Through a Childs Eyes: A Discussion on Classroom Management

Presented by Patsy Cooper

Randi Rappaport

As graduation day approaches and the thought of having my own class becomes more real, I often spend time thinking about what my future classroom will be like.  What will it look like?  How will I set it up? How will I make my students feel about themselves?  What will I teach them?  The questions dance around in my head.  The one that worries me the most is, How will I discipline my children?  For this reason, I chose to attend the workshop entitled, Through a Childs Eyes: A Discussion on Classroom Management, which was run by Dr. Patricia Cooper.

The first thing I learned at the workshop was that classroom management and discipline are not the same.  There is little need for discipline in a class that is managed well.

For a teacher to employ good classroom management, he or she must be able to walk in the childrens shoes and see every situation from their point of view.  Too many times, teachers blame their students for situations that they really created themselves.  For instance, a kindergarten teacher might get mad because his or her students are jumping around on the rug or talking to each other, rather than listening to the story that is being read.  However, this is probably happening because the kindergartners have been sitting in the same place for a long period of time.  Teachers need to make sure that the schedule and routines they arrange for their class are reasonable, given the students ages.  Also, the physical environment of the classroom should be set up in a way, which allows students to get from one part of the room to another without having to climb over anything.  All materials, such as books, pencils and paper should be easily accessible.  Teachers can cut down on many negative interactions in their classrooms by tailoring the environment, routines and schedule to fit their students needs.

In order for a classroom to be managed well, the teacher needs to have a good relationship with his or her students.  It is important that the teacher is always honest with the children and says exactly what he or she means.  For example, there is no reason to ask, Mary, do you want to sit down? if what the teacher really means is, Mary, sit down.   If Mary doesnt have a choice, then why present it as one? 

It is also a good idea to use instructive language with children.  The teacher needs to be very specific about what it is that he or she expects in a particular situation.  If a child is behaving inappropriately, it is the teachers job to point out exactly what the problem is.  It should not be assumed that the child knows what he or she is doing wrong. 

One of the tips for good classroom management that really made me think was, Keep promises.   Anyone who has ever been in a classroom knows that things can get pretty hectic.  No matter how well the teacher plans, he or she cannot anticipate everything that is going to happen.  Sometimes a teacher plans to do a certain lesson or a special activity on a specific day and then realizes theres no time for it.  Although it is inevitable that this is going to happen every now and then, it is essential that the teacher does everything in his or her power to prevent it.  When a teacher makes a promise to a class, he or she has a responsibility to keep that promise. 

Listening to Dr. Cooper speak about promises made me think back to a situation that arose in my class.  This semester I have been student teaching in a second grade classroom.  We just started a unit on animals.  One day I told the kids that they were each going to get five mealworms as pets on the following day.  They were so excited and could barely talk about anything else.  The next day however, certain lessons took longer than I expected and we didnt have time for the mealworms.  The students were crushed.  I realize now that out of respect for my students, I should have changed things around so they could have gotten the mealworms that day.  As Dr. Cooper says, If you promise it, do it.  Keeping promises breeds good will.