Brandy Brown October 2013

Highlights:

My classroom is a community. The rules and management styles set up my class as a safe environment where students are free to learn and share. The arrangement of my class is malleable. It allows for smooth movement but can be easily arranged for instruction and group activities. The rules of the classroom are positive, simple, and are reinforced throughout the year. Students appreciate being held accountable for their behavior. How students will be disciplined for misbehavior will be decided by the classroom, with me guiding them to appropriate responses. It is my hope that, by the end of they year, all students will be intrinsically motivated to guide their own learning. Interactions with parents, colleagues and other community members will help to contribute to the community feeling of my classroom.

Philosophy on Classroom Management and Discipline There are three tools I would like for my students to have by the time they leave my classroom: critical thinking skills, an intrinsic motivation to learn, and the ability to operate as a community to gain knowledge and solve everyday problems. When I was in school, the most successful classes were the ones in which I felt like a member of a community. I liked being asked what I felt was important and deciding with the class on books we should read or assignments we would work on. This is why I see my role as an educator as promoting a classroom environment that provides a communal structure. I want students to actively construct meaning from their own experiences and encounters with texts. They can then bring that knowledge into the classroom and share it with their peers as we explore the world both inside and outside of literature. In order for students to feel a part of a classroom community in which they are willing and enthusiastic to contribute to, the environment must be a safe place. The students must feel welcome to share their thoughts, even if their ideas are controversial or different from the other members of the class. Respect is the key to allowing and encouraging students to contribute to

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the classroom community. I will model respectful behavior and responses so the students can see not only what I expect from them, but that I will also behave in the same manner. Interaction with peers and the classroom community is critical in order to succeed in my classroom. I understand that there are many different levels of comfort with classroom participation. I was a shy student when I was in school. I had my opinions but preferred to listen rather than speak my mind. In order to help the more shy students engage with the classroom discussions and activities, I intend on having the students conduct most work in small classroom groups. Each group will focus on solving problems and tackling the literature and assignments together. This allows the more shy students to share their ideas without having to worry about being wrong or worrying that they look silly. The small groups are less threatening and seem more open to bouncing ideas back and forth, rather then pointing the spotlight on someone in front of the class. Small groups also allow for students who are natural leaders to step up and lead their groups. In order to assure that every student is participating, I will walk around the class and listen to each group during group work. During larger group projects there will be a chance for students to tell me whether they believe each group member is doing their part in a group member grading sheet. I have observed many classroom problem behaviors that occurred because the students were bored. Other times, I have observed teachers completely avoid misbehavior by keeping their students adequately engaged. The students were not just kept busy with worksheets but were actually engaged in the lesson. It is important to me that students take an interest in what they are learning and that they are motivated to discover more, not to just finish a worksheet as quickly as possible to get a good grade. If a student is interested in what they are learning they will not have to act out to express their boredom. Therefore, a critical part of my classroom behavior plan is to keep students engaged with relevant and interesting content. Another large part of creating a classroom community is letting students help in creating classroom rules and the consequences for misbehaving. This makes students feel good about the rules in place but it also helps them to feel accountable in following them. We will have scheduled meetings in our class to create rules and discuss any problems that need to be addressed. Not only does that let me address discipline problems I have been noticing but it also allows students to alert me to situations I may have missed.

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Brandy Brown October 2013

The Classroom Arrangement We saw a lot of classroom arrangement styles during our site visits. One of the arrangements that I particularly liked allowed for student groups, but also made it possible for each student to face the front during times when the instructor was leading a lesson. She has large desks that seat four students and they are set up in an amphitheater style which faces the front of the classroom. This Seats 33 students

arrangement also allows for her to move freely between the groups so that she can evaluate group work. During group time, the students can rearrange their chairs so they can face one another. I want my students to be in groups as well. I have thought of many different ways that students can be grouped together and each arrangement has its benefits and disadvantages. Originally I thought about groups of four with the students desks facing each other but then some or all students will not be facing the board. This could cause students to lose focus and talk to their peers instead. After seeing the site teachers arrangement, I thought I could combine my arrangement with hers. Instead of having a long desk for four students I prefer having them in separate desks, but, I could arrange their desks in tables like the site teacher had. This way, students can sit straight during lecture time, discuss topics along their tables for discussion, or move their desks into a group for intensive group work. Plus, it would be easy for students to move the desks back when they are done. More important then furniture arrangement is the composition of the groups and their members. I want to be able to put students of varying academic and language proficiencies in

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groups together. Specifically for my ELL students I would like to place them with a peer who has the same native language but who is at a higher language proficiency. In this way, the students can use each other as a resource for help on group work, paper revisions, and can even translate for one another if an ELL student does not have the English proficiency to convey their ideas to the group or class. Not only does this ensure that each students ideas are being expressed but it also helps the students feel accountable for each other as a cohesive group, contributing to the communal environment. I like to have my desk at the very back of the room so I can observe the class during silent reading times or while a student is leading the class. I do not like standing up with students, just in case I make them feel nervous. I can also observe students as they come in and out of my classroom. By having my desk in the back I do not have any excuse to teach from my desk either. I never plan to do this, but I have seen other teachers sit at their desks to address the class and it seemed unprofessional and it did not get the students attention. If space allows I would like to have a table at the back of the classroom for small or individual conferences with me or any classroom volunteer who comes to help. I see this working well for ELL students who may need some direct tutoring as well as any student that needs a little extra help. I would also like to have a bookshelf for a small classroom library. There will be days when students will need to read silently and if it is not the novel we are reading for class then they can choose to read something from the bookshelf if they would like to.

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Creating a Respectful, Supportive Learning Environment My classroom is a community. I want my students to be able to function and interact with one another as members of that community. Like any group of people, each of my students will come with different skills and experiences. As a part of creating an atmospheres that is respectful and supportive I will invite my students to share those skills and experiences with the rest of the class. My students will be spending most of their class time in small groups. In these groups the students will collaborate and share their work with one another. This will help support students who may not know how to approach a certain assignment. They now have a group of peers to bounce their ideas off of. Because I am being particular about the composition of the groups, students who are struggling can be guided with a peer who may know the content Classroom Management Plan! ! ! ! ! ! ! Page |"4

Brandy Brown October 2013

better. Also, my ELL students can be more comfortable knowing that their ideas can always be expressed, even if they need another peer to translate for them. Another way to make my classroom more comfortable is to allow all students to bring their cultures in with them. My community of learners will incorporate their own experiences in the discussions we have about the various reading materials we will be using in the classroom. In order to help ELL students connect the material with their own lives I will use texts that are culturally relevant to the students. Many classrooms will have a diverse group of learners, which means a range of texts that extends to multiple regions of the world. It would be neat to have students who are from the same region as a given author to introduce the rest of the class to the cultural background of the text. Not only does this give each student a chance to celebrate their own cultural differences but it also allows students to connect to a text with a more genuine understanding. By allowing each student a chance to share something about themselves, it is my hope, that the students will be excited to hear about one another and for their own time to share.

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Rules I have a low teacher control approach to managing misbehavior and discipline within my class. This is not to say that I do not have a behavior management plan, but, that I believe students are primarily responsible for controlling their behavior and making decisions that benefit their learning. For creating rules and managing behavior in my class I would like to combine ideas from both Thomas Gordon and Alfie Kohn. Thomas Gordon believed in teaching students techniques that promote self control and to lead them in taking ownership of their behavior. Alfie Kohn believed in allowing students to solve classroom problems, such as misbehavior, as a community. My classroom rules will be created in that community. At the beginning of the year we will have a conversation about rules and the class will decide which rules would best help them to be successful. We will write their decisions on the board and narrow them down to no more than five rules for the class. I want to keep the rules as simple as possible. Once we have made a rule, we will discuss what the rule means. We will also demonstrate examples and non-examples of the rule.

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As a class we will find a way to make the rule positive. For example, Do not talk over others could be rewritten as, Respect each other when speaking. I will reinforce good behavior consistently throughout the year. When I see a student behave in a way that follows the rules I will thank them in front of the class as a reinforcement. We will have several class community meetings in which I can remind students of the rules that we created together and ask them whether they believe they are working.

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Responses to Misbehavior I hope to minimize the amount of class time being disrupted by misbehavior with preventative action. It is important to me to engage the students so they are not bored or want to talk out of turn with their classmates. By giving the students the opportunity to talk in their small groups I hope that they will be respectful when it is time to pay attention. Like Thomas Gordon, I believe that students appreciate being held accountable for their own behavior. By playing a part in creating the rules, the students now feel responsible for following them. When there are instances of misbehavior I will handle them based on the severity of the situation, always reminding the students about the commitment they made to follow the rules at the beginning of the year. Some methods of handling misbehavior include: Move in close proximity to the student who is misbehaving. I do not want my students to be afraid of my presence but it will help to serve as a reminder that I am watching them. I do not want to accidentally have a student check out because I reprimanded them in front of the class. Depending on the student, if I notice a problem, I will approach them about it privately or whisper to them to let them know that their behavior is inappropriate. If, however, I know the student will not mind and I do not want to wait until a quiet moment to intervene, I may remind them of the rules out loud. If I notice a behavior problem is persistent I will have the student come in and discuss the problem with me. Then, we will sit down and decide who owns the problem. According to Thomas Gordon, The person feeling the negative consequences of the behavior is said to own the problem, and this person is the one to take steps to solve Classroom Management Plan! ! ! ! ! ! ! Page |"6

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the problem. We will work together, using this logic, to solve the problem and discuss possible consequences if the behavior continues. If necessary, I will try to meet with the students parent or an adult who lives with them to discuss the problem. One host teacher that I spoke to cautioned me about making phone calls or emailing parents with problems. She stated that I should give them time to process a particular problem. Calling them, telling them about a problem, and declaring a need for a solution all in one sitting will put a parent on the defensive. She said I should email the parent (or call), to let them know there was a problem and ask them if they would be willing to come in and discuss it. Then the parent is given time to process what is happening and will come prepared to resolve the problem. I will follow school procedure for larger problems involving school safety and other policies.

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Procedures I will go over routines and procedures with students at the beginning of the year so that they know what is expected of them. I will try to have all of the days materials ready on a table up front before each class. As they walk in the students can grab the materials that we need instead of taking the time during class to pass them out. Each class will start with a journal entry. These will be one of the only pieces of individual work that the students will have to turn in (besides certain writing assignments). I will collect these once a term to assure that the student has been completing them. The entries will be both relevant to the days lesson as well as asking the students input on a certain idea. This will help them to warm there brain to start thinking critically as soon as the class begins. I will hand papers back during times that the groups are working together or while they are working on their journals. I want to minimize the amount of time taken from class to hand back papers. Students will turn in work by putting it in a basket labeled for their class.

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Managing and Facilitating Instruction Students will begin the class by completing an individual journal entry. Once that is completed we will begin the lesson. My lessons will be planned using backward design to ensure that each lesson is built with a goal in mind. I will write these goals on the board or in a powerpoint (depending on the nature of that days lesson) for the students to see. I believe it is important for the students to know where we are going before we begin. Each of my units and lessons will be structured with the Into, Through, and Beyond composition to ensure scaffolding for all learning levels. This structure helps me, as the instructor, engage with the students and gauge their learning and to alter my lessons and methods to better facilitate their learning. The Beyond section also helps me to connect other units of learning and to help students engage critically with what they have learned. Most of my lessons will require group work. Since it is a language arts course, the students will need time to write individually but then the editing and revision process can be completed as a group. However, connecting and working with course materials (such as newspapers, novels, or poetry) will be done as a group. I would like to give a wide selection of choices for materials. That way each group can choose what they would like to read and work with. When we are reading novels I would like to break the class into book clubs and each group reading a different novel. This way we can bring the class together for a larger discussion of connecting themes and concepts. Incorporating technology is very important to me when creating lessons. This does not mean always using powerpoint to present lectures. Including videos, music, and visual materials are important to making cultural connections. If I have a room with a class set of computers I would also like to build a Web-quest, which allows students to explore and discover a topic on their own or as a group.

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Motivating Students to Learn Intrinsic motivation is very important to me. I do not believe a student who has a 4.0 has necessarily learned a given topic. While good grades are important for success in the school system, I want students to discover something they love in the language arts and to pursue it. I Classroom Management Plan! ! ! ! ! ! ! Page |"8

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know that not all of my students are going to love reading or will become future writers, but I hope to inspire the urge to learn more about a given topic in my classroom. As I have said earlier, presenting the students with culturally relevant material is key. This could be very difficult with a diverse classroom but I believe it is doable if I ask for student input on the items we are reading and writing. If I give them several choices about what to explore, they will have more of an interest in what we are learning. Collaboration with their group will also help to inspire them to do their part in the school work. While most of what we explore should be interesting, I know that tasks, such as revising a paper, can be unexciting. However, having groups help one another and discuss work could help to push students toward their potential in writing. After a unit or section I will design a survey for how the students felt about the lesson. I want to know what parts they found enjoyable and what parts they struggled with. It is important to get feedback so that I do not make a mistake with instruction over and over again. In this way I can also learn about my students preferred learning styles as well. This will help me structure lessons that are more engaging for students in the future.

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Promoting Safety and Wellness We will discuss respect and any discipline problems in our classroom meetings. Through discussions and positive interactions with each other during class, we will promote an atmosphere of safety and respect for all students in the classroom. Students will know that disrespect in our community will not be tolerated. I will let students know that they are welcome to come to me with any concerns they have in and outside of class. Any dangerous or violent behavior in the class will be handled immediately. Students who put their classmates in danger will be sent to an administrator or, depending on the situation, an administrator will be called. Keeping my students safe in my classroom is my first job as a teacher and I take it very seriously.

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Interacting with Parents, Colleagues, and Others: Parents

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I want the parents or guardians of my students to feel engaged and involved with the course as much as I want the students to be. Every unit or term I plan to send out some correspondence (email or letter) to the parents relating to them what will be discussed in class and giving them examples of how they can talk to their students about the material. There will be a reading list so that they may read the books that the students are reading. This way, a parent can know that, no matter how controversial, a text we are reading that I am not trying to hide it from them. If a book is a difficult or controversial read, then I will include questions that the parents can use to discuss hot topics with their children. I will also let the parents know of how I can be reached if they would like to discuss any of the material with me. Colleagues I honestly have not been in a situation where I have had a large group of students or a department to correspond with. I am excited to be in a department filled with language arts teachers. I think it would be important to discuss what worked and did not work with their lessons. Also, if there is a particular subject that I need some ideas about how to teach, it would be neat to get their input. I am excited to have a mentor teacher to look at what I am doing and to help me better myself. While I am shy about being observed, I look at this time as a student teacher as a time to make mistakes and fix them. I know I will make plenty but if I stay open to criticism I know that I can only get better with their feedback. Others I am excited to meet with administrators and other professional educators as I start my career as a teacher. Not only will they be a great resource for me but I hope that I can also be a good source of innovative ideas and a good worker for them as well. I am excited to be a proud representative of not only a school but to the teaching community.

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