Classroom Management: Routines

Image of students in a classroom with their hands raised.

Description

What routines do I want to establish and what behavior do I expect from the students? Develop a role- play experience for the students to practice the behavior. Repeat the practice as necessary throughout the year.

Examples/Scenarios

Collecting and distributing papers

  • Important papers are distributed and collected by the teacher, other papers are taken care of my student helpers
  • In a group system, students put papers in the center of the tables and teacher collects the stack

Bathroom policy

  • 3 free passes/semester. If they aren't used, they are traded in for extra credit.
  • Students are not dismissed for the bathroom unless they have a Dr's note. (See next step for exceptions)
  • Students owe 15 minutes for each time they leave. If they do not come back for the time after school, they cannot leave again

How do you provide the content to students who have been absent?

  • This is the responsibility of the students. There is a bin at the back of the room filled with a folder for each day with filled with handouts. Lectures and power points are posted online.
  • Weekly assignment board detailing all of the assignments and test for the whole week. Most assignments are from the book. Worksheets, assessments, and activities will be placed in a bin organized by the date it was given. The notes from lectures available by paper or online. It will be the student’s responsibility to locate the assignments when they are back.

Late work not due to absence:

  • I stamp work in notebooks on the day due
  • Late work is not accepted
  • One day per quarter is used for make up work earning 75% of the original
  • Work is collected weekly, anything turned in after that is worth 50% of the original value

How do you greet the students?

  • I stand at the door and greet them verbally (I don't shake their hands because I have issues with germs and spreading illness)
  • I greet them at the door and shake their hands (I use a lot of Lysol) so I can read their mood and touch base with individual students to redirect behavior, remind them of previous discussions, check on students who have been absent, etc.
  • I circulate as they take their seats, making contact with most students

Signals – how do you want students to communicate their needs to you without disturbing your lesson or when they need help?

  • Raise hands
  • Hand signals: Sign language “R” for restroom, “W” for water, tap the tip of a pencil to sharpen it, hold the thing you want to throw away in your hand to signal trash, etc...
  • Cards with bathroom, pencil, tissue, etc. Students raise the card when they have a need.

Cell phone use, food.

  • Be prepared to model the behavior you set as an expectation of the students. If the students can't eat or use their phones, neither should you.

When do students have access to you for further help?

  • Before school?
  • After school certain days?
  • Lunch break?
  • Are there tutorials available on campus?