Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN

Class Wide Behavior Management Plan II

Gaby Montes

Lehigh University
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Class Description

My class is a first-grade inclusive classroom within a suburban public school. The school

is in a lower-income area, thus eighty-eight percent of the student population receive free or

reduced lunches. The classroom population is composed of twenty-six students total. Of these

twenty-six students, fifteen are female and eleven are male. The school is diverse as the student

demographic population of the classroom was composed of ten Latinx, seven African-American,

five White-American, two Asian-American, and two Indian-American students. Since it is an

inclusive classroom, six students have Individualized Education Plans and five students are

categorized as English Language Learners. Of the students with Individualized Education Plans,

two have disruptive behavioral disorders, one has dyslexia, and two have autism spectrum

disorders. One of the students specifically has high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. Three

students have been assigned paraprofessionals based on the needs defined in their Individualized

Education Plans. The students whose Individualized Education Plans have a 1:1 in them are the

two with disruptive behavioral disorders and the student with high-functioning autism spectrum

disorder. While there is a large variety in the specifications of each child’s IEP, no students have

been identified as severely emotionally disturbed and only one has a reputation for chronic

discipline problems. This student consistently engages in behaviors that are disrespectful to

students and faculty. These disrespectful behaviors include bullying, cursing at others, talking

back, and stealing. Such behaviors are attention-seeking behaviors and often occur when students

or faculty members are not providing them with much attention Majority of the students have

moderate to optimal health and coping capabilities and general functioning levels. Of the twenty-

six students in the class – twelve are functioning on grade level, nine are below, and five are
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above. Such was determined through the usage of the examinations such as the Adverse Child

Experience score and analysis of Kindergarten behavioral data.

Level of Structure

Completing the Management and Discipline Planning Questionnaires for both my needs

as the teacher and those of the students, which can be found in Appendix A and B, led to the

decision that my classroom will have a medium-high to high level of structure. I will begin the

school year with a very high level of structure and then, if need-be, will adjust according to the

needs of my specific students.

I scored a lower score of twenty-two on the Management and Discipline Planning

Questionnaire for teacher’s needs, which demonstrates that solely based on my needs and

personality as a teacher – I would be fine in a lower structure classroom setting. This completed

questionnaire can be found in Appendix A. I received this score because I have a high tolerance

for aspects such as background noise, interruption, background movement, and a large level of

multi-tasking. The only factors that I have a lower tolerance for are whining, mumbling, and very

loud volumes. Thus, solely considering my needs, my classroom could be an environment with a

lower level of structure that has strict classroom expectations regarding appropriate noise levels

and how to properly deal with frustration. Solely based on this assessment of my needs, I would

not be negatively impacted by a classroom where students had slightly more freedom and often

worked on group work that caused background noise.

When assessing the needs of my particular students I received a score of eighty, which is

a high score. This score indicated that for my students reach their maximum potential they would

need an environment with a high level of structure. This need for a higher level of structure

within the classroom mirrors the larger class size, younger grade level, presence of students with
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a reputation for chronic discipline problems, percentage of lower income students, among other

factors. This demonstrates that my students will benefit from consistency in daily schedules and

routines, specific assignments for things such as who the line leader will be on a given day,

activities with higher levels of structure and less ambiguity, among other similar integrations of

structure throughout the classroom. Other strategies I would incorporate into the classroom come

from the “structure” and “clarity” aspects of the SCORE CHAMPS mnemonic from

Scheuermann and Hall’s (2016) book. I would ensure that I state the objectives for each lesson

prior to starting and share with students the plan for that period. I would also have clear

expectations in the classroom and provide clear instructions for activities, as well as repeat those

instructions to ensure that the students and I remain on the same page.

Considerations for Scheduling

After reading Sprick’s (2009) chapter two on effective tips to consider when considering

the schedule for a classroom, I have derived a general outline of the daily schedule for my class

and the progression of activities that will occur during each period. This general schedule is

subject to change when my students are working on group projects or larger projects; yet,

considering my class’ need for a higher level of structure, I felt it would be appropriate to have a

pre-set general outline of the day. This outline for the day would be hung up in my classroom for

the students to refer to as needed throughout the day and any changes will be presented to my

students in the morning to help them feel that sense of structure and consistency that is vital to

their success in the classroom.

Every morning as students enter the classroom, the expectation will be for them to put

away their bookbag, move their stick to their corresponding lunch choice, turn in any papers, and

then go to their seat and complete the morning work assignment individually in their morning
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journal. The assignment will be written on the board for them each morning. I chose to begin the

day in this way because as the Sprick’s (2009) chapter mentioned and I have observed through

my time in the classroom – this practice of having work ready for children as they enter the

classroom is a very effective practice. This enables me to take attendance, get the lunch counts,

and ensure students turn in what they need to while still maintaining a high-level of structure in

the classroom. Without implementing this, students may choose to run around or chat with peers

or engage in other activities as they are waiting for me to finish the morning housekeeping tasks.

It is important to note that this independent work time would not last long and would be a

maximum of fifteen minutes in the morning. This would prepare students to be focused and get

their brains thinking prior to teacher-directed instruction without lasting so long that students

would get bored or off-task.

Following this morning work would be the standard procedures such as reading the date

and stating the Pledge of Allegiance as a class. In no particular order, the subjects of math,

reading, and history would occur. I chose to put these subjects in this location because through

my fieldwork experiences in elementary schools, teachers have shared with me that students of

these grade levels are most focused in the morning and before lunch. They have stated that doing

long period of independent work or reading at the end of the day does not work well because

students’ levels of focus and energy are much lower. This statement matches what Sprick’s

(2009) book stated in chapter two. These subjects would each begin with a teacher-directed

lesson on the carpet followed by guided practice and then by independent work or group work.

During the teacher-directed lessons, students will have opportunities to converse with peers,

answer questions individually, or write answers on white boards to maintain their engagement.

The work assigned for both guided practice and independent work would vary each day to ensure
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that all of the different forms of knowledge are included into the curriculum for students who

learn certain forms of knowledge better than others. Examples of these forms of knowledge from

Scheuermann and Hall’s (2016) book include rule-learning, conceptual, procedural, and

problem-solving. In addition to this, the activities would vary in ways that include visual,

auditory, kinesthetic, and reading/writing learners equally.

Writing would occur prior to lunch such that the sharing of what students wrote can occur

after students return from recess and serve as an activity that will help students calm down and

readjust to the classroom setting while interacting with peers. This would always occur after

recess to give students a structure for what to expect after recess, so they know what is expected

of them upon returning to the classroom. I would set expectations of walking into the classroom

quietly, hanging up their coat, grabbing their writing journals, and reporting straight to their

circle time assigned spots on the rug after doing the other things. After writing would be the

more hands on and project-based subject of science to help keep the students engaged though it

is the end of the day. After science would be centers to give students various options of what to

do, as Scheuermann and Hall’s (2016) book promoted as an effective practice. It was deemed an

effective practice as doing so increases students’ engagement in the activity and makes them feel

as if they have a greater control over their own learning.

An additional note is that each period would end with the teacher reminding students of

homework and upcoming larger projects or giving them tips as they continue working on their

current activities. I would include this practice because Sprick’s (2009) book stated that this

practice of ending periods with teacher-directed instruction makes it clear that class time to do

classwork is for such. Sprick’s (2009) book explains that this is an effective practice as it also

brings students together to ensure everyone is on the same page. Thought it was specifically
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stated as an effective practice for middle schoolers, I feel it would be effective to help keep the

elementary school students on task – especially considering their shorter attention spans.

Classroom Physical Arrangement

My classroom would be arranged similar to the U-shaped version one arrangement

discussed in Sprick’s (2009) chapter two. I chose this arrangement due to the many positives

associated with it that outweigh the negatives. Sprick’s (2009) text explains that this classroom

arrangement creates a space that lends itself to group discussions and student engagement, as

well as creates a very inclusive feeling atmosphere where every student can be seen and heard

equally. With this set-up I would be able to quickly reach any student if they have a question,

need assistance, or if I am simply walking around the room as students do independent work. All

students would also be able to have a full visibility of the main smartboard and would not feel

that their vision is blocked by having other students’ heads in front of them. This classroom

arrangement makes it simple to instruct students to do partner work such as “think, pair, shares”

or to do group work, as each row in the U shape could serve as a station/ group. Though a

concern about this set-up mentioned in the Sprick’s (2009) chapter was the inefficient use of

space by leaving the middle of the room unused – I solved this issue by putting my large carpet

for sharing and carpet lesson times in the middle of the U shape. This is very effective space-

wise and enables me to utilize the smart board during carpet time lessons or conversations.

Though this is not the best set-up for a class as large as mine, I simply connected the U rather

than leaving gaps as in the diagram on page seventy-three of the Sprick chapter and added a few

desks to each row. This enabled the larger class size to fit comfortably, while still reaping the

many benefits provided by this U-shaped classroom set-up. One con to this set up is that it leaves

the possibility of students becoming easily distracted by the peers across or next to them, or by
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the presence of the window. This can be solved through strategic placement of students as I get

to know them better throughout the year. To illustrate, I would not put an easily distracted

student in either of the two rows that face other students, I would place them in the row facing

the smart board to minimize their distraction.

Beyond the U-shaped choice for the classroom, I have strategically placed many of the

other elements of the classroom based on my learnings in the course, observations in classrooms,

and general efficient spacing. The diagram of the placement of these other classroom elements

can be found in Appendix C. I placed the teacher’s desk at the back of the room so that I can see

what majority of the students are doing both on top of and inside of their desks during individual

work time and easily be able to scope the room. I placed the small rug and beanbags by the

bookshelf because students can utilize that comfortable space for independent reading time or for

centers. The bookshelf would contain materials such as mini white boards, classroom supplies,

etc for their use – thus I wanted to ensure these items were readily accessible to the students.

Next to this bookshelf, bulletin boards are located on both sides. These bulletin boards contain

information such as which students are responsible for specific classroom jobs, the calendar, list

of birthdays, lunch choices, announcements, etc. These were placed here because it is an area

that students have accessibility to and will frequently visit for other reasons, so placing this

information here will ensure visibility of the information by students on a regular basis. The

pencil sharpener was placed in the back of the room to alleviate the distraction of having a

student walk all the way to the front of the room during a lesson or independent work time to

utilize the pencil sharpener. Most of the other elements were mainly placed in their locations on

the basis of effective usage of space and considerations of where windows and doors are located

in a typical elementary school classroom.

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Classroom Rules

The classroom rules will be handwritten and discussed together as a class in the

beginning of the school year, a best practice described in Sprick’s (2009) book, to give the

students a sense of selecting their own expectations for themselves and their classmates. The

students will watch me write the expectations as we discuss them as a class during the first week

of classes. These classroom rules will be posted in the front of the room right next to the

smartboard where most teacher-directed lessons will take place. I chose this location because it

ensures that all of the students can look at the expectations throughout the day to refresh their

memory and is in a location with high visibility and accessibility.

The general classroom rules that we will set include the following: be aware of the

impact of your actions on other individuals and objects, be prepared with the required materials,

raise your hand when you have an answer or question, follow directions as soon as they are

given, and exhibit polite language and behaviors. These rules were selected because jointly they

cover a large variety of possible situations, make the expectations very clear to students, and are

concise enough for them to understand. The awareness of the impact of their actions on other

individuals and objects reemphasizes the idea of treating others as they would like to be treated

and of thinking about what they want to do and its consequences before actually doing it. This

also teaches students the idea of considering things from the perspective of someone else. Being

prepared with the required materials lets the students know that they are expected to have what

they need for each subject out and ready at the beginning of class, which will help maximize

their learning time. Being prepared is critical to the student’s ability to succeed, learn, and keep

up in the classroom and beyond the classroom. Raising their hand when they have an answer or

question clearly informs students of the situations in which they are expected to engage in hand
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 9

raising behavior and maintains that higher level of structure within the classroom that my

students need to succeed. The expectation of following directions as soon as they are given not

only informs students to listen to the teacher, but to do so immediately. This will maintain the

high level of structure in the classroom as well as maximize on classroom time because the

teacher will not have to repeat themselves and wait long periods of time for students to do what

they say. Exhibiting polite language and behaviors is important because it is a life skill that

children must learn from young and again reemphasizes the idea of being aware of their actions

and respecting others. I specified “languages and behaviors” to make it clear to students what I

mean in my expectation that they be polite. This specification makes my expectation clearer for

them. It is important to note that I will also have clear expectations for more specific areas or

activities. To illustrate, I will have rules specifically for when on the rug or in centers to ensure

the students are aware of my more specific expectations of them.

Not only is it vital to set classroom rules, but also to have strategies in place for the

reinforcement of such rules on a daily basis. I will mainly do so through Sprick’s (2009) strategy

of praising the students who are behaving responsibly. This strategy is simple to utilize

throughout the day and is based on Sprick’s (2009) research that teacher praise that is contingent

on appropriate student behavior increases desired behaviors, while decreasing problematic ones.

Sprick’s (2009) chapter three discusses the use of progressive consequences as a way of

reinforcing rule following and providing a penalty for when they are not followed. Since not all

rule-breaking behaviors fall on the same scale, these progressive consequences will be for larger

or recurring instances of classroom rule breaking. Sprick (2009) discusses a common progressive

consequence model where each student has their name stuck onto a chart with different colors.

Movement to each color represents a progression of consequence. To illustrate, green is a

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warning, yellow represents a loss of recess time, and red represents being sent to the office. Each

teacher can create their own meaning for each color, but this serves as a great way to remain on

the same page with students regarding how well they have been following classroom rules on

that given day and provides them with warnings to correct their behavior before receiving a

consequence.

To monitor students’ classroom behavior, I will utilize the rule monitoring chart, included

in Appendix D, on a regular basis as a quick reference for what each child’s rule following has

looked like on average and to help me know whether some rules may not have been set clearly

enough for the students or may need altering. I can utilize the chart on a daily or weekly basis

depending on how often I as the teacher want to assess my students. From the data I found in my

completed rule monitoring chart, included in Appendix D, I will consider making the expectation

of being prepared for class clearer and more specific and take the time to walk through how my

students can achieve that. I came to this conclusion by looking at the data and acknowledging the

trend among students of not meeting the expectation of being prepared for class. This is valuable

feedback, as it helps me to keep track of my class and the things they are having trouble with. I

will also reserve the many measurement strategies we have learned about as a form of collecting

extra data on specific students who’s rule following behavior is low or who seem to have trouble

engaging in on-task behavior, among other things. Examples of these measurement strategies

include interval recording, duration recording, and momentary time sampling. I would consider

utilizing these strategies to gain more information on the frequency or duration of the negative

behaviors of students such as Nina and Chad who are having more trouble meeting the

expectations of the classroom. These measurement strategies will give me more insight into their

behaviors and help me to work with them and help them to succeed. Further, Nina and Chad are
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two-examples of chronic rule breakers who may need a secondary intervention plan to help them

succeed and increase their engagement in more positive behaviors.

In addition to the rule monitoring chart and many measurement strategies, I would also

utilize Sprick’s (2009) chapter six misbehavior recording sheet as a method of tracking the more

specific behaviors that students are engaging in that are causing them to not meet the classroom

expectations set. There are both daily and weekly versions of this, thus I could choose which I

feel would most meet the needs of my students. This chart is included in Appendix E, but it

differs from the rule monitoring chart in that it has codes representing different behaviors the

student is engaging in and would give me the ability to add my own behavioral codes for specific

behaviors I wanted to watch out for within my classroom. This behavior monitoring method

would give me more specific behavioral data for my students and provide me with more

information as to what students are struggling with and why they may not be meeting the

classroom expectations.

In general, to identify students in need of a secondary intervention plan, I would first

simply look out for students who seem to have trouble staying focused in class, following the

expectations set of the class, or engaging in positive behaviors. Such observations could come

from visual analysis of the classroom or feedback received on rule monitoring sheets and other

data analyses. I would identify the students that potentially need a secondary intervention plan by

looking for students who have a much larger amount of tally marks than others for engaging in

behavior that does not meet the classroom expectations. After noticing that certain students have

trouble following the rules much more often than others, I would utilize various measurement

strategies to gain a deeper understanding of their behaviors and its frequency. These results
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would tell me if the child may need a secondary intervention plan. Based on my attached data,

Nina and Chad are two students that may be in need of a secondary intervention plan.

Encouragement Procedures

Encouragement procedures within the classroom are very important because effective

reinforcement strategies and methods within the classroom can greatly increase the frequency of

positive, expected behaviors and decrease that of negative behaviors. As I plan the

encouragement procedures for my classroom, I will take into account the schedule of

reinforcement that will occur within the classroom, how I will encourage students to want to do

higher level tasks, and the specific reward systems and methods that will be utilized as extrinsic

motivation for students.

Though continuous reinforcement has advantages, I will not utilize this reinforcement

strategy in my classroom and will instead use thinning reinforcement through the application of

schedules of reinforcement to prevent satiation, or the loss of the effectiveness of the

reinforcement on behavior. Scheuermann and Hall (2016) presented this idea of thinning

reinforcement and described it as the teacher applying schedules of reinforcement to gradually

increase their expectation of or the level that the student must reach before getting rewarded for

positive behavior. I believe this reinforcement strategy will be very effective in my classroom, as

it will provide my students with consist goals to reach that will become more challenging as they

gain a greater mastery. As stated in Scheuermann and Hall (2016), thinning reinforcement is

important because this denser schedule of reinforcement encourages more independent

functioning and prevents satiation. Further, the schedule of reinforcement that I would integrate

in the classroom and utilize as I thin reinforcement is the fixed-interval schedule of

reinforcement. I chose this schedule of reinforcement due to how practical it is to apply within
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the classroom and ensure the students are gaining reinforcement in a fixed way, such that they

can get a sense of what they must do to gain this reinforcement. With the variable-interval, there

is no set standard for the reinforcement as it switches. I feel this would make it harder for

students to know the standard they must meet; thus, I will integrate a thinning fixed-interval

schedule of reinforcement in my classroom and then reevaluate this choice later in the year to

ensure it is meeting the needs of my students and is effective in promoting positive behavior.

The reward systems and strategies that will be preset within my classroom include the a

class-wide contingency contract, good behavior game, token economy, public posting, and whole

class points. A contingency contract is a strategy presented by Scheuermann and Hall (2016) is a

written agreement between a student and teacher that states what each will do. This makes the

expectations of both the teacher and student completely clear and they each agree to abide by

them. I will be altering this and having a class-wide contingency contract, rather than contracts

with individual students. This contract will be created in the beginning of the school year as a

class and will be written on large poster paper. Students will state expectations they have of me

and of one another. I will state my expectations of the students. These will be formatted as

positive, clear, and concise expectations that each student and I will sign. This signed class-wide

contingency contract will remain visibly hung up in the classroom to serve as a reminder of the

agreements we all made and can be referred to as misbehavior occurs. The good behavior game,

from Sprick’s (2009) book, will be played in the beginning of the year to help students jointly

learn the expectations, how to meet the expectations, and know that not meeting expectations

results in consequences. It is especially great because this learning will be done through

teamwork and students can help one another master the expectations posted. The good behavior

game divides the class into teams, specifically teaches acceptable and unacceptable behaviors,
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sets a specified time period, and rewards students for engaging in acceptable behaviors. Problem

behaviors are minimized, and acceptable behaviors increased through the peer influence present

in the game. Token economies are a widely used reward system. Scheuermann and Hall’s (2016)

book presented this strategy where desirable behavior is increased and undesirable behavior

decreased through the use of tokens, such as points or stickers. Students receive these tokens

immediately after desirable behaviors are demonstrated and they collect these tokens to later

exchange them for a prize. The more tokens, the more prizes or higher quality prize. Both class-

wide and individual public posting, mentioned in Sprick’s (2009) book, are things I will do at the

beginning of each week to help students have a specific behavior focus for the week. The class-

wide version will be a specific positive behavior posted for the whole class to see and work on as

a class. The individual version will not be weekly but will provide each student with an

individualized behavior improvement focus, as well as tips for how to achieve that goal. Lastly, I

will utilize the whole class points that were provided as a strategy by Sprick (2009) to reward the

entire class as I observe them meeting the public posting or simply engaging in extremely

positive behavior for an entire period. I will set prizes such as extra recess time or an ice cream

party for when the class reaches a high number of points. This will give the class as a whole a

consistent goal to work towards and will utilize peer influence to promote desirable behaviors.

Possible Corrective Consequences

When discussing corrective consequences, it is important to identify what the levels of

misbehavior are and how each level is associated with different forms of possible consequences

based on the extremity of the behavior. Planning out how one will respond to specific instances

of a behavior is important because as stated in Sprick’s (2009) chapter nine, if this is not done

the teacher may inadvertently reinforce the behavior by using the wrong corrective consequence.
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Preparing a plan of possible corrective consequences for various levels of misbehavior will also

help the teacher to be prepared with how to react to each level as they occur. The levels of

misbehavior are low, medium, high, and extreme. Each level is met with different forms of

corrective consequences.

Low level misbehaviors are minor behaviors that can be handled as they occur, but that

disrupt the classroom. These misbehaviors are largely attributed to a lack of skill or awareness.

Examples of these behaviors include not raising one’s hand before speaking, continually

humming during a lesson, or a student not completing the assigned in-class work due to their off-

task behavior. These examples illustrate low-level misbehaviors that stem from a lack of skill or

awareness. Sprick (2009) states that acceptable corrective consequences for these types of

behaviors are to redirect the student back to the behavior that is expected of them or teach them a

replacement behavior, to utilize a verbal or nonverbal signal so the student is aware of their

misbehavior, to give gentle reprimands, or to use the good model - where students who are

exhibiting the appropriate behavior are reinforced so the student has a model for the expected

behavior.

Medium level misbehaviors are slightly more problematic. These behaviors can still be

dealt with at their time of occurrence, but sometimes require parental involvement as they greatly

disrupt the classroom environment or make it uncomfortable. Examples of medium level

misbehaviors include a continuous occurrence of lower level behaviors, cursing at students or

teachers, and consistently screaming within the classroom. These behaviors tend to have root

causes related to seeking attention or a more extreme lack of skill engaging in the appropriate

behavior. Sprick (2009) suggests that possible corrective consequences for these behaviors

include ignoring of the attention-seeking behavior so that it is not reinforced, reinforcement of

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the use of replacement behaviors, individual discussion with the student of the plan for them to

engage in more replacement behaviors, and parental contact if necessary. Yet for these

behaviors, the teacher must analyze the specific behavior to determine which corrective

consequences would be effective. This can be done by identifying whether it is an attention-

seeking behavior or attributed to a lack of skill. For example, ignoring may be extremely

effective for screaming or cursing, but not for the recurring low-level behaviors because these

require more explicit instruction of how to engage in the replacement behavior.

High level misbehaviors are serious and most times require written documentation and

administrative involvement. Misbehaviors that include intentional physical contact or harm

immediately fall into this category or the extreme level category. Sprick (2009) characterizes

these behaviors as “purposeful/ habitual misbehaviors.” Examples of these high-level

misbehaviors include a student hitting the teacher, skipping school, consistently putting gum in

or pulling other students’ hair, stealing things, or consistently bullying other students. If medium-

level misbehaviors are done consistently, they are considered high level. Sprick (2009) stated

that it is vital to respond consistently to these behaviors. Possible corrective consequences

include contacting administration and parents, disciplinary referral, and providing the student

with a decision-making form and discussing their behavior with them to encourage them to

engage in replacement behavior. Jones & Jones (2018) described how teachers should handle

these violent behaviors in their moment of occurrence to help contain the behavior. The article

stated that teachers should begin by validating the student’s feelings and clarifying what it is that

they are feeling in the moment. Next, the teacher should provide the student with more positive

options of handling their feelings, such as going into a quiet area, and then invite the student to

join them in doing so. Beyond this, Sprick (2009) discussed the importance of implementing an
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intervention plan with both the student and family, as well as of increasing the student’s

motivation to want to behave responsibly and helping them to understand that positive behavior

is associated with positive consequences.

Extreme level misbehaviors are very severe and unacceptable behaviors that must be met

wit administrative involvement. These behaviors are not simply handled by the teacher and must

be passed on to administration or counseling, as they are often harmful for both the student and

others in the school. Such misbehaviors only need to occur one time to be met with corrective

consequences. Examples of these extreme-level misbehaviors include bringing a weapon to

school, throwing a chair, making threats, and the possession of illegal substances. Possible

corrective consequences for these behaviors include disciplinary referral, referral to counseling,

and potential suspension or expulsion.

Multicultural Considerations

It is vital to ensure that as we make our classroom plan we are accounting for the needs of

all types of learners that may be present in the classroom. This is important in ensuring that we

are creating a comfortable and inclusive classroom environment. The most important thing

before even discussing what will be incorporated into the plan is that teachers are aware of their

pre-existing biases and perceptions and take the time to combat them and take the time to

individually get to know students so these generalizations or different expectations regarding the

student based on their label or background cannot form. This is a vital first step because as

mentioned in Gay’s (2010) article, society socializes us to associate differences with

deficiencies, thus teachers must be aware of these socializations and the way in which they may

blur their perceptions because statistics show that the more diverse student’s are in their

characteristics, the more likely they are to face lower or more negative teacher expectations.
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Teachers must combat this through their own awareness of their perceptions and by creating

classroom spaces where diversity is celebrated and seen as a resource.

My classroom plan will address the needs of diverse learners by tapping into the common

cultural wealth perspective and including opportunities for students to share their unique cultural

experiences into lessons, providing supplemental material to help learners succeed, being aware

of cultural differences, ensuring all students begin new topics at the same baseline, and being

aware to not accidentally promote raciolinguistic ideologies regarding a standardized normal

language. Community cultural wealth is a critical race theory that Yosso (2005) mentions that

challenges more traditional interpretations of culture. It turns away from a more deficit-oriented

view of minority communities such as communities of color and rather than looking at these

communities and analyzing the poverty or disadvantages, community cultural wealth focuses its

analysis on the many skills, abilities, and cultural knowledge held by the members of these

communities. It looks more at the community's "hidden talents" than the deficits. This can be

applied to education and offers an alternative lens for looking at diverse students such as ELLs.

Following this critical race theory, teachers can look at ELLs through the lens of bringing a

unique cultural perspective to the classroom, skilled in their knowledge of another language,

among other talents they may have rather than focusing on their deficit of not speaking English

or of being very different from other students in the classroom. Utilizing the Community

Cultural Wealth framework will tell teachers to focus on what these diverse students bring to the

classroom and how they enrich the classroom environment rather than on their deficits. This

reduces the labeling of students and helps teachers to see students for their many talents and

focus on utilizing those talents to help the students in other areas. More specifically, I will ensure

that other students within the classroom know that it is a space where we embrace one another’s’
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 19

differences as cool learning opportunities, rather than as a detriment. This will be promoted

through a consistent inclusion of opportunities for students to engage in dialogue regarding their

differences in things such as traditions or perspectives, where those differences come from, and

how such make each student so unique. I will start everyone at the same baseline by taking the

time to give background and explain things before a beginning lesson, as not every student has

the same educational or life backgrounds and experiences. By explaining first, I will ensure that

all students are starting on the same page, with the same background understanding of a topic.

Lastly, I will ensure I am not promoting racioliguistic ideologies by not correcting a student’s

pronunciation of a word due to their accent and enabling them to say it in their own way, thus

denouncing the idea of a standard English that exists and that they must conform to.

Procedures for Managing Student Work

Sprick’s (2009) book mentions the importance of ensuring that students can easily locate

information regarding assignments for both classwork and homework and that this information is

clearly presented to students. To make this possible, Sprick (2009) discusses having a specific

location or board within the classroom that students can count on to have the assignments for a

given day. I will adopt this into my own classroom by having an area marked off on one side of

the white board where the word homework will be printed and all of the subjects underneath. At

the end of each subject, it will be part of the daily classroom routine for me to tell students to

take out their homework books as I give them their assignments. If the school does not provide

agenda’s I will ask parents for a notebook specifically for students to write their homework in on

my supply list in the beginning of the year. They will also be asked for a folder for students to

take assignments to and from home. This folder will have a label on one side that says “back to

school” and “keep at home” on the other side. Though elementary school students are young, I
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 20

will incorporate this procedure for copying down daily homework assignments to prepare them

for the future when they will be responsible for copying down their own homework. By having

students do so, I will also be reinforcing their writing and transcription skills. The homework

will remain posted on the whiteboard all day in case a student forgets to copy down their

homework. Also, by doing this at the end of every period, students would expect it and know that

their homework will be explicitly stated for them at the end of each subject and that they can

additionally find it on the side of the whiteboard under the homework sign. Long-term projects

and assignments will remain written under its subject from the time it is assigned until its due

date. These assignments will be written in a color different from all other assignments so that

students can easily visually recognize them.

Sprick’s (2009) book states that the most important goal when considering the

management of independent work periods of a classroom is to keep students on task and actively

engaged in work. Independent work periods throughout the day will be scheduled right after

teacher-directed whole group instructions or after we do practice problems together as a class.

Before each independent work period, I will remind students of my expectations of them during

independent work periods and utilize the classroom reward systems to reinforce those

expectations. I will state my expectations in a way that demonstrates I have no doubt that the

students will meet my expectations. All of the independent work assigned will be doable and will

reflect what we had just discussed in the lesson or the types of examples we practiced together as

a class. I will always give them an example of a question similar to those on the worksheet and

either do it together as a class or ask for a volunteer to demonstrate it to the class. As mentioned

in Sprick’s (2009) chapter, doing this would make students feel more like they had the skills and

knowledge required to complete the assignment and help give them some behavioral momentum.
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 21

I will have a system where students approach my desk to ask for help on a question and if I am

busy helping someone or doing something else – they will write their name and the problem they

need help with onto a sheet that will always be on my desk. This, as Sprick’s (2009) chapter

mentioned, will prevent students from being off task as they wait for my assistance and enable

them to put in a request for help and sit right back down and continue working on other

problems. This is a much more effective use of time.

Sprick (2009) mentions that though collecting completed work from each child

personally is the best to do whenever possible, this also makes it challenging to track which

students have not yet turned in their assignments. This is important for accountability because by

collecting it personally, students will know they would have to face you and tell you directly that

they have not done their homework. The thought of having to do that serves as a motivation for

students to complete their work to avoid disappointing their teacher. This enables the teacher to

give them direct feedback if they do not turn in an assignment. Because of the many benefits of

personally collecting homework, I will personally collect it from each student for larger projects

and assignments. For daily homework, I will create my own method that keeps in mind the

advantages of personal collection but makes it so I do not have to personally collect the

homework. I will have an organizer that looks similar to a bookshelf with mailbox-like openings.

Each box will have the student’s name on it. Each morning it will be part of the morning routine

to place homework into their mailbox. I will be able to easily visually scan and see which

students did not put papers into their mailboxes and will call students over to my desk one by one

to discuss my expectations and why they did not complete it. I will have a daily list for myself to

remember which students did and did not complete their assignments, so I can know if it is

becoming a recurring issue for certain students. This strategy makes it so that it is less work for
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 22

me but provides the student with immediate feedback and makes it so that they still must face me

when they do not complete their homework.

When it comes to handling late work and work missed due to absence, I will incorporate

a modified version of Sprick’s (2009) zero slip strategy. Each student will have their own chart

page in my binder and if they miss work, I will write down the date and the assignment they did

not turn in. If they turn it in at a later point, I will add the date they turned it in and the details of

how many points will be taken off for lateness. I will make specific marks for students who were

absent, and they will have up to a week to make-up their assignments. I will employ a policy

where you lose a certain amount of points for each day after the assignment was due. After one

week, no credit will be given for the late assignment. Through this method, I will still have a log

of the amount of late or missed assignments without having to collect many individual zero slips.

It will be more organized and easier to analyze the work track record of a given student. This log

will enable me to easily see and highlight work that has not been turned in after one week. The

first time this occurs, the student will be given a warning and will be given one last opportunity

to turn the assignment in for some credit. All times after this, no credit will be given and the

student will have to have a one on one meeting with me to discuss what is causing the lack of

turned in assignments and where we will create an individualized plan for them that will

motivate them to turn in work and give them pointers in doing so. After about five instances, I

will discuss with both the student and their parent and create a plan that the parent is aware of. At

this point, the student will receive recess detention where they must complete the work though

they will not receive credit for it. This will prevent the student from feeling as if they have a

choice between doing their homework and simply sitting through a recess. With this strategy, the

student will know that they will have to complete the work either way and might as well
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 23

complete it for its due date, so they can receive credit for it and enjoy recess. The students will

be informed of these policies regarding lateness from the beginning of the year and they will also

be hung on a bulletin board in the classroom near the homework assignments for easy reference.

It is also important to consider the way I will keep classroom records. I personally prefer

doing things on my laptop, as the files will be safely collected in one spot. Because of this

preference, I will utilize Sprick’s (2009) chapter strategy of using a gradebook software program

on a computer. I will print student progress every two weeks with a note to that specific student

to both keep them on track and be able to provide them with personalized feedback or

motivation.

Classroom Routines

One of the most important transitions during a school day is the transition between

classroom activities because students often get very off task or take long to transition, which

wastes valuable learning time and makes it harder to get students focused again. Sprick’s (2009)

chapter suggests that the most important thing to do to ensure productive transitions to create

clear expectations for every specific type of transition that occurs during the school day. This

will help to ensure that both you and the students are on the same page regarding what is

expected in these transitions. Utilizing Sprick’s (2009) CHAMPS acronym for behavioral

expectations, my expectations of transitions in between classroom activities are: that students do

not talk to one another, students raise their hand if they need my assistance during this period of

time, students immediately take out the materials needed for the next classroom activity and sit

them on their desk, students only move to get the needed materials and ask before leaving their

desks, and they are silent and moving to get their items out efficiently. Before each new
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 24

classroom activity, I will write the needed materials on the board to help with these transitions

and minimize student confusion.

Sprick’s (2009) book describes the importance of having a known attention signal within

the classroom, as it can be given from any location and quickly catches all student attention. This

signal should have an auditory and visual aspect to it. Considering the characteristics these

signals should have to be most effective in all situations, I will utilize the match my clap and

hand up with finger on my lips put together. This will give the signal both an auditory aspect,

visual aspect, and require student response. Thus whenever I need to get the attention of students

I will clap in a pattern and they are to clap in the same pattern. Immediately after clapping I will

place my left hand on my lips and raise my right hand in the air. Students will be expected to do

the same. The clapping pattern signal will be used whenever I need student attention in general.

The addition of the raised hand and finger on lips afterward will only be utilized when students

are too loud or I need their silent attention for a particular announcement.

One classroom activity I will definitely incorporate into my classroom is debate

activities. I will describe the routine for what this activity will look like within my classroom. I

will always begin all activities by describing the activity to students and in doing so making them

excited for the activity. I will also describe why we are doing the activity and how it relates to

what we are learning in a particular subject. For example, I will begin class by saying, “We have

been learning a lot about Columbus and how he arrived here, now we will have a debate

discussing the positive and negative side of his arrival. This debate will give us a chance to

understand different perspectives on his arrival and is a great way to review what we have

learned about him before our exam next week.” I will split students into two groups by counting

off and have one group take the perspective of Native Americans and the other group take that of
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 25

Christopher Columbus. Then I will break down to students the way the rounds will work and

how much time they will have to plan with their team within rounds. I will have the debate

schedule written on the board for students to reference and a timer on the smartboard during the

debate itself. Before sending students to start planning for introductory remarks, I will set clear

and specific expectations of the behavior I expect to see during the debate. After the debate, I

will ask the students what they felt went well and what they felt could be done better next time.

Once I hear their feedback, I will provide the students with my own feedback and observations.

This would be a very fun and engaging activity for students to use the information they have

learned in context.
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 26

References

Gay, G. (2002). Culturally responsive teaching in special education for ethnically diverse

students: Setting the stage. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in

Education,15(6), 613-629. doi:10.1080/0951839022000014349

Jones, V. F., & Jones, L. S. (2013). Comprehensive classroom management: Creating

communities of support and solving problems. Boston: Pearson.

Scheuermann, B. K. (2016). Positive Behavioral Supports for the Classroom, 3rd Edition.

[VitalSource]. Retrieved

from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780133958867/

Sprick, R. S., & Baldwin, K. (2009). CHAMPs: A proactive & positive approach to classroom

management. Eugene, OR: Pacific Northwest Publishing.

T. J. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural

wealth. Race Ethnicity and Education,8(1), 69-91. doi:10.1080/1361332052000341006

Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 27

Appendix A
Elementary Management and Discipline Planning Questionnaire (Teacher’s Needs)
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 28

Appendix B
Elementary Management and Discipline Planning Questionnaire
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 29
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 30

Appendix C
Diagram of Classroom Physical Space Layout
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 31

Appendix D
Rule Monitoring Chart
Running Head: CLASS-WIDE BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT PLAN 32

Appendix E
Misbehavior Recording Sheet (Weekly by seating chart)