If verbal aggressors are allowed to behave without intervention, the chances of hurt harm and danger become increasingly high.  Anger rules the aggressor. Other students may be pushed, shoved, or hit. Objects may be thrown that can cause serious injury.  The higher the grade, the more dangerous the aggressor becomes.  Both students and teachers are under serious threat.

Taming an aggressor demands a swift response.  You must address the situation with a definite and sobering plan of control.

Effective Action to Take

Ask the verbal aggressor to keep comments to themselves, instead of directing them toward other students.  Aggressors have a habit of putting others down because of their ideas.

Remind them of the established rules and regulations of the classroom. Emphasize respect.

Make the aggressor aware of his or her negative impact upon others students and provide stiff guidelines for bringing the behavior under control.

Ask other students whether or not they agree with the behavior of the aggressor and if that is the appropriate way to get respect from others.

If all else fails, disconnect the aggressor from the classroom.  Send him or her to a reflection room or a behavior controlled the atmosphere.  When the aggressor is ready to return, then accept him or her back with open arms.  You want to create an impression that the discipline isn’t personally, but only against the inappropriate behavior.

Lack of Strong Response

The majority of new teachers are unprepared for the aggressor. As a result, they find themselves hesitant and unable to respond credibly.  The verbal aggressor may sense weakness and is emboldened by the lack of strong response from teachers.

Several reasons exist for the behavior of the aggressor, ranging from a camouflage display for lack of understanding to a hidden agenda against teachers and other students. Nevertheless, a fully developed response plan must be put in place for such aggressive students.

Laying the Ground Rules from Day One

Successful teachers push a culture of respect from day one.  They lay swift ground rules for threatening behavior from day one. They are firm and decisive in their presentation of what is expected of each student in terms of relating to one another.  Any form of disrespect will consist of swift discipline and communication with parents.

Having an effective discipline plan from day one will deliver teachers from a ton of stress, wasted time and weak productivity.

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However, the practice of establishing smooth classroom transitions should involve taking students through a step by step training process. This will require constant repetition until the idea of transitional mastery is forged in the minds of every student.

Executing the Plan

The mastery of classroom transitions should be a school wide effort, with administration leading the way and then teachers executing the plan throughout the day. Administrations should make a major effort explaining the significance of transitions during assembly time.

Types of Transitions

There are several types of transitions. The most common ones are these:

• Subject to subject transitions
• Station to station transition
• Classroom to class room transition
• Classroom to bathroom transitions
• Classroom to specials transitions
• Classroom to lunch transition

All school transitions should be taught on three levels: verbally, physically and materially. Using these three approaches have a way of instilling the concept of brilliant transitions in the minds, hearts and spirit of each student.

Verbally

Teachers must emphasize the importance of classroom transition before each major switch from one thing to another. Never feel that students are getting tired of hearing about transitions; some need to be reminded on a constant basis. Sooner or later students will begin to honor your directives, anticipating your reminders and what is expected of them in transition times.

Physically

Teachers must find time out of a busy schedule and actually train students on how to perform a smooth transition. This should be step by step implementation. During training students practice over and over again until they get it right. If they do not get it right, the first, second, and third time, they should start back over again.

Manually

In the first few months of the school year, students need to get in the practice of writing down the significance of good classroom transitions. Studies show that the act of writing down something impresses the idea upon the psyche. Writing down the guidelines of smooth and brilliant transitions will go a long way of helping hard-to-listen students master their responsibilities when it is time for classroom transitions.

In addition to having students write the rules of transitions, teachers and administration should have poster-reminders located in various points in the hallways as well as the cafeteria. The importance of mastering transitions cannot be overstated. The culture of learning dramatically increase when the idea of perfect transitions are promoted.

The mastery of classroom transitions carries a number of transformative benefits, including,

• Accelerated learning
• Enhanced mental focus
• Better seatwork execution
• Stronger teacher-student connection
• Increased instructional value
• Improved student collaboration

The chaos of classroom transitions must become a priority to teachers and administrators if a dynamic whole-school learning environment is to be established. When students understand the importance of smooth and brilliant classroom transition to their education, the majority will be motivated to fall in line with the expectations of administrators and teachers.

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A well-managed classroom will experience accelerated growth, enhanced creativity and strong collaboration among students and teacher. Students will excel beyond their grade levels and express good character as well as an impressive work ethic when it comes to completing seatwork and homework. You will be recommended by parents. Having won a teacher of the year award, I have experienced this type of honor and glory.

Recommendations are the rewards of a great learning environment.

5 Tips for Mastering Classroom Management

Patient Redirection

As teacher who is growing in greatness, you must view redirection as a lifestyle in education. Children are going to be children. Redirection is a tool in which you can create character and teach students how to make smart decisions in life. Becoming frustrated with redirection is a teacher who is unaware of the importance of creating intangibles in a child.

Once intangible such as focus, commitment and character as well as sensitivity to others feelings, race, culture are instilled within a child, the tangible such as academic excellence and intelligent expression will automatically manifest within students. Therefore, as teachers we must artfully redirect our students with much patience.

Accountability system

Students must be held accountable for the mistakes they are making. If students are constantly coming to class tardy and without homework, a system of accountability must be in place to counter such negligence. Academic success requires passion for school and academics.

Contacting, befriending and alerting parents are effective ways you can resolve problems of laziness and underperformance. An incentive program, such as receiving coupons for free pizzle or winning movie tickets for reading so many books a month, should be implemented to inspire struggling students to cherish their academic life.

Parental Collaboration

Some of the best teachers who have mastered classroom management didn’t succeed without the blessings and involvement of the parents. Connecting and staying in contact with parents in both good and bad times is the key to changing a student’s life forever. When you call parents to inform them that their student has had a great day, such parents become proud of their sons or daughters and as a result continue to expect good behavior from them. In addition, a great deal of trust is built among teachers and parents.

Parents will know that your truly care when you are not just calling when John or Carla does bad things at school.
With great collaboration, teachers and parents become partners in educating a child. The child gets inspiration from both foundations: home and school.

Expanding Reward System

Students grow excited about their classroom performance when a great incentive program is in place. When students have an opportunity to earn extra recess, extra free time, earn movies tickets and free piazza, play video games, help decorate hallways, do special projects, or earn a dollar or two, students who underperform will have effective incentives to improve in both academics and character.

An expanding rewards system allows teachers and parents to add new incentives throughout the school year. To be extremely effective, the system must be implemented both in the classroom and on the home front. Teachers and parents must work in collaboration.

Passionate Instructions

Creating an exciting classroom environment demands that teachers inject passion in their lesson planning and teachings. A boring delivery can even put adults asleep. When teachers are passionate about what they teach, their words and expressions display such passionate vibrations. The energy of excitement fills the atmosphere and students pay attention. Generating an inner passion about what you are teaching becomes the most exciting thing happening in the classroom.

A subject passionately delivered helps students to remember what they were taught long into the school year. When I became a young teacher, I learned how to teach with passion from watching some of the best educators in my school. The students couldn’t wait to go to these teachers who knew how to captivate their attention, regardless of the subject taught. As teachers, this goal of teaching passionately must become our number one priority.

Before becoming a teacher the year, I barely understood the importance of classroom management in the success of my teaching career. Well, I found out the hard way that good classroom management just don’t happen by designing and enforcing a few rules. Mastering classroom management should be an art that must be mastered in order for fun; productivity and academic success among students become a reality in the school environment.

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When students know that you, as an exceptional teacher, are in constant New Recommendations for Teacher Training: The Well-Rounded Approach to Student Learning communication with their parents regarding academic matters, these student s tend to be more motivated to learn. I discovered this in my third year as an elementary teaching. I had a little boy who presented a major challenge in the classroom. He couldn’t pay attention to instructions for a minute without interrupting me or aggravating some other students. I often took away privileges, administered timeouts and buddy rooms breaks to no avail.

So I decided to arrange a conference with his mother in order to find a way to work together to help the child. I discovered that the mother worked two jobs and was unable to spend any significant time with her little boy. But I cautioned her that something had to be done because her child was failing and failing badly. In fact, he was close to getting dismissed from the school program because of his many visits to the principal’s office.

I told the mother if we worked together (encouraging and motivating him) we might significantly alters her son’s destiny. Concerned about her son’s progress, the mother quit her night job and concentrated on helping her son in several areas of academic weaknesses. For weeks, I kept in contact with her as we worked together. What happened was nothing short of a miracle. The child had made a 360 degree turn around and became a model student in class, both academically and behaviorally.

The purpose of teachers is to find ways to help students achieve and love it. Connecting with parents is the best way to realize this. We must let parents know that we have their best interest in mind when it comes to educating their child. Sometime this effort may take us beyond what is expected of us as teachers, but if we desire to be among the best and make a significant difference in the life of a struggling student, the investment is worthwhile.

Teachers, who are in the classroom just for the money, don’t really care about going the extra mile. They would rather concentrate on the good, well-behaved students. Such teacher’s do only what is expected of them. But the thoughts of exceptional teachers are always on their students, whether they are at work or taking care of personal business on the weekend.

Strategies for Developing Strong Parent Relationships

Establish Constant Communication

Our job in educating children begins with developing a constant communication cycle with the parents. We can do this in several ways. We can make phone calls, write letters or send emails. Phone calls should be made in urgent or emergency situations, which may include severe discipline issues, school crises or snow days.

Letters should be mailed out to inform parents of important events such as teacher/parent conferences, staff development days and special school activities. Sending emails can include all the above, but takes a more personal tone, such as informing the parent that you are proud of her child’s progress or that you are excited about working together on behalf of his or her child.

Some teachers advocate making constant trips to a child’s home, but this approach can be very invasive in the beginning of a new parent/teacher relationship. It all depends on the demeanor of the parents as well as the atmosphere of the home environment. Many times the home situation is not conducive for teacher /parent interactions. Instead, parents and teachers can meet at a neutral place such as a library or restaurant if necessary.

Present your vision for the Child

Telling parents about your vision regarding their child makes them happy to have you as a dependable teacher. Parents are excited about teachers who have the best interest of their child in mind. When you tell them where you want to take the child academically during the course of the school year, you create positive expectations.

Parents are happy when they have a way to measure the progress of their children. Teachers who present to parents a vision plan for the child stands head and shoulders above everyone else. These are the type of teachers who make it to the peak of their profession and receive great rewards.

Discover Parent Expectations for their Child

You must not only present your vision for the child, but exceptional teachers always find out what parents want for their children. When we ask parents what they expect for their child to learn in our classroom, then they know that we are sincere about educating them. Parents have expectations for their children, but sometimes their expectations must be sparked by the teacher’s inquiry.

Since many parents are working and sweating hard to make ends meet, they don’t have the time to contemplate the goals they have regarding their children’s academic progress. But a meeting with the teacher at various times within the school year can ignite awareness.
Once you know the expectations of the parents, assure them that working together for the betterment of their child will pay dividends both academically and ethically.

We as teachers must not cast aside the importance of good parent/teacher relationships. I believe that this neglected area is one the main reasons that the achievement gap still remains to be closed. The old adage, “It takes a village to raise a child,” is no more apparent in our struggling school system here in America. All must become involved (teachers, parents, community) in order to create the quality of education needed for the future success of our children as well as the nation.

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