It's that time of year again...back to school season. You're busy setting up your Pinterest-worthy classroom, focusing on every detail. Y...
Does your day end in pure chaos? If so, check out my free tips, games, and resources for a clam and peaceful end-of-the-day routine.
I made a list of the most important classroom routines and procedures I use in my 2nd grade classroom. Learn how I teach these effectively...
Before the start of each school year, I spend a lot of time reevaluating the routines and procedures that I use in my classroom. Establishing routines and procedures early on, sets the stage for a well-managed classroom and helps ensure "smooth sailing" for rest of the school year!! Below is a list that I refer to each year when establishing routines and procedures for my classroom.... {Click here to download!} Like anything else we teach our students, these routines and procedures need to be taught, modeled, practiced, and reinforced!! The following are the routines and procedures that I focus on the most, and the ones which I believe help foster a high-functioning learning environment.... Entering the Classroom "Ready to Learn" One of the first procedures that I teach my students is how to enter the classroom, and what to do once they come in. I strongly emphasize that they need to enter the classroom "ready to learn". We spend a lot of time talking about what it means to be ready to learn.... coming in quietly, having all materials needed for class, ready to follow directions or routines, and ready to GET TO WORK!!! My students learn quickly to always look to the white board for directions. First thing in the morning, after recess, and after lunch, I always have specific directions written on the board. Students learn to come in, look to the white board, and then begin following directions right away. This gives me time to take care of business, especially in the morning. At the same time, it teaches students independence. I always love the compliments I get from subs about how well my students follow directions, and how quickly and easily they get to work!! Teacher Signal The "teacher signal"-- No teacher should be without one!! For me, I have always use the simple and easy, GIVE ME 5. With this, I simply raise my hand and say, "Give me five," and my students raise their hands and show me that they're ready to.... STOP! LOOK! and LISTEN! Below is the graphic that I have displayed for the first weeks of school. We spend a lot of time discussing the expectations, and PRACTICING during those for first few weeks. {Click here to download!} Most of the teachers at my school and our principal use this strategy, so it's something consistent for the kiddos from year to year. However, I have always been very intrigued by some of the fun and catchy "attention grabbers" out there. I have often thought about giving some of these a try. Here are some great examples.... {SOURCE} {SOURCE} Transitions I will never forget my first year of teaching.... It never occurred to me that I would need to teach students how to transition from one activity to the next. So of course, chaos would ensue each time I gave students a simple direction, such as taking out a text book, or coming down to the rug. Each simple task would turn into full-blow conversations!! I would then have to get their attention all over again to give the next direction. A vicious cycle!! I quickly learned that quick and quiet transitions needed to be taught, practiced, and reinforced, NON-STOP for those first few days of school. The key is to always wait until students are quiet and then set the expectation for WHAT they need to do, and HOW they need to do it. I also teach my students to save their movement for when I am COMPLETELY done giving a direction. Quality of Work I spend A LOT of time at the beginning of the year discussing the quality of student work. It's always amazing to me how upper grade students forget {or do they?!} some of the most basic skills they learn in the primary grades. We're talking things as simple as using a period at the end of a sentence, or misspelling the word "read". In my class, I like to have a list of "must haves" that students refer to as they are working, and before they turn an assignment in. While of course there is always room for error, there are just certain things that are simply nonnegotiable for upper elementary (general ed.) students.... {Click here to download!} If anything on the list is missing, I simply hand assignments back to students, and remind them to refer to our Must Have List. Additionally, we spend a lot of time focused on "presentation" and students taking pride in their work. For example, when I assign projects I ask students to outline their writing with black or colored marker, add details and at least 3 colors to their illustrations, and to make the most of the space they have on their paper. I spend a lot of time modeling this, and I am constantly reinforcing high-quality work. In my classroom, time, effort, and pride go a long way!! Final Thoughts With any and all routines and procedures, it is so important to constantly set expectations during those first days. Right before recess, I always remind students about what is expected when they come back into the classroom after recess. Before an assignment, I ask students to tell me how I expect them to behave while they are working. We are constantly talking about expectations! Plus, we practice ALL THE TIME!! When we line up for lunch, we practice how to walk in a line. When we come in after lunch, we practice how to come in the classroom quietly. It seems like a lot, but it is so important to get them in place so that the rest of the year is smooth sailing!!! If you're looking for some Back to School activities and printables to ease you into the school year, be sure to check out this Back to School resource in my teacher shop. Click on the pic below to learn more!
Do you plan on teaching the basic procedures of your classroom during the first few weeks of school? Check out this post to read about 10 must teach procedures.
Setting up for small group in 2nd grade can be challenging! This post outlines one teacher's simple center rotation schedule.
Engage students with exciting trashketball games! Discover fun back to school games for icebreakers, reviews, and learning classroom rules.
Tired of showing your students where to turn in their homework or sharpen their pencil? Here are 17 ways to review classroom procedures that won't make you tear your hair out! P.S. The kids love them too!
When it comes to having great classroom management, one of the most important aspects is CLASSROOM PROCEDURES. Classroom procedures can make your teaching so much…
A better way to teach classroom procedures and expectations on the first day of school.
Does your day end in pure chaos? If so, check out my free tips, games, and resources for a clam and peaceful end-of-the-day routine.
Not sure what to teach the first week of 3rd grade? Here's what we did!
I found several pins with a variety of questions to pose for my class on the 1st day of school. I chose six that I felt were appropriate for my group of kids and LOVED it! There was a lot of information to gather from my students apart from their answers - I looked at spelling, engagement, and how they followed directions. Very informative. I went over each poster (in Spanish as well -- one of my students doesn't speak English! -- thank goodness for iTranslate!) and passed out dots and sticky notes to everyone. The were able to address each poster on their own and I wandered around to help individuals. Great activity!
It's that time of year again...back to school season. You're busy setting up your Pinterest-worthy classroom, focusing on every detail. Y...
Dismissal time can be one of the most challenging times of the day for many teachers, whether they are experienced, new, or somewhere in be...
How many days do you have left of summer break? Let me check the calendar...40 days until I'm officially back to school! But I really don'...
I wanted to stop by today and share some a few of my “go-to” activities during the first week of school to build our classroom community and set expectations for […]
Hey hey, teacher friend!! Oh MY, congratulations on landing a teaching job! I’m so INCREDIBLY stoked for you. I remember that feeling and it’s so SO good. Whether it’s your first classroom or maybe you’re going back after being away for a bit, either way that’s super exciting and I know you’re goi
Massive list of classroom jobs for elementary students in preschool, kindergarten, first grade, or second grade - such great ideas for classroom jobs!
I promise that the end of the school day can look calm and collected. It’s all about the right end of the day procedures in the classroom.
Free checklist and tips for developing classroom procedures that build character in students
Establishing classroom procedures tops the list of almost every teacher around back-to-school season. This post lists 10 fun ways to teach classroom procedures that are easy to implement and effective! Not only that, but you can grab FREE back to school lesson plans to cover 30 days of teaching. 🤩 *This post contains affiliate links
Have you ever walked into a classroom and thought, “Wow, this classroom practically runs itself, everyone is on task!” Ever wonder how that happens? The answer is a lot simpler than you think. The secret is teaching explicit routines and procedures to students. In this post we are going to talk about why this matters […]
Here’s a few classroom procedures that have worked well for me – and a couple awesome ideas I’ve run across since I’ve stepped out of the classroom...
Not sure what to teach the first week of 3rd grade? Here's what we did!
Having strong classroom management is KEY to having a successful school year! The beginning of the year is such an important time to set expectations for different routines and procedures in your classroom. This interactive game show is the perfect way to teach and review your expectations in an engaging way! Students can work together in teams to play this jeopardy like game show to review and practice your classroom expectations! NOW COMPLETELY EDITABLE! You can edit the categories and questions or use the ready to go premade game show! The game show has 5 categories including: - Classroom - Technology - Behavior - Recess - Specials Each category has five different slides containing common routine and procedure questions for ANY classroom!
It's that time of year! Back to school time (even though I know some of my bloggy friends have been back for a couple of weeks now.) While you may be in a district that wants you to hit the academics hard core from the first day of school and cut out "fluff", there's nothing fluffy about a cohesive classroom. And you can forget good things happening academically when nobody can get along. Do you hear me administrators? I think it's a wise idea to spend some time helping your students learn to live together in a room that gives everybody about one square foot of personal space. So here's a little collection of some fabuloso ideas I found through the wonderful world of blogging. Here are some great ideas to get your new friends talking to each other, working together, and thinking about what a successful classroom looks like. 1. Talk about how to treat each other. Tales from a Tidy Teacher shares a lesson using Finding the Green Stone by Alice Walker. She gives each student a shiny green "stone". They plan how they will keep their stones shiny all year. I think this would be a great anchor lesson to refer to all year long. Here's a post from Mrs. Robinson's Classroom Blog. She has a different question each day to get kids thinking about their role in the classroom. Your actions are who you are. When things were getting cranky in my classroom last year, we worked on this activity. We planned out the words that we would want our principal to use when describing us. Then we planned out the actions that would get us there. 2. Talk about words and what they can do (for good and evil). I love love love this poster. It is from Sweet Blessings who also happens to be the genius behind Technology Rocks. Seriously. I had it printed as an 11x17 on glossy card stock ($1.50 at Office Max). I referred to it all year long the last couple of years. By the second month of school, all I had to do was say, "THINK before you speak" and they knew exactly what had gone wrong. Yes, Mrs. O Knows will convince you that toothpaste and toothpicks will teach kids everything they need to know about words. I tried so hard to find the original source for this one. Please leave a comment if you know where it came from. Cause it's awesome. 3. Have kids work together in a fun way. Who wouldn't want to save Fred? This is a great team work lesson from Fabulous Fourth Grade Froggies. This one's from Science Gal. Now tell me that doesn't look fun? And because the best way to learn that the world does not revolve around you, have your kids perform RACKS. Random Acts of Classroom Kindness. Here's an idea from 3rd Grade Thoughts. There are tons more great ideas out there on this, too. Have kids work in teams to plan out some RACKS for each the classroom, other students, and staff, too. And now for a little giggle: Hope you have a great school year!
If you're tired of digging into your own pockets to find ways to motivate your students, you need to check out these FREE reward coupons. You can even use the editable option to add your own coupons.
The first week of school is a critical time to teach all your classroom procedures and expectations. I usually spend the first week of school…
For the most part, reasoning, deducing, inferring, and critical thinking are not skills that come naturally to our students. Rather, they must be nurtured and developed. We want our students to become critical thinkers so they can reason and apply logic to solve novel problems throughout their lives. These skills will set them up to...
