Foundations of Class Management

Foundation 1 - Plan, Plan, Plan

• “If you have not a plan, then you are planning to fail’ - BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
• Planning to engage the students
• Purposeful lesson planning - The best recipes for a smooth, orderly classroom
• Plan lessons that address multiple learning styles and allow all students to experience success
• Have a plan A, B & C

Foundation 2 – FFC

• Be fair, firm and consistent.
• Remember that students are, by nature, the morality police. 
• Students will respect your decisions if they know that you are fair and apply discipline/consequences fairly

Foundation 3 - Positive always Gains

• Always exhibit a positive behaviour
• Never be personal
• Don’t bring your personal worries in the class.
• Ensure a positive classroom environment
• Greet students at the door everyday with a smile 
• Model the positive behaviours and attitude you desire in your students

Foundation 4 - Be Prepared

• Be organised
• Be on time
• Be prepared for changes to your even the “best laid plans”
• Anticipate possible hiccups in your lessons and activities
• In other words…winging it is not an option!!

Foundation 5 – Develop Effective Behaviour Cues

• Silence can be effective
• Wait your turn / Raise your hand
• Ensure that the students are following classroom ethics
• Equal& focused attention on the entire class
• Don’t be talkative
• Be polite
• Use softer voice so students really have to listen to what you’re saying

Foundation 6 - Time Management

• Transition VS Allocated Time

1. Allocated time - The time periods you intend for your students to be engaged in learning activities. 
2. Transition time: time periods that exist between times allocated for learning activities

• Getting students assembled and attentive
• Assigning reading and directing to begin
• Getting students’ attention away from reading and preparing for class discussion
• The Goal:
• Increase the variety of learning activity but decrease transition time.
• Student engagement and on-task behaviour are dependent on how smoothly and efficiently teachers move from one learning activity to another

Foundation 7 - K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple sugar)

• Remember that even adults can only process 3-4 instructions at a time effectively! So,
• Make classroom rules simple
• Keep classroom procedures simple
• Give clear and simple instructions during classroom activities

Foundation 8 – Classroom Arrangements

• All students can see &hear clearly (and you can see them clearly)
• Classroom Arrangement is determined by learning activity (lecture, class discussion, group work, etc.)
• Ensure easy access between teacher & students
• Avoid direct sunlight at the board
• Display the ‘Class Norms” at some prominent place
• Decorate the class in the best possible way

Foundation 9 - WITH-IT-NESS

• Withitness refers to a teacher’s awareness of what is going on in the classroom
• A teacher has “with-it-ness” if:
• When discipline problems occur, the teacher consistently takes action to suppress the misbehaviour
• When two discipline problems arise simultaneously, the teacher deals with the most serious first
• The teacher instantly handles the issues before getting out of hand or are modelled by others
• When handling misbehaviour – make sure all students learn what is unacceptable
• Remember that angry or stressed does not reduce future misbehaviour
• Deal with misbehaviour without disrupting the learning activity

Foundation 10 –Body Language

• “Actions Speak Louder than Words’
• Eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, physical proximity to students, and the way you carry yourself will communicate that you are in calm control of the class and mean to be taken seriously.
• Be free to roam
• Avoid turning back to class

Foundation 11 – Proactive Vs Reactive

• Being proactive means to be among the first initiatives
• “THE BEST DRIVERS ARE DEFENSIVE DRIVERS”
• By using proactive teaching and classroom management strategies, more time is spent on teaching and learning and less on reacting and putting out fires.
• The best teachers use the entire strategies mentioned
• They ensure that their classroom runs like a well-oiled machine.

Foundation 12 – Using Humour

• “LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE”
• Use humor when  appropriate
• Be able to laugh at yourself
• NEVER use sarcasm
• Sarcasm puts students on the defensive and damages your relationship

Foundation 13 - Invite students to learn with

• Inviting and sincere verbal comments

o “I appreciate your help.”

o “How can I help you?”

• Inviting personal behaviour

o smiling and listening

o thumbs up or high five

• Inviting physical environment

o live plants

o nicely decorated walls

• Inviting thoughts (self-talk)

o “Making mistakes is OK.”

o “I am a patient person.”

Remember

• No one wins in a battle – avoid the power struggle
• Give students a dignified way to get out of a bad situation
• Address behaviour issues in private
• Kids make poor choices. Do’t expect too much
• Kids will misbehave. This is natural
• Kids know no boundaries and limits. It is a natural part of growing up
• Kids don’t always do what we expect - no matter how much it is significant
• Don’t take children’ ill doing personally
• Criticise & Praise work and behaviours, not the individuals
• Express feelings but remain in control
• Do not place labels (good or bad)

Conclusion

• Don’t tell the student “slow down” or “just relax.”
• Don’t put words in students’ mouth
• Let them complete their own task
• Provide equal participation for the students 
• Give equal attention
• Expect thesame quality and quantity of work from all the students
• Gentle &soft speaking (pause, attention grabbing, pitch, rythem, etc.)
• Give attention whatever/whoever says
• Have a one-on-one conversation when possible
• Don’t make stuttering something to be ashamed of. Talk about stuttering just like any other matter
• Don’t be talkative
• Direct your instruction clearly
• Mentoring not monitoring
• Move around the room
• Ensure that classroom is comfortable and safe
• Interesting, creative & activity baseLesson Planning
• Come fully prepared
• Show confidence in your teaching
• Learn student names as quickly as possible
• Enable students to manage their own behaviour
• Teach, teach, and re-teach routine classroom procedures
• Model/provide exemplars for excellence in student work and attitudes
• Don’t blame the students for your failure to create an impact with your lecture. 
• Students are immature, a less skilled and emotional whereas you are mature skilled and sensible
• Best way to control the students is by giving them best lectures