The Biggest Reason You Struggle With Consistency

Smart Classroom Management: The Biggest Reason You Struggle With ConsistencyThere are a number of reasons why you may not be as consistent as you’d like.

It could be that you’ve gotten into the bad habit of trying to convince students to behave rather than relying on your classroom management plan.

It could be that you’re not 100% sure what does and doesn’t constitute breaking your own class rules.

It could be that you simply get distracted and fail to notice misbehavior.

But there is one reason that stands out among the rest.

It’s a reason that may have never crossed your mind but is responsible for the majority of teachers who struggle with consistency.

It’s awkwardness.

You see, the act of holding students accountable can be uncomfortable. It can be unpleasant and unsettling. It can even be embarrassing.

For many teachers, just the thought of approaching a rule-breaking student—especially if the offense was minor or the student is normally well-behaved—can generate considerable resistance.

It can cause your every instinct to scream: “Just let it go!”

So what’s the solution? How do you get past the awkwardness? How do you enforce a consequence when it’s the last thing you feel like doing?

Well, the good news is that it’s doable, no matter how much resistance you may be feeling.

The key is to rely on a system that removes the awkwardness and makes your response to misbehavior automatic. Something you no longer have to think about.

Here’s how:

1. Do it the same way every time.

When you know exactly what you’re going to do every time a student breaks a rule, you avoid much of the dread and discomfort of informing students of a consequence.

You don’t have to worry about coming up with the perfect thing to say or affecting the right tone. You just follow the same script every time.

2. Keep it simple.

Although it can vary depending on your grade level, the general script is to state what rule was broken and what the consequence is.

And that’s it.

Including any more than that risks causing resentment, an awkward interaction, and greater resistance going forward. It also weakens the effect of the consequence.

3. Don’t hesitate.

If you pause to consider excuses for not holding them accountable, which are a million and one, then doing so gets progressively harder each time.

It’s best to think of yourself as a referee officiating a game. A student breaks a rule and you call a foul. There is no hesitation or time to waver.

You just call ’em like you see ’em.

4. Move on immediately.

After delivering the news, which is essentially all you’re doing, simply turn on your heel and walk away.

Don’t stand and wait to give your students a chance to argue, point the finger elsewhere, or lie and deny—which will only make resistance stronger.

Don’t fall into the temptation to add your own two-cents, tell the student how they should feel, or otherwise cause friction or make the situation uncomfortable.

Just say your piece and be on your way.

Now Practice

The guidelines above will grease the accountability wheels.

They’ll remove the obstacles, the hassles, and the thorny discomfort associated with enforcing consequences. They’ll make following your classroom management plan a lot easier, as well as more effective.

But you can’t just decide to follow the guidelines. Resistance and temptation are powerful adversaries, particularly if they’ve already taken root.

Therefore, you must practice.

Before your students arrive for the day, close your classroom door, position yourself in front of your room, and visualize your most common misbehaviors.

See a student in your mind’s eye interrupting your lesson, for example, or talking during independent work time.

Now go ahead and walk over to their seat and pretend to give a consequence. Really do it. Make eye contact, say the words aloud, and then turn and walk away.

Practice a few more times, visualizing different behaviors. Just follow the script. And later that day, when a student breaks a rule, you’ll find yourself gliding over without a second thought.

Doing what needs to be done.

Easy as can be.

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29 thoughts on “The Biggest Reason You Struggle With Consistency”

  1. Hi,
    This all sounds so simple and straightforward but was do you do about schools where there is a strong culture of young children disagreeing with the behaviour plan/consequences/reason for giving a reprimand fuelled by their parents willingness to listen, side with and then confront teachers stating that the whole thing is too harsh or unfair which then only makes the child worse? I worked at a school where parents constantly stick up for kids, disagree with the teacher or feel their child should be let off the hook as they’re normally well behaved.

    Reply
    • Hi Dom,

      We’ve covered this extensively here on the website as well as in our books. Following your classroom management plan consistently is important, but is only a small part of classroom management. We’ll write more about this topic in the future, including next week.

      Michael

      Reply
    • Wow. That is exactly the situation at my school. To me, it is analogous to what the police are dealing with. They are seen as the bad guys when they do their jobs. The result: depolicing. (Take the city of Baltimore as an example.) As a teacher, I find myself not wanting to deal with it when certain kids misbehave. I make myself do it, anyway, but I wonder how impartial I truly am. Mr. Linsin: I love your books, by the way! I have two of them. I recommend them to others, as well. It would be great if you could write a guide for parents on behavior management strategies at home. I would let them find it indirectly, when I reference you at Back to School Night.

      Reply
  2. Ok, Michael, we have had two days of school so far. I am going to use your plan this year and I have tried it before but was not successful because of inconsistency. I hashed this out with a teacher friend who has excellent CM and she said not to enforce anything for a week of=r so. So I have just been explaining things. I did a lot of modeling, they modeled, we did non examples, all that went well. As far as independent practice without talking and them following through on emptying their hands and looking at me when I talk, they aren’t doing so well.

    I am just wondering if, come Monday, should I start enforcing consequences or just make sure we practice more. I had never done the detailed modeling before and it had an impact in that area. It just took up so much time that I didn’t go over how to behave during independent practice. Or model how to listen to me or how to listen to another presenter.

    I am almost answering my own question as I write, but I found I wasn’t having time for anything other than the routines.
    I know it’s not too late to get them back. Thank you for your insight, I am really glad to have access to your expertise.

    Reply
  3. You have hit the nail on the head! My problem is that I don’t like conflict and the kids know it. This year I stuck with all your guidelines for the classroom management plan. I had 2 instances already in two weeks of school where I had a few tense moments of sticking with the plan. I had to step back, breathe and then go forward. One of the things I panic with is when I feel the kids are ganging up on me, and this can be a group of advanced students or athletes who sometimes are used to teachers admiring them and also getting away with stuff that they wouldn’t tolerate from other students. I had to deal with one situation and one parent this year who wanted to know every detail of how her perfect child could have gotten a consequence. At first I thought, is it worth it if you have to deal with nasty emails from parents? And the answer is yes. I did three activities this week in my science classroom and I was so very happy with the way it went. I haven’t had such a good start to a school year in many years! Thank you! You seem to get those of us who don’t exactly have the teacher look and that intimidating way about us that strong willed students seem to respect more than others! And when kids see you treating everyone equally with consequences (even the “good kids”, they respect you so much more.

    Reply
    • Hear! Hear! I’m also the type for whom this pre-students practice will help. I like it best when we’re all smiling and focused and engaged, and I had the getting there backwards for several years – in other words, I assumed that if I was nice and easy going and let things slide, they’d enjoy their time with me more. But since I started insisting on not talking while I’m talking, listening to other students talking, responding to a call for attention immediately, we can move faster and cover more ground. Takes a while to prove that you really mean it, especially when you see them only twice a week for 45 minutes (I teach music), but I am entirely sold that it’s worth its weight in gold once established.

      Reply
      • Amy, I see classes in the library either once or twice a week depending on grade level so I can relate to your comments. I am experiencing a lot of little disruptions and talking while I’m talking. I’m a little stumped on what I can use for consequences. I do have a reward system for students who are modeling appropriate library behavior and are on task. Can you share what you use to enforce the rule? Thanks!

        Reply
  4. Hi Michael, I swear you are watching me teach. You seem to write about what I need. The one thing I’m not too clear on, even after reading your books, blog and listening to your audible book ( which by the way is fabulous! I got more out of listening to it, and great as a refresher on the drive to school) I’m not quite sure when to deliver the consequence. I do a gradual release method, so I do most of my presenting or demonstrating in the first 10 minutes of class. This is when I have most of the side talking, disrupters… do I stop and “call them out”. Like “Jimmy, stop chatting, this is just a warning.” In a calm non threatening way, and then if it continues, stop again, and ask him to “please go to time out spot”.? This is the way I currently do it, but several of my middle schoolers seem to need these warnings everyday, rarely pushing it to the letter stage. It is almost like they know they’ll get two chances, so might as well use them. Am I doing this incorrectly? It just seems to make that upfront time so chopped up with stops and starts. I know these same students and those at their table are often the ones who then ask for one on one explanations, and I guessing other teachers do give them the one on one teaching, but I struggle in not giving in to that, especially because some of the kids were victims or the talkers. Thanks

    Reply
    • Hi Mary,

      It’s a sign that there are other issues in need of addressing. I’ll put this topic on the list of future articles, but you may want to check out the high school plan (bottom sidebar), which includes a tangible consequence for the first misbehavior.

      Michael

      Reply
      • There is definitely a learning curve in the high school plan for the more stubborn students. Here in week 3, a student just asked “What is the point of a warning if you take a point away”. It gave me a chance to explain the warning cost a point but also serves to let them know that they are not on the right track. If they do not have any more issues – then that is the end. If they do, then I will talk to them at the end of class. I am still fighting some issues, and know that my consistency is good, but not yet great. All that being said, this has been the most calm start to a school year ever, and I am pleased with the general gist of the behavior of all of my classes. I feel hope for a good school year teaching freshmen Algebra.

        Reply
  5. Hi Michael,

    That’s a good reminder.

    I use your class management syestem and it works very well. It has definitely transformed my class management and myself as a teacher and person.

    Just one question:

    I usually enforce consequences from the front of the classroom. Do you think it’s better to approach the individual student before issuing the consequence? If, so could you tell me the advantage of this?

    Thanks a lot for your very practical and helpful website!

    Reply
  6. Hi.
    I’m really grateful for the hints you’ve provided. You hit it on the nail with the awkwardness of having to punish students.

    Your tips are already in line with what I believe and therefore I am sure they will be successful.

    Keep doing the good work.

    Looking forward to your next session.

    Reply
  7. Hi Mr. Linsin,

    I feel so inspired by your articles and have read two of your books. I’ll be the class teacher of a third grade thus year. School is starting jn a few days in our country and I’m planning to use the classroom management plan. I adore youre articles on inconsistency because I can see myself in there. I have one practical question about the three consequences. Let’s say a student gets the consequences 1) and 2) in the morning for minor rule transgressioms. He behaves well during the day, and then for example later in the afternoon breaks another rule. Should I then enforce the third consequence? I would feel heartless doing that, but it would be inconsistent.

    Reply
    • Hi Anne,

      I’m so glad you like the website. Yes, you would indeed enforce a consequence. If not, you would lose respect, rapport, and trust and see a increase in misbehavior—among other problems.

      Michael

      Reply
  8. For the most part, I feel I am doing a good job of enforcing my classroom management plan. A couple of students this year have thrown me for a loop, however. I’m pretty confident that at least two of them have some pretty real (although not medically verified) mental illness issues. How do I go about enforcing consequences for students whose mental health is in question? Is that being fair to them? I plan on starting the process of seeking help for them, but in the meantime, I’m not sure how far to push . . . without pushing them over the edge!

    Reply
  9. I thought I saw while following a series of threads an article addressing how veteran teachers can assess if they’re prepared to adapt their teaching strategies and/or if it is time to move on.

    Can you direct me to that article, I can’t seem to track it down.

    I feel like I’m able to adapt, but sometimes wonder if it’s time to pass the baton.

    Reply
  10. Hi Michael,

    I find your advice in this article very helpful and it does jibe well with my personal view preference on behaviour management. The big problem that I have struggled with this year is in enforcing the consequences as laid out by the school, I have had to send half of a class to plan B (an alternative provision) on a regular basis. This has then led to conversations and emails where I have been told to back down on – essentially – my expectations of good behaviour. Thus I have to put up with swearing, extremely rude behaviour and lack of work and progress from this bottom set class in order to not receive castigation from above. Barring moving school, is there any advice that you can offer in this difficult situation?

    Thanks,

    Reply
  11. I read your consequences: warning, time out and note home. Do you recommend this for all grade levels. I teach second grade and didn’t know if they may need more or not.

    Reply
    • Yes, all elementary grades. You may want to check out the Smart Classroom management Plan for Elementary Teachers at right (sidebar).

      Reply
  12. Michael,

    I really appreciate this approach to classroom management, as I think so many new teachers (myself included) second-guess every move, causing them to trip over themselves and lose authority. However, given the importance of building relationships, how would you advise a new teacher who fears that using such a formulaic, no-hesitation approach to enforcing consequences could harm their relationship with a student? It seems like from your other blogs that you wouldn’t recommend giving a grand pep talk, but is there a place for having a restorative conversation about the rule-breaking and consequence? Or do you focus on building the relationship around other things, like things related to the students’ interest, to demonstrate that you care about the student as a person above all else, and that their rule-breaking isn’t a broader comment on their moral character/view of you as a teacher/referendum on your relationship with that student? In this situation, how do you ensure that students know that you’re on their side?

    Thanks,
    Kevin

    Reply
    • Hi Kevin,

      Enforcing consequences the way we recommend strengthens your relationship with students. It doesn’t weaken it. For more on this topic, please check out the Rapport & Influence category of the archive.

      Reply
  13. I just read this and am implementing this system next week.

    Do you think it’s necessary to conference in person or could I slip students a sheet of paper with the written script on it?

    I am a Science teacher with labs running until just before the bell. It gets diffcukt conferencing with students after class especially with checking to make sure labs are clean.

    Reply
  14. Hi Michael,

    This is my first year of teaching (1st grade) and I have been practicing consistency and many other tips on your website. In times of major stress and feeling like I’m “failing” as a teacher (2-3 times this year), I have read and read and read different articles on your website, spoken to veteran teachers, and have completely “revamped” and “started fresh” with my class each time.
    I apologized for not being clear on my expectations, reintroduced the consequences, practiced the routines and procedures countless times, and modeled “how to” and “how not to”. I try to be private with my redirections, respectful with “hit and run” consequence delivery, and fair across the board with all students.
    Yesterday, after weeks of enforcing and practicing, I was starting to see results… good results. This morning I did too… but then Field Day happened. Before we went, we discussed having good sportsmanship and how it is important to follow the rules to have fun. But then we got outside, and all of a sudden, I had students with no self-control. A couple boys were sabotaging games by cheating and a few girls were fighting over who goes next. I had one student doing cartwheels to our next transition, and two others trying to run ahead to the next station. I called their names, they came to me, I explained what and why what they did was not appropriate (short and sweet I thought), but simultaneously 3 other misbehaviors popped up. It seemed as though I had no authority whatsoever. I know now that I should have gone through the expectations/consequences more thoroughly beforehand, but I didn’t know what to expect (hence 1st year teacher problems)!
    I had a couple repeat offenders sit out of the next game, but even then, they were unusually defiant and testing my limits. We came back inside and discussed briefly as a class. I made it known that what I saw was not acceptable and why, but continued the discussion with asking my kids to think on what station they thought was the most fun and why. My class concluded teamwork, kindness, and following rules helped the station to be fun (perfect- just what I wanted). I thought we ended it positively enough. BUT…
    Now I’m so scared.
    Is everything I worked for the last few weeks now rubbish?! Did all of my consistent consequences just turn to dust?

    Whether it has or hasn’t, my questions for you is these:

    On days like today, how does a struggling 1st year teacher keep consistency when there are so many unforeseen obstacles? Is one absolutely heinous day of misbehaviors going to ruin my classes chances of restoration and progress? What should I do going forward?

    P.S. We only have about a month left before school lets out.

    Thank you in advance for your time and response.

    Sincerely,

    Discouraged 1st year teacher

    Reply

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