"First Days of Learning..." Unit C

To better comprehend the text in Unit C I asked these questions

1) What is the goal of this chapter?

• To show how you can integrate environment, rules, and procedures to have a smooth and effective learning environment

2) What are some "take-away's" I can use in my own teaching?

• Sending an email to students & their families before school starts can make students feel welcomed
• Posting class information outside the door helps students not feel lost
• Greeting students at the door on the first day is a good way to make them feel welcome
• Stating my expectations on the first day is important
• Outlining/scripting can help the first day go smoothly
• Arranging the seating communicates expectations to students
• Having an activity ready (e.g. bell ringer) for students when they enter your room helps keep things on track and posting assignments in the same place helps build trust.
• Starting class with a roll call could be a bad idea--start off with an assignment instead. Take roll on your own time
• Explaining that broken rules will be followed by consequences, not punishments. 
• Part of effective management is keeping students on task at all times AND getting them acquainted with the proper procedures. 
• Having advanced work ready is a good way to prevent wasted off-task time
• Utilizing a silent-system for getting attention or having the class get quiet looks very useful (e.g. cups, standing books up, signaling with fingers)
• Handling transitions is very important and giving students a "heads-up" can help this go smoothly

Reflection: I think I've pulled several useful comments from this section and will have to refer back to them as I plan what my class will look like. It's evident to me that classroom management takes a LOT of time and effort to get established, but is well-worth it in the end. Truth be told, management has always been my biggest unknown in education. It's an area where I still lack confidence.