This example is so incredulous that you may think it’s
fiction. It’s not. It is a true situation.
Elise, a new teacher on her first day of school, brought in
a roll of toilet paper. Everyone took as much as they
wanted without knowing what the assignment was. She kept it a
"juicy little secret!" Then, they had to tell one thing
about themselves for each sheet of paper. What a disaster!
- Students started giving "inappropriate" information about
themselves.
- The self proclaimed "class clown" that took almost 25
sheets had to
make up 25 silly things to say!
- The terribly shy student had to suffer through making up 5 things.
What a mistaken use of valuable class time. The classroom collapsed.
Needless to say, she was miserable and left teaching after two days
and is a telemarketer today.
Classroom Management with Procedures
Chelonnda Seroyer, a teacher in Madison, Alabama, went to the
same college, took many of the same courses, and began teaching at the
same time as Elise. However, Chelonnda was successful
on her first day of school and is recognized today, after only two years
of teaching, as an exceptional teacher.
On her first day of school, Chelonnda was standing at her door, dressed
professionally, greeting her students. Her friendly smile and
firm handshake hid the fear and anxiety she felt, wondering what her
first class and her first day as a teacher would be like.
Shaking internally, Chelonnda nonetheless had a strange premonition.
She turned to look into her room and breathed a sigh of relief.
All of the students were at their desks at work –
and the bell had not even rung to begin the first second of Chelonnda’s
career as a teacher.
Chelonnda can tell you the answer to her success in one word,
Procedures. She further explains, “My
students enjoy having a predictable environment. They feel safe
because they know exactly what to expect each day. They like consistency
in a world that can be very inconsistent. Procedures are simple,
but their impact is enormous.” Chelonnda’s procedures
can be seen at http://teachers.net/wong/FEB05/
and on www.ClassroomManagement.com.
It's All in How You Start
Classrooms are managed with procedures and routines.
Students readily accept a uniform set of classroom procedures because
it simplifies their task in succeeding in school. Efficient and
workable procedures allow many activities to take place with a minimum
amount of confusion and wasted time. Procedures help a teacher
to structure and organize a classroom for maximum engaged learning time.
The first day of school is the most important day of the school
year. If you start the first day of school incorrectly,
you may never recover for the rest of the year. Effective teachers
know how to begin the first day of school and maximize use of class
time for learning.
Your first priority when class begins is not to take the roll;
it is to get the students to work. An assignment must
be available, and the students must know the procedure for getting to
work immediately. Do not destroy prime time with non-prime time
activities such as taking the attendance, making announcements, answering
questions, or collecting papers.
Have an assignment ready on the board written in the same place every
day. Some teachers call this “bellwork,” because at
the sound of the bell, work must begin. Teach your students to
enter the classroom quietly and start immediately on the bellwork.
Or choose some other activity to start each day. The important
thing is to get the students working immediately.
Classroom Management Plan in a Binder
Have you ever seen the reality show, "Super Nanny?"
A "Super Nanny" goes into a disrupted home with misbehaving
children and she sets up a consistent routine that solves the problems.
Her major message is CONSISTENCY!
Sarah Jondahl, a teacher in California, was ready the first
day of her teaching career with a specific, consistent classroom management
action plan in a binder. Although the binder took months
of work to compile, her plan resulted in her success from her very
first minute of her teaching career.
Sarah’s plan includes a letter she sends to her students prior
to the first day. It tells a little about her background and sets
her students’ expectations for lots of work and learning.
It also has the class’s first homework assignment.
She scripted or planned each activity the first day of school as follows:
Greet each student at the door
- Direct them toward their assigned seats (alphabetical)
- Tell child to read and follow the instructions written on the board
– the bellwork
- Introduce myself
- Teach classroom procedures
- Teach classroom rules, consequences, and rewards
- Communicate the expectations of the classroom
The key words in real estate are location, location, location. In education
the three key words for maximizing learning time are PREPARE, PREPARE,
PREPARE.
The two major problems in a classroom are movement and noise.
Sarah had these solved on her first day of school. She planned
out exactly how her students were to enter the classroom in the morning,
come in from recess, line up to leave the classroom, get ready for lunch,
walk in the halls, and get ready for dismissal.
Maximizing Learning Time
Today Sarah Jondahl is an accomplished fifth-year teacher. She
says, “My classroom management plan is based on establishing procedures
I learned from the book, The First Days of School. Having
procedures in place from day one and teaching my students about these
procedures made the educational experience in my classroom extremely
effective.”
Teachers like Sarah Jondahl will succeed in any kind of a school, because
it truly makes no difference whether you teach in a public, private,
or charter school, whether your school is traditional or year-round,
or whether your students are urban or rural. All effective teachers
have procedures to assist in managing a classroom and maximize learning
time.
Sarah Jondahl had procedures and routines ready for her to teach on
the first day and first week of school, such as:
| Entering the Classroom |
Students enter the classroom quietly and calmly, put their
belongings away quickly according to the morning routine, and
do the bellwork.
|
| |
| Bell work |
Each morning there is a bell work assignment on the board or
overhead projector. Students enter the classroom and get
started on the assignment.
|
| |
| Quieting the Class |
I raise my hand to quiet the class.
|
| |
| Taking Class Roll |
A student is taught the procedure of how to be the “Attendance
Keeper.” This student places an “Absent”
folder on that desk of the student who is absent. I can then
glance around the room quickly and know who is absent.
|
| |
| Class Motto |
Every morning the class says the classroom motto, which is
posted on the wall in the front of the room. Everyone
stands and says the motto together to start off our day.
|
| |
| Collecting Seat Work |
Work is collected according to the configuration of the desks.
If the desks are arranged in rows, students collect their seatwork
by passing the papers across their rows. Students seated
at tables collect their work by placing their finished papers
in the middle of their table. The student whose job is
to collect papers walks around the room and picks up each table’s
stack of papers and puts them in the finished work basket at
the front of the room.
|
| |
| Turning in Work |
There are two baskets placed in the front of the room.
One basket is labeled “class work” and the other
is labeled “homework.” Children place their
work in the appropriate basket.
|
| |
| Notes From Home |
Students place any notes from home in the basket labeled “Notes
from Home.”
|
| |
| Restroom Breaks |
Individual students are allowed to go to the bathroom four
times a month without having a tally pulled. They use
their daily agendas as their pass and have the teacher sign
and date when they are going. Only one student may use
the restroom at a time. Students are excused as a class
to go to the restroom during lunch and recess.
|
| |
| Going to Lunch |
Students make two lines by the outside door, one for “home
lunches” and one for “school lunches.”
The students buying their lunches line up in alphabetical order.
Students are picked up after lunch on the blacktop as they wait
in the area of their classroom number. (Numbers are painted
on the blacktop.)
|
| |
| Cafeteria |
Students follow the cafeteria procedures as well as the classroom
rules. Students clean up their sitting area after they
are done. Students should be on their best behavior by
using “Please” and "Thank You.”
|
| |
| Working in Cooperative Groups |
Students are placed in teacher chosen groups at all
times. They are reminded of the procedure for Support Groups.
|
- You are responsible for your own work.
- You are to ask a “support buddy” for help if
you have a question.
- You must help if you are asked for help.
- You may ask for help from the teacher when the group agrees
on the same question.
|
| |
| Picking Monitors |
Students are chosen to do things in class by picking a Popsicle
stick from the can labeled “Pick a Stick.”
Each student’s name is written on the bottom end of a
Popsicle stick and the sticks are all placed in a can.
The teacher draws a stick in order to pick students for a variety
of things.
|
| |
| Pinning Up Class Work |
Students pin up their work on the clothesline in the front
of the classroom. Whenever an activity that requires glue
or paint is completed, the clothesline is used to hang the paper
to dry. At the end of the day the students remove their
dried papers and stack them in the “Class Work”
basket.
|
| |
| Keeping the Noise Level Down |
A traffic signal is used to remind the students of the noise
level for the classroom. A large cutout stoplight is hung
in the front of the room with three black circles and a hook
on each circle. Green, yellow, and red circles have been
cut to fit over the black circle. The red circle is hung
from its hook to indicate silent time, the yellow circle for
whisper time, and the green circle for talk freely time.
Classical music is played during class time. Children keep
their noise levels lower than the sound of the music.
|
| |
| Sending Notes Home |
Notes to go home to parents at the end of the day are placed
in the cubbies. This is the cubby keeper’s job to
do. Students are responsible for sharing all of the notes
with parents each evening.
|
| |
| When a Student Is Absent |
When a student is absent, an absent folder with a yellow sticker
is placed on that student’s desk. Copies of all
papers passed out during class or any notes that need to go
home are placed inside the folder. When the student comes
back to school he/she knows to complete the missed work in the
yellow folder. The absent work is placed on the shelf
in the front office of the school for parents to pick up after
3:00 p.m.
|
| |
| Changing Groups/Transitions |
The teacher gives a verbal announcement of five minutes left
before changing centers, lessons, activities, etc. When
it is time to change, a variety of methods are used.
|
- Play music
- Snap/clap rhythm pattern led by teacher
- A bell is rung
|
Students know what these different signals mean and make the
change quickly and quietly.
|
| |
| If the Teacher Is Out of the Classroom |
Students remain on task while the teacher is out of the room.
Classroom rules and procedures are followed as they continue
their work. The classroom aide or a teacher next door is available
for help if needed.
|
| |
| Daily Closing Message |
At the end of the day the class reads the daily closing message,
a short summary of the day’s events. One child is
chosen to read this message to the class as everyone else follows
along. The daily closing message is prepared during the
day by the teacher and then photocopied for each student to
share with their parents that evening. This communication
tool is a great way for teachers to keep parents aware of upcoming
events, important information, and the children’s day
in school.
|
| |
| Saying “Thank You.” |
At all times remember to say thank you to one another.
Along with thank you, “please” should also be used
at all times.
|
| |
| End of Class Dismissal |
The bell does not dismiss the class; I dismiss the class.
Students are dismissed when called upon, either individually
or by groups.
|
| |
| Transportation |
Students follow the school’s rules and classroom’s
procedures even when riding in vehicles on school outings.
When walking to or from the bus or car, the procedures for the
halls are followed. Students stay seated while on the
bus or in the car and respect the property. Seat belts
are worn at all times. Low voices are always used in the
vehicle. There is no eating in the car or bus unless the
driver says it’s okay.
|
eLearning Classroom Management
Sarah’s classroom management action plan is the heart
of the eLearning course featured on the web site www.ClassroomManagement.com.
The purpose of the course is to teach teachers how to structure
and organize a classroom for maximum engaged learning time.
The eLearning course, designed to help you produce a Classroom
Management Action Plan
- can be taken on demand, at school or at home;
- is an interactive course. It is not a talking head lecture course
so common with many online classes—boring and a giant step backwards
in modeling how teaching should be done; and
- the end result is a two-inch binder with a teacher’s personal
Classroom Management Action Plan.
This eLearning course is the most advanced and exciting one produced
for educators. It is unlike and far beyond any eLearning
or distance learning course you have seen or experienced.
The graphics, style, and quality of the production will amaze you.
More importantly, it will help a teacher to produce his or
her own personal classroom management action plan for student and teacher
success.
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