It starts on the first day..One of the keys to successful classroom management is allowing time at the beginning of the school year to teach the students the routines and regulations of the classroom. By taking the time to do this, it will eventually maximize instruction time and make routines and transitions easier for everyone. Another essential key for classroom management is establishing expectations and desired behaviors for students early in the school year. For my classroom, depending on the age, I would either go over our classroom expectations, or have the children come up with their own expectations based on what they believe is good classroom behavior. This will establish how we act at school, and there will be no misunderstandings later on.
My classroom will be designed in a way that promotes a sense of community and where all the students have clear sight to the board. I can envision myself someday teaching kindergarten. In my kindergarten classroom, children will sit on the carpet in assigned spots. It will be the expectation that whenever told to go to the carpet, they sit on their assigned spot on their bottoms, with legs crossed. If I taught a different grade, I would arrange the desks in a way where I could see all the students, where they could interact with each other and feel like a collective and equal group. |
Not rules, guidelines |
Some basic guidelines that I see being needed and effective are to be respectful, be safe with your body and school materials, follow directions, and listen when others are talking. These basic guidelines are essential in every class. Respect is one of the most important things to address. If you show respect to others, they will show respect to you. This could include things such as, listening to classmates, not putting others down, sharing, etc. Being safe with your body and materials is also very important. Being safe addresses lots of issues such as throwing classroom items, running on the black top, hitting or being rough with another student, and running in the classroom. Following directions and listening when others are talking are broad guidelines that will help with classroom management and controlling the behaviors of the students.
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The classroom as a safe place |
Behaviors that I would like to see in students are being safe and listening to directions. I think these two behaviors are the foundation for successful classroom management. I will absolutely not tolerate violence or disrespect. To make these expectations very clear we will go over the consequences of violence and disrespect at the beginning of the year. I will make it clear that we need to use our words to express how we are feeling, and disrespecting myself or others will not be tolerated. I will remind students of our class expectations, and remind students about how their actions affect their classmates around them.
My “ideal” classroom will be a place where everyone respects and supports each other, and embraces each other’s differences. My classroom will be a place where learning flourishes, and students feel comfortable to explore and ask questions. My ideal classroom will have expectations that are understood by all students, and the room will be arranged in a way that promotes learning and group work. Students will know what is expected of them and follow directions. |