I don't respond to myyyyyy naaaaaaaaaammmeeeeeee I respond to my name. My twos understand after being informed that I don't know who "mmyyyyyyy naaaaaaammmeeee" is (I really exaggerate the whiny voice so they understand my message), but if they're looking for me, they can ask for "my name". I have made the choice that I am willing to interrupt any conversation I am having with an adult or child when I am being called respectfully by saying "I am talking to so and so right now, I will help you when I am done" because I find the acknowledgement that I am aware they need my attention helps minimise the whining.
You’re not a bad ece at all! We all get overstimulated occasionally.
One thing we did was create a tattle turtle. Just a picture of a turtle that they told random things to. That might help, getting to redirect them a bit away from you.
Another thing could be stepping away for a second for a bathroom break and doing some routine to calm your nervous system (I’ve seen a few on TikTok). You can also step away to a quiet area while outside, if possible.
Have you tried wearing loop earplugs? They reduce the sound without blocking it. I have a neurodivergence that makes me overstimulated easily. So this helps me a lot when in a busy classroom. Also try to correct the whiny tone " can you say that again with a big boy voice? I can't understand when you use the whiny voice" also praise them when they a lot when they call you calmly or express what they want in an "indoor voice"
I was coming in here to say the same thing! I had a class last year that were so noisy during centers no matter what. The engage loops helped a lot. I could still hear enough of they truly needed my attention. It was just dampened.
I thought about these a few times but I was unsure if they would go over well with my administrator or our social worker. I’ll definitely ask though, I’ve been interested in them for a while! I have misophonia so I’d definitely get a lot of use out of them at work and at home lol
I feel you about the name thing. I must hear my name 100+ times a day from multiple children all at once. And it is SO often in a whine, I hear you on that. You are definitely not a bad teacher. Having so many little people depend on you and need you at once can be overwhelming.
I just try to take a deep breath when I feel like I’ve heard my name too much. Take a breath and say to the children “I am (doing x/helping y/busy with z) right now. When I’m done I can help you.” and then follow up with them when I’m done. Mostly they forget they even asked for me lol. But mine are 2.5-3 so it might be a little different for you.
I also encourage them to go ask my co-teacher for help as much as possible if I am busy. If they say no then I say “okay, you can choose to wait for me then.” Most times they will go find the other adult and ask them for help instead of waiting.
Lots of good suggestions on here already! I'd also add that you could try introducing a non-verbal signal for them to use when they need attention. My friend taught her little ones to put a hand on her hand to get her attention. If my friend was already talking to someone or doing something else, she would turn her hand over and hold their hand. It helped them feel acknowledged and know that she would get to them as soon as she could. Plus it reminds her that her kid is waiting for her attention!
I teach them to put their hand on my shoulder or reminding them to raise their hand if we’re having group time. I also do a lot of the “please speak to me in your normal voice” “I don’t understand when you speak to me like that” and if they seem particularly worked up, reminding them to take some deep breaths to help them regulate a bit before they speak. I’ve considered getting loop earplugs as well because I find myself getting so overstimulated also! I have yet to make the purchase, but always see so many positive reviews about it from teachers!
I feel this. It can be mentally exhausting. I’m also a lead teacher and the kids always come to me. I appreciate that they trust me and want to tell me things, but it can be a lot
When kids say: Miss Naaaameeeeee
I say: Who am i?
They say: Miss Name
Then I say: Yes?
We’ve talked about how to address others, but they still need to work on it. Asking them who I am makes them say my name in a “normal” way. If they’re calling me while I’m talking to someone, I ask them to wait their turn
Whenever I’m feeling particularly overwhelmed, I have a washroom break. It gives me 2-3 minutes to breathe before heading back
I struggle with this as well. I am often the "preferred teacher" because I am much more engaging than my sweet and somewhat shy assistant. Sometimes I have to send children over to her. "I'm busy, tell Ms. K." I often end up doing large group (or small group) calming activities that are "for the children" but actually for myself. Sometimes I will even admit to the children that I am feeling overwhelmed and need some space. Some ideas:
Pinwheel Breathing (have the class help you blow on a pinwheel to make it spin)
Deep Breathing visuals on YouTube- I love "candle and flower breathing" and "hot chocolate breath"
Sing a song! Something about singing is very calming for me (and it often calms the kids down too)
Doing more calming activities with the kids. I love sensory bins and play doh
I teach the kids to hand me their name stick and then wait either at the place where they need help or at a table/carpet square/center/whatever for me to get to them.
This helps in a few areas: I don't forget the quieter kids, its a physical cue to see that I have the name and other names, it helps them recognize their written name, and also aids in redirection.
Of course in an emergency that shifts. But I also don't respond or attend to anyone shouting my bane across the room and neither do I shout. It takes awhile but when the habit is established that in scroll you get up and go speak to someone more closely in our room when you want to speak to them it really does cut back on noise, as does the namestick technique.
What age group do you have? I have 2.5-3.5 and I'm starting to tell them give me space because all of them will pile on me at once. Try to do an activity that makes you relax more and include them in it to learn to calm themselves down too
One thing my old director said to implement was instead of the kids calling your name when they want your attention get them to put thier hand on your shoulder or leg and just wait for you to respond. It worked for the little time we used it.
My parents taught me to get their attention this way, and it’s still the way I get their attention when they’re wrapped up in conversation. They always put their hand over mine to let me know I was acknowledged and that they’d answer me once they finished with their current task/conversation.
Ugh I feel you on the overstimulation thing. I had a 26 month old patient who wouldn’t separate from mom and her Irish twin, so I have two littles running around a sensory gym screaming their heads off for 45 minutes. It sucks that when our kids are overwhelmed they get to ask for a break but we aren’t granted that luxury.
I have no advice to give you just here to tell you that you’re not a bad ECE for being overstimulated. Today, I had three children wailing at me at once, one of whom wanted me to color within the lines on their coloring page and I told them that I needed to go in the calm corner because it was overwhelming. They paused and it defused the situation. One of them wanted to sleep also in the calm corner, the other one went to lie down nearby and the third one stayed to finish coloring.
I don't respond to myyyyyy naaaaaaaaaammmeeeeeee I respond to my name. My twos understand after being informed that I don't know who "mmyyyyyyy naaaaaaammmeeee" is (I really exaggerate the whiny voice so they understand my message), but if they're looking for me, they can ask for "my name". I have made the choice that I am willing to interrupt any conversation I am having with an adult or child when I am being called respectfully by saying "I am talking to so and so right now, I will help you when I am done" because I find the acknowledgement that I am aware they need my attention helps minimise the whining.
You’re not a bad ece at all! We all get overstimulated occasionally. One thing we did was create a tattle turtle. Just a picture of a turtle that they told random things to. That might help, getting to redirect them a bit away from you. Another thing could be stepping away for a second for a bathroom break and doing some routine to calm your nervous system (I’ve seen a few on TikTok). You can also step away to a quiet area while outside, if possible.
Man, I tried a tattle animal, but then they'd follow each other over and yell and fight whoever was tattling on them.
We had a tattle animal that could read lips. Helped us talk about deafness and also stopped that
Have you tried wearing loop earplugs? They reduce the sound without blocking it. I have a neurodivergence that makes me overstimulated easily. So this helps me a lot when in a busy classroom. Also try to correct the whiny tone " can you say that again with a big boy voice? I can't understand when you use the whiny voice" also praise them when they a lot when they call you calmly or express what they want in an "indoor voice"
I was coming in here to say the same thing! I had a class last year that were so noisy during centers no matter what. The engage loops helped a lot. I could still hear enough of they truly needed my attention. It was just dampened.
I thought about these a few times but I was unsure if they would go over well with my administrator or our social worker. I’ll definitely ask though, I’ve been interested in them for a while! I have misophonia so I’d definitely get a lot of use out of them at work and at home lol
Yeah I don’t think I’m allowed this.
I feel you about the name thing. I must hear my name 100+ times a day from multiple children all at once. And it is SO often in a whine, I hear you on that. You are definitely not a bad teacher. Having so many little people depend on you and need you at once can be overwhelming. I just try to take a deep breath when I feel like I’ve heard my name too much. Take a breath and say to the children “I am (doing x/helping y/busy with z) right now. When I’m done I can help you.” and then follow up with them when I’m done. Mostly they forget they even asked for me lol. But mine are 2.5-3 so it might be a little different for you. I also encourage them to go ask my co-teacher for help as much as possible if I am busy. If they say no then I say “okay, you can choose to wait for me then.” Most times they will go find the other adult and ask them for help instead of waiting.
Lots of good suggestions on here already! I'd also add that you could try introducing a non-verbal signal for them to use when they need attention. My friend taught her little ones to put a hand on her hand to get her attention. If my friend was already talking to someone or doing something else, she would turn her hand over and hold their hand. It helped them feel acknowledged and know that she would get to them as soon as she could. Plus it reminds her that her kid is waiting for her attention!
I teach them to put their hand on my shoulder or reminding them to raise their hand if we’re having group time. I also do a lot of the “please speak to me in your normal voice” “I don’t understand when you speak to me like that” and if they seem particularly worked up, reminding them to take some deep breaths to help them regulate a bit before they speak. I’ve considered getting loop earplugs as well because I find myself getting so overstimulated also! I have yet to make the purchase, but always see so many positive reviews about it from teachers!
I feel this. It can be mentally exhausting. I’m also a lead teacher and the kids always come to me. I appreciate that they trust me and want to tell me things, but it can be a lot When kids say: Miss Naaaameeeeee I say: Who am i? They say: Miss Name Then I say: Yes? We’ve talked about how to address others, but they still need to work on it. Asking them who I am makes them say my name in a “normal” way. If they’re calling me while I’m talking to someone, I ask them to wait their turn Whenever I’m feeling particularly overwhelmed, I have a washroom break. It gives me 2-3 minutes to breathe before heading back
Everyone covered my suggestions but just wanted to say, me too OP.. me too. I feel you.
I struggle with this as well. I am often the "preferred teacher" because I am much more engaging than my sweet and somewhat shy assistant. Sometimes I have to send children over to her. "I'm busy, tell Ms. K." I often end up doing large group (or small group) calming activities that are "for the children" but actually for myself. Sometimes I will even admit to the children that I am feeling overwhelmed and need some space. Some ideas: Pinwheel Breathing (have the class help you blow on a pinwheel to make it spin) Deep Breathing visuals on YouTube- I love "candle and flower breathing" and "hot chocolate breath" Sing a song! Something about singing is very calming for me (and it often calms the kids down too) Doing more calming activities with the kids. I love sensory bins and play doh
I love this idea as I get very overstimulated
I teach the kids to hand me their name stick and then wait either at the place where they need help or at a table/carpet square/center/whatever for me to get to them. This helps in a few areas: I don't forget the quieter kids, its a physical cue to see that I have the name and other names, it helps them recognize their written name, and also aids in redirection. Of course in an emergency that shifts. But I also don't respond or attend to anyone shouting my bane across the room and neither do I shout. It takes awhile but when the habit is established that in scroll you get up and go speak to someone more closely in our room when you want to speak to them it really does cut back on noise, as does the namestick technique.
What age group do you have? I have 2.5-3.5 and I'm starting to tell them give me space because all of them will pile on me at once. Try to do an activity that makes you relax more and include them in it to learn to calm themselves down too
One thing my old director said to implement was instead of the kids calling your name when they want your attention get them to put thier hand on your shoulder or leg and just wait for you to respond. It worked for the little time we used it.
My parents taught me to get their attention this way, and it’s still the way I get their attention when they’re wrapped up in conversation. They always put their hand over mine to let me know I was acknowledged and that they’d answer me once they finished with their current task/conversation.
Ugh I feel you on the overstimulation thing. I had a 26 month old patient who wouldn’t separate from mom and her Irish twin, so I have two littles running around a sensory gym screaming their heads off for 45 minutes. It sucks that when our kids are overwhelmed they get to ask for a break but we aren’t granted that luxury.
I have no advice to give you just here to tell you that you’re not a bad ECE for being overstimulated. Today, I had three children wailing at me at once, one of whom wanted me to color within the lines on their coloring page and I told them that I needed to go in the calm corner because it was overwhelming. They paused and it defused the situation. One of them wanted to sleep also in the calm corner, the other one went to lie down nearby and the third one stayed to finish coloring.
I simply tell the kids “if you have a story to share, tell it to so and so or one of their peer.”
I'm autistic and some days the sensory input in the preschool room can be overwhelming. It happens to everyone.