Handling Classroom Management and Behavior

I am linking up with other teachers to reflect on what is working and what is not working in our classrooms as we prepare for next year. If you would like to find out what other teachers are doing, click on the image to get to Laura Graham's blog, Where the Magic Happens, for the links.

Handle Classroom Management and Behavior

Classroom management is so important if you want to have a successful year with your students. There are many different methods used, and I have tried several over the years. What I have discovered, is that for most children, if they feel valued and respected, they are more likely to want to be respectful and responsible members of the class community.

Every year I begin my lessons with a focus on self esteem and this makes a huge difference to the tone of the class. Acts of kindness, bucket filling, and celebrating talents are integral parts of these lessons. I also include the seven habits for kids.

Establishing routines is very important if you want to have control in the classroom. I have discovered that children respond well to routine and structure. I have some routines that I use every year. I also try to make my timetable as consistent as possible so that the routines are similar each day. This has been a calming influence in my classroom.

This year I have been using some of the Whole Brain Teaching in my class as well. I am amazed at how well the rules work and how much more focused my students are. I will definitely be continuing to add more elements of this into my teaching next year.

I used to do tickets, stickers, and draws, but I found that the kids were less likely to behave appropriately when the rewards were not given out frequently. Also, the ones that always behaved were receiving most of the tickets and those that needed the positives were finding it to be a negative. I know that this is not the case for all teachers, but it was for me.

I found that changing my focus to catching kids behaving appropriately and encouraging that behavior through verbal praise worked much better. Others also noticed and praised the students.

I still do some rewards and group challenges, but for specific goals and they are short term.

When I started to read about Whole Brain Teaching, I discovered that the students could be more instrumental in helping to develop a  positive environment and that they could become more responsible and accountable for their behavior choices. I really liked the way this worked this year in my class, so it will definitely remain and be developed further next year.

I will also continue with my self esteem lessons at the beginning of the year, as they set the tone for the rest of the year. We refer back to the concepts throughout the year and we build on them as well.

The establishment of routines and a consistent timetable will remain as well.

Here are some of the products that I use for my self esteem lessons and routines.