A Toolbox for Effective Classroom Management

Erin Simmons

11 November 2013

**Philosophy of Classroom Management**

! My classroom is an orchestra led by a passionate conductor. In an orchestra, each

musician plays a part of the score; in my classroom, each students plays a part in the classroom

culture and the progress of their learning. Together, the classroom sounds of a single, united

movement toward more knowledge and deeper understanding. At times, a wrong note is hit, the

conductor loses the measure, and a section drops a beat, but this management plan helps to

prepare me and my musicians to avoid as often as possible wrong notes, losing our place, and

dropping a beat, and most importantly, it also helps us to get back on track when such things

inevitably happen.

There are approximately sixty eight thousand two hundred and fifty minutes in the school

year. Each minute can be either productive time on task or unproductive time spent on something

other than learning. An effective classroom management is the single most important tool for

making the most of school time and providing students with a safe, dependable environment.

Setting clear behavioral and academic expectations that my students can participate in and

practice on a regular basis teaches them the culture of my classroom and how it is that they can

experience success with me this year. Though it may seem restricting, these rules and procedures

give students the structure and guidance they need to reach their full potentials as scholars.

My classroom management plan also helps to communicate the tone of my classroom:

scholarly, fluid, and intimate. Learning is the ultimate aim for my students; it is the goal and end

to all that is done and said in the classroom.Each of the strategies and resources suggested in this

management plan are intended to increase time on task and minimize time not spent on learning.

The included strategies and resources also help to keep things running. Transitions are smooth

and the school day progresses with grace and fluidity. Of course, this cannot be attained without

intimacy. I want to make myself available to my students academically and emotionally. A

personal connection and a professional relationship with students together help create an

environment that encourages success and intrinsic motivation.

The following pages of this plan spell out the procedures and routines necessary to help

me to get connected with my students families, reduce misbehavior and time off task, and keep

lessons and class time running with minimal interruption. Such an environment allows my

musicians to focus on their single responsibility: to play their part of the score to the best of their

ability and, when mistakes are made, to gracefully recover and continue playing.

**The First Days of School**! The first day of school is an exciting and momentous day in the school year and the several days that follow are equally so! Though the first days of school tend to make most students nervous because they are entering a new classroom with a teacher and several peers that they do not know, these days provide the class with the opportunity to set the tone for the school year and kick start the journeys of their own unique development over the next several months- something I am very much looking forward to witnessing! My ultimate goals this school year are to invite my students to be (1) deep thinkers who are proud of their thoughts and develop a habit of expressing themselves orally and through written word, (2) courteous members of a learning community who reflect often on how their actions and words affect others, and finally, (3) to be scholars who thirst for knowledge and seek information and ideas from everywhere around them. In order to achieve these goals, I will begin instilling the needed attitudes and practices in my students on the first day of school. I intend to:

**Prepare an Inspiring and Custom Classroom Setting**! -Leave no wall bare! Posters that both reinforce the curriculum and generate curiosity for other topics will be all around the room. -Reserve special sections of the walls and shelves for student work, objects that represent my students1, and class projects that personalize the classroom and make students feel at home and proud to be learning. -Display posters that will encourage students to model grade level behavior and thinking skills, instilling pride and excitement for the year ahead2. -Arrange desks in groups so that students expect regular collaboration. -Make the reading center the focal point of the room. I want to communicate to my students that reading is central and always encouraged. -Play I Spy3: to familiarize students with the classroom.

**Create a Welcoming Atmosphere**! -Greet each student and parent at the door with a handshake. As best I can, I will attempt to make genuine and strategic conversation to learn as much as I can about my students’ families and make a warm and welcoming first impression for parents. -Put out name tags for students to pick up and find their assigned4 seats. -Break the Ice: Morning Meeting: About Me: give my students lots of background information on me- pictures of my family, my favorite places, the schools I’ve attended, etc. Allow time for questions before inviting students to share their names and a bit about themselves (they can use my introduction as a model).

1 See attached document for an explanation of all footnotes.

2

3

4

-Create Favorites Graphs5

-Place Need-to-Know Notes6 at every desk. from me that contains need-to-know information about how to survive and thrive in my class.

**Model Respect for Others**! -Communicate my respect for my students by having each child’s name memorized. It also helps me to more easily put a name to a face and be ready to use the students names without name tags on the second day of school. -Model and explain the Golden Rule: treat others as you would like to be treated. -Kneel when I am talking to a specific child for a duration of time so as to not literally talk down to them. -Listen carefully to the comments made by my students and humor their curiosity and observations to show that their ideas and input are very important to me -Strive to make every interaction with my students, colleagues, and parents positive and productive and hope that it inspires similar behavior in my students.

**Bring a Contagious Enthusiasm for Learning**! -Give a carefully written overview of the content to be learned in the year ahead- thematic unit titles, highlights of projects, possible field trips, etc. -Have examples of work that my students will be completing, as well as students from my grade school days will be on display. -Have students share their experiences in the previous grade level to give me a sense of what attitudes toward learning they will be starting the year with. -Ask students about their favorite subjects, things they want to learn about, and what kind of work they would like to do or would not like to do in the classroom. -Emphasize that “success is being the best scholar you can be.”

**Establish Necessary Rules** -Explain the Two out of Three, Fine by Me7

-Brainstorm, as a class, ways that each student can accomplish these rules and record them onto a class contract that each student signs: Be kind. Be safe. Be honest. Be open. Be yourself.

**Promote Time Management and Order** -Teach when and how to ask about: hall passes, pencil sharpening, water fountain, etc. -Sing “The first thing I do is always the same. I pick up my pencil and write my name.” -Hold Morning Meeting: Students come to the rug to discuss how they are feeling that day and how they anticipate the day will be.

5 See attached document for an explanation of all footnotes.

6

7

-Give students the duration of a song8 to clean up, set up, and be prepared to learn. -Read the agenda for the day in chorus by the entire class every morning after the flag salute.

**Foster Responsibility and A Spirit of Hard Work**! -Rotate students weekly through the list of class jobs that are assigned on Mondays and posted on the wall for the class to see. -Hold students accountable for not doing homework by having to come see me at the start of recess to explain why their homework was incomplete. They will not be held in, but this will help me to notice patterns quickly and find specific ways to encourage and motivate these individual students. Students who do not see me but have not turned in homework will have to take home a parent note.

**Inspire Students to Get Involved and Get Excited** -Teach students several call and response chants specific to content areas, need for motivation/ a pick-me-up, and a celebratory chant. -“Hocus Pocus!” “We are focused!” -“Hey Hey, # grade!” “Hey hey, Ms. Simmons!” -“Are you up for the challenge?” “We are UP for the challenge!” -Introduce the subtle and effective thumbs up/ thumbs downs/ thumbs in between tool for a quick and informal assessment. -Require that each student shares an idea or volunteers an answer twice in the day o that the class hears various perspectives and students get used to expressing themselves. The students that don’t volunteer an answer are called on towards the end of the day. I will use popsicle sticks with students names’ to keep track of who has shared. -Use Think. Pair. Share.9

8 See attached document for an explanation of all footnotes.

9

**The First Days of School**The Footnotes Explained

1) “Objects that represent my students:” -In order to make the classroom feel like home, I will ask students to bring various items throughout the year to display on the walls and shelves. They could be objects that are the favorite color of my student, a favorite flower, a cool rock that a student picked up, etc. The point is for students to look around the room and see a reflection of who they are on the walls and shelves of every corner in the classroom.

2) “Several posters will encourage students to model grade level behavior and thinking skills, instilling pride and excitement for the year ahead.” -For example, a poster may have a list of questions that scholars might ask themselves when reading something for the first time. I could also go a bit on the cheesy side and have a poster of an airplane (not a general cartoon airplane, but a real one; maybe even an airplane model) and have the words “Ready to Take off for __ Grade!”

3) “I Spy” -Letters will be posted around the room (on the pencil sharpener, at the teacher’s desk, above the bathroom passes, inside the papers-to-be-turned-in bin, above the water fountain, in front of the tissue box, etc). Students will have a list of clues on a sheet of paper that leads them to a landmark in the classroom. As students solve the riddles/cues and find the letters attached to the landmark, they will eventually piece together a welcoming message!

4) “Assigned seats” -Not all students will have a friend coming into class with them while other students will. Allowing students to sit where they want benefits those with friends and terrifies those without. Assigned seating may terrify students with friends and may provide slight alleviation of fear for those without friends. To assign seats or not is a gamble when it comes to which will make the class most comfortable. I’ve decided that seating students in alphabetical order and then changing the seating arrangement a week or two later to one that is more strategic (maybe according to learning styles, performance levels, etc.) is best. I have yet to read any research on seating arrangements, especially for the first day of school, so if you, my future self, have learned about that since now, feel free to ignore Old-Self!

5) “Favorites graphs” -I will take a poll of favorite things: favorite pizza, favorite TV shows, favorite content area/subject, favorite genre of literature, favorite animal, favorite color, etc. Then take the data and organize it using a variety of charts and graphs (bar, pie, box-and-whisker, etc.). I can use these during math time (depending on grade level) or just have in the classroom so that such pictorial representations of data at least look familiar when they are taught in future grades.

6) “Need-to-Know Notes” -A note from me to my students telling them what they need to know to survive and thrive in my class. Touches things along the lines of high expectations, my role as their teacher, and the classroom culture I want to cultivate.

7) “Two out of Three, Fine by Me” -Is it nice? Is it honest? Is it necessary?

8) Transition Songs: I will have a very small library of songs, maybe three or four, to use to cue and time transition times so that students can get used to the length of each song and can budget their time accordingly.

9) “Show Me Five” -The five signs of readiness: (1) hands down, (2) voices off, (3) eyes on the speaker, (4) ears open, and (5) brain juices flowing!

10) “Think. Pair. Share.” -Think about your answer in your head. Pair up with a partnerand compare your answers to come up with one powerhouse answer. Share your new answer with the class.

**Prevention Plan**To ensure that time in the classroom is spent learning, there are a number of prevention strategies that work defensively against misbehavior and other class distractions. They provide all students with enough structure to navigate the classroom and understand clearly the behaviors expected of them. Of course, these routines and procedures must be taught over and over again the first two weeks of school until they are followed exactly and students must be reminded of them occasionally throughout the year. “If you believe in your heart that your students can follow your lead, if you instruct them to do so with a warm but demanding tone, create a plan, communicate the plan to your students, and hold your ground, you will watch your students follow through and be prepared for learning.” Dr. Wilson. Before reading on, it is important to know that the single, most powerful tool for classroom management is a well planned lesson. Think through the “what ifs” and leave no room for misbehavior. The next tool is a class pledge. They unify the class and sets clear behavior expectations and culture in the classroom.Class Pledge: I pledge to grow my brain, show courtesy and respect to all things and people, and to always, always, always give my best effort.” The students sign the class pledge after brainstorming the specific ways students can (1) grow their brains, (2) show courtesy and respect to all things and people, and (3) give their best effort/never give up.

**Class Running Procedures**These procedures aim to keep the classroom orderly and safe.

Administrative Procedures:***Taking Attendance and Lunch Orders: a chart will be placed on a wall of the room. As students walk in, they take their name from the first section of the chart (the absent column) and move it under either “hot” or “cold” lunch. The names that remain are the students that are absent and the lunch count is done.

Procedures for Student Movement:***Bathroom Passes: Only one student of each gender is allowed to use the bathroom at the same time. There will be a girl bathroom pass and boy bathroom pass at the door. If there is a pass available for the student who would like to be excused to use the bathroom, they may ask by using the silent “R” sign-language symbol. Once I see it, I will either allow or refuse the student permission to use the bathroom. If there is not a pass available, the student should not ask to go to the bathroom. ***Receiving and Passing Out Materials: Two students will be selected as Materials Managers. They are responsible for collecting and passing out materials, including classwork and homework.***Dismissal Procedure: An instrument will be used to signal students’ attention (a specific instrument designates lunch or recess time). At the sound of the symbol, students have 45 seconds to put all things away and SLANT (Sit up, Lean forward, Ask and Answer Questions, Nod your head occasionally, and Track the speaker). I call on the first table to show me SLANT and the person at the table with the best SLANT chooses the next table to line up (popcorn style).

Housekeeping Procedures:***Class Jobs: students take turns being randomly selected to choose their class job. For example, I will draw a name and the person whose name I drew gets to select any available job. The jobs are: two Materials Managers, one Librarian, one Line Leader, three Class Monitors, and Two calendar organizers.

**Lesson-Running Procedures**These are procedures that encourage the behaviors that are necessary for teaching and learning to

take place during explicit instruction time.

Morning Routine:***Class Entrance: Students get their homework and supplies out of their backpacks, place their backpacks on the hangers, and wait in line to receive a hand shake and a greeting at the door.***Do Now: Upon entering the classroom, students set their homework on the corner of their desks to be picked up by the Materials Managers and begin the Do Now written on the board. The Do Now will NOT be drill work. This sets the tone for the day, so I want students to be

excited about the Do Now: MadLibs practice parts of speech, they can write about their weekend, respond to a poem, write a haiku, write what they ate for breakfast, etc.***Homework Business: The Materials Managers turn in the collected homework to my desk and pick up the corrected homework to pass out to the class. We talk about the Do Now briefly as a class and then go over the fuzzy areas on the passed backed homework.

Procedures During the Lesson:***What to Bring: I ask students for the time and then students look at the agenda to tell me the content to begin at said time. Below the content area and time on the agenda is a list of materials needed. Students pull out what they have and the Materials Managers pass out what the students need. ***Heading: Every paper that a student writes on must have his or her name, the date, and my name- even if it is a page inside of their workbook.***Moving Between Centers: a song will play and the students have the duration of the song to clean their previous center and be ready to go at the next center.***Relieving Energy: At the beginning of the year, students will receive two index cards. On one card, they write a verb (jump, spin, clap, etc.). On the other, they write a preposition (under, beside, above, etc.). When the class needs a break, pull out the index cards and partner a randomly selected verb with a randomly selected preposition. To maintain control and safety, you choose the noun. Have the students whose verb and preposition you chose come to the front of the class to lead the activity for seven seconds. For example, Jump Under.... the Ceiling! The students who wrote Jump and Under head to the front of the class to lead.

Procedures for Confusion:***What to Do if a Student Doesn’t Understand: The student is to first seek the answer to their question by scanning the board or the walls. If they cannot find the answer, they may ask their academic partner. If the academic partner does not know the answer, they may consult their table team. If all other options fail, they may raise their hand to ask the teacher.***What to do if you are finished early: There are some options: (1) read a book and fill out a reading log (super simple, quick, fill in the blank sheets), (2) correct returned homework, or (3) write in their journals.

**Interaction Procedures**These procedures specify when talking is permitted and how it is to occur. They make it so that the attention of the students is never out of reach and they are aware of the behavior boundaries.

Talk Between Teacher and Students:***During Whole Class Lesson: students may raise their hands to participate in whole-group lessons. Students who shout out will not be called on and the entire class will be reminded to use the appropriate hand signal to share ideas. ***During Small Group Lesson: students may write their group number or individual name on the board if they have a well thought out question. I will go to the student or group when I can.

***After Recess/Lunch: students may not come up to me after entering the class to tattle on a classmate or complain about something that happened during recess. Instead, students may fill out an Attn Slip (Attention Ms. Simmons/Peer, today during _____, I ____________________ and _____________________________. It made me feel _______________.) and place it in the Attention Box. I will read the slips during independent work and determine if any are serious enough to address. ***Attention Signal: teacher: “1, 2, 3, eyes on me.” students: “1, 2 eyes on you.” or clap signal “teachers: 1 + a2 + (hold 3) students: + 4).***Effective Praise: I will be sure to give students feedback as often as possible. When I offer praise, it will be specific and honest. Be careful not to give the same students praise- praise all students for their individual achievements.

Talk Among Students:***Who Should You be Talking to Right Now? Poster. The answer depends on the time. During Independent Work: yourself silently, in your head. During Center Time: only those in your group During Cooperative Learning Activities: those around you***Noise Level: students must be quiet enough to hear the music playing- I control the volume.

**Intervention Plan**! Though you may have the best prevention strategies in place, students will inevitably misbehave. To be sure that your emotions aren’t leading the course and you respond appropriately to every misbehavior requiring some sort of consequence, an intervention plan is necessary. Responding to misbehavior is important because it shows students that you intend to maintain a safe, caring, and respectful classroom environment.

**General Guidelines for Responding to Misbehavior**For every incident of misbehavior, the teacher must always:! -Remain calm -Assume the best in the students: act as if they just didn’t know what to do and re-teach the expected behavior. -Preserve the student’s dignity: correct the student in private or use lightning quick public correction. -Minimize disruption to time on task: don’t stop the lesson to address a misbehavior. -Respond appropriately and consistently.

**Appropriate Responses**Use good judgement to determine the severity of the misbehavior and use the following as a guide to the resulting consequence/ required teacher action. ...To Minor Misbehaviors (talking, not raising their hands, being off task, etc): -Ignore -Use proximity: walk near the child -Give a non-verbal response: make eye contact or use a hand symbol to show the student that he or she should be doing what is expected. -Give a verbal cue using positive framing: “Everyone should be using their pencils right now.” -Give private correction: “I noticed that you weren’t being the best scholar you could be today when you were playing with your pencils. Next time, you should be on task with the rest of your class.” -Give lightening quick public correction: “James, you should be writing your spelling words down. May, what is the next word?”...To Chronic Misbehaviors (talking, tardiness, getting out of their seat, etc.): -Establish a new routine: plan a new routine that will prevent the issue and have the students practice it. (If students take a very long time to transition from recess to class time, teach them to do a Do Now when they walk into the class). -Create a behavior contract with the student....To More Serious Misbehavior (hitting a student, foul language, disrespecting the teacher, etc): -Tell the student to step outside. -Give the student private correction as soon as possible. -tell what misbehavior was observed -explain why the misbehavior is not tolerated

-give the student two to three possible consequences for his or her actions and allow them to choose their own. -affirm the student in good behaviors they show and tell them that you understand this was a mistake and that because it happened, they learn not to do it again and that they can return to class with a positive attitude.

**General Consequences of Misbehavior**Students behave more positively more often when they are aware of the limitations of their misbehavior. For this reason, students will be made aware of general consequences for misbehavior. -So that the students can monitor their own behavior, I will have a behavior chart next to the board. -All students begin the day in the green square. -A student’s first minor offense is a non-verbal or verbal warning that results in no change on place on the behavior chart. -The second offense requires them to move their name pins down to the yellow square. -After the child’s third offense, he or she remains in yellow but is sent to the back table to fill out a reflection sheet on their misbehavior. Sample Reflection Sheet: What was my misbehavior?_______________________________________________ Why shouldn’t I do that?__________________________________________________ Why did I do that?_______________________________________________________ What could I have done differently?_________________________________________

________________________ _________________________ ________________________ Student Signature Parent Signature Teacher Signature

-If the child misbehaves again, the child moves his or her name pin to the red and is sent out of the room (either to another classroom for reflection or change of environment or is sent to the principal, depending on the severity of their misbehavior).

**Behavior Contract**! -Students who misbehavior chronically or need more accountability will be given a behavior contract. A sample behavior contract follows:

My Contract

I, _______________________________, agree to the following terms:

These are my goals:1.________________________________________________________2.________________________________________________________

These will be the good things that will come from meeting my goals:____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

These are my consequences if I do not meet my goals: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My contract will be reviewed on:___________________________________________________

Signatures:

Student______________________________________________Parent_______________________________________________Teacher______________________________________________

Milestones:

Date On Track to the Goal Need to Refocus

______/_______/______

______/_______/______

______/_______/______

______/_______/______

Dear Parents and Guardians, What a wonderful year that lies before us! I am so excited to guide your children through the process of learning! We will cover a great deal this year, but I am confident that your children can learn it all with focus and practice. In fact, your students have learned and signed a class pledge that tells them exactly how to be successful in Ms. Simmons’ class. We’ve pledged to “grow our minds, show courtesy and respect to all things and people, and to always, always, always give our best effort.” We have brainstormed specific ways we can live out this pledge and I look forward to where this promise takes us. I enjoy working with elementary students because they have so much potential and natural curiosity. The questions students ask are inquisitive and insightful- even the simplest ones. I am so grateful to be your child’s teacher. I decided on the education career path as a young child. I graduated from Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California, as a liberal studies: elementary education major with a concentration in physical science. In 2014, I graduated from Westmont with a B.A. in Liberal Studies and a teaching credential in elementary education. I’ve worked in a variety of environments, including low income schools, art programs, and abroad in an international school in Costa Rica. With this diverse set of teaching experiences, I am excited to work with your students this year. I have a deep respect for the role that you play in your students’ life and academic career. We can partner together to help your child succeed. I am honored to work with your child and will communicate with you on a regular basis. Research shows that the key predictor to a student’s success in school is parent involvement. On that note, please expect a weekly online class update from me (ready to view every Saturday at noon). Join me this year in growing the minds of your students, helping them to develop courtesy towards their learning peers, and teaching them to try their absolute best!

Warm Regards,

Erin Simmons esimmons@westmont.edu

**Family-School Connections**! It is of immeasurable importance that the family of my students be involved in the student’s education. It increases the likelihood that the child will successfully complete the school year and that he or she will graduate from high school. It is also an immediate benefit to me because it helps me to understand more the home life of my students which can explain behaviors in class. It also allows me to partner with parents in helping to meet the individual needs of my students. I will maintain communication with my students’ guardians by:

**Greeting Parents** As parents drop off and pick up their children, I will be sure to greet each family member in an effort to break the ice and communicate to parents that I am approachable.**Updating the Class Website**I will take advantage of the technology available to most parents. I will update the class website on a weekly basis. On the website, parents can read about some of the learning objectives for the week and see pictures of things the students have created. **Sending Letters Home**A more personal and individual form of communication would be sending letters home. These letters can be general updates about the class for the parents who can not or do not access the internet, but I can also use them to communicating specifics about a child to his or her parent.**Making Phone Calls Home**My goal here would be to make positive phone calls home. Though phone calls home are usually made for address a serious misbehavior, I would like to use parent phone calls to celebrate a child’s academic success more often than to notify a parent about a major misbehavior.**Setting Up Parent Conferences**In addition to the parent conferences set up by the school, I would like to meet more regularly with the parents or guardians of my students who are showing that they are struggling to participate fully in class.