Classroom management is a huge part of being an effective teacher. In many schools, administrators judge effectiveness with classroom management by the number of times you write-up a student. Aside from this fact, there are several good reasons not to write students up and send them to the office. First of all, if you write-up a student […]
Classroom Management
Posted inClassroom Management, Current Events in Education, Elementary School
But What if They Reflect?
I have never been a traditional teacher. This year I removed most of the desks from my classroom and have added a standing table, coffee tables and areas for students to work away from a desk. This has been an amazing transformation with many benefits. Last week the custodian was in my room and she […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Legal, Opinion, Social Studies, Uncategorized
20 More Weeks of Blizzards: A Groundhog's Day Pred-Election
Today marks the 129th year that Punxsutawney Phil (well, maybe the 30th version of him) will come out of his burrow to either see his shadow or not, declaring whether winter will be extended by 6 weeks, or whether spring is pending. However, after today, there’s still 20 more weeks of blizzards to endure. They […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instructional Strategies
Teaching the Basics in Education
My classroom is a non-traditional environment in education. Knowing that children are, children, my environment is designed to promote the way they learn best; through being able to wiggle around, get up and move if needed, make choices and decisions. and develop crucial social skills through working in small groups. For so many years early […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instructional Strategies
Six Common Sense Behavior Management Strategies That Really Work
No matter what grade level or subject you teach, you will always come into contact with students who either challenge your authority or disrupt the class in some way. Whether you have the student that constantly makes weird noises, the student constantly gets out of his or her seat, or the student who wants to argue […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, From the Front Lines, High School, Instructional Strategies, Opinion
No One Wants to be ‘Managed’
Years ago I stopped presenting, coaching and even talking about ‘classroom management’. Who wants to be managed? To be ‘handled’? As an adult, I want to be led. Students want to learn and they want (yearn for) boundaries; AND they want to be led. Creating and adhering to a list of concrete rules and automatic […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
6 Solutions for Challenging Classes
We have all had that one class. You know the one. You pray before they arrive and you pray after they leave. You have cried and cried over them and even imagined throwing things at the expensive Promethean board that cannot capture their attention. These challenging classes are the ones that we learned the most […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Instruction & Curriculum
New Year's Goals as an Educator
Remember the excitement you felt at the beginning of the school year? Round two starts this month and you have an amazing opportunity as an educator. You get to make a difference in a child’s life. Just as you set goals and made plans in August, pause and help your students start the year right […]