STUDENT NUMBERS: 4 Reasons to Implement Student Numbers in your Primary Classroom
Student Numbers, love them or hate them I think they are amazing! I implemented student numbers year 1 and have never looked back. But some have questioned, what benefits are there really to be had for giving a first grader a “number” instead of letting them use their first name?
Reason 1: Student Ownership
In my first grade classroom, I have EVERYTHING labelled to keep my sanity (and my students’ honestly). All student workbooks, our line up spots, writing journals, bookbags, etc. etc. are labelled to make organization of lost materials quick and not disruptive. So what does this have to do with student ownership? I use student numbers, instead of names, to label all the things. In turn, that student number quickly becomes important to each student. They notice “their number” everywhere… in the hallways, in books, in the classroom… and they just LOVE to point out that they have found their number in the lunchroom!
Don’t get me wrong, student names are important… SO important. We focus on student names often in my first grade classroom. During morning meetings, we greet our neighbor with a handshake and “Good morning, Evan”. During our class discussions, we always call our classmates by name. When doing seatwork or making artwork, or doing stations, names MUST be on their papers. We practice writing them, first and last. We practice typing them. We even have student names up on the word wall!
But with student numbers, my students get to use their name AND own a number as well. Win win!
Student work tubs.
Reason 2: Organization
Picture this…. Day 3 before school starts. Teacher gets to the office to find the coveted roster in their box for the first time. ACK! These will be their students ALL YEAR! Heading back to the classroom, teacher starts making a mental list of all the things to label. Printing a bunch of labels with student names, they start stickering all the journals, workbooks, bookbags, you name it. Three days pass (with a lot of work in between) teacher heads out to find their class and …. you’ve been here before I know … the secretary meets you with two students who have been added to your roster just that morning! And to top it off, you have two other students not show up at all!
What would save ALL THE TROUBLE of relabeling? Student numbers. Seriously, think of the time savings! If Johnnie and Maddie were added to your class that morning, you would simply have prepped a few extra student spots with student number labels, quickly write a table name tag, and they would have a place and everything labelled to start their first day of first grade!
I teach at a school with high turnover (meaning I lose/gain/replace a lot of my classroom population by the end of the year). This scenario of having students move unexpectedly or join my class is a common occurrence, and as a teacher Mom, the time saved with student numbers is irreplaceable.
Reason 3: Assessments
Love them or hate them, assessments and data have become too large of a part of the elementary classroom. They aren’t going away anytime soon (although I sure hope I’m wrong!). Student numbers have helped me keep the insane amount of paperwork organized!
Before passing out a paper assessment, I label the top right corner with student numbers. When I administer the assessments, I have students write their names as a second identifier. By the time I give an assessment, I have already memorized which students have been assigned which number. As I collect the dreaded assessments, I call out student names in alphabetical order (also their student number) and my assessments are already organized and ready to grade and record!
Line order labelled on the floor in my classroom.
Reason 4: Line Order
Don’t you just love when you ask students, in a very organized fashion, to line up… perhaps two at a time, or those with red shirts, or those who love Minecraft … only to hear the inevitable “I WAS HERE FIRST! MRS. NEVALA, JAMES CUTTED ME!”
My school adopted a “line order” to help not only in the lunchroom, but in so many other ways. My students’ line order spot (set up day 1 according to my alphabetical roster) is labelled clearly on the floor with their student number. EVERY TIME we line up, order is non negotiable. From specialists classes, from the lunchroom, from recess, my students are in the same order.
Student numbers…
These simple, yet beneficial, student numbers are so easy to make! Just create a page of labels for journals, or create a word document of larger labels to use around the classroom. If you loved the labels shown in the pictures above, Click here for the Student Number Labels available in my TpT store. Whichever way you decide to implement studeNt labels in your classroom, you won’t regret the time savings!!
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:) Katelyn from Teaching Primary with Katelyn
