How To Inspire Classroom Management Excellence

Imagine if your students were able to perform every classroom routine and every transition perfectly without you having to say a word.

Imagine only having to smile and say hello for the first ten minutes of every school day because they know exactly what their responsibilities are and don’t need your help executing them.

Imagine if your students chose to pursue excellence rather than settling for mediocrity.

Unfortunately, most teachers have to prod students through every routine and transition, giving reminders and making corrections along the way.

If this is you, you’re not alone. It’s become the accepted way of doing business—like it’s part of the job or something.

Well, it’s not.

There is no reason to talk your class through something—anything—they can do perfectly well by themselves.

Your students don’t need spoon-feeding. They need inspiration.

To Inspire Excellence, Focus On One Thing

Classroom routines are critical because, from a purely classroom management perspective, a school day is a series of routines, one right after the other. If you can get your students to perform them efficiently and independently, then managing your classroom becomes a whole lot easier.

The trick to getting students to perform at a high level is to focus your class on doing one thing exceptionally well.

Performing one particular routine perfectly—with precision and focus—will transfer excellence to everything you do—behavior included.

The routine I recommend focusing on is ‘walking in line.’ The act of walking in line has several unique advantages that make it a superb mechanism through which to inspire excellence.

It’s done every day and often several times a day.

It takes selfless teamwork and concentration to do well.

It’s done in public and therefore adds a dimension of pride.

It’s an accurate barometer of how well you’re managing your classroom.

How To Do It

You’ve heard the old joke, ‘How do you get to Carnegie Hall?’ Answer: practice, practice, practice.

The same is true for getting your students to walk in a perfect line. You have to practice. However, if your students dread doing it, if it’s boring and no fun, then you’re going to be frustrated, and the results are going to be disastrous.

The key is to make the act of walking in line meaningful and to tap into its inherent challenge.

Here’s how:

1. Set your expectations.

Be clear and exacting about what you want. Teach and model precisely how to walk in line, how to keep proper spacing, how to respond to passers by, and what no talking looks like.

2. Fire them up.

Once your students get a taste of excellence, they’ll be hungry for more. But in the beginning, you need to convince them that pursuing excellence is a worthy endeavor. If your students like you, trust you, and respect you, you’re halfway home.

The other half is your enthusiasm.

Successful coaches give fiery and impassioned pep talks because they work. So take a deep breath, visualize legendary coach and teacher John Wooden, and let it rip.

3. Step on the gas.

Push your students right from the beginning to increase their walking speed to a smooth, fast-paced jaunt. This adds a sense of urgency that must be present when completing all routines. It also keeps students focused and is a strong antidote to boredom and listlessness.

4. Offer a challenge.

Challenge your class by splitting into two groups and competing to see who has the best line. If possible, have them take different routes (as long as you can watch them both). When you get to your destination, announce which line was better. The only reward you need to offer is silent pride in a job well done.

5. Trust them.

Your students will do better when supervised from a distance. When you hover and micromanage you communicate your lack of faith in them. For your students to feel that you believe in them—which is crucial—follow from behind.

6. Take a break.

Though rewarding, pursuing excellence is hard work, and your class needs an occasional break. If they’re doing well and improving, then once in a while allow them to walk in a herd around you. They’ll love doing this, and as long as they’re silent and stay within 30 feet of you, it will be fun for you too.

7. Hear the applause.

One reason walking in line is an effective focus routine is that it’s done outside the walls of the classroom and in full view of adults and other students. Your fast-rolling, arrow-straight line will get a lot of compliments; true excellence stands out like a sore thumb.

You can bottle that feeling of excellence for your students and make it last a little longer by charting the number of compliments, keeping track of your best days, and referring to both as a motivator to improve.

8. Hold them accountable.

If ever your students don’t perform to your standards, stop them mid stride, turn them around, go back inside the classroom, and start over. You don’t have to tear them down with words and outward disapproval. Just do it again.

9. Break it down.

There is a school of thought that says that you can never be good enough, that there is always sooo much more to learn. Poppycock! Let your students experience excellence. If they’re good (really good, not fake good) and meet your expectations, tell them so without restraint. Say, “That was as good as it can be done. Bravo! Perfecto!”

Excellence Begets Excellence

Focusing on one thing to do extraordinary well, like walking in line, will inspire your students to pursue excellence in everything they do. Behavior, concentration, speed, sharpness, teamwork, and attentiveness will improve—often radically—as a result.

The more you pursue excellence in your classroom, the more you ask for it, expect it, and demand it from your students, the more profound change you’ll see.

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