Week 7 - Classroom Management

This week, I thought it would be cool if I discussed how to make a classroom management plan. This is something that is very very new to me, but will be super helpful in the future. I found this article on WikiHow, about how to start a classroom management plan, and the ideas that this article has are fantastic. I could see myself utilizing every single one of those in my future classroom. Below I will list the steps for making an effective classroom management plan. 

1.) Determine your philosophy: Many classroom management plans begin with the teacher's philosophy of motivation. Basically, it lays out what you believe about education and how students should learn. You can talk about the environment you want to create and how you plan to create that environment, both physically and emotionally.

2.) Start with school policies and procedures: Your school will have certain consequences and even certain rewards already in place. You can and should use this system as the basis of your own. Build off these and incorporate your own policies, procedures, and rules to create a positive classroom environment for your students.

3.) Move onto positive reinforcement: Most management plans have some type of positive reinforcement. For instance, you can have kids earn stickers or stars towards a certain reward. These types of plans help motivate students to stay on task.

4.) Understand each child's motivation: Not every child will be motivated by the same reward. If you choose to do so, you can have a system where each kid chooses her own reward.

5.) Figure out negative reinforcement: While positive reinforcement is the best way to deal with behavior in the classroom, you will also need consequences for negative actions, as well. These consequences should be progressive; that is, each one should be more severe than the last one.

6.) Decide on a consequence time frame: For instance, maybe each kid starts fresh everyday with consequences. Alternatively, you could have consequences carry for a week.

7.) Decide on rules: Rules should be simple enough for kids to understand. They should be to the point with little-to-no gray area. You should also be able to enforce them easily.

8.) Write the rules clearly for all to see: Make the basic rules. If you word them carefully, you'll be able to cover a lot of ground with just a few rules. For instance, one rule could be to "Respect the classroom, your peers, and your teacher," as that covers being nice to other children, not talking back to the teacher, and not trashing the classroom.

Link to WikiHow page (there are also ways to implement the plan on this website): http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Classroom-Management-Plan