Practice vocational skills by having students fill out time sheets for on & off-campus jobs, and even student businesses. This is a very age-appropriate and functional alternative to decorating a bulletin board or wall in a classroom with older students. Filling out timesheets will practice several different skills in the areas of reading, math, vocation, and life skills.
“But time sheets are outdated…”
Hours Worked = Money Earned
Yes, most businesses nowadays have converted to digital clock-in systems which is great! Unfortunately, using time sheets doesn’t practice the motion of using your fingerprint to clock in or using technology, plus those timeclocks usually cost a lot, but here’s why I like to use paper timesheets in my classroom…
Functional Math
You know how in math class just having the correct answer isn’t good enough, you have to show how you got the answer? That is the way I look at time sheets. Students should understand exactly what clocking in and clocking out really means. If you use a digital system, all you’re really doing is pushing and button when you get to work and leave work. Students should be able to practice writing down the exact times, calculating the time they worked, and how much money they will make. You can’t get that kind of learning from clocking in digitally.
Reading Digital & Analog Clocks
I have a digital and analog clock in my classroom so that all of my students can easily participate in reading the time to clock in and out. For students that need more assistance, a job coach (paraprofessional), will use a visual and/or use a highlighter to help write in the times & dates in the appropriate boxes for students to trace. Students can practice their math skills by adding up their hours at each pay period (every 2 weeks or monthly). For students that are working several jobs, have them fill out more than one timesheet to keep track of all of their hard work!
Age-Appropriate Reward System
Set up a reward or payout system (or look into having your school participate in a “work-ability” program that actually gives students a paycheck). Students can turn in their timesheets to earn preferred items. Extend the learning by having students earn fake money which they can use to purchase rewards in your student store. Having students fill in timesheets promotes independence & responsibility, and builds a sense of pride and motivation. It also makes for easy work samples or data collection!
Calendar Skills
Build Accountability & Punctuality
I hung my time sheets up on clipboards on the wall to make it easier to access and remember to fill out on a daily basis. Job coaches (paraprofessionals or the teacher) will sign off on the time sheets (like a manager would) to verify the student has filled out their timesheet correctly. I purchased these clipboards at Dollar Tree during back-to-school season, can’t find them that cheap unless you order in bulk!!
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Thanks for reading!
