When students get bored their minds drift.

And while some settle on daydreaming, tile-counting, and general inattentiveness, other students are drawn to more…ahem…destructive pursuits.

For where there is boredom, there is misbehavior percolating just under the surface, ready to pounce.

Although there is a lot you can do to counter the onset of boredom, understanding what not to do is the first step to avoiding its negative effects.

What follows is a list of the most common things teachers do to cause boredom. By steering clear of these eight attention killers, your students will spend more time on task and be far better behaved.

And you’ll be a more effective teacher.

1. Sitting too long.

Although it’s important to increase your students’ stamina for both paying attention during lessons and focusing during independent work, if they’re made to sit too long, you’re asking for trouble. Good teachers are observant and thus learn to know precisely when to switch gears and get their students up and moving.

2. Talking too much.

Students need room to breathe or they’ll form an unspoken mutiny and turn your classroom upside down. Talking too much is especially smothering. It communicates that you don’t trust them, teaches them to tune you out, and causes their eyes to glaze over. The more economical and concise you are with your words, however, the more attentive your students will be.

3. Making the simple, complex.

Many teachers misunderstand the oft-heard mandate for more rigor. They take it to mean that they need to make their instruction more complex, more involved, more verbose—which is a major reason why students don’t progress. Our job, if we are to do it well, is to do the opposite. The most effective teachers simplify, break down, and cut away the non-essentials—making content easier for students to grasp.

4. Making the interesting, uninteresting.

Most standard grade-level subject matter is interesting, but your students don’t know that. In fact, many assume, based on their learning experiences in the past, that it’s boring. It’s your job to show them otherwise. It’s your job to give them a reason to care about what you’re teaching. So many teachers just talk at their students, forgetting the most critical element: selling it.

5. Talking about behavior instead of doing something about it.

Teachers who struggle with classroom management tend to talk endlessly about behavior. They hold class meetings. They hash things out. They revisit the same tired topic over and over, much to their students’ eye-rolling chagrin. Effective classroom management is about action. It’s about doing and following through and holding students accountable. It isn’t about talking.

 6. Directing too much, observing too less.

Most teachers are in constant motion—directing, guiding, handholding, and micromanaging students from one moment to the next. This is not only remarkably inefficient, but it dampens enthusiasm for school. Instead, rely on sharp, well-taught routines to keep your students awake, alive, and responsible through every transition and repeatable moment of your day—while you observe calmly from a distance.

7. Leading a slow, sloppy, slip-shod pace.

Good teaching strives for a focus and efficiency of time, movement, and energy. The day crackles and glides cleanly from one lesson or activity to the next. As soon as one objective is met, it’s on to the next without delay. Moving sharply and purposefully forces students to stay on their toes, their minds engaged. Boredom never enters the picture.

8. Failing to adjust.

Regardless of what you’re trying to squeeze in by the end of the day, or how important it seems, the moment you notice heads wilting, you must make an adjustment. It’s never worth it to plow through. Sometimes all your students need is a moment to stretch their legs or say hello to a friend. Other times, you’ll simply move on to something else.

Learning In The Spotlight

The ability to concentrate over time is a critical and often-overlooked aspect of learning, and so pushing the time-on-task envelop is a good thing.

But there is a fine line.

And when students cross that line and into boredom, misbehavior is sure to follow. The good news is that by avoiding the common mistakes listed above, you can keep boredom at bay…

And inspired learning in the spotlight.

Note: I wrote an article last week for Jessica Balsley’s excellent blog, The Art of Education. If you’re an art teacher, or you just want to improve art in your classroom, I recommend checking it out.

Also, if you haven’t done so already, please join us. It’s free! Click here and begin receiving classroom management articles like this one in your email box every week.

- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Most teachers talk to difficult students too much, because somewhere along the line they’ve gotten the idea that the more attention they give them, the better teacher they’ll be.

So they pull them aside for pep-talks, reminders, and lectures. They warn. They scold. They threaten. They flatter and debate. They micromanage and manipulate.

They spend more time addressing them, conferencing with them, and trying to persuade them to behave than the rest of their class put together.

And for the most part, it’s a waste of time.

This doesn’t mean that talking with difficult students can’t have a positive effect. When done in a certain way, and in the right moments, it most definitely can.

Here’s how.

Make it infrequent.

Difficult students have been on the receiving end of near-constant talking-tos for as long as they’ve been in school. So when they see you coming, with that same familiar look on your face, they roll their eyes. They’ve heard it all. To get them to see themselves as capable of following rules like anyone else, you shouldn’t touch base with them more than anyone else.

Make it honest.

In a desperate attempt to improve behavior, many teachers will say just about anything to difficult students—regardless of its truthfulness. But trying to coerce students into behaving, particularly while being less than brutally honest, doesn’t work. Neither does false praise, bribing, or any other form of manipulation. The most effective way to talk to difficult students is to give it to them straight.

Make it meaningful.

The only reason to talk to difficult students about their behavior is to inform or to deepen the meaning of a lesson already learned. Never ask them why they did this or that. Never force assurances or explanations. Never give them a dressing-down. Let their mistakes and subsequent accountability, or their successes and subsequent good feelings, be the lesson. Don’t ruin it, absolve it, or weaken it with your overinvolvment.

Make it a challenge.

When a difficult student misbehaves, let your classroom management plan do your talking for you. However, if the right moment strikes, and you know a word or two can provide additional strength and meaning to the lesson, then make it an encouraging challenge. For example, you might cruise by their desk or time-out chair and say simply, “You’re better than this” or “I still believe in you.”

Make it wordless.

When a difficult student does something well or has a particularly good day, it’s often best not to say anything at all—which is a startling change when compared to most of his or her former teachers (who’d all but throw a parade). By simply not making a big deal out of them doing what they’re supposed to do, what they’re expected to do, you send a powerful, behavior-altering message.

Make it a gesture.

If the student has had several good days, or you’re convinced they’ve made real improvement, and not just a brief period of acceptable behavior, then a simple gesture like a fist bump or a knowing smile can be most impactful. It can deepen the meaning of a positive lesson already learned. And unlike silly, over-the-top celebrations for moderate improvement, the student’s heart will soar—internally, privately, and resoundingly.

Make it free of strings.

Most teachers only talk to difficult students when they want something from them (i.e., improved behavior), which effectively poisons the relationship. To influence their behavior you have to build mutual, trusting rapport—which only comes with no strings attached. Decide to like and enjoy your most difficult students, no matter how unlikeable they can be, so that when you do talk to them about behavior, what you say will pack a punch.

Let Them Stand…

Teachers spend so much time and attention on difficult students because it makes them feel like they’re doing something, anything, to help improve their behavior. They figure that if they work hard enough on the problem, if they can just somehow come up with the right words to say, they’ll be able to turn them around.

But the more attention you give to difficult students, the less attention they’ll pay to what you say and the harder it will be to improve their behavior.

So instead of telling them how they should feel, what they should think, and what lessons they should be learning, give them a chance to feel the weight of their mistakes and the inner joy of their successes.

Let them stand on their own two feet.

Then, and only then, will the wellspring of change come bubbling up from the only place it truly can…

From within.

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Building rapport with students can be a remarkably effective way to improve classroom management. But there is some confusion over what rapport is and how one goes about building it.

Rapport is nothing more than a connection you make with your students based on their positive feelings for you. When they like you and trust you, and when you in turn like and believe in them, you’ll form a bond that makes classroom management a lot easier.

It’s as simple as that.

But rapport isn’t something you can force upon your students. Teachers who try to engage individual students directly… “Hey, what’s your favorite video game?” …often find the interaction brief and awkward and the results less than influential.

To build genuine rapport, you have to draw students to you. You have to use your personality, your humor, and your charisma to get students to want to be around you and take an interest in who you are.

It’s this natural appeal that allows you to effortlessly make personal connections with students and influence their behavior choices—often without ever having to say a word.

The idea of using one’s everyday personality to draw students in and build rapport makes sense to most teachers, but many struggle with how to put it into practice. What exactly does it look like?

I’ve gotten this question a lot over the years, and the truth is we all have different personalities. We all have our own unique talents, traits, sense of humor, and joie de vivre.

The simple answer is to just be likeable and rapport building will take care of itself. However, I know how helpful it can be to hear specific examples. So in that spirit, here are two easy-peasy ways you can build rapport today—and see results almost immediately.

1. Smile until they smile.

I love this strategy and find it works even when I’ve never met the students before. You can use it anytime you’re passing out materials, checking student work, taking attendance, or anytime you have occasion to make eye contact with individual students.

Let’s say for example you’re taking attendance. As you say each student’s name, you would take a moment to look up and smile at the student. You would then continue making eye contact and smiling until the student smiles back at you. And that’s it.

What it does is allow you to make an instant positive and personal connection with each student. It communicates a thousand wonderful things in just a couple of seconds. And when you’re finished, each student will see you in a different light.

You may notice other students begin to giggle as you do this. That’s okay. It’s all good. Sometimes I make funny faces instead of smiling or I’ll exaggerate a frown until they do the same. It’s really fun. And lest you think your students are too old or too cool, I’ve used this strategy with sixth-graders to great effect and wouldn’t hesitate to use it with older students.

2. Tell a story about your childhood.

If you’re a regular reader of this website, or if you’ve read the book Dream Class, then you know the power of storytelling. Nothing… nothing, nothing, nothing is more effective. Done a certain way, it can put your students in the palm of your hand. It does, however, take some practice.

Telling a story about your childhood is a good place to start. It places you in an environment they’re unfamiliar picturing you in, but one in which they can closely identify with. You become, then, not so different than them—making connections easier.

I’ve found stories about adventures or comedic hard luck to be most effective. But really anything with a twist or a surprise works. Acting out the story is also especially effective. But it’s important you have fun with it; stories about your dog Snowflake dying are verboten.

Why storytelling works so well is in some ways still a mystery to me. There is no doubt that your students will love it and love you because of it. If you become a good storyteller, it will completely change your teaching and will dramatically affect the influence you have with your students.

Tearing Down Walls

It’s important to note that one of the keys to building rapport is what you don’t do. Many teachers have a hard time building rapport because they respond emotionally to misbehavior. They show frustration, they scold, they lecture, and in so doing they erect a giant wall between themselves and their students.

Building rapport is about tearing down walls, some of which are put up by your students before you even meet them.

There is a lot to this topic, and we’ll touch on more in the weeks to come, but one thing is for certain: Building rapport has the potential to impact every important area of your teaching—classroom management, difficult students, motivation, independence, academic progress—and then some.

How’s that for a smile and a five-minute story?

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Five of the most frequently recommended strategies for dealing with difficult students can actually cause an increase or a worsening of misbehavior.

Which begs the question: If they cause behavior to get worse, then why are they recommended?

Well, for a few reasons.

• They’re easy to explain.
• They’ve been around so long people assume they work.
• They make sense. In other words, they seem like they should work.
• They offer tantalizing hope for teachers at the end of their rope.

And the frustrating, almost cruel, thing is, even with the most challenging students, a few of the five strategies do result in almost instantaneous improvement. Yes, I think this is going to work! I think I found the answer!

But alas, the improvement disappears nearly as soon as it arrives—lasting for a day or two, perhaps a week.

And after that, all bets are off—which is why the familiar strategies listed below are cycled over and over again with the same students, year after tired year.

So let’s set the record straight. Let’s ruffle some feathers. Let’s throw these ineffective, pull-the-rug-out-from-under-you ways of dealing with difficult students on the scrap heap.

But be forewarned.

They are among the first strategies many of your colleagues will enthusiastically recommend to you, rolling off their tongue like they’ve recommended them a thousand times before.

1. Behavior Contracts

Behavior contracts are perhaps the most favored strategies for dealing with difficult students because you’re guaranteed to see immediate and often stunning improvement—which can feel great, exciting, the answer to your prayers.

However, that improvement will be short-lived. Any strategy that involves a “do this and get that” scenario weakens over time and does nothing to spark intrinsic motivation—which is the one ingredient necessary for real, lasting improvement.

Behavior contracts also label students, providing a daily reminder that their teacher doesn’t believe they’re capable of controlling themselves like a regular member of the class.

2. Ignoring

Anyone who has ever tried this one knows it doesn’t work with difficult students. It might sound good in theory, and you’ll find no shortage of people lining up to recommend it to you, but in a working classroom ignoring difficult students usually ends in disaster.

Most of the time the student being ignored will respond by ratcheting up his or her attention-getting behavior, at times going so far as to sing, yell, or even laugh while you’re trying to teach.

When a student misbehaves, no matter who it is, you have an obligation to address it as soon as you’re able using your previously agreed-upon classroom management plan—the same one used for every student in your class.

3. Recess Time-Out

If your school has a recess time-out or detention area, then chances are it’s poorly supervised by someone other than the teacher of those particular students. And therein lies the problem.

Recess time-out only works if you, as the classroom teacher, are the one doing the supervising. Otherwise, it’s a weak consequence, sitting there with a whole band of troublemakers from all over the school. For most students, it’s little more than a nuisance.

If you don’t show your students, prove to your students, that you care enough to supervise them during recess time-out—preferably in your own classroom—then the consequence won’t have any meaning to the student.

4. Permanent Time-Out

It’s not uncommon to see difficult students seated in peculiar areas of the classroom—in the corner, up against the front wall, pushed against the teacher’s desk.

I call this permanent time-out, and it’s another form of labeling. It communicates to difficult students that the teacher has given up on them. It says, in effect, “I don’t believe in you or your capacity to change, so we’re going to keep you forever separated, regardless of how you behave.”

Permanent time-out merely reinforces in the student’s mind that he or she is a behavior problem. It becomes part of who they are, like their eye color or where they were born.

5. Special Rewards And Praise

This strategy is typically used in conjunction with ignoring. In an effort to build self-esteem, difficult students are showered with rewards and praise whenever they behave in a way that is a common classroom expectation.

The idea is that if you “catch them doing something good” or doing what they’re supposed to, and praise them heartily for it, then they’ll feel good about themselves and their behavior will improve.

And yes, there can be immediate, on-the-spot improvement. But over the long haul what it does is tell difficult students that they’re not good enough to be treated like everybody else. Furthermore, excessive awards and praise carry with them a whiff of condescension. You can almost see the embarrassment in students’ eyes when they know, deep down, it’s not real.

Note: This is true for difficult students in regular education classrooms. For more info on this topic, see the article, Why You Shouldn’t Reward Students For Good Behavior.

The Same Plan For Every Student

Most difficult students are able to make lasting changes in behavior when they’re subject to the same solid classroom management plan as everybody else.

They’ve been made to feel somehow different for so many of their school years that when they meet a teacher who really believes in them, who places them on equal footing with everybody else, they blossom.

A Radio Interview With Smart Classroom Management

I was interviewed yesterday by Nicole Eredics and Terri Mauro of Special Needs Talk Radio. It’s available as a free download at iTunes. Just click here and then scroll to The Inclusive Classroom 1/6/12.

If you haven’t done so already, please join us. It’s free! Click here and begin receiving classroom management articles like this one in your email box every week.

- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Telling students exactly what you want is good teaching.

It seems obvious, but if you’re unable to communicate what you want from your students, then they’re never going to give it to you.

Too often when giving directions teachers begin talking before they’re ready. They think out loud. They hem and haw. They hesitate. They appear unsure of themselves. “Okay, um, let’s see, here’s what were gonna do…”

And they wonder why their students struggle to follow directions.

It’s best to compose yourself first, decide what it is you really want your students to do, and then give it to them straight. “When I say ‘go’ I want you to stand up, push in your chair, and line up for lunch.”

This is good. This is excellent.

The teacher informs her students that she is going to use the ‘go’ signal, which improves listening and keeps them from moving too soon, and then tells them precisely what she wants—simple, direct, and effective.

But what if you need to give your students directions to be carried out over a lengthy activity? This can be a challenge for students and a major source of frustration for teachers.

The students start out strong enough, but soon everything falls apart. They forget. They get confused. They lose motivation. They become distracted. They start goofing off and misbehaving.

It can make you want to run screaming for the parking lot.

To be an effective teacher, to keep your students on-task and to encourage independence, you must be able to give unforgettable directions.

Here’s how:

Step 1: Make your directions a story.

Your students will pay close attention if you make your directions sound like a story progressing from beginning to end. This is easy to do if you picture one of your students working his way through each of the tasks you want them to complete.

Stories are powerful and can make mundane directions come to life for students—especially when they see themselves in the story.

Step 2: Use “going to” to spark visualization.

To insert your students into your directions/story, use the words, “going to,” as in, “First, you’re going to pick up your materials from the front table. Then you’re going to…” When students hear “going to” they begin picturing themselves actually doing it.

“Going to” is a memory device that causes students to create a moving picture in their mind. It’s also predictive. They take it as fact that they’ll indeed be able to do everything you ask them—without your help.

Step 3: Include anchors.

As you walk your students through your directions, add a few simple but insignificant tasks along the way. For example, you might say, “When you finish writing your hypothesis, you’re going to run out and touch the basketball pole on the playground.”

Silly tasks like this act as anchors along a memory map for your students. The novelty and goofiness has a way of helping them remember the path that leads from the beginning of the activity to the successful end. It’s also a lot of fun.

Step 4: Act out your directions.

Detailed modeling can be impractical for lengthy, multi-step activities. But you can always act out what you expect without ever leaving the front of your classroom. Use your body and facial expressions to dramatize the steps you want your students to take.

It provides additional support for their visualization and helps them to better picture themselves completing the tasks you place before them.

Note: When giving directions you want followed immediately, it’s best to stand in one place and not act them out.

Step 5: Use a winding path as reference.

On an easel or whiteboard, draw a winding path of boxes. In each box write a one or two-word reminder for your students to refer to. Each box represents a task, leading to a successful finish. This supports the idea that the activity is a story and they’re the lead characters.

The last box should refer to the final anchor, a fun way to culminate the completion of the activity. For example, after your students record the final results of their science experiment, they hold their journals triumphantly in the air and say, “I did it!”

Step 6: Hang responsibility on their shoulders.

Before releasing your students to begin, ask, “Is there anyone who doesn’t know exactly what to do from the moment I say ‘go’ until you finish the activity? I want to know now. I don’t want to find out during the activity that you don’t understand.”

By being proactive and asking if anyone doesn’t understand, you effectively put the onus of speaking up on your students—saddling them with a greater feeling of responsibility to do it right.

Step 7: Increase the challenge.

When you first try this new way of giving directions, you may only have a few tasks, or steps, on your path—especially if you’re a primary teacher. But as your students get better, and as they grow more independent, you’ll be amazed at what they can do.

Bring it On

Great teaching doesn’t have to feel like hard work. You don’t have to strain and stress to be effective. You do, however, need to be able to communicate with your students in a way they understand.

For most day-to-day classroom business it’s best to be direct and straightforward with what you want. But for multi-step directions that take time to complete, you must create a story for your students.

Many teachers place giving individual help at the top of their priority list and don’t give a second thought to how they provide the directions—which creates needy, dependent students whose first inclination is to look to their teacher rather than relying on themselves.

But when you can provide unforgettable directions, when your students can see what you expect from them and picture themselves doing it, they’ll rarely need your help.

And as you test them and push them with more and greater challenges, they’ll develop into capable, independent students who will look back at you with eyes that say…

Bring it on.

Note: I’ll be taking next week off to celebrate Christmas, but will be back on New Year’s Eve with a rockin´ new article.

Have a blessed holiday!

Michael

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Most students are praised too much.

They’re praised too often, too public, and too over-the-top. They’re praised for things any reasonable person would conclude are simply not worthy of it.

And as the bar of excellence drops lower and lower, it squeezes the work ethic right out of our students.

Sure, they smile and blush over their teacher’s enthusiastic backslapping. They hold up their pretty certificates for the camera and smooth stickers on the bumper of the family car.

But unless the praise was earned, it means nothing. And deep down every student knows it.

For every time you praise students for something that didn’t involve hard work or a certain mental toughness to accomplish, a sliver of their dignity is taken from them.

A soft, sinister voice whispers, “Pssst! Hey, you in the third row. Yeah, you with the smiley face sticker. You know you didn’t really earn it, don’t you? Your teacher just gave it to you because average is all you’re capable of.”

When a teacher refrains from giving praise for doing what is expected, however, and instead keeps her eyes pealed for true accomplishment, she adds a jolt of fuel to her students’ intrinsic motivation.

For this kind of praise feeds the churning, unstoppable force that resides in each student and spurs them on to become more than they thought they could.

A triumphant voice then shouts from the mountaintops, “You did it! And you’re capable of so much more!”

Here are eight ways to give your students intrinsic power through your effective praise.

1. Make it deserved.

Unless the praise you offer is based on achievement, which is defined differently for each student, then it will hold no meaning or have lasting effect. This underscores the importance of knowing your students and their unique abilities—so that when you see something praiseworthy, you can pounce.

2. Make it subtle.

Small, subtle gestures of praise are among the most effective. Mere eye contact from across the room, carefully timed, one-word recognition, a single nod of the head—they can send a student’s internal motivation into hyper drive.

3. Make it private.

Make your praise a privately shared moment between you and the student. It may seem counterintuitive, but you’ll find exclusive praise to have more intrinsic value and greater motivational effect on your students than the over-the-top, public, cheering variety.

4. Make it silent.

You don’t always have to make your praise wordless, but doing so can make it especially effective. Quiet applause, fist pumps, winks, knowing smiles, and good old-fashioned handshakes are all wonderful and inherently genuine ways to jump-start your students’ intrinsic engines.

5. Make it written.

A stationery note, written in your careful hand, folded over and stuck to the inside of a student’s desk is perhaps the most effective form of praise you could ever use. If your note is written from the heart, the student will cherish your words—not sharing it with a soul and saving it for years.

6. Make it belated.

Effective praise doesn’t have to come immediately following the accomplishment. Sometimes it’s best to wait until your praise can be more confidential and unexpected. An out-of-the-blue compliment about which the student didn’t even know you noticed can be especially impactful.

7. Make it on potential.

Praise based on untapped ability can provide a much-needed kick in the shorts. When you know a student can perform better than he is showing, give it to him straight. “As smart as you are, you should be getting A’s on your math tests.” Coming from a trusted source like an admired teacher, he’ll believe it—and be changed by it.

8. Make it joyous.

Yes, there are times that call for joyous, enthusiastic celebration. But the key here is that it’s genuine and that it fits the situation. These spontaneous moments are also best shared with a group of students or, better yet, your entire class.

Not Without Praise

Just as important as it is to eschew false praise, it’s equally important not to let a good work pass without your acknowledgement. Worthy praise is the answer to motivating individual students and getting them to move in the direction you want.

But you can’t withhold it.

If you witness them stepping beyond what are common expectations and into the realm of true accomplishment, don’t let them hang there on the vine unnoticed, where the fruit of excellence withers and dies.

Let them know you noticed. Give them your authentic, intrinsically targeted approval. You’ll be amazed at what they’re capable of.

More than you ever dreamed.

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

We know about the public cases, those gossiped about so offhandedly—the homeless student, the one whose mother is in jail, the two with drug dealing fathers no longer around.

But what of the others? What of the secrets hidden and locked away, keys all but resting on an ocean floor?

What about the shy boy seated near the front who won’t look you in the eye? He appears well taken care of—clean clothes, hair moussed, new sneakers.

But what you don’t see is waiting for him at home. What you don’t see are the drunken rants, the assaults on his self-worth, and the emotional pain he carries with him like a war wound.

The truth is, despite our vigilance, we don’t know what happens when our students leave our classroom. We don’t know of the hurt, the fear, and the sadness some wear slung over their shoulders like a heavy backpack.

They put on a good face, these heroic students, and bury their secrets well. And although we can’t always know the challenges they face, we can make sure our classroom is a welcome shelter from the storm.

We can make sure our classroom is a place where our students can exhale and know they’re loved, wholly protected, and free to learn and enjoy school without looking over their shoulder.

We can make our classroom a safe haven.

Here’s how:

Rely on schedules, routines, and procedures.

Knowing what is expected of them during every moment of the school day is a great comfort to students. It allows them to let down their guard and get lost in the steady pace and flow of a well-run classroom. As much as possible, follow the same daily schedule and rely on well-taught routines and procedures.

Maintain a clean, organized classroom.

An attractive room environment speaks volumes to your students about how you value respect, work habits, and expected behavior. When they enter your classroom they should feel as if they’re walking into a world that makes sense, in stark contrast to the choppy, churning waters many navigate during their daily lives.

Be the same teacher yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Inconsistency in word, behavior, or action is confusing to students and will deeply affect their trust in you. It causes resentment, low motivation, and misbehavior. It also brings tension and unhappiness to your classroom and sends the message that you’re yet another adult that can’t be counted on.

Be kind.

It’s so simple but means so much. Treat every student with kindness, patience, and gentleness—regardless of how difficult at times that can be. Doing this one thing will send your likeability through the roof, allow you to build easy rapport with your students, and make your classroom as welcoming as the smell of turkey on Thanksgiving.

Protect your students from misbehavior.

This is key to creating a classroom your students look forward to coming to every day. They must feel safe and comfortable working with and sitting next to any and all of their classmates. Every day they come to school they should feel confident in knowing that they’ll be able to enjoy their day without being interrupted, bothered, or bullied.

Don’t take misbehavior personally.

Teachers who yell, threaten, use sarcasm, or otherwise take misbehavior personally are disliked and distrusted intensely—though often privately—by students. They’re also least likely to follow a classroom management plan—which would allow them to demand the highest standards of behavior without causing friction with students.

Maintain a peaceful learning environment.

Few students do well in a tension-filled classroom, but those with difficult lives outside of school have a particularly rough time—often shutting down, staring off into space, or engaging in serious misbehavior. A classroom is only as peaceful as the teacher in charge. You set the tone with your calm presence, even reactions, and pleasant attitude.

A Safe Haven

The world is becoming more seductive and more dangerous to our students than ever before, all but dragging them away from the academic skills, moral character, and standards of behavior they need to lead meaningful, successful lives.

But we can fight back.

We can compete with the excesses of the world. We can help our students overcome their sometimes awful, painful home lives.

When you become an expert in classroom management, you’re not only able to create the classroom you really want, but you’re able to create one that’s best for your students.

You’re able to create a classroom they love being part of and look forward coming to every day, a classroom where they can build genuine friendships, grow responsible and independent, and accelerate academically.

You’re able to create a classroom free of worry, fear, and negative stress.

You’re able to create a safe haven for your students.

Note: If you don’t have a copy of Dream Class, now is a good time. Amazon.com is currently discounting the book 24%. For details, click here.

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

It starts with a perceived injustice then builds quickly from there. Vibrating deep within the body, anger rises to the surface, turning down mouth corners, narrowing eyes, and flushing the skin.

Pouting and stewing over the “unfairness,” the student loses the inner battle for control and loosens a torrent of outrage, tumbling from the mouth and quaking through the body.

“That’s not fair!!!”

Fists slam on desks. Papers are thrown. Tears are shed. And it happens right in the middle of your classroom.

Although more common in primary grades, lapses in emotional control seem to be happening more and more with upper elementary and middle school students.

Such behavior is grossly immature—of course, for any school-age student—and not worth getting worked up over. But it can also be dangerous. And if handled poorly, you can make the situation worse or cause it to repeat itself over and over again.

Follow the steps below to take fast control of explosive situations and lessen the chances of them happening again.

1. Protect

Your number one responsibility is the safety of your students. So as soon as you notice a student losing control, shift your focus to the rest of your class. Ask them to stay clear of the ill-tempered student. Situations like this underscore how important it is that your students respect you, trust you, and follow your directions as soon as you ask.

Note: If ever you sense an incident escalating beyond your control, call for help immediately—an administrator, campus police, or teacher next door.

2. Wait

Resist the urge to rush in and try to calm the student. For at least the next several minutes, jumping in to try to fix things could put you and your class at risk and incite more aggressive behavior. Unless you absolutely have to step in to protect one or more of your students, keep your distance.

3. Observe

Continue waiting while keeping an eye on both the student in question and the rest of your class. Don’t say anything to the student. Simply observe until the student calms down and returns to his (or her) seat. As the student begins to settle down, it’s okay to say to him calmly, “Have a seat and we’ll talk about it later.”

4. Continue

It’s important to return your classroom to normalcy as soon as possible. Continue with your lesson or activity as if nothing happened. If the student doesn’t choose to participate, so be it. Let him marinate in his own decisions for a while.

5. Stay Clear

Stay clear of the student for at least a couple hours. If the tantrum happened at the end of the day, let the student leave and deal with it in the morning. Only when the student is behaving normally and the incident is forgotten should you approach.

6. Enforce

Although it’s important to follow your classroom management plan, there are times when you must change the script. For potentially dangerous situations, you reserve the right to jump past the warning and time-out steps and go directly to an extended time-out. A half day is reasonable.

7. Inform

For serious behavior issues parents must be notified. Because an emotional outburst is difficult to communicate in a form letter, it’s best to call home—not to discuss the incident, but to inform. Just give the facts. Tell the parent what happened and what you’re doing about it. How they handle it at home isn’t your concern.

Accountability Works Best

The prevailing wisdom says that a student who has a temper tantrum should talk things out with the teacher or other trusted adult—why he acted the way he did, what he could have done differently, etc.

Too often, though, talking it out has the effect of absolving the student of responsibility. It gives credence to the perceived injustice. It justifies his selfish behavior. It shifts the burden of responsibility away from the student and places it with either the source of his anger, with outside circumstances, or with his inability to control himself.

The problem, though, is rarely a lack of emotional control. The problem is that the adults in his life have a hard time saying no to him. They indulge him. They appease him. They cave in to his demands, arguments, and histrionics.

He throws temper tantrums because they work.

To ensure it doesn’t happen on your watch, to do what is best for the student and his future, don’t let him off the hook. Don’t give him stickers when he handles himself the right way.

Don’t talk it out.

Instead, hold him accountable for his behavior. Allow him to feel the gravity of his actions. Send the message that we can’t always get what we want; that in order to learn, to grow, to mature, to become better and more successful people, we have to behave with grace in the face of disappointment.

Most children who lose emotional control have been subject to too much talk.

And not enough action.

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Do your students begin moving before you finish giving directions?

Do they turn in their seats, reach for materials, or begin standing and conversing with classmates before you even finish talking?

Do you find yourself gradually raising your voice, trying to get in that last bit of instruction before the din overtakes you?

The fact is, as soon as your students think they understand what you want, they’re gone—mentally and often physically moving on before they really understand what is expected of them.

We all do this to some degree. It’s human nature. But the effect it has on teaching and learning can be devastating.

Yet day after day teachers continue to talk over their students, hoping that this time they’re going to get it, that this time there won’t be a dozen hands in the air, a rash of misbehaviors, and half the class confused or off topic.

The truth is they’re never going to get it.

Unless, that is, you make one simple adjustment.

The ‘Go’ Strategy

The ‘go’ strategy is a simple and effective way to stop your students from moving on—mentally or otherwise—until you’ve finished explaining all of your directions.

Here’s how it works. Just before giving your directions insert this one statement: “When I say ‘go’ I want you to…” (Then give your directions.)

As soon you finish talking, pause a moment or two and say, “Go!” By giving this particular verbal cue, your students will learn to wait and listen until all directions are given before getting to work.

Here’s why it works:

It removes anticipation.

When your students know they have to wait for your ‘go’ signal before starting their work, they can relax and focus their energy on understanding your directions. They’ll no longer be in no hurry to rush off.

The ‘go’ signal stops them from thinking ahead, removing the natural tendency to anticipate and predict what you want instead of really listening and understanding what you want.

It becomes a habit.

Over time your students will become so accustomed to waiting for your signal that it becomes a habit—something they never have to think about. The words, when I say go will be a red alert that what comes next is especially important.

Of course, like any classroom routine or procedure, the ‘go’ strategy must be taught, modeled, and practiced thoroughly before heightened listening becomes the natural reaction.

It allows you to assess their understanding.

Good teaching requires you to know your students understand what you want before releasing them for independent or group work. Using a ‘go’ signal will enable you to give your directions to a patient and receptive audience.

Also, despite how well you taught your lesson, it gives you one last pause to assess their understanding. During the short few moments before saying ‘go,’ you’ll be able to see the understanding—or lack thereof—in their eyes. With practice, this last visual check becomes remarkably accurate.

It triggers action.

The word ‘go’ is itself a direction, one that initiates immediate action. It gets students moving swiftly toward the goals your directions have set for them. It tells them to get to work learning right now.

Without a signal, you’ll have students rushing off prematurely, for sure, but you’ll also have those who will sit there like a bump on a log, with nothing short of your frustrated verbal intervention to push them into action.

Sound Teaching

Adding a ‘go’ signal will improve listening and learning in your classroom tenfold, but it must be preceded by sound, passionate teaching.

Show your students what you want. Break down what you expect in clear steps they can refer to on an easel or Promethean board. Make them prove they get it with partial practice, student modeling, or role-play.

Confirm their understanding with one last visual check.

Then give your ‘go’ signal and get out of their way.

Note: The ‘go’ signal can also be used for simple, everyday directions. For example, “When I say ‘go’ I want you to stand up, push in your chair, and line up for lunch.”

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.

Are your students slow to follow directions? Do they ever seem reluctant, lost, or unsure of what you want them to do?

Does it ever feel like no matter how often you repeat yourself or how loud you speak you still can’t get through to them?

Does it seem as if an evil, invisible force is encrypting your voice, and the message your students are getting is actually an indecipherable warble? Wah, wah, wah, wah…

Okay, that last one is a little much, but it isn’t uncommon to feel like you’re on a different frequency than your students.

Poor listening habits and sloppy execution are complaints shared by nearly all teachers.

But there is an effective solution, one that will get your students actively listening and following your directions the moment you give them.

It’s called the line strategy.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Find your line.

Before your students arrive to school, locate a line on the floor of your classroom. It can be an edge of carpet or a design in the tile, or you may need to lay down a strip of masking tape. Whatever the method, your line should be at least 20 feet long.

Step 2: Give a direction.

When your students seem to be at their…ahem…least responsive, give a simple, one-step direction—only once and in a soft tone and volume of voice. You might say simply, “Please put away your reading books.”

Step 3: Fill your line.

Without saying another word, notice who is and isn’t following your direction. Quickly approach those who aren’t, or who didn’t, and ask them to stand with both feet on the line. You may very well have most, or nearly all, of your class on the line.

Step 4: Give a second direction.

Follow up with a second direction for those few who are still in their seats and part of the class. Say something like, “Put away your reading books and take out your journals.” Again, ask those who don’t follow the direction to stand on the line.

Step 5: Give a few more directions.

The directions you give can be anything you like. I recommend working on those you give most frequently or those you find most frustrating, but anything will do. Give another direction or two or three and add more students to your line—if applicable.

Step 6: Offer a return.

Quickly scan your line, asking those students who appear to be following along (standing quietly on the line) if they’d like to return to the class. They’ll say yes and happily go back to their seats.

Step 7: Continue adding and offering.

Continue giving simple one or two step directions while adding more students to your line and offering more a return. As to who and when you should let students go back to their seats, just go by feel. If they appear to be attentive, let them go back and give following directions another try.

Step 8: Watch the line dwindle.

As you continue this process, which should only take a few minutes, your line will get smaller and smaller as more and more students begin to clue in to what you’re doing and tune in to the sound of your voice.

Step 9: Practice multiple steps.

When your line is empty, and now that you have their attention, throw in multiple step directions. Say, “When I say go I want you to stand up, push in your chair, place one hand on your head, one hand on your stomach, and smile.” Get as complicated or as silly as you wish.

Step 10: Move on.

Now that you’ve got them where you want them—sharp, sitting up straighter, and listening intently to you—it’s the perfect time to segue into a lesson or activity. You’ll be thrilled with the transformation you see in your class.

Let Them Learn The Lesson

It’s important that you don’t explain the line strategy to your students or why you’re doing it. Don’t add a lecture, an admonishment, or say more than you need to in order to conduct the exercise.

Let them learn the lesson on their own—through direct experience. Explaining it will diminish its effectiveness.

Note: You never, ever want to begin the lesson with just a few students on your line. The purpose of the strategy is to improve listening for your entire class, and must never be construed as a punishment or feel humiliating in any way.

To be on the safe side, once that first large group is standing on the line, announce that you’re playing a listening game—á la Simon Says.

 Why It Works

Deep down all students want to be part of what is right and true and desirable. And so when asked to stand on a line that represents the opposite of that, it burns a hole right through the bottoms of their shoes.

It speaks to them in a way they understand. It restores the connection between your voice and their ears.

The invisible force is defeated.

So Much More

The strategy works on you, too. No, not your ears. Your ears are just fine. It’s your eyes that need opening.

When you get a glimpse of what is possible, when you peer into what could be, it will cast your students in an unfamiliar light.

And the overwhelming thought will hit you like a thunderbolt…

They’re capable of so much more.

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- Smart Classroom Management - Copyright 2009-2011, All Rights Reserved.