways, why not keep the momentum going? With a little trial and error and some tweaks here and there, it has become one of my favorite classroom systems. Happy kids. Happy teacher.
The best time to introduce this so you’re not wondering how you’re going to “fit it in,” is at the beginning of the year when you’re establishing routines anyway. The start of a new school year is the perfect time to create the culture of your classroom community. This is the time to let kids know they’re part of a team and that you value their voice.
Getting Started
I recommend setting the stage by reading one of your favorite books about teamwork and thriving communities. There are several, but I’ve always used The Grasshopper and the Ants because it gives kids a clear picture of what it means to work together toward a common goal and how everyone’s part is important. This story also shows kids what can happen when work is ignored. Poor Grasshopper. (Don’t worry. Compassion prevails and he learns an important lesson.)
Classroom Jobs for Kids
Piggybacking on the story, I start a conversation about the ants and all the different jobs they were doing to help their community be happy and successful. This gives me a natural segue into talking about our classroom and how we’ll need a team of people working together too. Here’s where you can either brainstorm a list of classroom jobs with the kids or share your own list of jobs … or a little of both.
I have a list of 24 jobs for my classroom, but I’m open to letting the kids suggest others, even throughout the year. Every group of children is different, so sometimes I may have a job one year that I didn’t need the previous year. As I introduce the jobs to the students, I also explain what it means to do that job. By adding a description of the duty and modeling it, they get a clearer picture of what that role requires.
As a side note, it’s also fun to show them non-examples of each job duty. This usually gets them laughing, but also helps me teach them what it would look like if it wasn’t done well.
As I introduce the jobs, I keep them posted in a pocket chart so they can see the all the options at once. This is important because I want THEM to be thinking about the jobs that interest them. Why? Because they’re going to apply for them.
Job Applications for Kids
Because I have 24 job postings, there’s plenty for everyone to choose from. Most years, I’m able to fill every spot, but if I can’t find anyone who’s passionate about trash duty one year, we just handle it collectively as a group. My goal is to make sure everyone is in a position they want. This means I might possibly have two people on the Tech Team and a few Pet Pals, but that’s what valuing voice and choice look like. If, however, I have eight children wanting to be the Phone Friend, that won’t work. So I turn it back to them to be problem solvers, “What can we do about this?” Some jobs are better suited for a team approach, like the Cleaning Crew. But some run more smoothly if only one person is consistently doing the job.
The application process gives each child a chance to think about the three jobs he or she is most interested in having. We talk about what prioritizing choices means and then I model filling out my own application.
I also have an application with only two choices. Which one I use depends on the time of year and what I think my particular group can handle after meeting them. For example, I may use the form with two choices at the beginning of the year, but then transition to the longer one after the winter holidays. For me, it works so much better keeping kids in their jobs for several weeks, so we only go through this process once a month.
PRO TIP👉 Worried you won’t have time? Each month, I plan one day for filling out new applications and we do it during our writing workshop. A job application is a great way to practice persuasive writing skills!
Scheduling Interviews
I don’t worry about the time it takes me to conduct these brief interviews, especially at the beginning of the year. I just consider them one-on-one conferences and I rotate to each child during our independent reading time. You can also talk to each of them during recess. By the end of the week, you most likely will have had a chance to talk to everyone.
If possible, don’t skip this step. This is my favorite part of the process and sometimes the interviews are hilarious. Listening to an outgoing girl talk about why she’d be a great Supply Manager or a sweet boy describe why he’d be a patient Counselor are priceless moments and will tell you a lot about how they see themselves. I dare you to keep a straight face during some of them.😂
Teacher Resource
You can implement these ideas by making a few modifications to your current system. And if you work with very young children, this can be done in face-to-face conversations with no writing required. If you’re interested in the materials pictured above, you can check them out HERE.
In this set, the classroom jobs for kids include:
- Caboose
- Camera Crew
- Cleaner
- Counselor
- Date Stamper
- Door Holder
- Gardener
- Librarian
- Light Leader
- Line Leader
- Messenger
- Noise Monitor
- Paper Passer
- Pet Pal
- Phone Friend (includes simple script)
- Recycler
- Restroom Monitor
- Safety Patrol
- Sharpener
- Stacker
- Super Star (the catch-all job)
- Supply Manager
- Tech Team
- Trash Team
For this resource, I used clip art provided by My Cute Graphics. If you need to create a card for a job you don’t see on this list, check out her website for additional images. Her work is really kid-friendly without being too busy.
Happy teaching!
