Classroom Management Plan

Antoinette Richardson

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Introduction
There are many aspects of the classroom to consider when preparing for your first year as
an educator. As I become closer and closer to starting my career as an elementary teacher it is
imperative that I begin to plan for the environment as well as the management style of my future
classroom. Using aspects of various theories from Fredric Jones, as well as classroom teacher
and author Rafe Esquith, I will explore how to create a balanced and welcoming classroom.
Philosophical Statement
As a teacher, I feel as though it is a necessity to have students feel as though they are
important. Too often educators take their role as an authority figure too far. They see that they are
in charge so they give their students no opportunities to have a voice or feel valued within the
classroom. I personally feel like both myself as well as my students should feel comfortable
around each other. They should feel safe enough around me to voice any opinion they have while
also remembering to respect me as I will do onto them. Learning does not end once you graduate
and receive a degree. Everyday should be a learning experience and children can be amazing
educators if you just give them the opportunity. I want to use the topics they are passionate about
and mesh them with the focal points I am passionate about in order to create an authentic and
engaging learning experience for them. Fredric Jones said For students to learn, they must enjoy
learning (Manning & Bucher, 2013, p. 125) I want to inspire my students to love learning so
much that they crave knowledge and answers.
First Day (s)
As students enter into my classroom the first day of class, I will be sure to greet them at
the door as I plan to do every morning they arrive. I will ask them for their name, and instruct
them to quietly find their assigned seating community and begin drawing on a provided piece of

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paper something they are most excited to learn about this school year. After they are finished I
will have them all come to the carpet and we will go over the classroom policies and procedures.
We will discuss and practice as a class some of the routines we will be doing on a daily basis
such as lining up, walking in the hallway, restroom breaks, etc. Each day for the first two weeks
of school, or until they remember on their own, I will make a point to state the procedures and
have the students redo them if not done the proper way. One activity I will be sure to do with
them on the first is the wrinkled hearts activity to show students how big of an impact hurtful
words can make on the people around us. We will all have a paper cutout of a heart and I will
play a read aloud of the story Chrysanthemum. While listening to the story, we will crumple the
paper every time someone says something hurtful and try to smooth it back out anytime someone
says something kind. At the end, they will see that though kind words make us feel a little better
after someone acts disheartening, our hearts will never be completely perfect again. It gives the
students something to think about before saying or doing spiteful things to others.

Classroom Environment
I want my classroom to be inviting to my students. I want them to feel comfortable since
the class environment is where they will be spending a majority of their days, weeks, and
months. I will have a large carpet at the front of the room to meet when doing whole group
reading or brain breaks. Furthering the comfortable concept, there will be a few pillows in the

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classroom library area so that students can relax as they read whenever they finish an assignment
early or during silent reading time.

Classroom Policies
If the policies arent predetermined by my school or school district, my policies will
include the following:
We will:

Treat others with kindness and respect

Come to class ready to work hard and do our very best
Use listening ears and quiet mouths when in the hallway
Be safe with each other and class supplies
Follow directions the first time

Jones created three general rules for preparing classroom rules which each of these follow. I will
enforce these policies by first ensuring that I model them myself, if the students see that I dont
follow my own rules then they might see no point in following them themselves. On the first day
of school I will ask the students what they feel is important to include in our classroom policies. I
will ask question that steer them towards the policies that I have already created but word them
in the way in which the students have suggested. Following, I will assign a policy to each of the

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communities and give them time to come up with a small skit that they will demonstrate the right
or wrong way to follow the policy. Once they are ready, the class will come sit on the carpet and
one by one each group will perform their little skit. As a class, we will decide whether or not
they followed the rule or broke it. If they broke it, what do they need to do to fix it? After the
activity, we will discuss why the policies are important to follow and what we think should be
the consequence for breaking those policies. For the next few weeks, I will give positive
reinforcement to students that are demonstrating the correct way to follow the classroom
policies. If students are not following them, I will give them small reminders about what policy
number they are forgetting to follow.
Classroom Procedures
Each student will need to have a supply bag in their desk that contains a pair of scissors,
glue, crayons, markers and pencils. As for materials that are not as common or may run out more
quickly such as permanent markers, blank paper, extra pencils, extra glue, extra crayons and
markers, they will be at the front of the class. These will only be used when given permission by
the teacher. In an effort to settle the pencil chaos, I will be using a procedure that requires
students to sharpen enough pencils in the morning to last them the entire day. If they do not have
a sharpened pencil it is their responsibility to find a solution to their problem. Whether that be to
use the dull pencil, ask a neighbor for a spare pencil or to find another writing utensil; regardless,
not writing at all is never an option. The supply manager will be responsible for checking that
each student has gotten enough pencils at the start of the day.
I want my students to feel safe and know that I care for them. With that being said, I will
be incorporating a mailbox system into the classroom. There will be a classroom mailbox that
they are able to send positive feedback or comments to their fellow classmates or myself. This is

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great way to confide in me in case they are afraid or embarrassed to say in person. They will
have the option to do this either anonymously or with their name written on the note. I will check
the mailbox at the end of the day to read the ones sent especially to me and to make sure all are
appropriate to be given to other students. The mail manager will pass out all mail the following
morning.

Steps to address misbehavior

The first time a student misbehaves in the classroom I will use limit setting by allowing
my proximity and/or eye contact to be an indicator to self-correct. If the student does not correct
their behavior, I will give them a verbal warning and redirect them to the rule/procedure in which
they have broken. From there, we will need to have a one on one conversation about what is
causing them not to follow the rule and the student will receive a proper consequence correlating
to the activity we are currently doing and the rule that was broken.
I will most likely ignore small conversations during work time if the students are continuing to
be on task or if they have completed the assignment given. Since we will have a noise chart
posted in the front of the classroom, they will all know when it is appropriate to use their outside
voice, inside voice, whispering voice or no voice at all.

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If consequences must be given, I will remove the student from the activity in which they are
misbehaving because according to Esquith (2007), the biggest punishment is not being able to
enjoy the exciting activity we are participating in at that time. If a student does not use work time
efficiently, free time and a few minutes of recess will be used to complete said work. I want my
students to be independent, intrinsic workers.
If a students behavior seems out of the ordinary, I will be sure to contact the parent within that
same week to see if anything at home may be affecting them and see if there is anything I can do.
I will try to avoid parent involvement unless absolutely necessary, but if a students behavior
becomes chronic or other students and myself are in any danger I will be sure to call home, send
a follow up email, and/or contact the principal.
Student Motivation
Students tend to enjoy school more when they feel as though they are truly a part of a
community. To continue the promotion of my class community, I will be designating classroom
managers that go as followed:

Line leader- This student will lead the class anytime that we leave the classroom being
sure to demonstrate proper hallway behavior.

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Bathroom manager- There will be both a boy and girl manager who will make sure only a
certain number of students are going in at a time.

Attendance manager- This student will be responsible for checking to see who all is in
attendance within the class by checking off names on a provided class roster.

Supply manager- This student will be responsible for ensuring that all students have the
necessary supplies prior to the start of an activity. They will also check that every student
has sharpened pencils at the start of the day.

Mail manager- The student will be responsible for passing out any student mail from
the classroom mailbox at the start of each school day.

Door manager- The student will hold the door whenever leaving or entering the class and
turn off the lights.

Teachers apprentice- This manager has the most responsibility. They will be in charge of
helping the teacher send things to other classrooms, pass out papers as well as answer any
questions other students have when the teacher is busy

Giving the students an opportunity to be held accountable for their job will give them a sense of
importance. I will have them apply for the positions they wish to fill so that they are given a
choice and not simply forced to do something they do not wish to. Once they apply, we will hold
a class election and their fellow peers will decide who they believe should get the job. This
cycle will repeat every 3 weeks, hosting applications and elections the Friday of the week prior.
Following the election, the new manager will be given a brief training from the previous
manager. I will post the current manager chart publically on the board and keep a separate
personal log in order to keep track of all students that have been a manager before.

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Using differentiated instruction, I will illicit small groups in which I will challenge my
higher performing students. They grasp or already know the material being taught to them more
quickly than other students which results in them becoming bored easily. I will create materials
for them using the same lesson objectives but simply at a deeper depth of knowledge so they are
being challenged and not simply given extra work of the same level of difficulty. A running
theme throughout this semester has been that authentic instruction is one of the best ways to
teach. It gives students the opportunity to see that what they are learning has meaning within the
real world. They are able to practice a skill in a more productive manner. Students that see no
value in the purpose of education most likely feel this way because they are bored by school or
have trouble understanding what is being taught. I will make it my ultimate duty to ensure that
every student knows that I care about their education and I will do all that I can to accommodate
to the level they are on while providing unique and engaging learning experiences for them. I
will highly encourage participation from parents, guardians, and voluntary community members
so that students realize that others care about them and their education as well.
Conclusion
Students should always feel as though they a part of the learning experience not just an
audience member. Using the above procedures, policies and theories, I will enforce the concept

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of a welcoming and hard working classroom environment. In this way, students will learn
because they want to, not because it is a chore or requirement. My students will be able to learn
authentically and at the same time become lifelong learners!

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References
Esquith, R. (2007). Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside
Room 56. New York: the Penguin Group.
Manning, L. M., & Bucher, K. T. (2013). Classroom Management: Models,
Applications, and Cases. Boston: Pearson.