Classroom Routines as Learning Opportunities

Teachers of birth-to-8 classrooms already know something many curricula don't fully capture: the transitions and routines of the school day are just as developmentally rich as the lessons themselves. Lining up, cleaning up, moving from carpet time to desks aren't just logistics. They're opportunities.

Transitions ask children to practice executive function skills: shifting attention, following multi-step directions, managing impulses, and tolerating the small frustration of stopping one thing to start another. For children with attention or regulation differences, transitions are often the hardest part of the day, not because of defiance, but because the skill of shifting gears is still developing.

Rather than treating transitions as something to get through quickly, consider treating them as a skill-building moment in their own right. A visual schedule, a consistent transition song, or a simple verbal warning ("two more minutes, then we clean up") gives children the scaffolding they need to succeed at a skill that doesn't come naturally yet for many of them.

Cleanup time is another underrated teacher. Sorting toys by category, counting how many blocks go back in the bin, working alongside a peer to finish a job these are executive function, math, and social skills wrapped into three minutes most classrooms rush through.

If you're an educator working with a child who consistently struggles during transitions, that's valuable information, not a discipline problem to solve with consequences alone. It's often a sign that a child needs more support with the underlying skill predictability, warning, or a visual cue  rather than more correction.

Small shifts to routine can make a big difference, and they don't require an overhaul of your classroom. They require noticing what's already happening in the in-between moments of the day and treating them with the same intentionality you'd bring to a lesson plan.

— Coach Emilee —