Innovation Playlist - Ted Dintersmith. Face it. Like all organizations, schools get locked into routine, impeding change. But all schools need to innovate to prepare kids for a dynamic and uncertain future. The question is, “How?” The Innovation Playlist can help your school make positive, informed change. It represents a teacher-led model, based on small steps leading to big change, that draws on best practices from outstanding educators and non-profits from across the country. The Innovation Playlist consists of albums (the big goals on the left) and tracks (the small steps on the right that help you reach each big goal). The “Mobilize Your Community” album is the ideal place to start, letting you generate enthusiasm for innovation. How To Handle Students Who Question Your Classroom Management. “Why do we have to raise our hands?” “Why can’t we talk in the hallway?” “Why do we have to do it like that.”
It can feel, depending on their tone of voice, disrespectful. It can feel as if they’re trying to put you on the spot. Or make you squirm. It can feel as if they’re challenging your very authority. So when a student questions the way you manage your classroom—most often in front of the class—it can be hard not to take it personally. But this is a big mistake. Because showing frustration puts you at odds with not only the student who asked the question but with your entire class.
It creates a you-against-them relationship that can spiral into downright hostility. So how should you respond? Willingly. “We raise our hand so everyone gets a fair chance to participate.” “We’re quiet in the hallway so we don’t disturb other classrooms.” “Because it’s the fastest, most efficient way to do it.” You calmly, even cheerfully, say your line and then move on.
Always, always, always. How To Build Instant Rapport With Individual Students. Here at SCM, we talk a lot about the importance of building rapport. And how it’s best to focus on your entire class rather than individual students. Because, trying to build rapport one student at a time is . . . time consumingawkward for studentsless efficient and effective Simply being pleasant, on the other hand, day after day, effortlessly draws students to you. And when students like you and want to be around you and get to know you better, rapport comes naturally. Conversation flows. Banter is easy and organic. However, there are times when you have to meet with individual students, which can momentarily change the relationship. You see, those students who are so comfortable around you in a group setting tend to become self-conscious when you speak to them individually, especially if it involves their performance. Thus, being able to put them at ease becomes paramount.
Luckily, there is a strategy that can make them immediately comfortable around you. It’s to mirror their energy. 50 Quick Activities for When Sub Lessons Run Short | Swing Education. Compassion-Based Strategies for Managing Classroom Behavior. 6 Signs You're A Pushover. How To Eliminate The Gray Area From Your Class Rules. The gray area occurs when you witness behavior you don’t like. —But are uncertain whether or not it breaks a class rule. The problems associated with gray areas are legion and profound. They . . . cause you to be inconsistent.compel you to question, remind, lecture, etc.increase your stress level.weaken your authority.lead to arguments, resentment, and hurt feelings.encourage more and more misbehavior.
Here at SCM, we receive a lot of questions about gray areas and what to do about them. (Last week’s article, in particular, triggered a new wave.) The short answer is that you must eliminate them. Once you eliminate gray areas, however, once you know precisely what behavior does and doesn’t break your class rules, the problems disappear. Which begs the question: How do you know? When I speak to groups of teachers, or give advice while personal coaching, I’m often asked, “Does it break rule #1 (or #2 or #3, etc.) if a student does ________?”
Because—and this is key—it’s your classroom. How To Fix A Talkative Class. Unwanted talking is near the top of the list of teacher frustrations. Although not considered severe misbehavior, it can nonetheless severely disrupt learning. It can hijack listening, shatter concentration, and cause other students to join in as well. It’s a thorny issue—because it’s hard to know why it’s happening, what you’re doing wrong, and why none of the strategies you try seem to work. It can make you question whether stopping it is even possible. “Maybe I just have to accept that I have a talkative class.” Hogwash. The truth is, you can fix excessive and impermissible talking and expect silence whenever you need it. You need a collection that work together to attack the problem at its source. Here’s how: Clean up the rest first.
If you don’t have clear, detailed expectations for all rules, policies, and routines, and hold fast to them, then your students won’t believe you really mean it when you ask for quiet. Define silence. Let uncomfortable stillness hang in the air. Teach a signal.