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Lydia DeFazio
Dr. Rutledge
ED 305: The Art of Effective Teaching
April 26, 2020

Introduction
My decision to be a teacher was definitely not an accident. It quite literally runs in my
blood. My grandmother was a teacher and I have two aunts that were and still are teachers. I am
the firstborn of my family which according to some scientific behavioral research means that I
am also a natural born leader. I can speak for myself when I say this is accurate. Being a natural
born leader means that I want my future classroom to exhibit the same principles of good
management and appropriate leadership that I value personally. Classroom management is so
essential to the success of a classroom. Every little thing I do as a teacher impacts my students
more than I realize. This includes the rules that we (not I) establish for the class, the relationship
I have with my students, and the environment I create for my students. Classroom management
is different from teacher to teacher, but it must be established before students step foot in the
classroom.

Classroom Management Goals

Right from the start, I want my classroom to be my students “happy place”. The last thing I
would ever want is my students to dread coming to school. I have had several teachers through
my educational career that made learning a chore. Being in their classroom seemed to be
emotionally draining, and sometimes I was even scared of my teachers. I never want this to be
the case for my students. I plan on creating an environment that is positive, encouraging and full
of learning both academic and life learning opportunities that the students will benefit from. My
classroom environment will be a place where every student feels as though they can be honest
and be themselves. If the student’s are uncomfortable, learning will not take place. If the students
are fearful or disrespect me, learning will not take place and relationships will not be built. While
I will strive to create this “happy place” learning environment, I want to balance that principle
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with rules and standards that I will hold my students accountable for. I will treat my students
with respect and value them each individually because that is the behavior I want them to exhibit
to me and each other as well. Positive behavior will be reinforced and rewarded at times. Rather
than bribing students to behave with incentives and rewards, I will tell my students that I want
them to WANT to behave well out of respect for me and their peers. Good behavior will be
expected rather than constantly rewarded. I am a person of a quiet and controlled nature. I
consider myself to be incredibly patient which I plan on being with my students daily. I am not
the type of teacher to yell at my students to get focused or follow rules. Instead of yelling, I plan
on enforcing rules with the individual who needs reinforcement in a private conversation. I will
provide areas in my classroom where students can go off by themselves to settle down and take
time for themselves. It will by no means be a time out spot! With permission from me, students
will be allowed to go to that spot to have a few minutes to themselves. As an introvert myself, I
understand that sometimes a person needs a few minutes to regroup alone in order to clear their
mind and refocus. This will also benefit certain students with exceptionalities that need to have
time away from peers in order to be successful. Transitioning my students from one activity to
another will be so much fun because I plan on changing it monthly. For example, during the first
week of school a transition from circle time to a math lesson may include a song about back to
school time. I have several classroom management goals, but these are just a few that I find most
important for the mental health of my students and their academic success.

Classroom Procedures
When the students arrive at my classroom, I will have them do the same routine daily as
to avoid all confusion. The students put their coats and backpacks in their cubbies or lockers,
take out any folders or special notes they may need to give me and find their seats. If the students
have something they need me to see, or a note from a parent they will place it in my desk
mailbox marked “For Ms. DeFazio”. This box is checked before the day’s lessons are started,
and then again before the end of the day. This box is also welcome to any personal notes the
students may want to write to me through the day, and the students will know that they can write
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me notes as much as they want. If the note is personal to a student, I will write them a note back
and place it upside down in their cubbies or lockers for them to take home at the end of the day.
I grew up as a restless and very busy child. My mother tells me that we would have to
literally change rooms in the house to play in because I would get bored of the room too quickly
and start looking for trouble. Students are almost the same exact way. Some of my classes with
the worst behaved students were because the teacher did not have the kids constantly working on
something so it gave them time to act up and misbehave. To counteract this problem, I plan on
having the students busy from the minute they walk in the door. I will have bell ringers on the
board that will be called “Welcome Work”. This will not necessarily always be a rigorous
exercise, rather something for the students to think about that will challenge them and interest
them to start the day off. The “Welcome Work” can consist of questions that are completely
unrelated to school! It could be “Write a poem to your favorite animal” or “Write about a time
when you helped a friend. What did you do to help them? How did it make you feel?” These
short prompts or even activities will help the students wake up and focus for the day. After the
students are done with their “Welcome Work” we will discuss the question as a class. I will give
my personal answer and I will have students volunteer to read their answers as well.
Using specific attention grabbers is another way I will implement effective management
in the classroom. As I said before, I am not a fan of shouting to get children’s attention as I think
it heightens the anxiety and stress in the room for me and for other students who do not respond
positively to shouting. To grab the student’s attention I will use sign language with hand motions.
We will have universal hand motions and sign language for quiet, sit down, stand up, line up,
bathroom, and emergency. When the students see me do a sign in front of them they will do the
sign back and follow the instructions. This way the students are not going to eventually tune out
any yelling or specific phrase they hear many times a day because the sole focus is on what sign
I am giving them and how they should respond. This will create a quieter more relaxed
classroom when transitioning activities or when getting the attention of my class. We will
continuously go over the hand signs during the first few weeks of school, but it should not take
long for the students to learn. When the students leave the classroom for the day, they are to be
sure their desks are cleared off and their pencils are back in their predetermined spots. I will
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always stress the importance of leaving a clean space when we are leaving the classroom for the
day. My students will learn to respect the space and material they are privileged to use.
Physical Arrangement of the Classroom
Much of how I arrange my classroom will depend on the size of my room. With that
being said I plan on having my desk in the back of the classroom in one of the corners of the
room. I want my desk to be in the back of the class that way my students know that they can
come talk to me or ask questions when they are doing independent work. That way they do not
have to walk up in front of the entire class. Also, my desk being in the back of the classroom
allows me to have my eyes on the students at all times even when they can’t see me. Behind my
desk I will have pictures of my family, my dog and some of my favorite things to build personal
relationships with the students. In the corner opposite of my desk I will have the quiet corner,
where students can go to have a minute or two to themselves. The area will have an area rug with
a bean bag, and a collection of books for the child to choose from if they would like to read. I
will also add some big stuffed animals and string lights to create a calm space there. Around my
room I will have string lights that hang from the ceiling this way we can turn the main lights off
when the students are doing independent reading or independant work. Sometimes the harsh
fluorescent lighting can be tiring on our eyes, and I am sure all the students will appreciate a
break from them at some point. In my classroom will also be a large bookshelf with a variety of
books to choose from which will change based on the unit and materials we are covering in class.
The desks will be arranged in groups of three or four depending on the amount of students I have
and the space of the classroom. Posters with our classroom rules will be on the children’s eye
level in the front of the class as well as our sign language vocabulary. Above each cluster of
desks will be a cluster name, that I will let the students choose once they are assigned a group.
The seating will change monthly, or more often depending on the needs of the students.

Incentives
Since I want my classroom to operate on a honesty based system, the students will be
rewarded for behavior that demonstrates honesty, and treating others with kindness. Everytime I
see a student behaving in a way that is respectful and follows our classroom behavior policies
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and standards, I will slip them a ticket that looks like a raffle ticket. The student is responsible
for keeping their coupons in their small plastic bag that velcros to the inside of their desks so
they do not lose it. When the students receive 10 tickets, they are to bring them to me when they
are doing an independent activity, in the morning, or before dismissal. The students are
responsible for keeping track and counting their own tickets. After collecting tickets, the students
will receive a coupon from me that includes a variety of rewards they can hand in to me at any
time. These may include “good for 10 minutes in the quiet corner”, “good for making one card
for the school principal”, “good for being the line leader to lunch”. I will focus on my rewards
being about serving others and self care.

Classroom Rules and Consequences

While I want my classroom to be about teaching students what it means to respect others
and not filled with rigid rules, I am well aware of the reality of needing to enforce some rules for
extra structure. During the first day of the school year, I will create my classroom rules with the
students before we do anything else. I will help the students choose which rules they think are
reasonable for them to follow and which rules they want to be held accountable for. I will stress
the importance of not needing to refer to the classroom rules because if everyone is honest, and
respectful to each other there should be few issues. I understand that some students may struggle
with classroom structure especially if they do not follow similar rules at home. If a student is
acting out while I am teaching and being a disruption to the rest of the class I will sign to them to
“stop” what they are doing and focus on me with one hand motion. This way there is not a big
disruption to the rest of the class. If misbehavior continues I will pull the student aside and firmly
explain that they are being disrespectful to me, their classmates, and themself by not behaving
appropriately. I will give the student the choice to pull it together and behave or to work on their
own in a seat next to my desk. Giving the student a choice helps them realize their behavior is
unacceptable and that they are choosing to behave and not being forced to. If there is an event
where serious consequences need to be enforced I will do what is necessary at that moment.

Homework Policy
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I am not a fan of homework, especially homework that would be a grade. I understand

that sometimes homework is necessary, and I will only assign homework if I feel that the entire
class needs practice with a concept. The homework will only be graded for completion, and the
students will receive twenty to thirty minutes in the morning if they were unable to do their
homework the night before. I understand that many families are unable to sit with their child and
help them with homework which is why I will allow extra time in the morning for students to
complete it.

Conclusion
Classroom management includes a wide variety of elements that are important for
establishing a learning environment where all of the students are comfortable to learn. I want my
future classroom to be my student’s safe space. I will be spending more time with my students
than they will spend with their parents most of the time. That is why I will strive to create an
environment where there is a solid and trusting relationship between me and each of my
student’s individually. Being a teacher is so much more than teaching math and literacy. I want
my classroom management plan to reflect the values and morals I want to instill in my students. I
plan on adjusting and changing my classroom management plan according to the needs of my
students and any exceptional child that is in my classroom. I believe that the best classroom
management plan will come with experience and a positive attitude!