This time of year it isn’t uncommon for students to become particularly uninspired. It’s the same-old/same-old syndrome. Every day feels like the one before and motivation ratchets downward. Some simple things you can do to help reverse the trend include: changing up your seating … Read more
It’s so easy to do. One of your smart, capable, polite, well-groomed, athletic, and/or charismatic students accidentally and ever-so-briefly breaks a class rule, and you smile and give them a gentle reminder. You trust them, after all. It was a mistake, after all. They … Read more
Many years ago I read The Adventures of Robin Hood aloud to my 5th grade class. One day in the middle of teaching an unrelated lesson a student yelled out “Hey, when are we gonna read Peter Pan?” It was funny. The entire class … Read more
At first glance, the answer just might be yes. It makes sense, right? A student misbehaves and you give them a hand signal letting them know which rule was broken and the consequence. The benefits are: It’s quiet. It’s quick. It’s discreet. It’s respectful. … Read more
The first article ever written at SCM was about praise; subtle, meaningful praise given at just the right moment. The kind that boosts motivation like a rocket ship. Common in this day and age is for teachers to throw out praise like they’re feeding … Read more
Okay, I won’t bury the lede. When students are doing, stop talking. Most teachers—yes, most—talk students through just about everything. Lining up to leave the room. Getting into groups. Starting work. Walking down the hall. Putting away materials. Playing a learning game. You name … Read more
A danger in trying to improve classroom management is that you tighten up. You become tense and wooden. You’re so intent on following your classroom management plan and holding students accountable that it changes your personality. Somewhere in the back of your mind you … Read more
Stress is crushing teachers, but there are things you can do to alleviate it. In fact, with a comprehensive approach, you can all but eliminate it. It’s a topic I’m hard at work developing here at SCM. (More details to follow.) But one of … Read more