Classroom Management

EDU 402 Gabrielle Riggins

Introductory Letter
Dear Parents,

My name is Gabrielle Riggins and I am your child’s 3rd grade teacher. I was born and raised in Macon, GA. I graduated from Wesleyan College with a Bachelors in Education. Thank you for sharing your
kids with me this year. Here are some things that I would like you to know.

● Parents are the child's first and most important teacher. I want to support you in that role. You are welcome to sit in on class or volunteer to help anytime. Bring food.
● Your kid is an amazing human being. I look forward to getting to know him/her. I know we will like each other. I want your child to learn and grow. I will provide lots of different ways for
your child to discover and explore.
● Your kid is incredibly capable. I will support your child's independence.
● I will celebrate your child's achievements.
● The classroom is for the children. Children learn through play. This classroom is designed for play.
● In our classroom, we are all teachers and we are all learners. We are allowed to make mistakes. We try. We try again. We try together.
● We dance. We sing. We observe. We create. We laugh. We are thankful. We pretend. We wiggle. We celebrate. We explore. We ask questions. We take deep breaths. We have fun.
● We go outside. Every day. Unless the rain is horizontal. Rain gear is essential. So is a change of clothes. (School clothes need to be play clothes - sometimes we get messy).
● Hugs (or handshakes or high fives) are always available.
● Germs are a fact of life in elementary school. We cough and sneeze into our elbows. We wash our hands. And we still share germs. The best defense is a healthy offence; good, healthy food
and lots of sleep.
● Let's communicate. I will share your child's discoveries, achievements, struggles and successes with you. You are always welcome to spend time in the classroom, drop in after school to chat,
email/text or call me. Please like our class facebook page; it's a great way to see what your child is doing throughout the school year.
● I'm not perfect, but I do my best.
● And I really, really will like your kid - I'll like all the kids. That's a promise. Pinky swear.

I look forward to seeing you this year,

Ms. Riggins
Rationale
This is a good way to build community with the parents by
letting them know a little bit of what I am about and also
letting them know that they have a role to play in their
students’ school lives. In this letter I felt a little of
Ron Clarke’s spirit for a strong community base in this
letter.
First Day
Find Desks (Two Worksheets, Playdough, 2 Pencils, 1 Box Crayons)

Invite Parents To Stay For Your Introduction To the Class (Video Story)

Students Do The Worksheets (Take Roll, ect.)

Morning Meeting (Discuss 4-6 Procedures- Attention Getters, Lining Up, Transitions, Bathroom, Hallway, and Lunch)

Game (Mingo)

Discuss Procedures (Talk about rules of school, reiterate procedures, talk consequences)

Get To Know You Activity ()

Read Aloud (Expectations Lesson)

Silent Time ( Read, Eat, Color, ect.)

Self Portraits

Dismissal
Rationale
This was written with Jim Fay in mind. I prefer that the
students know the expectations before we start doing
anything remotely academic. If they know what I expect of
them in the long run I won’t have as many problems.
Expectations Lesson
Snacks/Water/Rest/?
Once during every hour of classroom instruction I will play
a gonoodle video. During this time the class is allowed to
relax, get up and stretch,and get something to drink or eat
from the snack basket at the back of the room.
Rationale
Being one of the kids who was constantly hungry in class I
know the importance of a snack. I think that giving the kids
the choice of getting a snack or having a break during the
school day is enforcing our community and shows the students
that I value their time and I respect that they have
opinions. This was leaning more toward Ron Clarke’s
philosophy as well .
Transitions (Procedure of Choice)
Transitions will be kept on schedule by the timekeeper. I
will use the mission impossible theme to transition. I will
use the Andy Griffith Theme Song to re-engage.
Rationale
Kind of like the attention getters this is a set routine
that the students are familiar with and understand. I don’t
have to raise my voice and the class keeps moving.
Bathroom Routines
Set schedule for class bathroom breaks.

Allow for emergency bathroom breaks at the students

discretion.

Students who have an emergency situation should inform the

assigned bathroom monitor(s) and checkout the bathroom pass
by writing their name, the date, time out, and time returned
on the classroom pass checkout sheet; which would then be
initialled by the bathroom monitor.
Rationale
No teacher enjoys the constant hand raising and begging to
go to the bathroom that comes with being a teacher.

This was something that I knew right off of the bat that I
wanted to do with my students and seeing it at RCA and
seeing how well it was going I knew that I would put it into
my plan.
Hallway Expectations
In a fairly straight line, hands by their
sides, feet on the floor, eyes forward,
quiet mouths, and listening ears.

Walk on the right side of the hall.

The hall monitor will walk beside the line

with the behavior list monitoring the
behavior of those in line.
Rationale
There is a difference between having a good time and being a
disruption. I believe that hallway transitions should be as
quick and as quiet as possible so as not to disrupt anyone
else’s learning.
Turning In HomeWork
The Homework Handler will first retrieve the homework
checklist from its assigned area, write his/her name and the
date in the blanks provided and proceed to check to see if
the students have done their homework.

The homework helper will put a check next to the person who
has completed their homework, a x next to the people who
have incomplete work, and leave a blank next to the people
who didn’t bring their homework at all. (If the homework
needs to be taken up he/she will do so and place it in the
homework bin.
Rationale
This is a result of my compulsion to organize. One of the
rules the Whole Brain book gives for teachers is that they
need to be organized and prepared. This rule works well for
me because if it was disorganized I wouldn’t be able to
function.
Managing Materials
Everything will be labeled. Students who want to use the
materials will have to check it out from me on the resource
clipboard.

At the beginning of the year the students will be given a

coloring box full of the materials that they need for the
year.
School Supplies
School supplies will be bought at the beginning of the year
by the parents of the students, taken up by me and then
rationed out to the students. The students’ rationed items
will be labeled with their initials. If they lose any one of
the supplies given to them they have to check them out from
me and return them at the end of the day.
Rationale: Managing Materials & School Supplies
Like the Homework Routine slide this one is inspired by the
Whole Brain organization rule, but is also inspired by its
end goal- to teach teachers how not to be burned out by the
end of the day. Materials and school supplies are stressful
because they are needed and constantly being lost or
misplaced. These rules are to keep me from being stressed
about supplies.
Classroom Jobs/Duties
Bathroom Monitor/ Lavatory Supervisor

Homework Helper/Commission Supervisor

Timekeeper/ Chronographer

Materials Monitor/Equipment Supervisor

Class Janitor/Division Custodian

Hall Monitor/Corridor Supervisor

Attendance Monitor/ Participation Monitor

Classroom Librarian/ Media Specialist

Entry/Morning Routines
Students will be prepared for the day.

The students will return their dismissal

badges at the beginning of the day by
placing them on the hook beside my desk.

Students will retrieve their homework

and any other items needed for class
from their book bags before hanging them
on their assigned hook.

Students will follow the instructions

given on the board.
End OF Day/Dismissal Routines
20 minutes before dismissal students will
complete their dismissal checklist. I will
retrieve the dismissal clipboard and
proceed to dismiss by mode of transport
while also checking off names to make sure
that everyone goes where they are supposed
to go. The students should have the
dismissal badge that has their name,
teacher and mode of transport that I will
give to them when they are leaving the
classroom.
Lunch Room Procedures/Expectations
The students will follow line
procedures until they reach the
lunchroom table. The students will
be allowed to talk quietly. I will
be seated with them to monitor the
noise level. After finishing the
meal students will clean up after
themselves and line up with the
help of the hall monitor. The class
janitor will then clean behind
them.
Classroom Library
The classroom library will
be a comfortable space for
the children to explore
literature. The children
will check out books with
the classroom librarian to
take home and read for up
to a week.
Rationale
This is again creating a sense of community among the
students. I want them to feel comfortable enough in the
classroom that it never gets tedious. It's sort of a reverse
RCA with the same concept.
Getting Attention
Silent Hand

Electric Doorbell

1-2-3 Eyes On Me (1-2 Eyes On You)

Flat Tire!(SHHHH!)
Rationale
Whole brain gives several attention getters that don’t feel
as natural to me. So I found somethings that I feel
comfortable using.
Lining Up
Students line up in boy-girl order when called on by the
hall monitor. The hall monitor will retrieve the behavior
chart from its assigned place and begin to call students to
get into line only if they are sitting quietly with their
desks cleared. The monitor will then await my instruction by
the exit while monitoring the noise level and behavior of
those in line.

In a fairly straight line, hands by their sides, feet on the

floor, eyes forward, quiet mouths, and listening ears.
Rewards
I will reward students who
exhibit characteristics of a
good classroom citizen, and
those who perform well.

Other students will be able to

nominate a peer for a reward as
well.
Rationale
This would be a there are no negative points type of thing.
I believe that there is no reason to give negative points.
If the children see that the only way that they are going to
get rewards is by doing positive things they will do them.
Cleaning Up
After an activity or at the end of the day I will ring the
clean up bell. The class will clean their individual messes.
The class custodian then checks to make sure that the
classroom is clean and removes any remaining trash.

In the lunchroom the class custodian will do the same, but

also wipe the table down.
Rationale
Another slide with RCA influence. This would be a way to
give the students roles within the community while also
teaching them responsibility.
Early Finishers
Early finishers will first check their work. When they
believe it was completed to the best of their abilities.
They should put their work aside to be collected later, and
choose one of the early finisher tasks from the early
finisher wall hanging. They should log each task completed
in the early finisher log located next to the wall hanging
of the same name, and place the completed project in either
the box on the floor underneath the wall hanging or in the
folder beside the wall hanging.