Morning Message

In trainings and faculty meetings they have been encouraging us to write morning messages on the board. I have found that the students love this and reading it is the first thing they do when they come in the classroom. I started including at the end of my message what I needed the students to get ready or what I would like to have them do as soon as they get to their seats. Sometimes it might be to get materials ready for instruction, solve a problem I have given them on their white boards, something to do with what I taught the students they day before in class (like find the mistakes in my message on possessives), get papers ready to correct or get a math game out and play it with your partner.

This has saved me time in having to tell all the students what to do or having to wait once I give them instructions to get everything out and ready to go after the second bell rings. This way they are right ready to go when the second bell rings.

Have a daily routine

Having a daily outline on the board so that the students can manage their time better in what is to be accomplished throughout the day as well as for you the teacher to stay on schedule. This way they won't constantly be asking what you are doing next they can look at the outline and be ready for the next activity.

Accommodating the Space Needs of Students with Disabilities

There was a student in one of my classrooms who had Cerebral Palsy. He needed a walker to get around the school, which took up a lot of space in the small classroom. He also used a Neo (a small wireless keyboard) frequently as an accommodation for his classwork, which took up a lot of desk space. At the beginning of the year, this student's desk was near the door where the teacher thought he would have more space for his walker, but instead, his walker was blocking both major pathways in the classroom. Students would trip on it or block this student's ability to move. Something that worked much better in a later seating arrangement was putting this student next to an empty desk. He was able to put his Neo on or in the empty desk and leave it there when it wasn't in use, freeing up his own desk space. He also tucked his walker under this empty desk like a chair, so it was right next to him and easily accessible, but didn't block his own pathway or the path of his classmates.

E3 Desk Arrangement

I had a cooperating teacher this semester who tried out a lot of different seating charts while I was with her. One desk arrangement she showed me that I hadn't heard of before was one she called E3, which looks exactly like it sounds. Desks are arranged in the shape of an E on one side (a long row with 2-3 forward-facing desks forming each of the horizontal lines in the E shape) and the other half of the desks form a 3 (the same shape flipped). This created more of a row structure, but also allowed for more space for the teacher and students to move around the room by leaving a path down the center. I liked this arrangement for the most part, and I think it's nice to try out a desk formation that is less frequently used.

Managing Non-Compliant Behavior: Find the Cause

I have found during my student teaching that finding the cause of non-compliant behavior is so important. When I know why my students are behaving a certain way, I can create my strategy based on the cause of the behavior and successfully change the behavior, instead of guessing how to solve the problem.

Managing Non-Compliant Behavior: Stoplight

My cooperating teacher in my first grade class had a stoplight. When first turned it on it would make a siren noise. If the children were at a good volume level the green light would shine. When it would start to get too noisy, the yellow light flashed. When it got too loud the red light would flash, and the siren would go off. I would use this tool when my class would get too noisy, and they would not quiet down per my request. It worked like a charm. The children would ask me if we could turn the spot light on. They LOVED it. And when the stop light was on they were very quiet and engaged in their work.

Managing Non-Compliant Behavior: Stoplight

My cooperating teacher in my first grade class had a stoplight. When first turned it on it would make a siren noise. If the children were at a good volume level the green light would shine. When it would start to get too noisy, the yellow light flashed. When it got too loud the red light would flash, and the siren would go off. I would use this tool when my class would get too noisy, and they would not quiet down per my request. It worked like a charm. The children would ask me if we could turn the spot light on. They LOVED it. And when the stop light was on they were very quiet and engaged in their work.

Student Materials

The classroom I am in right now my students have 2 different magazine holders and a file folder. In one magazine holder they keep their extra reading books. The other magazine holder they keep their writing notebooks, spelling sheets, and homework folders. In the file folder they keep their art notebooks. This helps with their desk space. All that is in their desk is their math book, language arts book, math notebook, and pencil box. This helps keep the clutter in their desks to a minimum. Having different cubbies for student materials helps keep students' personal space organized and easy to find. I believe this will help with management because studnets will know where their stuff is when it is time to use it, eliminating wasted time looking for what is needed when it is needed.

Personal Space

Personal Space
I found an article on managing space on http://www.teachingasleardship.org/. I really liked what they had to say about making sure students have personal space. They say that "many students need personal space in order to feel that they belong to the classroom and that they can keep their personal belongings safe. In addition to personal desk space, students may benefit from having their own mailbox, folders, or space to display their student work. You may create these items or have the students create them themselves."
http://www.teachingasleadership.org/

Behavior Charts

If you have a student that is struggling in your classroom, this can be a variety of different areas for struggling, set up a behavior chart with the student. Have them tape the chart on their desk where they can see it throughout the day. When they are doing what is expected of them give them either a stamp, or a sticker. When they reach the predetermined amount of stamps they get a little prize.

Talk with the student beforehand to get an idea of what types of prizes would motivate them the best and use these. As the behavior gets better, increase the amount of stickers or stamps they need to have to get their prize!

(This helped with a student that had anxiety about coming to school, this student got a sticker for coming in with the class in the morning and for staying all day at school!)

Lowering Your Voice

In the class that I am currently teaching in, I have a little Autistic boy. One of the things that I have really been struggling with him is when he interrupts my lessons to tell me what time it is, and where he or the class needs to be right then. Sometimes, he will even interrupt my lessons ten minutes before he or the class needs to be somewhere. I have found that the times when I argue with him and slightly raise my voice to tell him to go sit back down, he just becomes more frustrated and continues to tell me over and over again where he or the class needs to be. I have learned that if I softly and calmly tell him that I am teaching a lesson and that I need him to go sit back down, he seems to calm down and do as I have asked. On some occasions when he does not sit back down and continues to disrupt the class, I will calmly say his name, not look at him, and point to his desk and he will stop arguing and go. I am amazed that this technique has really worked for him, and it has been so nice to save time during my lessons.

Timing Race

This semester I have had several students who have struggled to get their work done in class. They would all begin their assignments strong, and then as a minute or so would pass, they would slowly become bored with their assignment, and it seemed like I was pulling teeth to try and get them to finish their assignments. Something that I found to be helpful with all of these students, was to make time goals with them and turn it into a race. I would say things like, "I bet you can't finish the next five problems in three minutes!" Instantly after saying this, these students would work to prove me wrong and show me that they could do it. It was amazing how well this worked for these students. On some occasions, I would say things like, "Awe man! You were so close! Let's try it again and see if you finish this time." That seemed to help motivate the students to try harder. Other times, I wouldn't come back to the students desk for another five minutes, when I told them that I didn't think they could do it in three minutes. Sometimes in that case, I would still pretend that the student beat the clock and act very amazed that they had proved me wrong. All in all, I have really enjoyed doing this with several of the non-compliant students in my classes. I feel that it is a great motivator as well as a wonderful positive for the students. Especially the ones who feel like they are never good at anything.

Ding!

Giving the students an expectation of what they need to accomplish and the amount of time it should take them is very helpful. I try and do this with every activity, but the concept of time can be a little hard for students to understand if they don't see it happening.

One way to capitalize on this method is to have an actual stopwatch or clock that will sound when the time is up. This clock should be big enough that students can see exactly how much time they have left to complete the given task or assignment. An example I have seen another teacher in my grade use is a Time Timer Clock (timetimer.com). The students have a better visual of how long they have to complete something and will work hard to get it done! This particular type of clock does not sound when it is finished but the entire clock will be red in color. So it can be used for test taking and activities that requires little or no noise.

You Me Game

You put a T-chart on the board with the label You, Me. When the students are not doing what they are suppose to, The teacher gets a point under the Me side, when they are working like they should they get a point. If they have more points then the teacher at the end of the day they get a small reward if, if the teacher wins then they will have to try again the next day to earn a prize.

Folders

My first cooperating teacher would have folders that she would send home every week. In the folder she would put charts that she could fill out, on one side there was a section with the headings; Date, Prepared 4 out of 5 Days, Obeys School Rules, Comments, and Parent Signature. this is where she would put the missing assignments and other concerns that she had. on the other side of the folder she had another chart that had the headings; Date, What I Was Doing, What I Should Have Been Doing, Teachers Initial. If the children where misbehaving she would give them a warning and then pull there folder where the would have to fill out this section. I really liked it because the parents saw each week if the kids were behaving.

The Teacher's Attitude Toward the Student

It also helps a great deal in a student's behavior how the teacher perceives the student. If the student is viewed as a nuisance and a pain then the class and the student will pick up on this and behave accordingly. If the teacher looks at the student as someone who needs to learn their boundaries, who is someone who deserves to be cared about and treated with patience and kindness that also makes a big difference. We have a student in our class who acts out and has a few behavioral issues, but because the students see the teacher being kind and patient they mirror that in many respects.

Create a Plan and a Bond

I read how someone was dealing with a difficult child in their classroom and they decided to make a plan for this child. Discuss rules and consequences and keep in contact with parent, letting them know of your plans. In this case the child liked to be in charge so the teacher had the child helping them in the classroom for a week or so handing out papers, collecting papers and whatever else. The next week, after the child began liking to help out the teacher had the student having to earn the privilege of helping out and since this child/student liked to help out so much this really curbed their disruptive behavior. Find out what the child/student really enjoys then find a way to implement that into a behavioral plan.

Time to grade papers

It is amazing how quickly worksheets and journal pages can stack up. Finding time to grade them is not always easy. One trick that I have found is to carry a file folder of papers around with me in my teacher bag. Then, whether I am on the bus or waiting for faculty meeting to start, I can pull out some papers and spend my waiting time working on them.

It is important to get papers graded as quickly as possible so they can be used to inform instruction. If we know right away who is struggling with a new concept, we can put in a little extra time with them before they get too far behind.

Have the Student Help Make a Behavior Plan

After struggling through a few weeks of school, my cooperating teacher and I were at a loss of what to do. Finally we sat down with the student, his mother, and the school counselor. We had the student help to come up with a behavior plan. As he followed instructions and kept on task he would get a stamp on the sticker chart on his desk. After a week of high compliance (70% or better) he would receive a prize. We had him choose something that was realistic and he would be excited about. However, he was also given extra responsibility. Because he was the only one in the class with the chart on his desk it was his responsibility to remind us to give him a stamp when his work was completed on time. The chart on his desk served as a reminded of his prize (a hat). The added responsibility seemed to help as well, he had control over something. It has been 6 weeks and he is still doing great!

Emphasize the Positive in Your Request

After a daily struggle with one of my students to get him to do his work I learned a wise lesson... Emphasize the positive in your request. When you as the teacher put a positive spin on the request it is less likely to turn into a power struggle. Whenever possible, avoid using negative phrasing (ex."If you don't return to your seat, I can’t help you with your assignment"). Instead, restate requests in positive terms (ex. "I will be over to help you on the assignment just as soon as you return to your seat").

-Laura