Last year I
tried something crazy! Even when I did
it, I knew it wouldn’t work. I convinced
myself I was being a good teammate, because it was the same behavior plan the majority of my team used. I put up a behavior chart. And, for the first month of school, it was
TERRIBLE! I was totally frustrated and
couldn’t figure out why! It finally hit me, hard, one day. I was managing every child’s behavior while
they were free to behave any way they liked.
When I moved their clip, it was my choice, not their understanding of a
behavioral problem. If they moved it, it
was the same thing. They REALLY didn’t
care. There were no consequences, after
all. The District I work in removed
using recess as a consequence (which I believe is a good decision overall) and,
being little guys, they really didn’t understand that by Friday, at centers,
there would be a consequence. By then,
they didn’t care either. It was a rough
start until I realized what was the real problem-there was no reason to behave
because there was no trust! Yep, no
trust! You can’t trust one another if
there is no reason to do so. You are
just a bunch of people in a room, working for one thing, completion of
tasks. That’s it. Even with team building activities, what was
there? No trust! It took just days to
establish, but it was worth everything we had to do in those first few
days. I will not make that mistake
again. And, with the Responsive
Classroom, I won’t have too!
As I
mentioned yesterday, I began reading every newsletter that came to my classroom. I did not adopt everything, but I did adopt a
number of things from their program.
And, I look at it a little differently than their overarching principles
do. So, here we go.
To be successful
academically and socially, children need to learn a set of social and emotional
skills that include cooperation, assertiveness, responsibility, empathy, and
self-control.
This, to me, is trust!
Until they can trust me, our classroom environment and the other
students in the room, are just like any other class. We work hard to establish a morning
routine. We complete a Morning Meeting
team building activity each day. I do
not do a Morning Message. With today’s
demands, there just isn’t time. That
makes the team building activity even more important. I do many activities where they must TALK
with one another. That’s more important
than having fun doing the activities. If
you want a class to bond, they have to get to know one another, they have to
trust one another with important things.
This starts with talking. And I’m
included. I act as a member of the
team. I rotate around to groups. I share the same things that they are
sharing. They get to know the simple
me. We practice how to shake hands, how
to use eye contact, how to LISTEN! Oh,
another great one! How can a child trust
you if you don’t LISTEN! I’ve even
taught them that if I’m typing and they need me, that I will give them a signal
so that I focus on what they need to say as soon as I’m done typing. What they have to say MATTERS! Some of the greatest ideas in class come from
them! They have really great ideas that
are worth the extra moment to listen to.
Then they build trust in you-and CREATIVE THINKING! There is so much wrapped up in this one
principle that I could go on and on and on!
But it MATTERS! Stop, listen, and
build trust! It goes hand in hand to a
successful classroom experience! And, I think, I pretty much covered these
principles too:
Knowing the children
we teach—individually, culturally, and developmentally—is as important as
knowing the content we teach.
Great cognitive growth
occurs through social interaction.
Here are two more principles to examine.
The social and
emotional curriculum is as important as the academic curriculum.
How children learn is
as important as what they learn.
I spend a lot of time working on building the social and
emotional behaviors I expect in my classroom.
This taps into the “how” as well.
I REALLY think that, as educators, we give kids too much credit for knowing
what we expect from them. They come in
the door, we say, “Here’s the rules.” We expect them to remember and use them
because they are similar to last year.
Then we can’t figure out why they can’t just follow our expectation when
we haven’t really taught them correctly.
Stop, just stop, and recognize the reality of this. They don’t know you, or your expectations,
even if they are similar to last year. You may want something very different
than their teacher did last year, even if you are in the same building. We all have our little differences. You have to communicate them in the first few
weeks of the school year. That’s why
their book The First Six Weeks of School
is another great product. I had
forgotten I had this one, too! An
example of how my teaching a procedure is a little different than “regular” is
I share non-examples. With glue, I cover
a number of things. We talk about
putting dots on the corners and through the middle. We talk about carefully putting the paper on
the page, how it should fit into its location.
Then we talk about what NOT to do with glue. I cover the “glue hand” and the “glue pencil
holder”. I share how students have done
this in the past. Then I discuss the
natural consequences of FORGETTING that the glue is there. Of the materials that can get stuck and
gluey. The reality of the glue hand and
how adults get upset because it lacks self-control. We have fun with it, but I
have covered a number of key details-what happens when someone decides to use
their glue incorrectly and the natural consequences found within. I can honestly say it has been years since
I’ve had a gluing outbreak. I’m pretty
sure it is this simple “extra” in my procedure discussions that has kept the
outbreaks away, since it has happened in a number of other rooms. I do this with all supplies, so that when I
remind them of how to use the supplies correctly, we all have the same
background knowledge. No questions, it’s
been presented!
But there’s another key point here to look at. Students
don’t know what you expect in the next moment ANY TIME OF THE YEAR! We have done this school year before. We have told kids over and over. However, it
was a different set of kids. We have to
always remember that it is the first time they have heard it. Even if they have been told yesterday, today
is a new day. Until they internalize that routine, or that expectation, and you
have exposed them to it over and over again, you can’t be upset with them. This is the hardest point. I get frustrated. I have my moments. But I come back to this, over and over. They are 7, they just heard it, they are
learning, and it’s my job to remember that!
When adults manage their self-control, it matters! Lasting change begins with me. And it’s another principle of the Responsive
Classroom.
How we, the adults at
school, work together is as important as our individual competence: Lasting
change begins with the adult community.
Knowing the families
of the children we teach is as important as knowing the children we teach.
This came
naturally in my discovery of what makes a classroom community work. It suddenly became obvious that I couldn’t
just put it out there that my students mattered. I had to make their whole family matter! They became a part of my community, not just
for parties and for celebrations, but in everything. Their mom and dad, brothers and sister, all
mattered to our community. When siblings
arrive, they are just as important as their brother or sister that sits in my
class each day. This has made such a
difference in my classroom. Yes, they
get into things. Yes, they get everyone
wound up. But they matter. I know what
their favorite shows are. I know what they like. Because it makes my students feel
special. When they talk about their
family, I listen. I ask questions to
show that their families and culture matter.
This is not just for the kids. I
went out of my way this year to specifically ask about a student’s cultural
celebration. Why? I wanted to know so that I gained understanding of the culture itself. It will make me a better teacher, a better
person, and a better citizen of America.
I conduct at home projects that help my students share their family life
and to understand it themselves. These
are not projects on a topic of interest. These are projects about THEM! Subject
matter can come later! I have to know
them first!
So, how does this all really come together? Time, practice, and TRUST! I cannot stress this enough. When trust is an underlying theme, why have a
behavior chart. Why have a system of
treats to know how a student is doing?
When trust is built upon valuing students and their families, a system
is in place. One where a child can believe in themselves and their behavioral
choices. They can self -monitor and
self-assess when necessary. They can get
themselves to use self-control because they have learned that they are
valued. Believing in a student, no
matter where they have come or where they are going, goes a long way. It is the foundation of the trust that runs
my classroom. It is the RESPONSE in the
Responsive Classroom!
I do know I did not get to my lessons yet! I will go into more details as to how lessons
are conducted and how a classroom meeting looks! They are easy, but important elements of
keeping the RESPONSE in your class alive!
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