It’s another sunny day here at Kindergarten Chaos and I’m excited to share today’s 31 Days of Kindergarten post. What does the Creation Station look like in Kindergarten? I get asked this a lot when I speak to kindergarten teachers about literacy stations in the classroom. What is a creation station? Is a creation station really necessary? Does it belong in the literacy station rotations? How do I link the activities to the standards? Well this blog post is for you!! I hope to answer these questions for you, plus more!
What is a Creation Station?
A creation station is a station that combines art and literacy. I am a firm believer in art, as well as the process of art projects. Giving students the opportunity to use their imagination and use a variety of art mediums, engages the brain and allows for personal expression. In my experience, I have seen students flourish, when they have been given the opportunity to create. As the years have gone by, I have seen new kindergartners come in with less and less experience using art supplies, as well as a lack of fine motor skills. The creation station allows for fine motor practice, experience in using art supplies and classroom tools, as well as connecting to our current literature and literacy skills.
What You Need for a Creation Station
- A space & storage for art supplies
- crayons
- scissors
- pencils
- erasers
- paper
- construction paper
- glue sticks
- liquid glue
- glue sponges
- markers
- colored pencils
- stamps
- decorative scissors
- paper scraps
- paint
- paint brushes
- paint cups
- paper bags
- pipe cleaners
- tissue paper squares
- paper plates
- craft sticks
- Any other materials you feel your students might use at the creation station
- Anchor charts showing proper use of supplies, tools, as well as clean up
- I Can charts or directions for projects
- Wet wipes for clean up
- Small broom for floor clean up
What to Teach Students About This Station
- How to use the tools and supplies
- How to complete the desired task
- What to do when they are finished with their project (my students are welcome to do free art)
- How to clean up
- Where to put completed projects
- Where to put incomplete projects
- Where to put projects that need to dry
What Students Do At The Creation Station
- Follow multi-step directions to complete an art project that goes along with the focused literature. Below is a picture of a pumpkin project that my students complete at the creation station. I show the steps on Monday and students go and follow directions for the rest of the week. They only make one project, which goes along with our literature for the week, then they are welcome to do free art when they have completed the project.
- This is another type project that goes into the creation station. My students complete the Parts of a Tooth project at the creation station, when we do dental health.
- I try and always have a simple art project every week at the creation station for my students to complete in one or two rotations and it always goes along with our literacy theme for the week.
- Ideas for art projects include:
- story illustrations
- create character puppets
- create props to go with stories
- follow directions to create something
The idea behind this station is creativity with a literacy purpose. There are so many standards that can be applied to this station, especially when there is a connection to your literature and literacy focus for the week. My students love the creation station and enjoy each and every project. And when they have completed their specified project for the week, they enjoy free art and using their creativity. There is so much power in creativity with a literature spin. I encourage you to start your creation station this year!! Do you have more questions? Leave them here or find me on social media and ask away!
Have you been following along with our 31 Days of Kindergarten posts?
You can check them out here:
Procedures and Rules for the Kindergarten Classroom
Music and Movement in the Kindergarten Classroom
How to Start Literacy Stations in Kindergarten
The Library Station in Kindergarten
All About the Writing Station in Kindergarten
Computer Station in Kindergarten Classroom
The Playdough Station in the Kindergarten Classroom
I have a question. Do you leave examples of each step of the project? A lot of of my students have never been in a school setting before kindergarten. If I were to give them directions on Monday for a project they would not be able to remember them the rest of the week. Even step by step instructions of something we build together is challenging. Any suggestions to help with this so I can run a creation station?
Yes, I leave an example of each project. And honestly, I usually make 2 or 3 students the creation station ‘expert’. Those students are the ones who remember what to do and how to do it. Students can always go and ask one of the experts to remind them what to do. Also, I usually have easy 1-2 step projects at the beginning of school and as time goes on, the projects may increase in difficulty. Hope that helps. 🙂
How long do the students spend in your creation station?
The Creation Station is a part of my literacy stations and so my students do 3 rotations a day at 15 minutes a piece.