Ilona Chasars Classroom Management Plan Ideally for my first year teaching I would like to be teaching a fifth grade

inclusion class in a suburban school district in New Jersey or Pennsylvania since I plan on obtaining my certification in both states. I will be graduating with a degree in Psychology, Elementary Education, Special Education, and Early Childhood. I am not picky on what grade level I would like to teach because I know I would make a difference at any grade level, but I would enjoy working with fifth grade students the most because I could still use my sarcasm and I would like to prepare them for the transition into middle school. The reason I would prefer to teach inclusion is because I work well with other teachers and I feel both the students with special needs and general education students benefit from being a in a learning environment with students who have different needs and I am certified in both areas. Creating a physical environment where all students in the classroom have a feeling of security and shelter allows them feel safe and comfortable which is key to assuring my students are in an environment that will engage their learning. Having my classroom set-up in a U-shape would allow all students to be in the front row when I am teaching to eliminate the T Zone where teachers usually only walk to the students in the front row closest to the board. Utilizing the U-shape in an inclusion classroom will leave room for students that may need physical assistance such as a walker or wheelchair. Student using wheelchairs or walkers would feel comfortable moving around the room since they would be less likely to knock into other desks in the classroom. If a student in the classroom had a hearing or visual impairment I would easily have him or her seated near the front of the room. I would be able to eliminate talking in groups, I would be able to kneel at all of the students desks from either side, and no student would ever have their back to the board where I am teaching.

The U-shape in the classroom will minimize traffic areas especially for students that may be using physical devices since the desks will not be clustered. All students would be able to visually see the board at all times without have to move their desk. Since the students in my classroom will be attending middle school the following year I would want to focus on task instrumentality in the classroom so students can grow independently in the classroom. The bookshelves would be labeled with appropriate reading levels, genres, references, and have a key if a student could not find a book of what they were looking for. The shelf would be labeled clearly to assure the students know where the materials belong and if they are unsure they could reference the contents book to see where to put the book back. Extra school supplies would be stored sorted by each students since I will ask the parents to bring in certain materials at the beginning of the year. I will have a teacher supply since some students parents will not turn in the materials and some students will go through the materials more quickly than others. By controlling the extra supplies I would be aware of how many supplies a student has and how quickly they are going through them. On the front of the student desks would be a small bag to throw trash away if they did not want to get up or put the trash in their desk. Each of the students will have their own pencil box with pencils, erasers, crayons, scissors, mini scotch tape, and a mini stapler to minimize the times they need to be out of their seats to minimize the time spent preparing for activities and cleaning up. Other activities that may take place during free time would be appropriately placed, for example the game and puzzle corner will be on the opposite side of the room as the Miss Chasars Cozy Corner where the students will be reading on bean bag chairs and pillows. The rules for my classroom will be both student and teacher generated since I feel it is important for the students in the class to help generate the rules since it is also their community.

I plan on having a about four rules all written in positive language. The rule will be developed on the first day of class but narrowing down the students suggestions. Once the rules have been selected I will write the rules on a poster to hang in the room and all of the students in my class will sign the rules like it is a contract. Each student in my class will also be provided with a copy of the classroom rules. The four rules I can think I want to be mentioned would be: Be Safe, Be Responsible, Be Ready, and Be Respectful. I would elaborate on the rules by explaining Be Safe covers all of the safety procedures in the classroom in every subject which includes following rules to ensure no one is harmed. The students in my fifth grade class should Be Responsible coming to class prepare with everything they need for the day which is part of my idea for Classroom Routines. Students should complete their own homework and classwork and not cheat by referring to another students work. The students in my class should feel comfortable enough to speak with me or a classmate if they do not understand something since school is a place to learn and it is more than acceptable to ask relevant appropriate questions. Students will Be Ready by coming to class ready to learn, listen to directions, and stay on task. One of the best ways to be ready is to participate Students should Be Respectful by speaking in class when it is their turn, listening to what their classmates have to say, and students should be kind to any guests who come to observe what the class is working on, for example an observation of me teaching. The students may think of other appropriate rules we can apply to our classroom rules, but these four rules cover the basic needs for my classroom management rule policy. To help my classroom run smoothly I plan on having procedures for student movement in the classroom for safety and structure of the classroom. The students will enter the classroom and move their popsicle stick with their name on it into the proper lunch choice so I am aware of

who is in the room and what everyone is eating so I can put in the lunch order. All of the students will be assigned housekeeping routine jobs for the classroom to make sure everything that needs to be done is completed throughout the day. The students jobs will rotate on a weekly basis so everyone who would like a turn to do a certain job ha the opportunity. Some of the classroom jobs would include: caring for classroom pets, having clean desks to earn a Miss Chasar Cleanie Beannies, which is a TY beanie baby, tidying up shelves in the classroom the whole class utilizes, and ensuring students are putting their belongings in their person cubbies so no items get dirty, mixed up, or ruined. For the lessons to run smoothly in my classroom and following along with the classroom rules in the class the student should be ready with the proper materials on their desks for each subject. One subject example for Language Arts the students books should be on their desk, a sharpened pencil, their writers notebook, their writing folder, an eraser, and a brainstorming sheet. On the bulletin board will be the assignments from the previous day for the current week, students will be expected to retrieve the work that was placed in the folder with their names on it when they were absent. Students will have the same amount of days they were out to make up the assignment, for example if Carly missed two days of work, she has two days to make-up the work unless we agree on some other time period. I will have a homework chart and reading chart hung up in the room. The Homework Chart will be called Homework Heroes and each night the student completes all of his or her homework he or she will be awarded a sticker. When the student earns 25 stickers they can pick an educational item out of the treasure chest such as a pencil, book, eraser, notepad, etc. The Reading Chart would require students to turn in book reports from books they have read in their free time so I am aware of what they are reading, their interest, and how much time they are making to read outside of their schoolwork.

For interaction routines the students should be following the Be Respectful routine in the classroom when they are speaking with their classmates or a teacher. No student should be talking when I am instructing the class and they should be listening to their peers when they are speaking. I will let the students know when they can talk to their peers and I plan on making as many of the lessons interactive and have them moving as much as possible since it is hard to stay in your set for the whole class time. This I believe is going to be the hardest part of classroom management, but one way this problem will be diminished is with the horseshoe layout of my classroom. Building positive relationships and a community in my classroom is imperative to my classroom management since I want my entire class to feel cared for and comfortable in class. Every day I plan on greeting my students happily at the door by using their names since a students name is part of their identity. Some of my teachers would avoid using my name due to the concern of pronouncing it wrong. I plan on connecting with my class telling them stories about me, my life, people in my life, and still remaining professional. They need to know I am human and I make mistake too, but that is okay. Since one of the classroom rules is to be respectful I plan on respecting my students by giving them personal space if they need it, but allowing them to open up to me or take a break if they are having a rough week. The students can approach my privately to let me know and I will be aware of it for the day and offer my listening skills to listen to their problems. One of the best things I can do for students who may be having a hard time is allowing myself to be an active listener to what is bothering them. Each morning the students will begin their day greeting one another with a soft ball toss and smile to begin our day. A random student will be selected to change the greeting if he or she would like for the day, for example a handshake or a high five. I plan on having a morning or

afternoon meeting where we can share class news with updates about school, myself, and the students can share something that is going on in their lives at home or after school. If a student shares something I can make a mini lesson about such as the birth of a new sibling I would incorporate some time to read a book related to the topic and see if any of their classmates can briefly share advice, an experience, or their thoughts about the news. During each week in addition to lunch and recess I plan on allotting sometime other than free time for the students to be in different groups every week to play a 10 minute ice-breaker to learn more about their classmates or test their knowledge about their classmates. After each of the groups have played the game each student in the class will share one fact they learned about one of their peers. Once the students in the class have known each other very well I will allow them to share one thing they enjoyed learning about or doing during the school week so I am also getting feedback about what the students retained or liked in the classroom. I plan on preventing misbehavior in my classroom by having withitness, overlapping, maintaining lesson momentum, and planning for a variety and different challenges in academic activities to meet all the needs of my student in the classroom. For minor misbehavior I will use proximity the most for non-verbal misbehavior, but I plan on implementing the look and making eye contact with the student. If a student is still not responding to my non-verbal behavior I will remind the student of the rule and redirect the student to the task at hand. For the more serious behavior I plan on having consequences planned which match the behavior appropriately, but one consequence I would implement is giving the student a warning so he or she is aware of what he or she was doing and then if they did not listen to the warning it would result is a loss of privileges. For Chronic Misbehavior I would have the student in my class self monitor his or her

behavior so they were aware of what they were doing and when. A way a student can change their behavior is to be aware of when the behavior is occurring. Successful classroom management is a process with planning prevention to avoid common problems teachers face, especially in their first years teaching. Your management policy may vary based on the grade level and student in your class, but if you have a solid plan you will have more success in your classroom for your students and you as the teacher will feel more accomplished.