Classroom Management

Classroom management sets bells ringing in most new educators' minds. When the words spill off your tongue, your mind races to find out what that means-- it means control without having control, order and emotions, productivity and creativity. How can you possibly create an environment that is managed and still find that individual flare? I can remember being so nervous about this when I first started teaching. My worry was that I wouldn't be able to get them all to follow directions. Here's a bit about what I've learned.Creating a routine is one of the first steps to management. Predictability is helpful for children and adults alike. Once a routine is in place, there is more room for thinking about everything else. To get yourself (and your classroom) settled into a routine, first create a list of things that need to be done every day. For school, the list can include all of things you want to child to do independently each morning or afternoon; this can include items that need to go in and out of a backpack, independent work, etc. For home, this list can include snack, bathing, homework, brushing teeth, etc.In the beginning, create a checklist or visual that reminds the child of the routine. Stick to your visual, and soon it will become automatic for the child (or your classroom). Motivation plays a key part in this-- some children are capable of remembering the routine with the visual and some children need a little more support.For more resistant children or a child with executive functioning or attention challenges, a more creative approach may be necessary to get those neurons firing. In the past, I have created story lines using children's interests. Using the list of things they need to do, I've made a visual for them to do things like they're more interested in. For example: freeing the tiger, getting the triceratops to the watering hole, or scoring a touchdown-- all based on the child's true interest to make the tasks more engaging and motivating (and you won't need to repeat the same thing over and over again). Turning stressful times into a game or story has taken stress of both me and my students.Laminating and using Velcro dots keep the visual intact and ready to use again and again. All visuals were made on Boardmaker.Check out the visuals below:Freeing the TigerThe tiger moves from box to box until he or she is free from the zookeeper.

Getting the Triceratops to the watering holeThis visual has a triceratops that moves through each step of the routine until he or she gets to the watering hole.

Scoring a touchdownThis visual is great for the sports-interested child. He or she can move the player down the field to score a touchdown.

The child can also record when the tiger is caught by the zookeeper, when the triceratops goes to bed thirsty, or when the pass gets intercepted to squash the touchdown attempt. Keeping track can give the child a more enticing incentive, which leads to a feeling of accomplishment, a new sense of independence, and increased confidence.

Hosting a Bank Street College of Education Class

Limiting Teacher Filters