Classroom Management and Communication Plan

Management Style and Philosophical Beliefs

It is so important to have strong classroom management skills because it will let my students know that I am there to help them learn to the best of my ability, and that is my main concern. Classroom management is also paramount to gaining student respect. This includes setting up rules, expectations, and values that will honor each student as well as honoring the classroom space, everyones opinions and feelings, and myself. Setting up the classroom in this way lets students know that I will give them respect, but that I will also expect it back in a mutualistic manner. As students settle into the rules and expectations, more choice and independence will be granted to them and they will know that the two are directly correlated. It becomes quite apparent, when thinking about classroom management, that students will be looking to me to be a guiding force and an element of structure and continuity in the classroom. This structure may be foreign to them, as they may not receive a lot of it at home. By creating a positive classroom environment and setting up logical rules that follow our classroom values, I hope for each student to be able to truly succeed in my art classroom. My classroom management style is almost entirely authoritative. Authoritative teachers are ones that I respond to best to, and that I most want to be. I wish to set up a classroom where the reasons behind all of the rules are shared with the students and they know what the consequences to their actions will be. These consequences will be set up logically to be a direct reflection of the rule that they broke. While I will show each student a great amount of acceptance and respect, they will know I am not just there to be their friend. I will be there for students to help them learn and to support them through their learning and not choose favorites. My classroom management will not be a game; it will be consistent and equitable and will pertain to all students. This will be a big part of me setting up high expectations, not only academic, but also behavioral. I want every one of my students to gain a high self-efficacy and mindfulness of themselves and their actions and to be able to take strives towards becoming mature, responsible, and respectful adults. I believe, philosophically, that classroom management should always have a foundation on classroom rules, expectations, and values. I also believe that consequences and punishments should never be administered in a way that negatively affects students dignity. I will treat students the way I want to be treated, and also my high expectations will let students know that I believe in them and truly think that they are capable of doing anything that they put their mind and effort into. I will also let students know that I am there for them, and that the reason I teach is not for the money or the summers off, it is for them. I want students to be able to look to me as a mentor and an individual who will constantly be looking out for their best interest - whether it feels that way to them in the moment or not. The quote by Dr. Haim Ginott about making the weather is

extremely relevant to my philosophical beliefs about classroom management. I know that I will be the driving force behind the positive classroom environment that I set up for my students, but that it will come in and out with me each day. I will need to always bring my smile, my positivity, and my belief that each student is valuable, no matter what is going on inside or outside of the classroom. Quotation given in class by Dr. Haim Ginott

Establishing a Positive Classroom Culture

I plan to develop student-teacher relationships by providing a classroom that respects and invites in each students unique attributes and qualities. At the very beginning of the school year, or semester, I will give students a student interest survey to let them know I care about them each as individuals and want to know more about them, their background, and their interests. I will use information on this sheet to make connections to each student right away. I will use these connections to start building a positive relationship with each student and letting them know that I care about what they are into and what their passions are. I will greet students at the door at the beginning of each period, asking them a question about something I know that they had going on the night before, or just by making a general comment that is specific to each student. I believe this is a sure fire way to let students know that you care about them as

individuals, and that you take the time to remember what is going on in their lives and care enough to comment on it. I plan to create a room that is inviting by hanging up lots of student artwork and incorporating photographs, collages, paintings, sculptures, mobiles and tapestries in order to encourage students to play and to inspire them to think about using a variety of medias they may have not considered before. Diversity will be celebrated in my art classroom, and all points of view will be embraced. I believe that the art classroom is the perfect environment to have students find their voice, their creativity, and their emotions. I will let them know that I am always open to hearing what they have to say, and that I will always give them respect. With this respect, however, they will know that in return I expect respect shown back to me as well as to their peers. I wish to promote creative thinking and problem solving by harnessing an atmosphere of acceptance and positivity. This is the type of environment I want to work in everyday, and I think it is also the type of environment students will wish to be in, as well.
http://www.arteducators.org/news/nationalconvention/Zimmerman_Intro_to_Art_Interest_Survey. pdf

Developing Classroom Rules and Procedures

In my art classroom, my rules and procedures will be created collaboratively with students, letting them know that their voice and their opinions matter to me. This will also make it harder for them to break these rules, if they were the ones who helped to come up with them. They will be based on creating an environment where everyone can feel safe, cared for, challenged, and feel as if they are able to meet all of the expectations and goals of the classroom each day. Having norms and daily procedures will be a big part of my classroom, from the very first day. It will be important to practice any type of transition times that we will have throughout the year, and establish how I will deal with individual

work time, group work time, and how students must act during presentations or lectures. I will go over all of these things with students, as well as have many of the rules and procedures written up as environmental print around the room so students will have absolutely no way to say that they didnt know. I think it is also important to keep learning objectives up at the front of the room on a board to remind students what the end goal of each project is. I also think it is important to write deadlines, homework assignments, and reminders on the board we need to support students in their learning, and as we all know, not all students are organized. We must scaffold and help them with this organization by keeping information that is necessary for them to remember posted around the room. In the art classroom, there is a lot of individual work time. I will use tactics such as one on one conversations and proximity during individual work time to keep the classroom running smoothly. I will always have the next assignment ready, or another project for students who get done early to work on, so that they never have a class period where there is nothing to do and they are just bored and causing a distraction to the other students. Music in my classroom will be a privilege, and students will know that if they are working well and talking only amongst their neighbor or table mates while working, I will turn on some music for us all to listen and create to together. If this begins to be something that is taken advantage of, or it begins to distract them from their work or their learning, it will be a privilege that will be taken away.

Mrs. Smiths Classroom Expectations and Rules Unadilla Valley Central School
http://www.uvstorm.org/education/dept/deptinfo.php?sectiondetailid=986 As a responsible high school student you must be aware that: Art materials must be used with respect and will be given back in acceptable condition. Proper cleanup techniques will be learned and will be followed through on. Thorough notes must be taken every day. Class attendance is extremely important. Seeking help when you need it is very important. RESPECT is the number one rule in the art room. You must respect the teacher, your peers, the materials and the room.

The following are my class rules: All students will be in the classroom and in their seat at designated times. Anyone not in his/her seat will be counted as tardy. All tardies will be tallied and 3 tardies will result in a detention. Students will come to class DAILY with a pencil, eraser and notebook/sketchbook. Any student not prepared for class will be given one lunch detention each time they are not prepared. Foul language will not be tolerated. Any student that uses inappropriate language will

have one lunch detention assigned. If this type of behavior continues, a conference will be set up with your parents. NO food or snacks are allowed in the art room! No students will write on tables/chairs or any other property of the school. Any student doing so will wash ALL tables, chairs, and sinks! NO headphone/CD players/I Pod's/etc. are allowed in the art room. I will provide a music atmosphere for those who wish to have music. No student will put his/her head on table and sleep. You are in class to learn the material. If this happens you will be removed from the classroom until a conference has been set up with your parents. Notebook/Sketchbooks will be kept daily. Notebooks may be checked at any random time. Keep them up to date! Materials and supplies will be used with RESPECT! All materials will be given back in the same condition that you received them. You will pay for materials and or supplies that you destroy! Also parents will be contacted!

Classroom Layout
For my classroom layout, I think it will be best for students to be grouped so that there is room for collaboration and group work in my art classroom. While art is mostly individually expressed, there will still be times I am introducing a reading, a topic, an art history lesson, etc. that students will need to have group discussions about. This set up will also make it so I can circulate around the room easily in order to always ensure proximity for easy and effective classroom management. Right beside the entrance is where I will meet students daily, and after I greet them, I will have students pick up their sketchbooks and go sit down in order to do a quick write, a visualization, or a prompt that will be up on the board everyday for an admit slip. This will give me time to greet all the students and get attendance before they finish. I will keep these student sketchbooks by the door so that they can pick them up and put them away when they come to class and leave class everyday. This will be a part of the classroom norms and students will know that I will do a sketchbook check, randomly, once a week that will be assigned points. This will keep them on their toes and actually doing the work because they never know when I will be checking them, and they will want these extra points. I will have my computers right by the teacher desk so I can keep an eye on what students are looking at and monitor that they are doing what they say they are doing on them. The projector screen will be at the front of the room, for the times when we have presentations, which will only be a small portion of the time. The room is lined with all of the art supplies we could need for projects, including drawing supplies, painting supplies, fabric, glue scissors, etc. We will have a kiln and be able to work with clay. Students will be required to always clean up after themselves, so there will be sinks and drying stations at the back of the room. The rule behind cleaning will be that if I find their space dirty and

have to clean it up myself, they will owe me 15 minutes after school the next day of cleaning the entire classroom. This should dissuade them from not cleaning up their area. I will have a big cabinet on the far end of the room by the teacher s desk that students will keep in progress, as well as finished art in. This will help me and the students both keep organized, so as projects are due if they are there they are on time and will be graded if not they will be late and have points docked from the final grades. I will give ample notice and clarification of due dates, so that there is no confusion. I will give students one late assignment pass a semester.

Monitoring the Classroom and Responding to Student Misbehavior

In response to student misbehavior, my main concern will always be to maintain their dignity. I never want a student to feel as if they are being

personally attacked by me, especially in front of their peers. My initial tactics to cut down on misbehavior before it even happens will be setting up my classroom norms and procedures from day one. From there, I will try and use proximity and nonverbal responses as much as possible. These are tactics that let the student who is misbehaving know that you are aware of what they are doing and that you want it to stop. By sharing this with them on a nonverbal level, you are letting them choose to change their behavior with no further disruption or affect to their egos in front of their peers. From there, many things can be done ranging from tapping on the students desk, saying their name and telling them to get back to work, or telling them you need to talk to them after class. This gets the message across to them that you are unhappy with their behavior, but doesnt affect the students learning. I think it is so important to have a relationship of respect with your students, and this will usually get across the message without having to stop class. The rules that will be set up will be set up for a reason, and all students will have a say in them so there should be no excuses for misbehavior. When it does happen, however, I will always strive to deal with the situation in a calm and collected manner. It is important to realize that sometimes students come in with lots of baggage that has nothing to do with you, so it is incredibly important to not internalize and take their misbehavior personally.
http://classroommanagementdiscipline.weebly.com/responding-to-minor-problems.html

Parents as Partners
It is so important to think of parents as partners in their childs learning. As in anything in education, it is so much more fruitful when individuals work collaboratively, and this is no different with parents and teachers. Even though I know that I will encounter difficult parents, the one thing I think I will always have to remind myself is that if a parent is there, even if they are upset, it is a better scenario than them being completely absent from their childs life at school. Applaud these parents for being there and being advocates for their children, as you are an advocate for their child. As soon as this relationship and mutualism is cemented, it is much easier to see eye to eye, I can imagine. I believe a huge part of connecting with parents as partners is always involving them in the classroom as much as possible. I will start out in the summer sending out back to school packets. This will include a parent survey, a volunteer form (both pictured below), an introductory letter as well as a student survey. Extending a hand out is sure to let parents know that you you care about them and their child on an individual level. It also opens up communication and lets parents know that you are more than willing to take the time to get to know about them. It is important, also, to keep parents in the know with newsletters that will be sent home, as well as phone calls. It is important to make sure that phone calls home are not always negative. If you do have to make a phone call home that is negative, make sure to follow it up with a phone call letting the parent know about progress or a success that their child has had. We are all very protective of what is ours, and all that parents want is for their child to be happy and to succeed. It is important to give them this. It is also a great idea to always ask parents, if there is a problem, what their thoughts on the situation are and if they have any suggestions for you to try in the classroom. It is important to let parents know that we value their input and we want to help as much as possible. We must always realize that parents know a great deal more about their children, usually, than we do and we must utilize this information. As we are so focused on students feeling safe, welcomed, and heard in the classroom we must also make sure that parents feel this way, as well. This may not always be easy, but it is so important to keep a positive mindset and a one that looks forward to growth and progression, not back upon any troubles or concerns of the past.
http://theteachingthief.blogspot.com/2011/07/back-to-school-questionnaire.html