How Your Classroom Environment Can Improve Behavior

October 8, 2011

At its best, classroom management is elegantly simple. Take, for instance, your room environment. A disorganized, unkempt, or clutter-filled classroom sends the message to your students that poor behavior and middling work habits is acceptable—regardless of how often or how forcefully you say otherwise. Because if your classroom environment doesn’t match your call for excellence, [...]

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Why Speaking Softly Is An Effective Classroom Management Strategy

October 1, 2011

You don’t always have to make big, dramatic changes to see classroom management improvement. Sometimes it can be a slight adjustment. A small change in the way you do things, in how you speak, move, or relate to students, can make a big difference. Your voice is a good example. Most teachers talk too loud. [...]

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Are You Boring Your Students Into Misbehavior?

September 24, 2011

Your students love video games. They love action movies and bawdy comedies. They love snowball fights, skateboards, birthday parties, and action sports. They love laughter and thrills, challenge and daring-do. They want to leap off thirty-foot cliffs into murky water below. They want to go on zip-lines, amusement-park rides, water slides. They want to score [...]

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Why Freedom Is A Powerful Classroom Management Strategy

September 17, 2011

There is a common misconception that to be most effective at classroom management you have to be controlling. The thinking is that the more you’re on of top of your students, the more you’re directing their actions and decisions, the more effective you’ll be. This is why perpetually moving teachers are everywhere, on every campus, [...]

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How To Send A Letter Home To Parents Redux

September 10, 2011

As a third consequence I recommend a letter home to parents. If you haven’t read my first article on the topic, which also includes a sample letter for download, you can find the link above. In this article I clear up some misconceptions, add a few more details, and expand on the how and the [...]

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10 Amazing Benefits Of Following Your Classroom Management Plan

September 3, 2011

There are times when you just want to give a student a piece of your mind, when your sense of justice causes a welling up of fiery indignation. Your eyes narrow. Your heart beats faster. Steam billows from your ears. You lock in on the little bugger who decided to brazenly interrupt the lesson you [...]

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How To Handle Misbehavior The First Two Weeks Of School

August 27, 2011

Your new students will likely be on their best behavior for the first few days of school. But by the second week, you and your classroom management plan will be tested. After all, your students don’t really know you. Maybe you’ll be like the pushover teacher they had last year. Maybe you’ll be inconsistent or [...]

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How A Simple, First-Week-Of-School Classroom Procedure Can Inspire Excellence In Your Students

August 20, 2011

If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. ~Colin Powell Classroom procedures are critical to classroom management success. They save loads time and energy, reduce stress and misbehavior, and make your teaching life a lot easier. The best part, though, is that when done in a [...]

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