Tara Mostranskys

Classroom Management Resource Guide

Our students need to feel:

Successful classroom management depends on meeting the needs of our students. When a child feels positive emotions, he or she is more cooperative and receptive to learning.
Utilizing effective teaching and management strategies that honors students needs discourages them from using disorderly behavior to meet their needs. This, in turn, enables the classroom to become a successful learning environment. (Erwin, 2004, p. 20) It is important to plan and have proactive classroom management plans because The only way a teacher can have a classroom in which kids can learn by doing, by discovery, by activity, is to establish routines and

Survival Freedom Fun Power

procedures. Students cannot be free to create without procedures and routines. (Wong, 1999)

A teacher should be consistent , fair, patient, caring, enthusiastic, and have a sense of humor in order to maintain classroom

management.
Consistent with the rules and procedures. Fair in the treatment of the students. Patient with all of the students differing personalities.

Caring towards all of the students. Enthusiasm is contagious! (Glenn, 2007) A sense of humor to teach the students that we can laugh at life.

My art room will be designed so that it can provide a sense of safety and security for my students. It is important to consider the organization of the room because it is the basis for effective classroom management. I will design a comfortable and efficient art room, which will communicate to the students that I value them and welcome having them in the room. To promote student independence, I will use storage receptacles that are clearly labeled and within reach of the students. (Dennison, 2009) I will have lots of display areas on the walls for the students artwork, as well as a designated space on the hallway walls for the students artwork.

Managing Instructional Time

Beginning Class
When teachers have a plan for students when they first enter the room, it will reduce chaos and questions as well as behavioral problems at the beginning of the day.

Ending class
A poster will describe and illustrate the following procedures to be followed every day: 1. Tools: The tool helper collects the tools and puts them away. 2. Artwork: The paper helper collects the artworks and puts it all in the table folder. 3. Silent: Everyone sits silently waiting to be called to line up.

Lining up
A piece of colored masking tape on the floor marks where the students begin the line. At the beginning of the school year each student is given a number for the whole year. The students will line up in this order. The first day number one is first in line and then the other students line up in order. On the second day number two is first in line. And so on.

Taking attendance
After the instructional time, while the students are engaged in their art project, I will take attendance silently.

Organizing, distributing, and collecting materials

Student helpers are rotated throughout the year. Each table will have one helper assigned to getting crayons or basic supplies and one helper will get paper for the table. These will be the same helpers that collect the supplies at the end of class.

Using the pencil sharpener

A can of sharpened pencils is provided to trade with if a child needs a sharpened pencil. During engaged time, they can get up freely to get a pencil. If a child finishes an art project early, her or his job can be to sharpen the pencils.

Student questions
A poster on the wall clearly defines the procedure for questions. I also use the Ask Two technique. Before students are allowed to ask me a question during activity time, they must ask two other students in the class to try and find the answer.

Changing activities
A five minute warning bell, followed by a two minute warning is used to indicate a transition or clean-up time.

Getting into groups

When we have group work I call the students up by table and keep them in the same group as their table. They return to their individual seats by table number.

Redirecting students attention

Make use of non-verbal gestures such as a look or a wave of the hand to redirect behaviors that are taking the class off task. Next, use proximity to gain the attention of the student.

Use of the restroom and water fountain

Use of the water fountain is not allowed, and this is explained at the beginning of the year during extensive procedure talks. Request that students use the bathroom before or after class.

Emergencies
Use the buddy system. Have the students practice lining up at the door with their buddy before the actual fire drill so they are less frightened or anxious during the actual drill. There is no talking and there are no bathroom breaks during fire drills.

RULE S
Go over the rules every day in the first few weeks of school. Post these rules on a colorful illustrated poster in the front of the room.

THE BASICS: -Raise your hand to speak THE GOLDEN RULES: Rule #1 - Only use -Listen while others are words that speaking are kind and encouraging when talking -Cooperate with the about another person's artwork. teacher and others #2 - Only use Rule -Keep hands and feet to and words that are kind yourself encouraging when talking
about your own artwork. Rule #3 - Learn to say, "I'll try," rather than, "I can't".
(Teach Kids Art, 2010)

Discuss the rationale of these rules with the students to ensure they understand and see the need for each rule. (Murphy, 2001)

Teambuilding and Ice Breaker Activities

Participating in team building activities can help students feel like they belong in a group. Spider Web- This game can be played with any type of string with students sitting in a circle facing one another. The first person holds onto the ball of yarn and grabs the end piece. Without letting go, the student says his/her name and a bit of information about themselves they would like the class to know. After the student has finished, he/she tosses the ball of yarn to another student in the circle, still holding on the end piece of string. The next student does the same, introduces him/herself and says one thing they want to share. When they are done, they toss the ball to another student still holding onto a piece of the yarn closest to the ball. At the end of the game, the students have created a web that resembles a spider web. (Experiential learning, 2010)
People Bingo - Make a bingo grid with questions in the spaces such as Is the youngest child in the family, or Born in another state etc. Fill in all the grids with things the students are interested in knowing about one another. The students then walk around the room looking for students to sign the square box showing that they have met the criteria for each spot. Give the class 10 minutes to complete the activity. (Ice breakers, 2007)

Fabulous Flags - In this activity everyone creates their own personal flag. Students will need paper, markers, crayons, etc. The flag should symbolize

themselves, their likes, interests, etc. When completed, the students share their flags and explain the meaning of what they drew. (Ice breakers, 2008)
Beach Ball Write questions on an inflatable beach ball, such as what is your favorite movie, who is your favorite singer, what is your favorite color, etc. Have the students sit in a circle and throw the beach ball around. They have to answer whatever question their hand is on . (Ice breakers, 2001)

Comic Strip Chaos - Give each student a piece of a comic strip. They have to find the other students with the same comic, and then arrange themselves so that the comic strip scenes are in order. (Ice Breakers, 2001)
Alphabetical Roll - Tell students they have to sort themselves in alphabetical order by last name and they have three minutes to complete their first assignment. After they succeed, remind them how capable they are to have completed this task and remind them how cooperative they were able to be in asking questions and working together as a group. (Hopkins, 1998)

Name and Favorite Food - In a circle, the first child begins "My name is ____, and my favorite food is ____." The next person in the circle then has to introduce herself or himself and the previous person to see whether they have been listening. (Hopkins, 1998)
A Little Bit About You - Give the following instructions for students to follow:

If you traveled this summer, stand up. If you have a brother, sit down. If you are the youngest of all the children in your family, stand up. If you own a pet, sit down. If you have a sister, stand up. If your family owns a computer, sit down. If you live in an apartment, stand up. If this is your first year in this school, sit down. If you are in ____ grade, stand up. (Fill in the blank with your grade; all students will stand.) Etc. (Hopkins, 2001)

Silent Birthday Order - Have the entire class stand in a circle around the room. Tell the kids that their mission is to put themselves in birthday order without speaking, mouthing the words, or writing anything down. Usually 1 or 2 kids figure out that they can use their fingers to hold up the number of the month they were born in.
QUILT MAKING - Each student will decorate their square of the quilt by drawing personal representations of who they are or what their interests are. They can either use markers, crayons, or colored pencils to accomplish this or use magazine cutouts. The teacher will sew all of the squares together to form a class quilt to be hung on the wall. (Team Building, 2003)

PREVENTIONS AND INTERVENTIONS FOR DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR

Positive reinforcements are effective because they put expectations of the students in place. When the students feel that the teacher believes in them, and believes that they are well-behaved students, they are more likely to act that way.

Use nonverbal reinforcers to guide behaviors back on track: proximity, flipping the light switch, eye contact, gestures, stopping and becoming silent.
Verbal reinforcers can be effective to redirect the student's misbehavior. Do it in a very casual, non-chalant way in order to save the student from becoming embarrassed. Talk to the student quietly and privately. Ask the student if anything is bothering her or him and ask why he or she is misbehaving. Explain that the misbehavior is inappropriate and remind the student of the rules.
Keep a written journal that records the disruptive behavior incidents. Try to look for a pattern with the misbehavior. It may be that the student is not being challenged enough, or some other environmental factor that is causing the disruptions. (Collins, 2010)

Proactive Classroom Management

Contact the parent(s). If the disruptive behavior is consistent and persists despite the preventions and interventions, let the student know that you will call her or his parent(s) to try Establish and Reinforce Plan, plan and plan some Be Organized- Being toRules- on improving the misbehavior in extremely work The rules (not too the classroom. organized prevents more- It is
many!) will be declared in positive statements that will be clearly posted in the classroom. They will also be handed out during the first week of class. important to have a back-up lesson plan, and another activity for the students that finish the back-up plan quickly. disruptive moments from happening. It is easier to have all tools, supplies, and samples laid out for the lesson.

Praise students- When a

student feels the effect of praise, he or she is motivated to continue the good behavior in order to receive more praise.

Focusing- It is important to
have the attention of the class before you start your lesson. (Discipline by design, 2009)

Have a Gathering Activity- When students

enter the class, they need to sit down and start working on the gathering activity that has been laid out for them.

Seating Chart - Assigned

seats is a proactive way to manage classroom behavior. The students know where they sit; they come in and sit down in the same spot every day.

Post the Classroom Rules and Procedures - With the

rules posted in the classroom, the students can look at them periodically and remind themselves what the rules are.

Discipline Steps - Have a

discipline procedure posted on the wall so the students know exactly what the consequences of misbehavior are.

Talk to the studentsTalking to the students may be the answer to ending the misbehavior. They may just need to feel the sense of love and belonging. (Hayden, 2010).

Thank Students Often- By

thanking students for the positive things that they do in your class, it shows that you care, and promotes a positive learning environment. (Breaux, 143)

Environmental ControlEngage students in learning before the lesson even starts! The classroom environment needs to invite students in and keep them interested.
(Discipline by design, 2009)

Fair and consistent - Being

fair and consistent with the students will reduce problems in the classroom. When students see you treat everyone the same they will respect you more.

Greet Students at the DoorThis shows that you care about them and their well being. You can also see how your students are feeling in the morning, and judge how you can react best to them.

Monitoring - Walk around

the classroom. Let the students know that you are close by.

References
Breaux, A.L. (2003). 101 Answers for new teachers and their mentors. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education. Collins, J. (2010, October 14). Behavior strategies for disruptive students. Retrieved from http://www.helium.com/items/1976478-strategies-for-disruptive-students Dennison, K. (2009, May 14). Classroom management. Retrieved from http://kldennison.wmwikis.net/Classroom+Management Discipline by design: the honor level system (2009). 11 techniques for better classroom discipline. Retrieved from http://www.honorlevel.com/x47.xml Erwin, J. C. (2004). The classroom of choice: Giving students what they need and getting what you want. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Experiential learning games (2010). Retrieved from (http://www.experiential-learninggames.com/icebreakers.html Glenn, R. (2007, December 4). Admirable teaching traits. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr387.shtml

Hayden.K. (2010) Top five classroom management strategies-they really work. Retrieved from: http://www.brighthub.com/education/k-12/articles/3318.aspx Hopkins, G. (1998, August 17). Fourteen great activities for the first days of school! Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson074.shtml Hopkins, G. (1998, August 17). Fourteen MORE activities for the first days of school! Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson073.shtml Hopkins, G. (2001, August 10). Icebreakers 2001: Sixteen getting-to-know-you activities! Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson242.shtml Ice breakers and energizers (2007, November 14). Retrieved from http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/classmanagement/icebreakers.html#Peopl e) Ice breakers: Beach ball (2001). Retrieved from http://www.residentassistant.com/games/icebreakers/beachball.htm Ice breakers: Comic strip chaos. (2001). Retrieved from http://www.residentassistant.com/games/icebreakers/comicstripchaos.htm Icebreakers, fun games, group activities. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.icebreakers.ws/get-to-know-you/fabulous-flags.html Murphy, T. (2001, February 1). Guidelines for good classroom management practice. Retrieved from http://www.pacificnet.net/~mandel/ClassroomManagement.html Teach kids art (2010, October 1). Art rules! [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://teachkidsart.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html Team building activities to help create a sense of community in your classroom. (2003, August 16). Retrieved from http://www.docstoc.com/docs/4783776/classroomteam-building-activities Wong, H. (1999, September 13). Harry K. Wong and the real meaning of classroom management. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_issues/chat/chat008.shtml Wong, H. & Wong, R. (2005). The first days of school. Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.