We’ve discussed your class taking assembly, but what about the time when YOU are asked to take an assembly – how confident are you in doing this and do you have to do it?
Well the answer is no you don’t have to take an assembly if you really don’t feel confident enough …just explain to the HT or DH that you would rather not do this and I would not expect anything but a positive reply.
But the flip side of this, is that it really is something that you should try to do – yes I know its a bit daunting at first and you may feel unsure about how other members of staff will perceive you or how you will control all the children…but it’s all about practice and the more you do the easier they become.
Lets look at a few scenario’s and see how best to approach them and the situations you will face:
Your first assembly:
If you have never taken a whole school assembly before then it can appear quite daunting. Perhaps you could ask if you could share it with another member of staff (maybe a colleague who is in the same situation?) – this would make things a little easier and you can support each other. Irrespective of the size of the school I would be asking the HT or DH if some members of staff could remain in the hall for the assembly. They will deal with any issues that may arise and this leaves you or both of you to just deliver the assembly.
Assembly in a small school:
If you have already taken an assembly with either a colleague or members of staff staying in the hall then there will come a time when it will be just you. This does not mean that you cannot send a child for a member of staff if something happens but it just means that you are running the show!
You should not approach the assembly differently at all. The only extra that you have to consider are behaviour or discipline factors of the children. In a small school all the children will know who you are and you should know pretty much who all the children are.
Just deliver your planned assembly but be prepared to stop / wait and address any issues directly. Don’t make too much of them, but do expect silence and good behaviour during the assembly. If necessary ask any children to see you at playtime to discuss things….in other words keep a firm grip of the situation at all times. Personally I stop for even the slightest thing and never let anything have the opportunity to escalate – this may be a nuisance at first and you may be stopping quite a lot but the children will soon understand what you expect and will respond to that.
Assembly in a large school:
Assemblies in large schools will always have extra members of staff with you – it is the sheer numbers of children that would make it difficult to deal with. Depending on the school size you may have at least 2 members of staff but for very large schools there may be many more. Again in this situation they will deal with any issues leaving you to deliver the assembly. However never be afraid to stop and ask a member of staff to deal with a child if something has happened that may not have been noticed!
Taking assemblies is all about confidence and as you know, the more you do the more confident you get – until they become pretty much a breeze!
Special assemblies with a guest:
There are certain times when a guest visits school and will take an assembly – usually the HT or DH would be present but if the gun turns to point at you what do you need to do?
- All staff will be present
- You should sit near to the front and to the side – but be at the front as the children are arriving.
- You need to introduce the guest by name and say why they are here in school and what they are going to tell us about – then sit down.
- As the guest is speaking listen to pick up 1 or 2 main points that you can mention at the end.
- When the guest has finished speaking they will look at you to let you know they have finished – stand up and as you move to the front ask for a round of applause.
- Now you have to thank your guest for coming into school and for telling us about xxxx then you need to make a short comment about the point or points that you picked up on. Thank the guest again – another round of applause.
- Ask whichever class teacher is nearest the door to take their class out.
- Make sure your class is dealt with – either colleague or T.A and then escort the guest to the office and thank them for their visit.
Well done – a good assembly and you handled it well.
Organising and planning your Assembly:
Whatever your scenario you will have to think about your assembly and make some sort of general plan. Here’s some things to consider….
- Where in the school year is your assembly?
- Where in the celebration calendar is your assembly?
- What age group is your assembly for?
To be honest there is really nothing much more to consider. If it’s at the start of the school year then there are certain topics you can talk about or if it is mothers day then that can be a focus….naturally you will grade your assembly to the age group you are facing.
Overall plan: Assemblies last about 20 minutes, if you run it too long it starts to impinge on the next lesson and colleagues can get a little jumpy over what they had planned and if you run it too short then they haven’t finished their coffee and biscuits in the staff room!
- Your first task is to quieten the children down and let them know you are ready to start – I used to clap my hands and say in a loud and clear voice “Ok I’m ready to start” and they should quieten down. If any child takes too long then ask ” Billy (or whatever) why am I waiting for you?”
- Opening chat…this may be to talk to the children about the time of year / celebration etc and it may be a time to ask some questions to find out what they know. If it’s not a time of year then still have a chat about anything really – could be the seasons, something that has happened to your dog / cat, something that you have seen in the playground kindness, bravery etc (but don’t name names). Or relate it to the next part of your assembly which is…
- The story – Now you are going to ask me about finding stories to suit assemblies and topics and here’s the answer – get a book!
- This is the book I used for years as both a teacher, DH and HT and I will tell you why it was so useful a little later in the article.
- Sing – all your assemblies should have a song. Make sure you have arranged this with the Y6 monitors (most schools have these) and that they are all sorted with the music and the overhead or screen projection.
- Prayer or reflection: Depending on your school and perhaps following the example of other more senior staff you will decide on whether to do a short prayer or a “reflection” with eyes closed where we think about …..
- Thank everyone for listening and if necessary send an older child to get the teachers.
Your Assembly book: Just a final few notes on choosing an assembly book
I have done a quick check and you can still buy on Amazon the book I used for my assemblies – however there are of course many many other books out there. The great thing about the book I had was this and you should consider these points when choosing your book..
- It had an assembly for every week of every term and geared the assembly content to the time of year
- It had a theme index with stories listed
- It had an alphabetical index of stories
At its most basic you could select a theme …lets say kindness and look up a whole assembly to deliver (although you may have to change the song!) – this is great as you move upwards in school management as you may be asked with VERY short notice to take an assembly – in fact there have been occasions where I have been looking through the book as I walked down the corridor to the hall !
So my advice – even though you may be nervous or unsure…do pitch in and have a go! Its not as hard as you think and its great experience as your career develops.
Be natural, be amusing, be yourself and above all have fun!
Charles