Classroom Management Plan

1. Philosophical Beliefs
The thing that most influences my teaching philosophy is a desire to help students. Ive
had many poor teachers over the years, far more bad than good, so I know what its like to have a
bad teacher. I want to be a great teacher so that my students can learn and they can enjoy my
class as much as possible. The driving philosophy behind my style is that of student centered
learning. The more students can participate in building their own knowledge, rather than soaking
up information like a sponge, the better off theyll be.
Respect is established by giving respect, rapport is established through getting to know
your students. You have to respect your students in order for them to respect you. In order to
have rapport, you have to get to know them. And you have to be sincere.
I will encourage them to succeed. And I will be explicit about letting them know that I
have high expectations. And I will be consistent about this throughout the year.

2. Classroom Physical Space

The essential features of my classroom are 11 desks big enough to seat 2-3 students
comfortably. They can be arranged in a variety of ways, anything from table groups to Socratic
circles to traditional rows. There is a great deal of room in the class, and I have multiple
whiteboards to write on. In addition, I have a desk in one corner with a computer which is linked
to a projector and speakers. There is also a row of cabinets along one of the walls of the
classroom which afford me a great deal of storage space. Finally, I have a cart full of laptops for
class use.

I plan to mostly alternate between the horseshoe style and table groups; I have found that both of
these styles work well for just about any lesson I want to teach. The laptops will stay in the
corner, so they are not in the way, but they can be accessed at any time. The cabinets will be used
for storing class sets of books and other school supplies.
I plan to keep my classroom safe by having enough room for students to walk around the
room, even around backpacks and chairs and other students. This is one of the best things you
can do to ensure physical safety in the classroom, as it is easy to trip over a backpack or chair
leg. I will also be enforcing the 4 on the floor rule. (All four chair legs on the ground, no tipping
back). This will help to prevent students from falling over backwards and injuring themselves.

3. Classroom Procedures
Routines: 1. The Goose Call (any other noisemaking device will work, this is just one of
many possibilities): I will use this at the beginning of class as a call for attention and a fun way
to let the students know that were transitioning.
2. The paper turn in: All papers will be turned in on the due date through a ceremony. This will
take 15 minutes, but it will be totally worth it. They will turn the papers in one at a time when
their name is called, so this way I know whose paper is late, whose paper is getting emailed to
me, etc etc. This will really help me keep track of everything.
3. Fancy Thursday: This is one that I have already instituted with great success. Every other
Thursday will be Fancy Thursday, where I will dress up as fancy as I can and encourage the
students to do the same. This helps to break the monotony of the day, both for them and for me,
and its a way to have a little fun. Which, sadly, is something that they dont get to do nearly as
often as they should.

Transitions will be handled with the noisemaker, but the real key is to make them smooth
and quick. You have to know beforehand what you are going to do for your transition, and it
helps if the students dont know right before (if you say in a bit youre going to pick a
partner then theyll all start picking partners). Tell them whats gonna happen and then give
them a time limit in which to do it. Be consistent about it. Once your time limit is up, start the
new activity. Be assertive about this, and your students will quickly learn the score.
Handling volunteers depends on what that volunteer is there for? Are they there to work
with the students? Observe me? Observe a particular student without them knowing? How I
handle a volunteer depends on what that volunteer is there to do. Whatever the case may be,
introduce the volunteer in some way shape or form to your students, and keep them in the loop as
much as you can. Otherwise, they just end up staring at the volunteer the whole time.

4. Policies and Rules

My general list of rules will be simple: Be respectful, stay safe, have fun. There is a great
deal of material to go along with that, but those are my three basic tenets which will be posted in
my classroom. I may have subtitles explaining various examples as well. The best way to ensure
clarity about my classroom policies is to have them represented visually (in something like a list
of rules) in the class. I will have my students create a wordle of the classroom rules. Ill write
down my basic classroom rules, and then have everyone put them in their own words, then
compile them into a Wordle and put this up with by the list of rules in the classroom.
Be Respectful: This means many different things in many different situations. Dont talk
while others are talking, dont use foul language, keep your hands to yourself, dont make
anyone uncomfortable, dont bully anyone.

Stay Safe: Dont tip back in your chair (four on the floor!) Dont trip people, dont stand
on desks or chairs, dont throw things, etc.
Have Fun: I want my class to be enjoyable. Let me know if you have a cool idea for a
lesson, I encourage you to contribute as much as possible, especially when it comes to your own
learning.
I will teach these rules by example, and by consistent enforcement. The students should
know what to expect from me in terms of behavior as much as I know what to expect from them
every day. The more consistent I am with rules, the more they will understand them. I will also
work to develop a rapport and positive interaction with my students. The more positive
interactions I can have with a student makes the negative interaction of discipline much easier.
And the more I get to know my students and level with them, the better our relationship will be.

5. Positive Reinforcement & Hierarchy of Consequences

Praise is one of the best ways to reinforce positive behavior. Genuine praise goes a long
way. I think passion for your subject goes a long way with this too. If you have an intrinsic
motivation to learn and work with whatever youre teaching, that helps the students develop the
same attitude. This is really obvious with a teacher who is not passionate about what theyre
teaching, and its apparent to students as well. Being explicit about praise, be it verbal, written,
or points of some sort, is essential. Students are used to being criticized in school, what they are
not used to is someone who praises more often than they criticize. The more positive interactions
you can have with a student, the better, as when it comes time to have that negative interaction,
you have built a relationship base to work from.

My specific response to misbehavior is simple: it is scaffolded to the level of misbehavior

the student exhibits. If you have an emotionally disturbed student flipping desks in your class,
you cant just start with a verbal warning and move up the ladder. Being able to adjust to whats
going on is essential. That being said, my general reaction is as follows:
1. Build a positive, respectful, working relationship. This eliminates the majority of
behavior right off the bat.
2. Subtle (Verbal or non verbal) warning. This could be anything as simple as a stern look
or a mild reprimand.
3. Explicit Warning (Verbal or non verbal). If the student has become a distraction to
others, then its time for an explicit warning. This doesnt always have to be super
stern, and the less you put the student on the spot, the better. If they feel you are calling
them out in front of the whole class, they are far more likely to be confrontational.
4. Reminder of Consequence. This is where we start to get into whatever your schools
procedure is. Detention, demerits, etc. This is their final warning before the consequence
happens. Next time the negative behavior is exhibited, there will be a negative
consequence.
5. Follow Through With Consequence. Make sure you follow through. This is often enough
to eliminate future problems, as once you do this a few times, the students realize you
mean business.
6. Administrative Consequence. Getting sent to the office. Only used in fairly extenuating
circumstances.
7. Extreme Administrative Consequence. Only used in extreme circumstances, or situations
in which there is an immediate threat to student wellbeing. This final step is the
difference between sending someone to the office and escorting someone to the office or
having the principal come get them.