Wong’s First Days of School: Ch 5 & 6

The beginning of school is an important time for classroom management because your students will learn attitudes, behavior, and work habits that will affect the rest of the year. • This is the time to learn what's expected of them and how they can succeed. • Careful planning for the beginning of

To strengthen each student's belief that school tasks are worth doing and that he/she can be successful. • To do this, you must ensure the students' cooperation in • Following your class rules and procedures • Engaging successfully in all learning experiences Your goal is to design and facilitate an interactive classroom community. • Positive interactions between teacher and students are crucial if students are to be excited about their school experience and about learning. • Students are with their teachers for almost 50% of their waking hours!

You can't just tell them what the rules are. You must teach them the rules! • Describe and demonstrate the desired behavior • Allow for rehearsal - Practicing the behavior • Provide feedback - Did they do it properly? If not, how can they improve? Procedure for dismissal at the end of the period or day • Procedure for quieting a class • Procedure for the start of the period or day • Procedure for students seeking help • Procedure for the movement of students and papers

You can promote that sense of belonging: • Speak courteously and calmly (e.g., "thank you," "please") • Learn each child's name and help students learn more about each other • Use positive statements as often as possible • Establish a feeling of community by conducting regular class meetings •To feel safe, however, children need to feel that there is a source of authority within the classroom.

Refers the following: a. to your right to set standards for student behavior and performance b. to the likelihood that students will follow your lead in their decisions and behaviors. • Student acceptance of legitimate authority creates a safe setting in which teaching and learning can occur.

One in which the teacher is passive in response to student behavior. • Expectations are not clearly communicated to the students. • No solid leadership is provided. • There is inconsistency in the teacher's response to student behaviors. •Students may be confused by this style.

One who is able to meet his or her own needs in the classroom, but may do so at the expense of the self-esteem of his or her students. • Uses discipline to control students rather than to empower them and teach them how to behave in an appropriate manner. • Students behave well out of fear. • Views the classroom as him/her versus the students

The teacher identifies the expectations clearly and follows through with consistency. • The teacher explains to the students what behavior is unacceptable and acceptable. • The consequences of various behaviors are made clear to the students. • Teachers explain the basis for actions and decisions, give students more independence as they demonstrate maturity and willingness to behave responsibly, and administer consequences fairly and proportionately Teacher understands the needs for students to have limits. • A positive attitude is prevalent in an assertive teacher's classroom. • Appropriate behavior does not go unnoticed in the assertive teacher's classroom.

Rules • 4-5 rules developed collaboratively Positive Recognition • Will motivate students to behave appropriately • Reduces problem behaviors • Helps to build relationships with students • Increases students' self-esteem Negative Consequences • Something that will not be liked by the students, but is never potentially harmful to them. • Consequences must be delivered to the students as a choice. • Consequences do not have to be severe or harsh to be effective. Consequences should be reasonable and logical • Do not stop the lesson!

Include activities that will make children feel successful • Keep it simple • Focus on whole-group instruction • Stimulate interest in, and excitement about, future learning experiences

Greeting the students • Desk/name tags & seating chart • Simple activity to do at desk • Introductions • Room description • Get-acquainted activities • Presentation and discussion of rules, procedures, and consequences - to be discussed as needed, and reviewed on subsequent days • Productive time-fillers • Administrative activities (textbooks & supplies)

• Establishing formal and informal communication • Send home a special (well-written) communication/letter about your class-find out if it needs to be approved by administration • Make positive phone calls home within the first couple of weeks • Be aware of challenges posed by the use of technology/ email • Barriers to effective communication • Practical (schedules, etc.) • Psychological •Cultural

• Interruptions • Late arrivals/entries • No lunch money or supplies • Large amount of paperwork • Dismissal procedures/bus numbers • Shortage of textbooks, materials, or equipment • Special needs • Crying • Wetting • Sickness • School-wide emergency

Prepare a folder with the following information for the substitute instructor and place it in a visible place • Class schedule, roll sheet, and seating chart • A copy of your classroom rules and consequences • Detailed lesson plans • List of medical alerts • Name of teachers and students who can provide assistance • Map of the school

Students get low grades because of the failure to know what procedures to follow and what objectives to learn or do. • Students risk failure because of a lack of structure. • A series of procedures and routines equals structure. • With procedures in place, you'll have time to devote to the art of teaching and become the effective teacher your students need and deserve. • Learning is much more effective when it takes place within a supportive community of learners.

Manage their classrooms The effective teacher spends much of the first week of school teaching students to follow classroom procedures to organize the classroom for engagement and learning. •All effective classrooms have STRUCTURE Has a discipline plan that does not degrade students. • Makes good eye contact • Provides a copy of the plan for each student. • Enforces the rules consistently. • Has learned how to discipline with the body, not with the mouth. • Teaches students the concept of consequences and responsibility. • Has self-confidence and faith in his or her capabilities

Teachers DISCIPLINE their classrooms • The ineffective teacher begins the first day of school attempting to teach a subject or do a fun activity and spends the rest of the school year running after the students. • Ineffective classrooms lack structure. May have no clearly defined rules. • Communicates rules sporadically and as these are suddenly needed to stifle a situation. • Conveys rules in a gruff, angry, and condescending manner. • Winces, shrugs, or conveys via facial expression or body language disbelief in what is being said. • Conveys, "I'm only doing this because the administration wants me to do it." • Tells students, "If you don't want to learn, that's not my problem." • Berates students with meaningless phrases to convey expectations "Don't you know any better?" or "How many times do I have to tell you?"

Effective teachers use nonverbal language effectively: • A nod, a smile , a stare, a frown, a raised eyebrow, or a gesture is often all that is needed, and it does not even disturb the class at work. • Body language can speak volumes. • Use it to manage the classroom and minimize disruptions.

1. Students are deeply involved with their work, especially with academic, teacher-led instructions. 2. Students know what is expected of them and are generally successful. 3. There is relatively little wasted time, confusion, or disruption. 4. The climate of the classroom is work-oriented, but relaxed and pleasant.

Discipline refers to BEHAVIOR. • Has penalties and rewards. • A rule is a DARE, waiting to be broken. Procedures • Procedures refer to getting things DONE. • Have NO penalties or rewards. • A procedure is not a DARE. It is a DO, a step to be learned.

Procedures How you (the teacher) want something done • Must be clearly stated • Increase time on-task • Reduce classroom disruptions Routines • What the student does automatically without prompting or supervision • A routine becomes a habit, practice, or custom for the student

Am I in the right room? • Where am I supposed to sit? • Who is the teacher as a person? • Will the teacher treat me as a human being? • What are the rules in this classroom? • What will I be doing this year? • How will I be graded?

What you do on the first day of school will determine your success for the rest of the year: You will either win or lose your class on the first days of school. • The most important factor that must be established the very first week of school is CONSISTENCY. • Effective teachers have a classroom management plan ready on the first day of school to structure and organize the classroom. Stand at the door and greet the students. • Give each student a seating assignment. • Your very first priority when class begins is to get the students to work. • There must be a schedule, "bell-work," and a lesson objective or assignment posted in a consistent location, when the students enter the room.

Well-planned lessons with a variety of developmentally appropriate activities support the positive learning environment that careful management decisions create. • You must consider the students' learning styles. - However, students also need to experience success in instructional formats that are not easiest for them.

The kinds of learning you would like to encourage (memorization, higher order thinking) - Whether the activity will maintain student involvement - The sequence of the activities - The amount of time available - The time of day (morning, afternoon)

Long-range planning • Short-range planning • Your plans provide road maps that help transform the curriculum into activities, learning assignments, and learning experiences that are meaningful.

Keep in mind two considerations: - Which skills and concepts students must learn - Through which activities they can become interested partners in the learning enterprise. • It is better to over-plan than to under- plan-as long as you're flexible.

1. Content development 2. Discussion 3. Recitation or reinforcement 4. Feedback • The components may be accomplished in a variety of instructional formats.

introducing & teaching content activities • Presentation of new material • Teacher takes an active role • Must make sure students are active • Carefully plan teacher questions to maintain the flow • Content development to include sample problems and/or demonstrations of understanding

Presenting New Content, checking for understanding, Classwork & Independent Work, Feedback, and Arranging Activities Within a Lesson

Explain lesson objectives/provide an outline • Encourage note-taking • Stay focused on your planned sequence • Make it as concrete as possible • Allow opportunities to process the information

As you explain, ask the students questions to verify their comprehension of key points • This keeps students more engaged in the lesson • You can also conduct an oral recitation after the presentation

the portion of an assignment completed as a whole group immediately following content instruction - The purpose is to check for understanding

the portion of the assignment completed by individual students, generally while the teacher moves through the class to check their progress. **Procedures for independent work should have been established.

Content must be adequately developed • Begin the independent work as a whole-class activity • Actively monitor students' work • Independent activities are best for consolidating prior learning • Devote at least as much time to content development as to independent work • Break long activities into smaller segments

can be provided during discussion, recitation, or checking and can occur before, during, or after content development • Feedback is involved in student presentations, checking student work, demonstrations, and testing

Discussions are helpful in encouraging students to evaluate events, topics, or results; to clarify the basis for their opinions; to help students become aware of other points of view; and to help them improve their oral expression skills • The teacher's role becomes one of encouraging, clarifying, and using student ideas rather than evaluating their correctness • Ground rules for participating in a discussion must be made clear

A discussion calls for - Warmth/friendliness - Conflict resolution, Encouraging expression of divergent points of view - Invite all members to participate - Plan questions in advance • Task Cards (FCAT/NGSSS & CCSS)

A question-and-answer sequence in which the teacher asks questions, usually of a factual nature, and accepts, guides, or corrects student responses - Address questions to all students - Develop a system way of calling on all students - Use "wait time" of a couple of seconds

students evaluate the accuracy of their own work - Students should be taught how to check their work • Monitor for accuracy - Grades are confidential, even when checking involves other students

students give a report to the whole class, demonstrate a procedure or skill, or summarize work done on a project • Provide guidelines ahead of time

provide clear instructions • Have meaningful activities for those who finish their test early

In whole-group instruction, lessons usually consist of a series of activities • Checking or recitation (e.g., check hw) • Content development (new skills) • Classwork (practice) • Independent work, group work, or discussion • The sequence varies

Students are grouped together for instruction • The teacher works with small groups of students, one group at a time, while the rest of the class works independently • This requires careful planning directions to the whole class at once Instructions for each assignment

Step 1: Plan for the out-of-group activities Give directions to the whole class at once Instructions for each assignment Description of materials needed, A timeline, Check for understanding •Before calling the first group, monitor the beginning of independent work Step 2: Call the first group • During your work with the first small group, monitor out-of-group students by scanning the room frequently Stop off-task behavior with nonverbal cues, A "time-out" desk by your table "C3B4Me", student helper, skip confusing section and move on to another section Step 3: Check progress • Before calling the next group, check for problems and clarify misunderstandings, Monitor students who were in the small-group and are now starting independent work Step 4:Call the next group • Continue as before

Review guides and instructional materials carefully • Always try to anticipate problems • Teach for understanding • Make new information relevant • Organize your lesson parts into a coherent sequence • Be enthusiastic!

How will you integrate technology? What resources are available at the school? • You may need to employ "technology experts" • Issues with the Internet • Teachers should not allow the personal use of technology (including texting and cell phones) to interrupt instruction

• Activity flow refers to the degree to which a lesson proceeds smoothly, without digressions, diversions, or interruptions • According to Kounin, activity flow is maintained through three types of teacher practice: 1. Preventing misbehavior 2. Managing movement 3. Maintaining group focus

Communicating general awareness of the classroom to students; identifying and correcting misbehavior promptly and correctly. The degree to which the teacher is aware of and responsive to student performance.

Attending to two or more events simultaneously

Keeping lessons moving briskly; planning carefully to avoid slowdowns

The teacher avoids allowing comments that may distract the attention away from the key points of the lesson; avoid digressions that can lead to confusion

all students focused and alert; engaging the attention of the whole class while individuals are responding

communicating to students that their participation will be observed and evaluated

using lessons that define behavior of students when they are not directly answering a teachers question

The interval between any two activities Transition problems can be caused by lack of readiness by the teacher or the students, unclear student expectations about student behavior during transitions, and faulty procedures for transitions

Tier I (80-90%): Core curriculum •All students or all school •Universal •Preventive •Proactive Tier II (10-15%): Supplemental, Strategic Interventions •Class/small group level •High efficiency •Rapid response Tier III (1-5%): Intensive, Individual Interventions •Individual students or small groups •Assessment-based •High Intensity •Of longer duration

Teaching with student variance in mind. It means starting where the kids are rather than adopting a standardized approach to teaching that seems to presume that all learners of a given age or grade are essentially alike. Thus differentiated instruction is "responsive" teaching rather than "one-size-fits-all" teaching. A teacher proactively plans varied approaches to what students need to learn, how they will learn it, and/or how they can express what they have learned in order to increase the likelihood that each student will learn as much as he or she can as efficiently as possible.

•Student-centered •Based on data evidencing student needs and readiness •Proactive •Respectful of all learners •Varied avenues to content, process, and product •Flexible and fluid •Blend of instructional strategies (whole class, small group, individual)

•Another form of homogeneous grouping •Lowering expectations for struggling learners •A substitute for specialized services •Chaotic or unplanned •New

•Purposeful activities •Individualized independent learning centers (e.g. FCRR centers) •Flexible groups •Data-driven •Hands-on

•Use assessments to determine student readiness levels •FCAT Reading Level/SAT Score •Interim Assessment Results •Baseline Assessment Results •S.T.A.R, Reading Assessment Grade Equivalent •Teacher-Made Tests •F.A.I.R. /P.M.R.N.

the teacher is conducting either a skill-focused or a guided reading lesson. -Skill-focused lesson - explicitly instructing a small group based on identified needs -Guided reading lesson - explicitly instructing each reader's development of "good reader" strategies allowing the learner to problem-solve during reading and/or have them apply a skill or strategy taught during a skill-focused lesson.

•Keep group size small (3-7) •Base guided reading/skills groups on specific instructional needs (data-driven instruction!) •Give explicit directions •Supervise transitions •Monitor progress

•Implement a behavior management system that supports centers •Start with one center at first •Slowly introduce other centers, adding them on, one at a time •Centers should... -be purposeful -reinforce previously taught skills -be engaging -differentiate instruction to meet the needs of students

•Cooperation-We Sink or Swim Together •Competition-I Swim, You Sink; I Sink, You Swim •Individualistic-We Are Each in this Alone

The method involves organizing students into small groups in which students complete assignments cooperatively, assist each other, solve problems, share materials, and participate in their own discussions. •Cooperative learning increases learning and involvement, as students improve their social and problem-solving abilities. •Has focused on interest, interpersonal relations, motivation, and attitudes towards learning •Indicates that students are more engaged with content •Has greater potential for participation, feedback, and mutual construction of meaning among students •Indicates that lower-achieving students profit form their peers' explanations, and higher achievers benefit from constructing explanations for the other students •Has shown that all students benefit from the support they receive in a cohesive group

•Positive Interdependence - Students perceive that they need each other in order to complete the task (i.e., mutual goals, joint rewards, shared resources, and assigned roles) •Individual Accountability - Each student's performance is frequently assessed •Group Structure & Group Processing - Groups discuss how well they are achieving their goals and the teacher monitors the group and provides feedback •Social Skills/ Signals - These skills are taught as purposely as academic skills •Face-to-Face Interaction - Students promote each other's learning

•Should facilitate group interaction while permitting unrestricted movement among groups •Should minimize distraction from other groups' noise •Include storage of student materials -"materials manager" -keeping containers well-stocked

•Must be taught, along with specific expectations for talk and movement •Include expectation for appropriate noise level (e.g., 12-inch voices) and behavior during movement and transitions -Announce the beginning of the transition, state the expectation, and tell the students how much time they have to make the transition •Include instruction and practice -Teach and practice movement into groups as you would any other procedure •Emphasize the importance of everyone working toward the group's success

•No hard-and-fast rules about how long groups should stay together •After groups are formed, they should be monitored for signs of conflict •Allow members to try to problem-solve their issues

•As the students work, you may need to provide feedback, or additional instructions/modifications to the assignment, to the whole class -Signals can require students to stop what they are doing and listen to you -Signals can indicate pacing or time to transition •Teach several signals

•Positive interdependence has occurred when either the group's product or individual performance is enhanced by the actions of the group members Jigsaw-puzzle activity

•Avoid the possibility of having some students loafing off, or others dominating the task •Set the expectation that each member is responsible for learning the material •Monitor group work and individual participation •Procedures for accountability should be planned carefully and amended as necessary •What strategies can be used to promote individual accountability?

•Start by teaching the procedures of working together •Group skills need to be developed through uncomplicated tasks: -Drill partners -Reading buddies -Summarizing -Checking -Reviewers (for a quiz or test)

•Begin by having a group discussion about what is needed to work collaboratively •Address concrete behaviors that constitute the following: -Social skills -Explanatory skills -Leadership skills

•Active listening without interrupting -Summarizing others' ideas and incorporating them into the discussion •Sharing materials and taking turns •Giving support, accepting differences, and encouraging others -Using phrases to summarize, question and express disagreement •Develop both beginning and advanced social skills •Use of first name when talking with team •Use of specific "social" words (e.g., "please" and "thank you") •Listen carefully to others •Ask team members for help •Everyone contributes •Mistakes are okay •Use praise and encouragement Advanced social •Check for understanding •Use of "I" or "we" - no put downs or blaming •Paraphrasing others' remarks •Disagree in an agreeable way •Ask for opinions, summaries, and clarification

•Critical to the development of academic outcomes •Indicators include the following -Comments that describe a problem, assignment or goal -Identification of steps to follow (and reasons why) -Summary of the work done -Explanation of how the answer was reached •Critical to the development of academic outcomes •Indicators include the following -Comments that describe a problem, assignment or goal -Identification of steps to follow (and reasons why) -Summary of the work done -Explanation of how the answer was reached

•Desired attributes include initiative, planning, and enthusiasm, along with good social skills •Develop skills by assigning roles such as presenter or discussion leader -Clearly delineate roles & responsibilities -Rotate roles

•Circulate among groups and note individual performance, including the quality of interaction among students (demonstrate, not tell) •Use a clipboard to rate performance and make notes - provide feedback •Provide checkpoints and time limits - ask students to report on their progress •Use checklist to promote self-monitoring

•Watch for signs that individual students may be uninvolved or disengaged •Note the level and nature of emotionality that students exhibit

•Judicious use of rewards can direct student attention to important behaviors -Extrinsic motivation should be used as a supplement •Conferences with individual students or groups can be used to provide alternate behaviors to improve noncompliance and/or misbehavior

•Help students identify the problem •Ask them to suggest alternatives •Ask for reactions and comments •Call on the group to select one approach and try it out •Changing group membership should be a last resort

The nature of a teacher's directions depends on the degree to which the group's task is structured

•Clearly specify the objectives of the lesson •Make decisions (composition, arrangement, materials, roles) •Clearly explain the task, structuring positive interdependence and individual accountability and explaining success criteria •Monitor the activity and provide closure •Evaluate student learning