I have been thinking about the school year beginning soon – I still have about three weeks to get my last bits of rest in, and plan for my best year yet. In addition to thoughts of curriculum and activities, I have been thinking about classroom management, and how to always be improving my skills.
It’s easy to think that classroom management is either something you have, or something you don’t, and that this is based somehow around your personality. Some teachers just look like naturals, and teachers who share online don’t often share their management struggles. But with time, experience, and practice, I have joined management expert Jon Cowart in finding that classroom management is actually a skill set that you can develop, and having solid management is essential to making all the amazing curriculum and activities happen.
Classroom management encompasses so many different things, including teacher-student relationships, student-student relationships, physical classroom setup, the way we phrase our instructions and expectations, how we respond to student behaviors, etc. In this post, I want to focus on some physical skills – how we use our voices and bodies – that have helped me feel like I am managing a more positive, productive classroom with clear, learning-supportive expectations.
Breathe: This is Classroom Management Skill #1 for me. No matter what is happening, taking a moment to take a deep breath is how we can calm any nerves or annoyance that we are feeling, and access our best, most responsive selves. Consciously breathing deeply slows us down, and makes us more present to the real people in front of us. This can be the difference between snapping at a student in a way we later regret, and communicating calmly how an expectation has been broken, and how best to move forward. Breathe. Do it now while you’re reading, even!
Plant Your Feet: In my home life, I’m always pacing around the house to get out all my nervous energy. In front of a classroom, this pacing and constant movement can be infectious, and distracting. To lend gravity and focus to what we are conveying to students, we can plant our feet squarely on one spot as best we can, not move from that spot, and just turn our bodies from left to right to scan the entire class. If we want to move to a new position, we can use it like punctuation: landing where we’re going at the end of a statement, and then continuing our next idea from that new planted spot. This helps bring physical cohesion to the words we are saying.
Speak Slowly: Taking time to breathe can slow our bodies down, which can help us also speak more slowly. Speaking slowly increases the chance that students will comprehend what we are saying, regardless of language. This can also decrease the frustration at lack of “keeping up” that can lead to disengagement. It’s good for management, and good for making sure students are getting the comprehensible input they need for acquisition! We need not speak in an exaggerated or unnatural way, just slower than our conversational speeds. Think how comforting the cadence of Mr. Rogers is, or Miss Rachel! (This one is particularly difficult for me, being a Hyper Speed Yapper.)
Look Into Your Students’ Eyes: In public speaking, we are often told to look just above the heads of our audience to help with nerves and delivery. If we take the time to look all our students in their eyes, we can often stop disruptions before they start. How often do students really feel seen at school? I try to look every student in the eye at least once per class, which gives me space to smile, nod, encourage, show interest, raise my eyebrows preventatively – so many small gestures that are not invasive for their peers, but let kids know that we are present with them.
Proximity: I think proximity often does get talked about in relation to classroom management, but it’s worth reiterating. I use it in a spectrum, beginning just with eye contact with a student that is beginning to interrupt others’ learning. Then, I turn my body to face that specific student, while still addressing and teaching the whole class. Then, I move slowly toward the student in question, building in pauses and planting my feet for a while in one spot to see how close I will need to get to redirect the student. All the while, I am making eye contact more frequently with the student, even as I continue to just teach class. Sometimes students catch on and change their behaviors before I even move very much in their direction. If I make it all the way to a kid, I bend over or crouch so I am closer to their seated level, and quietly tell them what I want them to be doing at that time. This sounds something like, “Right now, we are answering questions about the map in German.” Or, “We can respond to the video with rejoinders or words in German.” Always seek the least invasive interaction, as best you can, and describe what you want your students to actually do (versus not do).
Self-Interrupt: If a student starts talking L1 while we are talking L2, we can simply stop talking immediately. The break in classroom “noise” often snaps loudly in students’ attention, and if we can patiently hold the pause in whatever we were saying until it is clear that we are responding to talking out of turn, then we can reinforce how we will focus and participate in class. I am usually turned toward the L1-speaking student in question, and once they stop, I carry on with whatever I was saying in L2, after a pause. Adding a smile back at the student who changed their behavior a few seconds later can convey, “That was an oops! Thanks for getting back on board.” Of course, if a student doesn’t respond to this intervention for whatever reason, use proximity or an attention-getter to redirect that particular student.
Respond Every Time: Every time a student does something that disrupts their peers’ learning, and especially if their actions serve to belittle, demean, or intimidate other students for any of their preferences or identities, we must respond. Even just stopping what you were doing and saying, “That is not how we behave here” or “We don’t talk like that here” is better than no response at all. Much of classroom management is setting boundaries for what we accept as part of the classroom culture, and we are the leaders in that boundary setting. Choosing to act, rather than to just look the other way, models to the rest of the class how we can positively deal with offensive, interruptive, or just plain annoying behavior, and can convey a commitment to protecting students with marginalized identities. It’s never “just a joke.” Respond. Every. Time.
Address the Class But Look at the Student Who Needs Support: When a student has done something offensive or demeaning, it is tempting to direct all your righteous indignation right at them. It can be more powerful to turn to the whole class and remind the whole class of the classroom/school expectations (“At our school, we show respect for the differences of others” etc.), and then look the offending student in the eyes to make clear that we registered their behavior and are responding to it. This can prevent a bigger interruption should a student try to engage in a power struggle, and gives you both time to cool down until you can request a follow-up with that student later in the period.
Give Instructions, Then Freeze: This is a small thing that has had a huge impact for me. When students are about to begin a task in groups, or independent work, I make sure the instructions are understood clearly, with lots of comprehension checks. Then, I say: “You are going to do XYZ starting in 3…2…1…Go!” Then I freeze. And I stare at them. All of them, in the eyes! This conveys, “No, really, get started,” and allows you to very quickly see who needs more support or resources to get to the task at hand. If I start myself moving too quickly after giving the “Go!” signal, it takes students longer to start, and I miss out on formatively assessing who feels confident to dive into the task straight away.
Demon Voice: This is goofy, but sometimes, if a student is not following expectations while I address the whole class, I will just say their name quickly in a deep, dark demon voice, and then continue on with my normal voice toward the rest of the class, saying whatever I was trying to say. It is usually just surprising enough to help the student readjust toward the classroom expectations, and can get some smiles and laughs, as well. Make sure you have good relationships with your students before you try this, though, because it is admittedly…wacky. 🙂 “Alright, everyone. Today, we are going to JOANN be learning about sports in German-speaking countries. (smile and wink)”
Practice: Teaching is Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. There are so many microhabits that make up the art and science of teaching, and it can feel very overwhelming. But! Olympic runners did not get down the mechanics of a technically strong start that transitions into a technically strong stride on the first go. They practiced, failed, tried again. So, with all these skills and the myriad other skills I didn’t mention here, it just takes time and practice to get them to work to their best. Have faith, gentle reader. You’ve got this!