You notice it an hour or so into the school day.

Your students are chatty and distracted. Their heads are on a swivel. They’re squirming in their seats. Only the most dedicated appear to be following along.

What do you do?

Do you plow through and hope they settle down? Do you stop and give a rip-roaring lecture? Do you put your hand on your hip and wait?

The problem with these methods is that they’re unlikely to work for more than a few minutes. The fact is, regardless of how old they are, your students can only sit and attend for so long.

So when they become restless and inattentive, and therefore unable to learn, it’s time to do something more drastic.

It’s time to get them on their feet and moving.

The 5-Minute Exercise Break

An exercise break is an easy and effective strategy that also happens to be backed by science. But you don’t have to be a researcher to know that it works. You can see the results first hand.

After just five minutes of moderate exercise, your students will be refreshed, recharged, and ready to learn.

The only catch is that you have to lead them.

Here are ten easy ideas:

1. Air Swimming

Mimic the four standard swimming styles–front crawl, breaststroke, backstroke, and butterfly–as your students follow along. You can also add a leg kick–while balancing on one leg–to go with them.

2. Dancing

A simple toe (or heel) tap from side to side while snapping your fingers is a good place to start. After that, all bets are off. Have fun with it. Be your nerdy self.

3. Jumping Jacks

Stand with your feet together and arms at your side to start (like an I). Then jump and spread your legs and arms apart (like an X), bounce once on the balls of your feet, and then return to start. Do 20 repetitions, rest, then repeat.

4. Run Intervals

Run in place for 30 seconds to spike the heart rate, and then walk in place for 30 seconds to lower it. Repeat the interval two more times. Exaggerate the pumping motion of the arms and hands for a full-body workout.

5. Desk (incline) Push-Ups

Stand with your feet together and about half your body length from a desk. Place your hands on the top edge of the desk and just wider than shoulder width. Lower yourself until your upper and lower arms form a right angle, then return to start. Shoot for 10-12 repetitions, rest for a minute, then repeat.

6. Standing Poses

If you have any experience with yoga, then you’re familiar with basic standing poses like warriors I, II, and III, reverse warrior, crescent moon, triangle, and side angle. All are kid friendly, fun, and excellent for improving strength.

7. Circles

This is a gentle exercise that’s perfect for a quick energy boost. Perform arm circles, shoulder circles, elbow circles, wrist circles, hip circles (like a hula), leg circles, knee circles (w/ hands on knees), and ankle circles. Begin slowly and increase speed as the joints and muscles warm up.

8. No-Weight Gym Exercises

Standard gym exercises like curls, overhead presses, front presses, lunges, squats, and toe raises can all be done in the classroom without weights. Do 10-12 repetitions each, slowly and with good form, and then repeat.

9. Burpees

Burpees are tough, but loads of fun. Stand with feet shoulder width apart and hands at your side. On a count of one squat down and place your hands on either side of feet. On count two kick your feet back and into a push-up position. On count three return your feet to just inside your hands. And on count four jump as high as you can.

10. Twists

Stand with feet slightly wider than shoulder width. Clasp your hands together and bring your elbows out and up to shoulder height. Now twist to your right, pushing your right elbow back and around behind you while pivoting up on your left toe. Repeat to the left, and then continue back and forth.

Note: Although the exercises above are considered safe, injuries can happen. Take it easy, be safe, and be aware of your student’s individual exercise limitations (if any).

Adding Music

I recommend adding music to your 5-minute exercise breaks. When combined with exercise, music clears the mind and improves mental performance.

Music is also a strong motivator for students, and it will give your exercises a rhythm that will help them follow along with the movements.

Schedule It

I’ve found that if you schedule your exercise breaks–once in the morning and once in the afternoon–your students will look forward to them.

This way, when they begin feeling restless, distracted, and prone to misbehavior, they’ll be able to push through knowing an exercise break is just around the corner.

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

It’s one of the great challenges of teaching.

How do you compete with the distractions of a modern student’s life?

How do you interest them in what you’re offering when their entertainment options are so immediate, so exciting, and so easy?

How do you sell them on the cool complexity of a quadratic equation or the beauty of a delicate ecosystem?

How do you get them to appreciate the harsh struggle of the Lewis and Clark expedition or the clean simplicity of a well-written sentence?

How do you get them to pay attention in a world of instant gratification?

You can always dress up like Sacagawea. You can dance around your room in your lab coat bellowing, “She blinded me with science!” You can bring in your dog to show off his Pavlovian response.

Students love these kinds of things, no doubt about it. But every day? For every lesson? It just isn’t realistic.

Save your most attention-getting intros and time-consuming planning for cornerstone lessons; those that future learning is dependent upon.

For the day-to-day, however, you need on-the-spot strategies you can count on to get students to brighten up, lean forward, and hang on your every word—or at least most of them.

Here are three simple strategies you can pull out of your back pocket whenever you need them.

1. Exercise

Before beginning your lesson, ask your students to stand and join you for two-minutes of light exercise. You can do jumping jacks, knee bends, twists, stretches, or your favorite yoga poses. Anything that spikes the heart rate will do.

Studies show that exercise can boost brain function, improve mood, and increase learning. I’ve found that it clears mental clutter and provides the energy boost students need to be at their best.

Once they sit back down, your students will be refreshed, rebooted, and ready for learning. Use exercise breaks throughout the day and you’ll notice a difference in your students’ attentiveness and performance.

2. Storytelling

Storytelling is a powerful way to introduce lessons. Nothing captures attention as effectively. For example, tell a five-minute story about your first roller coaster ride, and by the time you get to the topic of potential energy, every student will be strapped in and following along.

The inherent mystery in stories draws students into whatever world you create for them. And it keeps them there as they transform your descriptions into moving pictures in their head.

Stories also provide deeply layered context for students, linking their memories, emotions, and viewpoints to your lesson objectives. This makes complex ideas, like potential energy, easier to understand and remember.

Note: Storytelling can do more than just improve attentiveness. In fact, done a certain way, it can be one of your most effective classroom management strategies. To find out how, see Key #9: Be A Great Storyteller in the book Dream Class.

3. Curiosity

This strategy uses curiosity, which all students have in abundance, to entice them to follow along. And it’s as easy as it gets. Easy, though, doesn’t mean less effective. You can use this strategy several times a day, and it will never lose its attention-attracting luster.

The curiosity strategy starts with a promise. The teacher asks students to pay close attention, to mentally engage throughout the early stages of the lesson because, if they do, there will be a payoff at the end.

For example, the teacher might say, “Stick with me through these first couple of steps and I’m going to show you something really cool.” (Or we’re going to do something really cool–or amazing, scary, hilarious, beautiful, fascinating, easy, fun, or any number of possibilities.)

By holding back the part of the lesson that is most interesting or attractive to students, and dangling it like a carrot, you provide students a compelling reason to pay attention.

When you pause and look around the room before revealing the one thing they’ve been waiting for, you’ll see the anticipation on their faces. And their recall of everything leading up to that moment? Spot on.

There Is Always A Way

I know there are times when teaching can seem overwhelming. When nothing seems to work. When you’re tired and stressed. The hours are long. There is always so much to do.

But there is great hope. Because beneath the frustration, beneath the gloom and doom roar of the media, beneath the jaded cynicism of some of our colleagues, is this quiet fact:

There is always a way.

Shortcuts, strategies, and solutions abound to make teaching easier, faster, less stressful, more effective, and a lot more fun.

You really can create the class you want.

And I’m here to help you.

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

Do you repeat yourself when giving directions?

Most teachers do.

Besides wasting time and energy, repeating yourself weakens the power of your words.

It causes students to tune you out.

When your students become conditioned to you repeating yourself, they know they can take their time following your directions.

They can finish the paragraph they’re reading. They can carry on their conversation a bit longer. They can cruise through the day without urgency because they know you’ll repeat your directions—and anything else important—over and over again.

How To Speak With Power

Repeating yourself is a habit you must break if you want your words to have impact. The good news is that it isn’t difficult to do. Chances are, you’ll find it liberating.

Just follow these eight steps:

1. Stop moving.

Before addressing your class, stop moving and stand in one place. This helps students focus on you and your message. It also acts as a modeling device; they’ll mimic what they see from you.

2. Ask for attention.

Ask for your students’ attention using a normal speaking voice. I recommend something simple like, “Can I have your attention, please.” Then wait until every student is quiet and looking at you before opening your mouth.

3. Say it once.

Give your instructions once using clear, direct language. And don’t over explain. Giving too much information is a common mistake. Keep it simple. Tell your students only what you want them to do.

4. Pause.

A longer-than-normal pause will keep students focused on you. If you speak again right away without a generous pause, you’ll lose them. Looking away as the teacher begins speaking is another behavior teachers condition students to do. A well-timed pause eliminates this danger.

5. Ask a negative.

Ask your students if any of them does not know what to do. This is an effective questioning technique that helps shift the responsibility for learning from the teacher to the students. If a student does raise his or her hand, tell the student to ask a neighbor after you give your signal to begin.

6. Give your “Go” signal.

Go is a power word that initiates action. As soon as you say it, your students will get busy doing something. If you follow the guidelines given here, however, they’ll do what you ask of them.

7. Don’t help.

You’ve done your part. Now it’s their turn. The responsibility to carry out your instructions lies with them, not you. If you notice a student lost or unsure of what to do, resist jumping in to help.

Give the student a chance to figure out what to do on his/her own or to ask a classmate. If you’re the type of teacher who is quick help, then you’ll create dependent students (i.e., learned helplessness).

8. Do not repeat.

If a student asks you what they’re supposed to do, answer by telling the student to follow your directions. This encourages students to 1) listen intently to directions and 2) take responsibility by finding out from a classmate. This is key to creating a classroom of sharp, independent students.

Big Benefits

By following the guidelines above and never repeating yourself, you’ll cut the amount of talking you do in half. You’ll have better energy at the end of the day. You’ll get a lot more done.

But best of all, your words will have power—power that causes students to tune in to the sound of your voice and to carry out your directions with speed and accuracy.

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

Several years after beginning my teaching career, I went back to school to earn a second master’s degree. I wanted to reach the end of the pay scale and was hoping to learn something new in the process.

After researching colleges near my home, I chose a university that catered to working adults. You know the kind: gigantic national chain, classes held in an industrial park, no sports teams.

The first evening of my first class, I sat in the front row—hand raised, bright-eyed. But slowly, as the semester wore on, I inched my way to the back of the room.

The instructor was painstakingly boring.

A typical class period consisted of theory regurgitation and a slow, scratch-the-surface plod through the coursework. Before long, I found myself in the last row next to a special education teacher from Wisconsin.

Her name was Monica and she, too, was exasperated with the slow pace of the class. We became friends—she was hilarious—and I’m ashamed to admit that during lectures we often played meaningless games to pass the time.

She’d slide a piece of notebook paper over to me with the headline, “Hair Bands Of The 80s” or “Classic Cartoon Characters.” I would write Motley Crew or Fred Flintstone at the top of the list and slide it back over. Then she would add a name, and we’d go back and forth until one of us was stumped.

I had mixed feelings about doing this. On one hand, I felt I owed the instructor a level of respect and should at the least feign interest. On the other hand, I had to sit in a hard chair and listen to him paraphrase from the $65 textbook lying open in front of me.

But despite my mixed feelings—and no small amount of guilt—I continued playing silly pencil and paper games, passing notes like a seventh grader, and chatting under my breath with those around me.

I couldn’t help myself.

After class one evening, I joined my classmates for dessert at a local restaurant. There, I heard story after story about how the rest of the class was biding their time while waiting for the class period to end.

They, too, were passing notes, playing hangman, and watching the clock.

It didn’t matter that we were adults. None of us, 8 years old or 80, is immune to the force of boredom, which can make us do things we know we shouldn’t.

The only difference between my classmates and a group of fifth graders was that we were more covert in our bad behavior.

The fact is, if students are bored, misbehavior will follow.

The “Say Hello” Strategy

One solution is to use the “say hello” strategy. It’s a quick and easy way to reinvigorate your students, improve their attentiveness, and stem the tide of boredom.

Here’s how it works:

When you notice your students’ attention waning and boredom seeping in, simply let them get up, move around the room, and say hello to their friends and classmates.

Interacting with friends has a unique way of energizing tired synapses. It feeds and revitalizes the brain, gets the blood flowing, and releases the pent up urge to engage in minor, though disruptive, unwanted behaviors.

Surprising your students with the strategy works best. Just blurt out, “Stand up and say hello to your friends!” And then leave them alone and let them visit for a couple of minutes.

Like everything else, your students need to know what your expectations are, but I’ve found students to be appreciative of the break and thus exceedingly respectful of the gesture.

You can also use this strategy shortly before a lesson that requires prolonged attention, or right after. But be careful not to over do it or it will lose some of its effectiveness.

Few students can sit and attend for very long without active engagement. Sometimes the solution is as simple as giving them exactly what they want: A moment to talk with their friends.

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