7 Successful Strategies for Managing Middle Schoolers. How to Regain Control of Your Classroom NOW. Diverse Teaching Strategies for Diverse Learners. Mrs. Holowicki's Classroom Expectations, Rules, Procedures and Consequences. My Home Page » Mrs. Holowicki's Classroom Expectations, Rules, Procedures and Consequences Mrs. Holowicki's Classroom Expectations, Rules, Procedures and Consequences The expectations, rules, procedures and consequences of my classroom are intended to keep the classroom environment safe, orderly, and productive. Please respect the rules so that we can maximize learning time together. The rules are not hard to follow, nor are any of them “out of the ordinary.” 1. . · Show respect for the teacher, yourself and others at all times. · Respect others’ property. . · Respect yourself and the rest of us by using appropriate language and wearing appropriate clothing. · Be a kind person. 2.
. · Always do your own best work. · Put learning ahead of getting good grades. · Put quality ahead of just getting it done. 3. . · Come prepared with all materials necessary: § An organized class binder containing all necessary materials and handouts § Looseleaf paper, pens (blue or black), and pencils 4. 5. 6. 7. 1. 2. 3. 4. 15 creative & respectful ways to quiet a class - Have you fallen into the trap of saying “No talking!” Or “I need quiet!” All day long? It’s exhausting to keep repeating your requests for silence, and after the hundredth time, kids just tune you out, anyway. There have been some great discussions about how to get students to quiet down on my Facebook page, and I want to share what’s worked for those teachers as well as what I’ve tried in my own classroom. Contributors’ names are written in parentheses where applicable. 1. For the youngest students, use finger plays like the Itsy Bitsy Spider and Open, Shut Them. 2.
If you’re not comfortable singing with your class, try playing music on your computer or CD player. 3. Bethany M. uses a zen chime with a long sustain. Here are some other ideas for sound signals: (Note: all links go to Amazon so you can see a wide variety of instruments and choose the one you like best. 4. 5. Call-and-responses that include some kind of physical movement are especially effective. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Bringing Classroom Rules to Life. School rules. The mere mention of these words can elicit heavy sighs and moans from children and adults alike. Rules order us around. Rules constrict us. “No running, no hitting, no pushing, no cutting in line, don’t interrupt . . .”
As one young child put it, “You want to do something and the teacher just comes along and says you can’t!” But it doesn’t have to be this way. In Rules in School, four experienced teachers—Kathryn Brady, Mary Beth Forton, Deborah Porter, and Chip Wood—describe a positive approach to helping children create and live by classroom rules. Early in the year, students and their teacher articulate hopes and dreams for the school year. The resulting classroom rules take on a radically different feel for students: These are our rules.
Once the rules are created, teachers help students practice the rules. If we want children to get better at piano, what do we tell them? The importance of practice Modeling the rules Modeling is a good technique for doing this. Mr. Mr. Morning Meeting and Older Students. If you teach older students—those between 10 and 14—you may have wondered if Morning Meeting is appropriate for them. Can you spare the time from the intensifying academic focus in the upper grades? Do they really need the structure and support Morning Meeting provides? The answer is a definite Yes. Morning Meeting is not only appropriate for older students, it’s especially important as an anchor, a predictable routine that they need more than ever as they undergo rapid physical, emotional, and intellectual changes. Morning Meeting helps them trust each other and value learning at a time when their peer culture may say it’s cool not to care and uncool to be smart and engaged.
Here are a few tips to help you hold Morning Meetings that will engage and support your older students. Respectfully but firmly address “it’s little kid stuff” grumblings about Morning Meeting. Try It Now! Here are a few Morning Meeting ideas that work well with older students. Greeting Sharing Group Activity Learn More. 19 Big and Small Classroom Management Strategies. Management. Ahh, classroom management. Many of us tend to equate classroom management with discipline (and for that matter, to equate discipline with punishment, but that's another story).
I see classroom management as the processes and procedures that are in place to mitigate the need for punishment, leaving discipline to cleave to its roots of "to follow. " Anything else is not classroom management. It’s damage control. Classroom management starts, for me, with very clear expectations, and firmly established procedures. Room Arrangement One of the goals of my room set-up is to minimize non-instructional interaction. There are clear procedures written on the whiteboard behind my desk for absentees, make up work, and getting extra help. Organization and clear expectations greet students at the door.
Know what's expected of them during each part of the 98 minutes we spend together each day -- and don't have to ask. I don't use the traditional 5x5 or 5x6 rows. Students Procedures, Privileges, and Rewards. Games: Quiet, Thinking, Table, Circle. NEED TO QUIET THE KIDS DOWN--but you still want to have fun! We have lots (about 50) of wonderful school-age games that use low energy... Play them on a table, the floor or in a circle. A Bonus! Most are extremely cost efficient-as in they cost nothing! 1. PLAY "SILENT BALL" Need: Ball or stuffed animal 1. The children stand by their desks or chairs. 2. You have to think fast for this game.1. After a few rounds it can be hard to think of an animal that has not already been mentioned! 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. "Draw a square. 11. Find a deep, clean, non-see-through container to pour in several bags of skittles. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.
Winning hands are decided as follows: Rock dulls scissors... Have partners match up with a similar sized person. 18. DISCUS THROW: Use a paper plate SHOT-PUT: Use a balloon TRACK RACE: Each player lines up at the start line and race by placing the heel of one foot against the toe of the next. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. HOW TO PLAY:One player starts. 24. Back to top of page. 50 Tips, Tricks and Ideas for Teaching 6th Grade - WeAreTeachers. Sixth graders are new to middle school, and they exude an exuberant, bubbly confidence.
They’re a pleasure (if sometimes a challenge) to teach, and these 50 tips and ideas from the WeAreTeachers Helpline and around the Web are great to have in your bag of tricks whether you’re a newbie or an old hand at middle school. 1. Start the year with an icebreaker. Get to know your students right away—they’re likely new to the school as well as your class. Here are ideas for how to spend the first days of school from 6th Grade Tales, like creating a Goal Setting bulletin board inspired by John Green or a rousing game of Would You Rather? 2. Teach a growth mind-set. Put simply—some people believe that intelligence is fixed, while others think that it’s malleable and depends on effort. 3. Sixth graders (and most middle schoolers for that matter) aren’t known for offering up their opinions or thoughts as readily as younger students. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
From Go to Teach. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. What 'white folks who teach in the hood' get wrong about education. Columbia University associate professor Dr. Chris Emdin says the “white hero” narrative is setting up both teachers and students for failure. Photo courtesy of Diedre Reznik. “There’s a teacher right now in urban America who’s going to teach for exactly two years and he’s going to leave believing that these young people can’t be saved,” says Dr. Chris Emdin, associate professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College. Emdin, who is also the university’s associate director of the Institute for Urban and Minority Education, has had enough of what he calls a pervasive narrative in urban education: a savior complex that gives mostly white teachers in minority and urban communities a false sense of saving kids.
MORE: Watch Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA rap about dark matter “The narrative itself, it exotic-izes youth and positions them as automatically broken,” he says. What are we getting wrong about white teachers and urban education? But is it really a race thing? After content is competition. How to Stop a Fight. “What did you say? Are you talking to me?” As I had my back turned toward the class for a moment to write something on the board, I heard this statement ring out like a bell at a boxing match.
“Alright let’s do this …” A second voice responded. Fortunately, I was able to intervene and the students backed down without fighting. Teacher-tested classroom management tips to help you deal with attitudinal... Some alternative technology in the classroom tools that you can use for better... A few ways that can help you obtain the practice you need to get a teaching job. Our top 5 teacher-tested, positive parent-teacher communication ideas.
These teaching strategies can turn that uninterested kid into someone who is... Here’s what you should keep in mind when it seems like a fight is about to erupt in your own classroom, hallways, or cafeteria: The Fight Breaks Out Stay cool. Yep – I know it’s “Easier said than done.” Remember, students don’t want to fight. Don’t go it alone. You have a big voice – use it. 20 Ways To Get A Noisy Classroom's Attention. 20 Ways To Get A Noisy Classroom’s Attention by Terry Heick Okay, so this isn’t about rethinking teaching and learning in a connected world, but that doesn’t change the fact that for many of you, simply beginning class can be the most challenging thing you do all day. It’s not easy. My go-to for years what to simply start teaching, somewhat quietly, and hope students caught on, but I found that stressed some students who were trying to hear and couldn’t, so I had to come up with different strategies.
While muting an entire classroom for 35 minutes at a time so they “listen” isn’t ideal, every teacher needs to quiet a noisy classroom at some point. So recently, when I saw Todd Finley’s post on edutopia offering some fantastic ideas, I had to offer some of the tricks I had learned. And note, much of what works is indeed about your personality. So below are 20 (well, 19) ways to get a noise classroom’s attention. 1. 2.
This one is the old standby. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Iggy Azalea. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 30 Techniques to Quiet a Noisy Class. One day, in front 36 riotous sophomores, I clutched my chest and dropped to my knees like Sergeant Elias at the end of Platoon. Instantly, dead silence and open mouths replaced classroom chaos. Standing up like nothing had happened, I said, “Thanks for your attention––let’s talk about love poems.” I never used that stunt again. After all, should a real emergency occur, it would be better if students call 911 rather than post my motionless body on YouTube.
I’ve thought this through. Most teachers use silencing methods, such as flicking the lights; ringing a call bell—see Teacher Tipster’s charming video; raising two fingers; saying “Attention, class”; or using Harry Wong’s Give Me 5––a command for students to: Focus their eyes on the speaker, Be quiet, Be still, Empty their hands, and Listen. There’s also the “three fingers” version, which stands for stop, look, and listen. Below you’ll find a collections of lesser known techniques for all grade levels. Quieting High School Students. 50 Tips, Tricks and Ideas for Teaching 6th Grade - WeAreTeachers.