Enforcing consequences is a critical part of managing your classroom.
But it’s a small part.
It’s a mere piece of a larger tapestry that is falling by the wayside due to the pandemic.
You see, there has been so much negativity in our schools that the one thing that makes consequences matter to students has been forgotten.
And without this one thing classroom management becomes much more difficult, no matter how consistent you are.
So what is it?
It’s to create a learning experience your students love being part of. This is the secret. It always has been and always will be. But, you may say, it’s so much harder now. Our students are different.
Yes, they’ve been through a lot. They’ve been turned upside down and tossed about, dreams dashed. But they’re still kids. And they’re craving peace and enjoyment and laughter. It’s why many are behaving the way they are.
It’s why there is so much anger and disrespect.
The good news is that it doesn’t take much. In fact, it takes less than before the pandemic. Small changes, reminders of old, that if you begin using on Monday, you’ll have a different class by Friday.
Here’s how:
Smile
So easy but there just isn’t enough of it anymore. And yes, you can smile behind a mask if you must wear one. It’s not the same, perhaps, but your eyes don’t lie.
Joke
Find humor in every lesson. No, you don’t have to plan for it. Just be open and willing and you’ll find it all around you. It’s a little thing that means so much.
Laugh
It’s a contagious attitude-changer. Be easy to laugh and you’ll eliminate the pessimism so many students are feeling and bringing into the classroom.
Emote
Bring more drama to your lessons. Tell stories. Dance. Sing. Demonstrate. Use your hands and body. Act everything out, and they’ll look forward to every day with you.
Demand
Boldly raise standards on behavior and academic expectations. Your students are yearning for purpose and discipline and will thrive because of it.
Invite
It’s instinctive to participate. But in this day and age of malaise you have to force the issue. Get your students up and moving at every opportunity.
Enthuse
Yes, life has been hard. But your students need you to be joyful to show that life goes on. You’re resilient and they can be too. They take their cue from you.
Read
Being read to is not only awesome for students academically, but it’s a meditative balm, relief, and escape that’s good for the soul.
Move
Never let your students sit for long without a break to stretch or say hi to friends. Keep your class moving sharp and efficient from one success to the next.
Claim
Stake a claim on being positive and don’t let up. It feels good, changes your own outlook, and will infect your entire classroom.
Refuse
Accept nothing less than the classroom you want and know is best for your students, Covid be damned, and that’s what you’ll get.
Only You
It’s tough, I get it. There is still fear. There is anger and rancor and disagreement. There is stress and discontent rampant in teaching.
And student behavior is making it all worse.
But you don’t have join in. You don’t have to take part. You can close the door to your classroom and create a world that makes sense. You can put yourself in your students shoes, feel what they’re feeling, and decide to do something about it.
Only you can brighten and improve their learning experience. So take responsibility. Fix the tone and tenor of your classroom. Boldly wrest control and lead from the front courageously.
It really doesn’t take a lot. A tweak here and there, a turn in attitude, an embrace of what is good and right and a dose of determination. It will mean so much. Especially now. Especially for them.
And maybe for you, too.
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I so appreciate you, Michael. I have been doing all of this for years and even more so now. Nothing works when the students know they are running the show and administration doesn’t back their teachers. Counting the days until my teaching career is over. This makes me so sad.
What is the suggestion for absolutely no consequences? Students are running the school I am at, too, and the lead with grace, since we don’t know all they have been through goes against everything in SCM.
Does it, though???
It does in the manner of thinking students are not capable of doing better. The defeatist attitude of the admin is something I struggle with.
Once again, this is exactly what I needed to hear! Thank you so much!!
Joanna
Great article! So many wonderful ideas to do with kids. The dancing and singing and movement are wonderful and so needed in the classroom.
Thank you for your inspiration every single week. You are consistently positive and the teaching coach that we all desperately need right now!!! Thank you, Michael!!
I appreciate the reminders. Some days it can be a challenge, especially to keep a sense of humor and joy.
I am awed by the amount and kinds of misbehavior we are seeing at school and on buses this year. Students are exploding the boundaries in Lord of the Flies fashion. Anyone else experiencing this?
Perfect description of what I am seeing at my school, too. I can manage the class, but passing time is 4 minutes of drama, pushing, and general inappropriate behavior that they bring in every hour. Then 55 minutes later, we do it all again.
I love your articles—this reminded me of all I’m not doing. Going to give them time this week to work in groups & put the skills we’ve been learning thus far into some fun group projects. Coding classes so I’ll expect to see some wild anime & hip hop websites but some stellar work for sure & I know they’ll have a ton of laughs. You’re so appreciated, Michael.
Great article Michael! You are awesome!
Thank you for the reminders.
A great article Michael. I can absolutely relate to it. I will try out your suggestions.
YES!!!!!!!
Spot on, not only will the students want to be there, but so will the teachers!
It is scary to see on these posts and other social media how out of control, how such horrible behavior is in schools across America. That is a real problem and that is the reason teachers are leaving.
Thanks again! 🙂
I do a read aloud for 15 minutes every day and the kids love it. They can work on something, eat a snack, or just listen. It’s their downtime and no pressure. And more and more, the kids will just listen because they enjoy the story so much!
Thank you Thank you for keeping me going !! Im going to print this article and refer to it every morning! This has been a hard year and I appreciate your support and commitment to helping us get through this together!
Awesome article. Positivity rules. We are performers as teachers. Children take their cue from our behaviour.
Yes, I am being consistent , use these plans Set long term goals and objectives with time limits and goals for achievement. Set short term goals and objectives with time frames for completion. Set an object for each class session. Make sure the students and instructor knows each object and has a plan to meet the object. Check for understanding often. Give an assessment at the end of each class setting. Give assessments for short term objective, to build up retention of materials to be retained for comprehensive, long term retention and standard testing.