Classroom Management Teacher Cheat Sheet

Classroom management is a pretty wide topic.  And the funny part?  They don’t teach you much of it in the teacher prep programs.

Why?   I am pretty sure because of the fact that every child and every mixture of children in the classroom are all different.

I do remember having to create a philosophy of teaching statement. That’s about it.

Ask any teacher that has been teaching longer than a week if he or she notices a difference in the entire classroom behavior if just 1 or 2 specific students are absent.  I think you know where I am going with this.

As a brand new teacher, classroom management was my biggest fear.  I honestly had nightmares that started the month before school began and ran several times throughout the month.

I really feared an uprising.  From 8 year olds.  #truestory

For me, the fear wasn’t that I was worried about third graders in mass chaos in the classroom in front of me, it was more worrisome that my colleagues and heaven forbid my new principal walked in as spitballs were flying through the air.

Of course, none of that ever really happened to me.  Though I can’t speak for other teachers everywhere.

Having some sort of behavior plan ahead of time is a good idea, whether you teach elementary, middle, or even high school.

Children will always test your limits.  Knowing what those limits are in advance can save you plenty of shut eye in the long run.

I did a quick inquiry on my good friend Mr. Google and I was quickly informed that there are almost 600 MILLION results for a search for classroom management.

That’s a lot of choices to have to sort through!

What are good classroom management skills?

Here at Organized Classroom, we have shared almost 30 different ideas and techniques for lots of different teacher styles and preferences over the last 8 years.

We have covered the definition of behavior management, effective discipline systems, and the reasons why good behavior doesn’t come naturally to every child.

Here are some of the most popular successful classroom management posts from our archives:

• Cooperative Learning Group Work Roles Made Easier:  Cooperative learning doesn’t have to mean madness in the classroom if students know exactly what they are to do.

• Does Screaming At Your Class Work?:  One of the best teachers I know who has the best classroom management actually has almost a whisper voice.  I was always amazed at how she was able to get her students’ attention.

• Classroom Management: Why & How:   A basic how to guide for everything behavior management related!

• Deciding on Discipline:  Includes a free behavior management poster too!

What are the best behavior management strategies?

Smart rules and consequences include having the class assist you in creating them.

Why?  It creates an immediate buy-in from the students and when they are not happy with the results of their own disruptive behaviors, they don’t have you to pass blame on to because you weren’t the driving force behind them.

Here are a few more options for strategies that have worked in real classrooms and not just in theory:

• Spin a Surprise {Classroom Management}:  Need a fun and novel way to reward those behaviors you wish to see more?  This might help.

• Classroom Management: Peer Pressure:  Having a tricky student in the past, I needed big time help.  Turns out the help was in the last place I expected.

• Teaching Tip: Keeping Students Engaged:  This is so easy, you’ll wonder why you never thought of it before.

• Simple Classroom Store System:  This token economy system has worked miraculously for several different classes in 2 different states.

• Banner Behavior:  Old school, yet just as effective as most other involved ideas.

• Cup Management:  So simple for keeping those voice levels to a minimum throughout the day.

The real truth about classroom management

Student behavior can make or break a teacher’s school year.  Having classroom communities that a warm and engaging will keep the behavior disruptions to a minimum.

Very few teachers will be able to say they never have any type of behavior blips.

Even the very “best” students will still have a few students who like to blurt out responses, aimlessly wander during the middle of the reading block, or one who loves the thrill of the 5-finger discount of others’ desk supplies.

Knowing that there are thousands of solutions for thousands of possible classroom management issues, I promise there is something out there that will help for every child.

If you want to have a more enjoyable vocation, it comes down to testing and tweaking until you find out what works the best for your unique group of students.

And I can promise that as soon as you find your magic bullet, it will change the next year for certain.

Free Classroom Incident Report Form

Need a little paper trail in those instances when you are still trying to figure out which classroom management system will work best with the current class roster?

Grab one below. It never hurts to have documentation in place.

Click here to email your freebie

What are your best classroom management tips?  There are always room for more!  Feel free to leave a comment below.

~Charity