Giving your students leadership roles in your school empowers them.

If you teach students how to do a job around the school and if you trust that they can do the job, they will amaze you with their competence.

They will assume a sense of ownership for that job and they will take great pride in performing their job correctly.

There are countless opportunities for students to be leaders in your school.  Depending on what grades you have in your building, you can assign tasks for each grade level or you can just have your senior students take on  leadership roles.

That choice is yours.

Personally, I like to have every grade in charge of some activity  so that the entire student population has some ownership for a part of life within or around the school.

For example,  in an elementary school with grades K – 6 , the jobs could be as follows:

Kindergarten   Litter Monitors

• typically the K’s will not need to be involved until the spring
• teach them where the litter tools are located
• make sure you have lots of containers and litter grabbers
• teach them the safe way to collect litter
• teach them what to do if they find glass or unsafe items on the playground

Grade 1             Litter Monitors

• at the first of the year, review all the steps listed above for K’s
• let them know how important this job is for the school

Grade 2            Litter Monitors

• review all the steps listed for K’s
• remind your grade 3’s they are the  “senior” playground litter controllers
• have the grade 3’s “train” the K’s in the spring when the K’s are ready

Grade 3            Recycling Program Monitors

• teach the students how to collect all recycling from around the building
• teach them how to rinse juice boxes
• teach them how to sort and store recycling materials
• teach them how to flatten boxes

Grade 4            Gym Equipment Monitors

• teach the students how the gym equipment should be stored
• teach them the difference between indoor and outdoor equipment
• establish a schedule if you allow gym equipment to go outside
• label all equipment and teach the students how to sort and store items
• teach the students how to inflate gym balls

Grade 5            Assembly Set-Up Monitors and Library Monitors

• teach the students the various  floor plans for assemblies
• teach the students how to properly set up chairs for staff and parents
• teach the students how to properly fold and stack the chairs
• teach the students how to set up the podium, microphones and speakers

Grade 6            The list for senior students is far more substantial

Your senior students can help you “run” the school as

Office Monitors

• teach them your expectations of proper etiquette for the front office
• have your administrative assistant help train them how to use her area
• teach the phone monitors how to answer the phones
• create  a “script”  for the phone monitors to follow when answering the phones
• teach the students how to use the PA system
• create a “script” for the students to follow when making PA announcements
• create a schedule, for the year, for your Office Monitors
• I liked having the students on for two-week shifts
• have your grade 6’s train the grade 5’s in June so they are ready for September

Morning Announcers

• create a “script” for the students to follow when they make announcements
• teach them how to speak when they are using the PA
• create a schedule, for the year, for your Morning Announcers
• I liked having the students on for two-week shifts
• have your grade 6’s help train the grade 5’s,  in June,  so they are ready for September

EMCEE’s at Assemblies

• teach your students how to lead an assembly
• teach your entire school population how to follow a “quiet signal”
• teach your MC’s how to use the quiet signal
• create a “script” for you MC’s to follow
• teach your MC’s how to properly use the microphone
• have your MC’s rehearse their parts the day before the assembly with the mic
• teach your students  proper MC etiquette

Technology Experts

• teach your students how to fix common issues with SMART BOARDS
• train your students on how to set up the sound system in the gym
• train your tech monitors how to properly handle/coil all electrical cables
• teach your monitors how to set up your outdoor sound system
• teach your keen monitors how to prepare power point presentations
• once your students know how to prepare powerpoint presentation, have them design presentations for each assembly
• teach the monitors how to present their power point presentation
• teach your keeners how to run the projector for assemblies/SMART BOARDS

Lighting Experts for Concerts

• train your lighting crew to use the dimmer board
• train your lighting crew to work with the concert leader for lighting cues

Stage Managers

• train your stage crew how to set up and take down a portable stage and risers

Bulletin  Board Monitors

• train them how to maintain the hallway bulletin boards

Lost and Found Monitors

• Train them  how to display lost and found items at key times in the year
• Train them  how to gather up and put away the unclaimed items for charity

Give the children the chance to show you how capable they are and they will astound you!

Watching my grade 6 students lead an assembly, with over 400 people in attendance,  always made my heart sing.  Those students knew how to garner the attention of everyone, how to open the assembly, lead the assembly and close it.

As the school principal, it would have been easy for me to lead all  the assemblies, but why would I do that when my students could benefit from being leaders and could learn public speaking skills?

I was always very  proud of my student leaders.  I wanted them to carry that confidence and those leadership skills into middle school and beyond.

I believed in them and I saw that they believed in their abilities too!

I am certain you have several more to add to my list of possible leadership roles your students can assume in your school.  If so, please add those in your comments below.

Thank you for visiting my website.

Susan MacNeil