Blog 7 Classroom management

The rules in the second grade classroom that I help in are:
1. Respect yourself
2. Respect others
3. Respect the school
These are very generalized but have rough guidelines within each one. Respecting yourself encourages the kids to get the most out of school for themselves, to try hard and not belittle themselves, and to not allow others to belittle them as well. Respecting others encourages the kids to use team work and keep from making fun or thinking poorly of other students. Respecting the school teaches the students to treat property with care and pay attention to what they are doing and how they are using resources provided to them.

These rules apply to classroom management in a broad spectrum. Such simple rules make a big impact.on the expectations and attitudes of the students. When the students act in a way that needs correcting, the teacher will call them aside and remind them of the rule and what it means and how they can make better use of it. Further offenses lead to the student's name on the board, missing a portion of recess, and finally a phone call home to parents. The rules create a base for the teacher to ground her teaching. Everything falls on the expectation of respect and guides the learning process in a constructive way.

I have one specific example where the classroom rules enhanced the learning process. The teacher was guiding the students to the rug after completing centers. 'Centers' is mobile and energetic and usually gets the kids energy up. So to calm them back down is often a tricky task for the teacher. The other day was especially difficult with a group of three boys who didn't want to finish what they were doing and join the rest of the class at the carpet. The teacher used a technique where she counts down from five to get everyone's attention and then reminded the class of rule #2, respect others. She briefly discussed that holding up the other students and teacher's time was not adhering to rule #2. The boys understood and took their seats. I think keeping the rules fair and adhering to them is structural and necessary for a working classroom environment.