Considering I have recently been offered my first teaching job…YEAH,
I HAVE A JOB! Woo-hoo! *happy dance*
Anyway, now that I do have my first job, I have been thinking about
all the different things I need to prepare. First and foremost, I have been focusing
on my classroom management plan. I feel this should be the first order of
business because all the planning in the world will be of no use to me if I do
not have control of my classroom.
My student-teaching experience has equipped me with multiple
resources. I have listed some of my favorites below:
·
Three Strike System—If a student continually talks to his/her peers or shows
disrespectful/defiant behavior, he/she will be warned once with no consequence.
On the second warning, he/she will be asked to move seats. The last and final
warning will warrant a more serious consequence, such as a one-on-one
conference in the hallway, a phone call home, time with me after school, etc.
·
Class Dojo Points
(Individual Incentive)—Students are given
their own points through the technology application Class Dojo. This
application allows students to gain or lose individual points based on behavior
and academic performance. With these points, you can build a classroom economy
and students can buy prizes with their points. For example, my mentor teacher
uses Class Dojo and he allows students to buy coupons with their points. Some
of the students’ favorite coupons include “eat in class pass” and “positive
call home”—So fun!
·
Class Points (Whole
Class Incentive)—My mentor teacher
created this one! When the entire class does a great job collectively, I will
give them a class point. For every class point that the class receives, they
get closer to a predetermined goal. Once they have met that goal, they are
allowed a 15 minute class party with food and games on a specific day.
These are just a few that I have observed and found effective, and I
know there are more resources to be discovered, so I decided to do some more
research.
Author, Ben Johnson, wrote a great article on Edutopia called “The Art
of Managing Middle School Students.” Some of his suggestions are listed below:
·
First of all, he compared them to squirrels. Is
he right, or is he right? “Zoom, freeze for two
seconds, flick tail, and repeat” (Johnson 1). I’m already thinking of three
students who fit this description.
·
I digress; he goes on
to explain that the key to managing middle school students is to engage their
attention for more than a few seconds at a time. He suggests two tools:
distraction and relationship. Building personal relationships with your
students will help them see you as more of a person, rather than just a teacher,
and getting to know your student helps you push them toward success on a deeper
level (Johnson 3,4).
·
If all else fails,
use the distraction technique. Middle school students are often easily
distracted, so he recommends using distractions to help them refocus. For
example, if students are working in groups and a lot of side conversation is
taking place, consider giving an on-task group a positive incentive. This will
distract off-task groups and motivate them to refocus and earn the positive
incentive as well (Johnson 5,6).
·
His last proposal
consists of routine and surprise. This can be related to the Class Dojo economy
that I mentioned earlier. Students need to know that they have a routine way of
spending the individual points that they have earned, such as a classroom “
prize auction” once a month. But, sometimes the teacher needs to surprise the
students by raising the stakes. For example, after the “prize auction”
concludes, consider presenting a mystery bag prize and promise that it is
better than any other prize offered previously this year. Then, explain that it
will be available for auction in two weeks and it will be sold to the highest
bidder. Students will be working to earn Dojo points left and right (Johnson
7).
I know trial and error will be my best friend when I am exploring to
find a classroom management plan that works for me, but it doesn’t hurt to have
a place to start.
So, cheers to new jobs and new ideas!
Resources
Johnson, Ben. "The Art of
Managing Middle School Students." Edutopia. N.p., 25 Sept. 2013.
Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
