Here at SCM, we believe you should start enforcing consequences as soon as possible (i.e., once the new school year begins). The quicker you’re able to establish a high standard of behavior the better. However, it must also be fair. Giving warnings and time-outs … Read more
There are two reasons why students continue to misbehave in the classroom. The boundary lines are ill-defined. Enforcement is inconsistent. Let’s take these one at a time. By nature, children as young as one and all the way up until adulthood will push and … Read more
You can call it time-out, time away, observation mode or anything you like, but the way you send a student there matters. Far more than most teachers realize. It can be the difference between an easy and effective process and a stress-filled waste of … Read more
Teachers struggling with classroom management tend to overemphasize consequences. They have this idea that if only they can find the perfect set, then all their troubles will go away. So they scour the internet. They query their colleagues. They fiddle and experiment and update … Read more
There is statement I hear again and again from teachers struggling with classroom management. It’s often used as a reason for not holding students strictly accountable or justification for the chaos they’re experiencing. In reality, however, it reveals a profound misunderstanding of effective classroom … Read more
The purpose of class rules is to protect every student’s right to learn and enjoy school. It’s to form an impenetrable boundary that keeps misbehavior out and the freedom to teach in. Do your rules do that? Do they account for every possible disruption? … Read more
Recently, a student asked to speak with me privately. He was outwardly calm. But clearly distressed on the inside. He wore an expression that said: “I’m done. I can’t do this anymore.” After a few deep breaths, he relayed a story about a run-in … Read more
The objective of a warning is to curb misbehavior in the moment. As well as long term. It’s to prompt understanding, reflection, and resolve not to make the same mistake again. In this way, it works like a consequence. It looks like a consequence. … Read more