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I often tell my three year old granddaughter to 鈥渦se your words.鈥� This same advice is the
key element in classroom management. We need to remember the power of positive
words.

Greeting students at the door with a comment about a recent event or an improvement
on a test establishes an environment built on trust. This initial interaction shows we care
about them as individuals. Students thrive in environments where their successes are
expected and applauded. Although students arrive with excess baggage from home, the
halls, and the buses, when they enter our classrooms, we should encourage them to
leave their baggage at the door. Sometimes we must provide opportunities for them to
鈥渃ool down鈥� in private.

During class interactions, we should strive to treat students equally and show our belief
that all students can succeed. Expert teachers respond to academic and behavioral
success with positive, reaffirming verbal and written feedback. Our words establish high
expectations in a classroom based on relationships, not on control. If a student has her
head down, a simple 鈥淎re you okay?鈥� rather than a commanding 鈥淕et your head up鈥�
gives her the opportunity to be respectful with her response. We might be tempted to
ignore the misbehavior, but that could suggest that we don始t care.

Positive communication helps students know there are clear expectations for academic
success and social behavior. When they feel safe (rather than threatened), they don鈥檛
have to act out their frustrations. Our words, along with a smile and a sense of humor,
can create the ideal atmosphere for learning.

I don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 the most important, but one thing I figured out is that classroom management involves partnership. When I鈥檝e struggled with certain students in the past (I teach high school), I鈥檝e found it helpful to take up the matter outside the classroom. A full room and peer attention might make students act differently from the way they鈥檒l engage one-on-one.

I once kept an unruly student after class and I could see he was ready for yet another chastisement - he鈥檇 probably been through this many times over the years. Instead of addressing the problem directly, I started talking to him about water polo. A few minutes later, in the midst of a now pleasant and relaxed conversation, I brought up the changes that I would require in his classroom behavior, and his response was less defensive than I鈥檇 have expected otherwise.

I think there was a level of trust that also allowed me to co-opt one of his favorite disruptions. He loved to exclaim, 鈥淲hy are we even doing this?鈥� so I made him a sort of purpose monitor. Before he could complain about a new assignment or activity, I鈥檇 turn to him and just say, 鈥淕o ahead, Brian. Ask me.鈥� Brian enjoyed the attention and would throw in a little drama and some fake exasperation, but then I could impart something useful to the class and avoid disruption.

For students who crave some attention and will settle for negative attention, giving them a role to play can meet their needs and turn those moments into something positive. And to be honest, at that point in my career, I needed to be more intentional about articulating the purpose of class activities and assignments anyway, so I learned something valuable in the process as well. I won鈥檛 claim that one strategy made everything better all the time with Brian, but our rapport and the overall classroom atmosphere improved because I made the effort to establish a partnership with a student outside of the classroom.

Genuine respect of individuals goes a long way. Some of my students over the years have been taught to use, Yes ma鈥檃m or No, sir when speaking with adults. I use the same response with students when we are in conversation.

Knowing and calling students by name creates a caring attitude that can ripple through a school campus. Students learn, 鈥淗ey, I鈥檓 important!鈥� in a positive way.

Every day starts out new. I don鈥檛 remember a behavior problem from the day before, and don鈥檛 bring past transgressions into conversations. Students know grace is a way of life.

Keep conversation on the action versus the person when needing to discuss poor behavior.

Being in control versus trying to control helps create a positive learning environment.

Don鈥檛 waste their time with tedious busy work or allow 鈥渇ree time鈥� because you didn鈥檛 plan enough- all things I was guilty of when I started teaching. I see a lot of teachers use videos or worksheets as 鈥渂usy work鈥� especially around the time that grades are due and that is when we have the highest referrals to the principal鈥檚 office.

Even if grades are already turned in and the students all know it, I don鈥檛 have behavior issues because we are working on something important to them. For example on our last day before break we had an informal debate on contemporary issues, a team building exercise that encouraged specific word choice, and vocabulary battles. But even during the academic year, students want to feel challenged and capable. They want to know what they are doing in one class will relate to something they want to pursue in their lives.

Great to see you giving classroom mgmt so much attention, since it鈥檚 such a key to overall teacher effectiveness. One thing I hope you鈥檒l give even more attention to is the distinction between BEHAVIOR Management and CLASSROOM Management.

It鈥檚 a distinction Harry Wong makes a lot, as do I in workshops and on my blog, including .