Classroom management is an important process for allowing students to prosper

mentally, physically, socially, and emotionally. After taking a classroom management course

during my student teaching semester, I have learned how important it is to create an environment

that allows the students to feel safe, comfortable, and respected. To do so, I believe it needs to be

teacher led to inspire the learners in the classroom to follow this behavior. Additionally, I think

there are many characteristics that play a role in effective classroom management, but I will list

the top four that I have recently learned about and can see myself following in the near future.

The first thing that I think is’ important to having classroom management is building a

connection with each individual learner from the start of the year. The learners need to know that

it is safe in your classroom and that they can trust you. During my student teaching semester, I

had to take time to get to know each learner and build a connection with them. The learners

would often call me out if I did something that was a little out of the norm or their routine. As the

year went on and our relationships grew closer, they no longer called me out as much for doing

new things. This showed me that in any classroom, you need to build trust with the learners, so

they are open to you. I was honest with the students and shared information about who I am, and

they shared that with me as well. Getting to know your learner’s background and where they

come from can help when teaching them and creating those relationships. There were moments

when we would laugh together, celebrate, do secret handshakes, and encourage others. The

classroom environment that Mrs. Leite created was respectful and is how I plan to shape my

classroom environment.

I find it important to start putting procedures and routines in place right as the school year

begins. It might take the first week or two to get these routines into place and for the learners to

get used to attention signals or non-verbal cues. In order for the learners to follow the guidelines
you have in place; you need to model what they look like and why they are important. Often

times if you explain why it matters or create a ‘need to know’ for the learners to relate to, then it

will increase their motivation to follow. I also believe that learners should have the opportunity

to be involved in making set rules for the classroom. By involving them in this process, they not

only are directly engaged in their classroom, but also are taking some responsibility for the rules

that were set. Once the rules are decided and set in place, it is important that the teacher holds

their ground and keeps consistent with these rules in order for them to be effective.

Engagement and participation are two more key factors for effective classroom

management. To allow for learners to be engaged and participate in their own learning, I will

plan to include multiple activities throughout their day so the learners will have some variety and

movement in their learning. My instruction time will include modeling the activity, and then the

rest of the time will be student-centered. While there will definitely be time for individual work,

I also want to provide group work into the classroom because I think it is a great skill to have to

be able to work together and problem solve as a team. Lastly, I want to provide opportunities for

learners to have voice and choice throughout their day so that they can be interested and

motivated in their learning.

Along with having rules and procedures in place, there must also be consequences or

behavior intervention when those are not being followed. Something I learned through my

classroom management course was a tiered behavior plan that provided a few options of

intervention depending on the severity. I learned that even when giving consequences, the

teacher needs to be firm, but yet calm and compassionate. A strategy that works is using soft

eyes and voice, rather than yelling. I think it is only fair that if a student would still like to debate

with you, than you delay this to a later time, such as recess, when it will not interrupt and take
time from the rest of the class. Overall, with behavior intervention and giving consequences, I

believe these have to be consistent and always follow through with them in order for learners to

know that the rules are firm. This will help keep a structured and safe classroom environment.

The four areas I mentioned above are components that I will include in my own

classroom so that it is an environment that is safe and effective for all learners. Both my student

teaching semester and the classroom management course I took has helped me understand how

important it is to have a classroom management system in place, for both the teacher and the

learners. I look forward to continuing to learn about classroom management through my

experiences as I grow as an educator.