Behavior Management
I have learned how to establish myself as an effective authority figure to the students, which can be tricky to do effectively. One can go too far and lose the trust and valuable relationship between a teacher and their students. When this relationship is good it facilitates learning on so many levels, and not just in academics. One can also not be assertive enough and be walked over on by the students. This is by far the worst situation because the classroom becomes chaotic and extremely unproductive. It's difficult to master, but I feel proud of my ability to exert myself as an effective leader to my pupils.
You must make expectations clear, not only for academics but also behavior, from day one. You must let them know that all of us are responsable for making the classroom a productive learning environment and a place where everyone is comfortable and respected. You must show them that no means no and that there are consequences to breaking the rules. You must also reward positive behavior. It is so important, especially working with younger children, to be patient, forgiving, and teach respect and kindness through example. It's important to treat the children equally and fairly. I like to stress that every day is a new day and new chance to succeed. I remind the kids that the mistake is in the past, and now it is a new beginning, and that even I make mistakes.
A way I have managed behavior with third grade, which has been very effective, is by using a chart displayed on the wall. Every child's name is displayed on the chart and next to the name are three squares, one green, one yellow, and one red. We call them lives and when a child misbehaves they lose a life. Once all the lives are lost a note is written to their parents in their planners which must be signed by mom or dad. This is very effective because there are usually one or two students who need the parent's authority as a reinforcement to the teacher's. Each week they start with all three lives again.
A similar method is to have a set of stoplights posted in the classroom; a red light, a yellow or orange light, and a green light. All the children's names are stuck to the green light. If they misbehave they go up to the yellow light. If they reach the red light it means no recess, which is always effective in controlling classroom behavior.
Another effective way to gain classroom control when everyone is talking, for example, is to call out the children who are misbehaving or behaving. The other children take notice and follow suit. If Nico is sitting quietly and paying attention I say "Very good Nico!" and the children around him start to be silent. If Nico is talking while he should be listening I ask Nico to please be quiet and the other children talking around him stop talking as well. The appropriate noise level can also be reinforced with a voice-o-meter, which is placed on the wall.
In third grade the classes are divided into collaborative learning groups that are different English-speaking countries. Counting down from ten to one helps especially when class is first beginning because it gives everyone a chance to finish what they're doing and sit down or finish their sentence. They know that they have those ten seconds and once I reach one my expectation is that they are quiet and sitting down ready to listen. A lot of times this is all that is necessary, but sometimes I reinforce this by moving their flags up or down on the chart, as seen on the left, once I hit zero. Sometimes I move the groups who are sitting quietly up or I move the groups who are not listening down. This forces the teams to hold each other accountable, which makes creating a silent and productive classroom much easier. The children also know they are responsable for where their group members are on the chart. If they are in red they lose recess.
Another way that works especially well with younger children to gain classroom control is do an action that the children must mimic. This returns their attention back to the instructor. I clap a few times and then the children clap back. I vary the rhythm in which I clap, so they must be focusing to do it right. Usually by the third or fourth set of claps I have a silent classroom and can go on with the lesson. I've also raised one hand and covered my my mouth with the other hand. The children know when they see me doing this they have to mimic me. It is especially useful because it literally covers their mouths.