Initial Thoughts On the First WeekClassroom Management
It has quickly come to my attention that classroom management is the supreme ruler of the classroom. Lessons can be put together in the most detailed fashion but may fall apart due to an unruly student. A fun and exciting lesson may be turned from complete attention and engagement to the teacher working on correct behavior. The philosophy of my classroom is that we create a community in which all students are able to learn, excel, and achieve greatness. Sounds nice in theory, right? Oh goodness. How do we get to this point?
This week I decided to try a couple ideas and see if it would help correct behavior issues in my reading class. So far this has worked quite well and has been supported by my colleges.
This system was one I had picked up during an observation of a classroom and it worked wonders. I labeled the names of the students and placed each name in a chart. Each student has four cards; green, yellow, red, and blue. Green means, "I am well behaved". Yellow, "I need to think about my actions". Red, "Recess, or a phone call home, will help remind me of proper behavior". Last we have blue, and blue means that, "I am a super star today". Students start on green each day, but if a misbehavior continues he or she will be asked to move down to yellow. If that student rectifies the behavior, he or she may be asked to move back to green. So far I have noticed two things about the card system: 1. The student takes responsibility for his or her actions and may choose to correct the behavior. 2. This chart motivates students to earn the blue "super star" title. A tweak that may come to the cards later next week. If a student moves to blue, he or she may be rewarded with a "WOW" sticker on a sticker chart. This seems to be an intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for students. I do not believe in rewarding students with candy, but a gold star is something a student may be proud to own. Perhaps if a student collects enough stickers he or she may earn a certificate.
Once upon a time, not long ago, I had an instructor teach the novel idea of a morning message. At the time this did not seem to be an important factor for the classroom; to me the morning message was just a cute idea for the little kiddos. By golly Miss Molly, my thinking was way off the chart on this escapade! It has always been my impression that children love structured activities. Knowing what is expected and what is to come are very important points for children. This made sense to me after three days of students wandering into the classroom and creating chaos, all due to the fact they did not know what to do! In the midst of frantically scheming of what to do to correct the situation, a light turned on inside my muddled mind. A morning message! Ah ha! So, how did this all go down? Students entered the room, sat in front of the board, and we began our day talking about what would happen during our class-time. We began by reading what our goal would be for the day ( Today, I will be a good listener). Students now knew what behavior was expected because it was written on the board. Next we talked about the agenda. What would happen first, second, and third? It was a clear message of expectations. Both the students and I knew what we needed to accomplish for the day. The chaos level went from a 6, on a scale of one to ten, to a 2. Eventually, with practice, the chaos will be at a zero. ( I can hardly wait for that day!)
3. Practice, Practice, Practice
Okay, so we have two essential ideas in the classroom of how management is reinforced and how management is put into play. However, we are missing a key component in this crazy game of school. How do students move from knowing the theory of correct behavior to actually carrying out correct behavior? The answer is to teach the correct behavior and then practice, practice, practice. I found this week that practice is something students need, and practice needs to be done for all aspects in the lives of students. In my classroom we practice what correct behavior looks like and what it sounds like. We practice correct behavior until it is picture perfect. Do the students like it? No. Is that what matters? No. What is important is the fact that it is my prerogative to teach students more than just content, students need to know what behavior is acceptable. Before I began my lessons this week, we practiced correct behavior. For the time being it feels as though we are not making progress but I know that we will reach our goal. The goal of creating a classroom community.
4. Lunch Dates
Building relationships with students is a critical part of teaching. This week I began having lunch dates with my students. I watched one girl in particular go from being quite withdrawn to outgoing in the classroom. Why? She now felt comfortable enough that learning and speaking with me were not stressful situations! This simple act of taking an extra ten minutes from my day will help great rapport with my students.
Extra Thoughts
1. I heard rumor that at the beginning of the school year it is important to be very firm with students. My dilemma is this: how can I be firm with my students, earn respect from them, and keep a positive attitude in the classroom? With practice and time the answer will emit, but for the time being I feel at a loss.
2. Stepping away from the age-old worksheet is something my cooperating teacher feels strongly about for her lessons. I feel that worksheets can be overkill at times. How can I gauge student learning without some type of concrete feedback?
3. Building relationships with colleges. There are many fabulous teachers in my building but there are not enough hours in a day to connect with each person! This is another aspect of my career that will come with time, but the weight of wanting to appease everyone feels heavy on my shoulders.
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