Author: TCR Staff

Classroom Management

Quiet Signals for Getting Attention and Control of Your Classroom

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What do you use to get the attention of your students when they are working? It’s hard for the “teacher look” to work when they are happily working on a group activity or not looking at you and talking as they work. One of the best treats a teacher can do for herself is to teach her class one or two signals for when she wants the attention of her students. You need several signals because if the class is quiet, one signal might work, but if they are noisy or on the playground, you may need a different signal altogether. The other key is that you need to teach the signal just as you would a math problem or a vocabulary word. After you have taught the signal, the students will need time and opportunity to practice it. If their practice is great, tell them so. If it is not, tell them they will need to practice the signal again until they can do it just right and mean it. If you accept less than complete attention, that is just what they will learn to give you. You may need to practice occasionally if they slip.

When deciding on the signal for your class, consider the age, grade, ability level, and maturity of the group. Just because it worked with the same grade level last year does not mean it will work well with this group.

Listed below are some possible signals.

Behavior Management

Student Discipline Strategies for Teachers

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A good teacher is never without a good plan for discipline in the classroom. Ask any teacher and you’ll know that good behavior management can go a long way. To help with managing student behavior, here are a few discipline strategies for teachers to keep in mind:

Discipline with Dignity
All students need to be treated with dignity. Even when a student is being disciplined, he or she needs to retain dignity. Private reminders and conferences with the child will preserve his or her dignity and yours.

One of the best things to remember concerning disciplining students is that they win whenever they get you to “lose your cool.” Take your time when students “push your buttons” and decide carefully on your response. In this way, you will not behave in a way that you will regret later.

Teach Students Responsibility
Students need to be taught that they are responsible for their own behavior. If a student does not follow the rules, it is best for natural or determined consequences to take their course whenever possible. When parents and others intervene, they take the responsibility for the student’s behavior away from the student.

Exercise Break
One of the best favors you can do for your students and yourself when students get wiggly and cannot seem to concentrate is to take an exercise break. One good time for a break like this is about 45 minutes before lunch. Take your students outside for 5–7 minutes of exercise led first by yourself, and then, after they know the exercises, the students. This is not to replace physical education, but it is a quick chance to do some specific physical activity when students need it most.

Another variation on this is to use low-impact aerobics for children in the classroom. One caution is that many of the shoes the students wear to school might be dangerous for exercise routines. If this is the case, you might want to encourage students to bring some tennis shoes to school for their exercise breaks.

Reward Good Behavior
A good discipline system should also include positive reinforcement for good behavior. Award certificates, badges, or simple, sincere verbal praise can keep good behavior on track and build self-esteem.

There are, of course, many more strategies for student discipline, and what may work for one teacher may not work for another. What discipline techniques have you found to be effective in your classroom?

Lesson Plans

Activities That Inspire Learning: Vocabulary Activities

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If vocabulary learning is viewed as boring to some of your students, try some of these activities to spice up and make learning vocabulary fun and memorable.

Vocabulary Bingo
Play Vocabulary Bingo. Students randomly write down all the vocabulary words for that unit, one per square. (Note: The words can be written on the board so everyone has the same words.)

Read the definition of each word. Students then cover the matching word on the Bingo sheet with a small square of paper, dried beans, or other marker. Once they get a consecutive row, they yell “Bingo” or another word you chose. Pick a word that relates to the unit the class is studying.

Action Vocabulary
Give a set of partners one word from the unit or novel being read. They are to learn the definition and then come up with a simple charade-type action associated with the word. The action should be a clue to the meaning of the word. Once practiced, students share their word, definition, and the action with the class. Encourage students to keep the actions simple, only one or two movements. Too detailed or too lengthy actions will be forgotten. The class then repeats the action. After every two words, go back and review actions and definitions of the previously learned words. The action will help secure the meaning in their minds. If desired, students can also choose their own words to perform from the unit.

Password
This game is similar to the TV show “Million Dollar Password.” It is a terrific way to review vocabulary in the classroom.

Split the class into two teams. The first person from each team comes to the front and sits in one of the two chairs facing the game show host (the teacher). The game show host begins by giving one-word clues to both players at the same time. The first person to say out loud the answer gets two points for the team. For example, the word may be carnivore. Possible clues to give are as follows: “animal,” “meat,” and “teeth.” Keep repeating the clues thus far if they are stumped. If still stumped, start giving obvious clues such as “not an herbivore.”

As the class sees how this work and gains experience with the clue-giving technique, eventually allow teammates to give clues, one at a time to their guesser.

For more vocabulary activities or resources, you can browse a wide selection of vocabulary books here.