You must inspect what you expect.
You must inspect what you expect.
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When a leader, or teacher, sets out a goal or directive, that goal can only be achieved with good monitoring, or, inspection.
Monitoring Your Pre-Planned Expectations
Monitoring Your Pre-Planned Expectations
Now that school has started and students are in your classroom, it's time to re-evaluate the rituals and routines you planned for during Phase 1, and evaluate the need for new procures. The purpose of defining and teaching classroom routines is to reduce disruptive behavior, therefore being able to maximize the time spent on instruction. When students know what to expect, daily transitions from one activity to another will be smoother and you won’t need to correct students as often, which will improve your interactions with them.
Behind the Scenes: Planning
Behind the Scenes: Planning
Reflect on the Process
Think about the rituals and routines you have in place so far...
What is working? Not working?
What are the most important classroom routines that my students need to know? Did I create a plan for teaching these routines?
Are the steps to the routines clear and concise? Are there as few steps as possible?
Are there some students who need more support and/or practice to learn the classroom routines? If so, who can provide this support?
Rituals and Routines Reflection.pdfUse this electronic copy to type-up your reflection
Inspect Your Classroom Directions
Think ahead when preparing directions for students. Script out what you want to say. Give crisp and clear instructions with as few words as possible - aim for 3-4 words to make it easy to remember.
Always check for understanding on complex instructions with students. Choose a student(s) to repeat the steps in the instructions.
Lights, Camera, Action: In the Classroom
Lights, Camera, Action: In the Classroom
Post Classroom Rituals and Routines
Keep each step of the routine as concise as possible
Try to keep routines to as few steps as possible
Consider using pictures and large print
Choose a space where the poster can be easily viewed from multiple points in the classroom
Hanging it in proximity to the location of the routine can be a helpful reminder for students (e.g. posting the line-up routine next to the classroom door).
Whole-Class Reset to Re-establish Behavioral Expectations: Planned VS In-The-Moment
Implement a planned whole-class reset to re-establish student expectations when you notice a class routine has slowly weakened over time. Students can slowly regress towards old habits when we are not consistent with expectations and monitoring important procedures.
It may seem easier to "let something slide" one or two times, but students will notice. If students are coming into the classroom too loudly, not getting out their materials for the day, not beginning the Bell Ringer/Warm-Up on time, then it may be time for you to plan a whole-class reset to correct these actions.
Maybe something similar happened Monday, but you did not address the actions because it would've killed the positive mood of the students. On Tuesday it happened again, but you were too busy getting the warm-up written on the board to address it. Before you realize it, your rituals and routines for this procedure are out the window! Be consistent in expecting and inspecting!
Square up and secure students' attention. Explain which procedure has become weak by giving examples of what it currently looks like.
Call on students to explain what it should look like and sound like when done correctly. Refer to the T-Chart from the first day that you completed as a class.
Have students get up and moving to physically practice the routine, if necessary.
Implement an in-the-moment whole-class reset when the class or groups are off-task during the lesson. If you are the only one listening and paying attention, you are the only one learning the content. Do not keep teaching when students are having side-conversations and/or off-task behaviors.
Stop teaching. Square up. Give a clear explanation of what to do: “Pencils down OR close your chromebooks. Stop talking. Eyes on me. Thank you, that’s what it should look like. Let's get back to it!"
Pick up tone & energy again!
Developing Your Teacher Radar
It is crucial for you to begin developing your teacher radar to know when students are off-task. We learned how your voice sets the tone and environment for the entire classroom in terms of engagement, behavior, and rapport with students, and now you will learn how your eyes are equally as important!
Teacher Radar is the ability to scan the room and be prevent mishappens before they occur. It involves seeing and knowing when students are starting to be off-task, and letting students know you see them.
1. Deliberately scan the room looking at student behaviors:
Choose 3-4 “hot spots” to continuously scan. These are the places where you have students who are often off task.
“Be Seen Looking”: crane your neck to appear to be seeing all corners of the room. This action will let students know you are actively monitoring, and that you can see all areas.
2. Circulate the room with purpose
Move through rows of desks and around the perimeter
Stand at the corners of the room
Identify 2-3 spots on the perimeter of the room to where you can stand and monitor student work
TIP: When you have a student speaking to the class (answering a question, sharing a fact, etc), move away from that student to better monitor the whole classroom. Why? Because you know that student is paying attention. Move towards the other students who tend to be off-task. This will ensure their attention.
Additional Resources
Additional Resources
Teaching_Classroom_Routines-Strategy_Tool_Example (1).pdf
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