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Lucy McRoberts

Dr. McAlister

ED 327

27 March 2023

Classroom Management Paper #1

I want to foster learning that is meaningful and interesting to my students. During my

time at Zionsville, I have seen different ways that students have been engaged in the lesson. I’ve

noticed that when students are interested in the topic and enjoy what they are learning about they

are more engaged and are more active participants in the classroom. I also know that when I was

in middle school and high school and even now in college when I am interested in the topic I put

more effort into my learning. While not every student is going to enjoy every topic I can do my

best to make the learning experience enjoyable for my class.

Students expect me to listen to their concerns and create a classroom environment that is

conducive to their learning. Students in middle school and high school are still in the middle of

their cognitive development and need support from their teachers as well as the adults in their

lives. Some days there may be a student who is struggling and needs to take 15 minutes to

themselves in the back of the classroom before they can rejoin the class. I want my students to

feel safe and heard and to know that while they are expected to still be productive at school

sometimes we all need to just step away for a few minutes before we can truly be focused on the

task at hand.

I expect students to be productive in class and to communicate with me about their needs.

Some days a student may need extra time to work on an assignment and I expect students to be

able to communicate this with me. While I am willing to be flexible with students and work with
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them students must still be utilizing the time given in class to complete the assignments. If a

student needs more time because they were goofing off during class that’s a different situation

than a student who had something come up unexpectedly that has prevented them from getting

their work done by the assigned due date. This can even apply to the amount of time given in

class to complete a worksheet or other activity. I have often seen my CMT at Zionsville ask

students to show her on their hands how much more time they think they will need to finish the

activity. She then gives them a few more minutes to finish up based on what students have said.

Classroom management includes making sure that students are staying on task,

effectively using the time that has been given to them, and ensuring that student behavior is not

affecting the learning of others. I don’t expect students to sit still and be quiet all the time

especially because middle school and high school students have a need for movement. However,

I still expect students to be doing their work and not distracting their classmates once they are

finished. If a student finishes early they are more than welcome to work on other work for my

class, read silently, or if given permission work on homework for another class. There may be

days when other options are available to students who finish early but for the most part, students

will still be expected to not distract their classmates. This is something that I’ve observed during

my time at Zionsivlle. While delivering instructions for an activity my CMT will give the

students a couple of options on what to do when they finish so that they are not taking away from

their classmates’ learning.

Classroom rules/norms/expectations are meant to keep students safe in the classroom

while still allowing them to have fun in the classroom. Rules/norms/expectations are in place to

ensure that all students are making good choices in the learning environment that will still allow

for all students to have some fun from time to time and to enjoy their learning. During my time at
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Zionsville, I’ve observed as my CMT gives students free time at the end of class if everything

has been completed. However, students are only given free time if they have been on task and

following expectations during class time. In my own classroom, I would like to implement a

similar system of rewarding students with free time if there is any left at the end of the period so

long as expectations have been met that day.

I can give my students a ‘voice’ in the classroom by taking their feedback and ideas into

consideration when planning. When students are interested in the topic they are more actively

engaged with the lesson so by taking students’ feedback and ideas into consideration during

planning students can feel as though they have a ‘voice’ in the classroom while also getting the

chance to learn about something they are interested in. I specifically say that I will take their

feedback and ideas into consideration because not every idea is going to be feasible in the

classroom and sometimes there are things that have to be done whether students like it or not.

During my time at Zionsville, I have loved seeing the students’ faces light up when they realize

that we are doing something that they enjoy. I also got to see bits and pieces of a research project

they did for Black History Month and during the work time that students were given during class

the students were very engaged in their research because they were able to research a person that

they had picked.

Student-focused instructional strategies will support learning for all students no matter

their educational levels or language proficiency. Student-focused instruction should support all

students in the classroom and work in the classroom should be designed to be able to be

completed by all students. In my classroom at Zionsville, I have a few multilingual learners and

when I teach I have to make sure that I design the lesson to support them. By taking into
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consideration the needs of the multilingual students in my classroom I am able to design a better

learning experience for all of the students in the class.