As a teacher, it is your job to develop an environment that is conducive to learning. The classroom your students come into can have a major effect on what they learn while they are in it. As the leader of the class, it’s your responsibility to best facilitate learning, but how do you do it? Perhaps the best way is to continue learning, be it informally or by pursuing a graduate degree in education, but there are some things you can do immediately. Here are five classroom management tips that will help you take control.
1. Speak Normally
Novice teachers often make a habit of speaking loudly and by the end of the first grading period they are hoarse and having difficulty speaking at all. Do not raise your voice over the class noise but instead speak at a normal range. One of the best classroom management tips for beginning teachers is to speak the way you would like your students to speak to you.
2. Be Patient
This classroom management tip is often well known by veteran teachers, but new teachers often have a strong desire to get things moving along. When you walk up to the board in front of a classroom full of talking students, make yourself known but just wait. The students will quiet themselves and get prepared after a short time.
3. Use Hand Signals
Only so much of what happens in the classroom comes through auditory signals. Nonverbal communication makes up much of what the students will understand. By effectively using hand gestures and similar actions, it is possible to get much more information across to your students.
4. Give the Students Ownership
Students often have no power in the classrooms in which they spend their time. This classroom management tip hits at the heart of that matter. Start by offering the students some small choices such as seating arrangements or which part of the lesson to start on next. This will help the students develop a sense of independence and a sense of ownership. Students who are engaged in the lessons not only learn better, but also enjoy learning more, which can lead to a lifetime of benefits.
5. Expect the Best of Your Students
If you come into the classroom expecting the worst, you will likely get just that. Expecting the best of your students means that they will need to rise to the expectation. If they need assistance to get to that level, help them along the way, but high expectations lead to high results.
These classroom management tips are in no way comprehensive, but they will get you started with thinking about how to manage the classroom on a daily basis. Managing the chaos in your classroom is a great way to make sure that you are getting the best out of your students.
Learn more about the Arkansas State online MSE in Curriculum & Instruction program.
Sources:
Edutopia: 5 Quick Classroom-Management Tips for Novice Teachers
National Education Association: 6 Classroom management Tips Every Teacher Can Use