A Guide for New Teachers

Class Management
& Curriculum
Prepare your space and plans!
Set up spaces in your room for group and

independent activity, with centers for messy art

projects, writing, science, a library, and more.

Plan from Wednesday to Wednesday to avoid

"Sunday Scaries" and have Bell Work ready at

the start of each day.

Build Community from Day 1

Get to know their names, interests,

talents, hobbies, dislikes, and learning

preferences. Students won't care what

you know until they know that you care!

Let them help you!

Have students help you write the rules to

increase buy-in and ownership. Establish

rotating class jobs using a pocket chart.

Family Relationships
Culturally responsive teaching involves understanding

the whole child. Reach out to families through a

positive note home! Ask parents to volunteer and share

any special talents or cultural traditions.

Rely on Routines
Students need routines for everything. Demonstrate

how to store backpacks, how to walk in the hall, how to

enter and leave the classroom, how to pass papers or

ahrpen pencils, and how to ask for help. They even need

a routine for what to do when they've lost a tooth!

Students want a safe, predictable, and nurturing

environment... Effective teachers spend the first two

weeks teaching students to be in control of their own

actions in a consistent classroom environment.

― Harry K. Wong,
The First Days of School

What else do
MASLOW'S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
The base of the pyramid includes "survival" needs.

students need? Each of the lower levels must be met before

individuals can address higher needs.

Students are motivated by
SELF-

their needs. Students who

ACTUALIZATION

are hungry, tired, or

ESTEEM

unsheltered may not be

LOVE &

ready to meet their learning

BELONGING

needs. A safe, welcoming

SAFETY NEEDS

classroom environment is
PHYSIOLOGICAL

NEEDS
critical in helping students

grow and learn.

 Cultural Diversity
Diverse Populations
Our learners are coming from

increasingly diverse cultural, linguistic,

ethnic, religious, and socioeconomic

backgrounds. Data from the National

Center for Education Statistics tells the

story below:

Percentage distribution of student enrollment in public

elementary and secondary schools, by race/ethnicity:

Fall 2020
Multi

Asian 5%
5% Of the 49.4 million students:
22.6 million were White
Black 13.8 million were Hispanic
15% White 7.4 million were Black
2.7 million were Asian
46%
2.2 million were Two or More Races
0.5 million were Native
180,000 were Pacific Islander.

Hispanic
28%

Students who are non-White

In the 2017-2018 school

represent 54% of the school-

year, 79% of public school

age population in 2020. teachers were White.

54% 79%

Why does this matter?

Research indicated that culturally and linguistically

diverse children are disproportionately referred and

enrolled in special education. Today's teachers must be

prepared to meet the needs of a range of students who

do not come from the same background as them. How

can we create more culturally responsive classrooms?

Art is Multicultural!
Arts integration provides opportunities for all

students to succeed, including students from

economically disadvantaged backgrounds,

reluctant learners, and exceptional learners

and those with disabilities.

Integrate Writing
The act of writing transfers the ownership of the

learning process to the student. Students must

reflect upon, clarify, and reconcile their

understandings to meet new information.

 Support All Learners
Culturally responsive practices DREIKUR'S
benefit all students! FOUR MISTAKEN GOALS
Be sure your books and materials represent

OF MISBEHAVIOR
ALL students in your class. Books are

mirrors that reflect our own experiences

Misbehavior is a form of communication.

and windows into the experiences of those

Students need to feel that they are

valued members of the class. When

who are different from us.

students are unable to gain a sense of

Vary classroom activities to include whole

belonging, they will begin to misbehave.

group, small group, paired, and individual

activities.
Avoid long-winded lectures and apply

Universal Design Principles to provide

multimodal content. Attention Power

Employ cooperative learning strategies to

boost engagement, such as turn-and-talk,

PURPOSES
think-pair-share, or Jigsaw methods. Pair
OF
students with like-ability sometimes, but
MISBEHAVIOR
also use mixed-ability grouping.
Students who are taught Growth Mindset

strategies will be ready to learn from

Inadequacy or

Revenge
mistakes. Avoidance of

Allow students "voice and choice" if you

Failure
want their learning to be intrinsically

motivated.

11 Ways to Prevent Misbehavior

1. Establish the daily routine
2. Standard procedures for everything & practice until they get it right!
3. Established method for solving disagreements
4. Engaging lessons with differentiation strategies for diverse learners
5. Give students an element of choice in showing what they've learned
6. WAIT until you have everyone’s attention giving directions
7. Use your voice- volume, tone, and tempo.
8. Make your instructions VERY clear, written and verbal
9. Have a student rephrase and repeat instructions
10. Be flexible, adjust & adapt. Keep your sense of humor!
11. Have high expectations

NOT SUCCESSFUL? TRY THIS!

Use your normal voice and train

Shouting or shushing students to try

them to freeze when you say this:

and get their attention or to make

"Clap once if you can hear me.

them quiet down.
Clap twice if you can hear me."

Start with "The Look" and work

Stopping the entire class to redirect

your way through the Teacher

one student's behavior. Behavior Continuum to encourage

self-correction.

Have students make individual

Posting a public chart of math facts

goals and track progress in their

mastery or reading minutes. folders to reduce comparison and

negative self-esteem.

Final tips: If a lesson goes poorly, don't be too hard on yourself! Reflect,

make changes, and try again. And do not forget to ask for help

from your team and administrators for help!

Resources:
American College of Education (2022). CI6103 Curriculum and instructional design for diversity: Module 7 [Part 2 presentation]

Canvas.

National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Racial/Ethnic Enrollment in Public Schools. Condition of Education. U.S.

Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cge.

Saulnier, B. (2016). The application of writing across the curriculum (WAC) techniques in a systems analysis & design flipped

classroom. Information Systems Education Journal, 14(4), 13–19

Wolfgang, C. H., & Glickman, C. D. (1980). Solving discipline problems: Strategies for classroom teachers. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Wong H. K. & Wong R. T. (1998). The first days of school : how to be an effective teacher. Harry K. Wong Publications.