Classroom Routines

Classroom routines determine whether your class is consistently organized, behaved, and engaged.

Guiding Principle - Planning & preparation, positive interactions, and consistent classroom structure will give students clear expectations & boundaries. Students will ultimately feel safer in that environment and will engage more with the work and you.

Teachers must establish consistent routines on the first day and carry it through towards the last day of class. These routines consist of the following:

1. Welcoming & Opening routine - Are you at the door greeting them? We all like to be greeted with a smile and kind phrase. It gives you the opportunity to immediately set the tone of your class. When welcoming them, you can pull them into class and immediately let them know what they should be doing.
   
   Do you have work for the students when they arrive to class? Are they expected to do something meaningful? These might look like Do Nows, review quizzes from the previous day, journaling & writing prompts, small problems to solve, small anticipatory assignments. These should last for 10-15 minutes for a 90 minute class. Make sure that the opening routine assignments are graded!
   
   

2. Guided Instruction - What type of strategies do you employ to engage students during a lecture or demonstration? Do you use diagrams, slide shows, videos, questioning, discussions, hand-outs/worksheets with vocabulary and diagrams? Do you circle the class and engage different areas of the classroom?
   

Be mindful that most lectures should not exceed 15 minutes. Studies have shown that teenagers tune out after 15 minutes. One way of keeping them engaged is to have formative checks, oral questions, and discussions ready to go for increased student engagement.

If you are not introducing new material, are you reviewing concepts covered from the previous days and reinforcing what students should be working on?

3. Independent Learning - When students are working independently on a project or assignment, are you circling the class? Speaking individually with students? Asking probing questions to individuals or small groups? Directing students to use their materials to complete projects? Relating previous lessons to the current lesson?
   
   

4. Assessments - Are you referencing the assessment at the beginning of the lesson? Do the students know what is expected of them for the assessment? Are the rules for grading clear and apparent? Do students have the rubric in front of them? Is there a clear connection between previous material and the assessment? Are there any gaps of knowledge for the assessment?
   
   

5. Review & Transition - After independent learning and assessment, can the students review their work or correct it? Are you allowing students to learn from their mistakes and improve?
   

Is there a process where students are given the opportunity to resubmit a project or maybe retake a test? If students are not given these opportunities, they may shut down and disengage from the class.

Do you review student work individually and as an entire class? Do students get to see what other students had submitted for a project?

6. End of Class Structure - Are students reminded of what they need to get done for the class period/block? Are they told what they will be learning tomorrow and how it is tied to what they learned today or yesterday?
   
   
   If students are done their work, are there other activities for them so they don't become bored or agitated? These might look similar to the Do Now activities: Quizzes, writing prompts, journaling, 3-2-1 activities, exit tickets, etc...
   
   

7. Learn as You Go - Try different strategies. If something doesn't work, reflect on it, change it, try it again, or ditch it. Teaching is a trial-and-error profession.
   
   

8. Further Reading:

   1. https://www.edutopia.org/article/guiding-older-students-enter-and-exit-classroom-smoothly

   2. http://idahotc.com/Portals/6/Docs/coaches%20institute/pbis_day4/4.AA%20Example%20Routines_secodary.pdf

   3. https://www.samanthainsecondary.com/2021/07/14/5-classroom-routines-and-procedures-for-secondary-students/

   4. https://www.weareteachers.com/classroom-procedures-save-sanity/

Keep your questions and interaction positive. Make sure that your questions are free of assumptions and bias. For example:

1. Model behavior to your students. If you behave the way you want them to behave, it will send a clear message of expectations. Actions speak louder than words and stay away from sarcasm.
   
   

2. Try to use gender-neutral references in materials, scenarios, or discussions.
   
   

3. Don't start your questions with a negative assumption of a certain group of people.
   
   

4. Stay away from interpreting student responses as negative. You may want to ask clarifying questions as a response in order to de-escalate a potential misunderstanding.
   
   

5. Talk to your students. Especially, the ones that might not want to talk. You can talk to them one on one. You don't even need to talk to them about their work. The more you converse, the more comfortable you will be with them.
   
   

6. Call students by their names. Get the pronunciation right and never give students nicknames. Ask them during roll call if you've said their name correctly.
   
   

7. Use non-verbal cues. (hands & looks) to deal with small misbehaviors. This is less public and sometimes allows you to redirect behavior without direct confrontation.
   
   

8. Some negative behavior may be related to issues at home (neglect/abuse/stress). Always use a positive approach to determine what's going on. #5 is important, because if you can develop a clear channel of communication with the student, you may be able to find out what is going on and deal with the behavior without resorting to discipline and a possible confrontation. Try to include the counselor as well.
   
   

9. If a student is constantly (repeatedly) misbehaving, do not be afraid to confront the student and explain that their behavior or outburst isn't acceptable in class. Deal with the situation quickly as other students will take their lead from the situation. Do not let it go.
   
   
   If it is a group of students, separate their seats. Do not allow them to sit together.
   
   
   If the misbehavior continues, confront the student away from the other students. Take the student to the doorway, or to another part of the room where other students have difficulty seeing or hearing the interaction. Do not scream or threaten the student. Explain that you will call home and/or issue a detention or disciplinary referral. Follow through that day. Failure to follow through will embolden the misbehaving student.
   
   
   Call climate as a last resort. Calling climate relinquishes your classroom authority to the climate manager or dean. Students will understand that you cannot control the class without help. Climate managers should only be called if there is a fight or another pressing matter that needs to be written up.
   
   

10. Additional Reading:

    1. https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/responding-to-misbehavior/

    2. https://www.futureeducators.org/how-to-handle-bad-student-behavior/

    3. https://www.wgu.edu/heyteach/article/6-tips-skillfully-managing-extreme-student-behaviors1802.html

    4. https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/break-student-misbehavior-cycle/