CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT PLAN

Michaela Cross

Drake University
2015

1. Management Style and Philosophical Beliefs:

Good classroom management is very important, as it ensures your class can run
as seamlessly as possible without constant teacher interference. Good classroom
management consists of front-loading the year with information on rules for the
classroom and a clear explanation of how the class will be ran, then periodically
referring back to the rules so students continue to understand expectations. I believe
that the more effort I put into classroom management, the less I will have to discipline.
My job is to ensure students are supported, cared for, challenged, and meeting the
learning outcomes for your course (Larson & Keiper, 2013, Kindle location 1140 of
7979).
I have a clear idea how my classroom will function, so even if Im not there,
students know the routine to complete. Ideally, students in my ESL class would come in,
grab their notebook for that particular class, answer the question of the day and then
begin reading their own book. They should have a graphic organizer and calendar to
mark their reading progress. This would take anywhere between 10 and 20 minutes, and
students would do it without my asking. Students would only require stern looks or
reminders from me, if theyre not on-task. At the beginning of the year I would model
these behaviors, so after a few weeks, students are doing it autonomously. My
authoritative style supports students as individuals who are capable of taking care of
themselves and coming up with wonderful ideas, but also supports a belief that some
rules and a set routine help everyone learn better!
The more we help children to have their wonderful ideas and to feel good about
themselves for having them, the more likely it is that they will someday happen upon
wonderful ideas that no one else has happened upon before (Duckworth, The Having
of Wonderful Ideas, 1987). My teaching philosophy
is based on Constructivism. Students knowledge
and what they are currently learning from others
around them. My classroom will center on studentbased learning and collaborative group work, which
helps students learn from each other.
I will discuss this further in upcoming
sections, but a successful classroom will be
based on my withitness. When teachers are
withit they are described as being keenly
aware of all that is happening in the
classroom ((Larson & Keiper, 2013, Kindle
location 1163 of 7979). I will be withit by
participating as a member of the community
that will be my classroom, and making sure all
students are participating in their own
capacity. I want to be aware of my students as
I want my students to also be aware of me.

2. Establishing a Positive Classroom Culture:

In my ideal job I am teaching a high school ESL class with a mixture of different
cultures and languages represented. It would be important for me to make sure all of
my students feel they are in a positive, hate-free environment. I also would like this
sense of open-ness to spill into the hallways and to the students homes. I also want my
students to feel supported by each other, as well as myself. To do this, I would begin the
year with different ways to get to know my students, ways for them to get to know me,
and ways for them to get to know each other.
Student-interest surveys would be a great way to start off the year, so I could get
to know the students and their history with education, as well as their country and
language, and information on their parents. I would also encourage activities that
allowed students to learn about each others cultures, as learning to respect each other
starts with being culturally-aware. Personality exercises and small-group exercises are
excellent rapport-builders, as well. Ice-breakers are also a way to make education seem
less routine, which a lot of non-native Americans are used to a more serious and
regimented education. I believe by spending time in the first week outlining expected
behavior and consequences, I am nurturing a positive classroom culture by giving my
students the power to be in charge of their behavior in the classroom. They will know
the expectations and will be expected to follow them, but they will also know that I
want to know them as people and have fun! By giving students the information, we can
then focus on getting to know each other and learning bigger ideas!

3. Developing Classroom Rules and Procedures:

Classroom rules and procedures will be an important part of my classroom, as I
have mentioned preciously. I will model these within the first week of school and
constantly refer back to them throughout the year. I would also like to encourage
students to be involved with class rules and
procedures. I plan to come prepared on the
first day with a classroom set up and a set of
rules, but I want to discuss them with my
class and take any suggestions for rules and
procedures. This image shows a Needs
Circle, where students identify their needs
as individuals, then they come together as a
class and synthesize students needs with
the teachers expectations. The outcome
becomes part of the classrooms rules and
regulations. I think this is a great way to make sure students know their opinion matters
in my classroom. Mostly, I want students to know I will not limit bathroom or drink time,
as long as its not abused, and students are able to have drinks, so long as they dont
make a mess. I will probably need to teach my students when and how to raise their
hands, and how cheating is not tolerated in America. This will need to be modeled. Latework will most likely be accepted, however I will put a lot of the work on the students to
make assignments up. I will not chase them!
My classroom, on a daily basis, will be a mixture of clockwork and orchestrated
craziness. Ideally, I will have a block schedule where students will be allowed 10 to 20
minutes of independent reading time. They will come in, grab their class notebook from
the bin, answer the Question of the Day, and begin reading their chosen book. Students
will then track their page numbers achieved, as well as plot. Then, we will begin that
days chosen lesson. Students will be expected to be on time. If they are late, they will
still be expected to come in quietly, grab their notebook, answer the question of the
day, and pick-up where we are in the classroom. As we begin the lesson, every day I will
go over the days objective(s). It will be a simple I can statement that we will read, and
comprehend, as a class. Since students are English learners, I want to make sure
language is accessible to them. I will also support partner and group learning, as well as
use of their native language. If a student doesnt understand something, but another
student does, I believe its helpful to both students for one to translate it to their native
language, so the other student can understand. I will support conversation in their
native language as well, as long as they are on task. Students are expected to remain on
task if I am individual conferencing with a student, but if they finish their assigned work,
they are able to work on other homework, or silently read their book.
Student learning and progress will be tracked constantly. I will do this by using
software my school provides me, as well as my own system of folders. I do not want
more than a week to go by to get grades back to students, and I will immediately inform
students and parents, if necessary, of failing work, grades, or behavior. Students will be
aware of my system, and will know how to access late-work and turn in assignments.

4. Classroom Layout:

My classroom is designed to be an open, discussion oriented classroom. In the

upper-left corner I have a bookshelf that would ideally be filled with graphic novels and
leveled English Language Learners! I would hope to give my students 10 to 20 minutes
of each day, if I had block scheduling, to independently read. I have computers lining
two walls so I can have students use them for papers or projects. I like the idea of not
having enough for everyone, that way you can differentiate work and do stations. In the
bottom-right is my desk with shelves behind it. I also have shelves next to the rug. My
desk is facing the students, so I can see them if I am at my desk. Also, on the shelves
would be a system of folders and slots for homework, late-work, and daily notebooks.
Students would know where and when to access these. The desks are grouped together
for small-group work and discussion, but can easily be moved for individual work or
testing. At the front, center, is a whiteboard and projector (ideally a smartboard!). I like
idea of having a lot of blank wall space to create Word Walls and student work as the
semester progresses.

5. Monitoring the Classroom and Responding to Student Misbehavior:

In my classroom I will implement a few different strategies to maintain and
monitor student behavior. First, I want students to understand three basic rules: (1)
Take care of yourself. (2) Take care of each other. (3) Take care of this place (Smith,
Fisher & Frey, Better Than Carrots or Sticks, 2015, Kindle Location 771 of 2381). My
classroom management will help students to take care of these three. The rules and
procedures in the classroom set up students for success. However, because students are
there to learn, they will need assistance from time to time in order to stay on track. I
want students to know I can see and hear everything that happens in the classroom, and
I can ensure this by constantly walking around the. Proximity clues, standing next to
students who are misbehaving, is a great way to make sure students stay on track. If I
am constantly sitting at my desk, on my computer, or grading papers, students are more
likely to misbehav. Because my class will be based around student-lead learning and
group work, I will create checklists for students to stay on track with their work and
encourage students to embrace their roles within the group and let them know they are
held accountable for their portion of the work. Self and peer reflections are a great way
to do this.
From the beginning I want students to know there are
certain behaviors that are unacceptable to me. I will not tolerate
mean and hurtful language. Cursing and derogatory terms are an
absolute no. If we critique each other or have differing opinions, we
will constructively critique, not hurtfully destroy. I will teach
students how to give constructive criticism, as this is an important
life-skill and very central to American culture. Students who are
checked-out or who refuse to participate will not be tolerated.
Now, I do not mean all students will be graded on participation, but
what I mean is, when a student walks into my classroom, I expect
them to be engaged. I will learn how to differentiate for all my
students, so they feel like they can be successful learners, I expect
them to be engaged in the material I provide.
While I want to minimize the consequences I dole out, I still will need to have a
hierarchy of consequences for different types of misbehavior. Low-level misbehavior will
be handled in the classroom. Misbehavior such as talking during quiet, work time,
passing notes, being on the phone when its no-phone time, or any other similar
behavior will be met with myself standing next to the students, stern glances, warnings,
or the item being taken away (after a warning). Next-level misbehavior will be met with
a student talk after class. This consists of cursing, sleeping, talking back, constantly
leaving class, not turning in an assignment, not participating, or other similar behaviors.
I want to talk to the student to know what is wrong and why the behavior occurred. I
may even conference with them during class, if there is individual work time. If this is a
one-off occasion, I handle it differently than a recurring situation. Recurring situations
may require adding a parent into the conversation. Students would be aware of this and
I would call home and discuss a plan. Lastly, misbehavior that consists of harming
another student or threatening the class or myself will result in immediate interference
from the office.

6. Parents as Partners:
Parents are an important part of the classroom and should be viewed as
partners in the teaching of their child. I will involve parents in
my classroom by remaining transparent from beginning to
end, including introducing myself, sending home newsletters
about class happenings, and calling home for good news, as
well as bad.
In an ESL classroom, its expected that a lot of the
students parents will not be fluent in English. I will take
advantage of my school and districts resources, as a lot of
them pay for translation services and offer to translate any
letter into any language represented in the school. This way,
all parents are receiving information they can understand. If
my school does not have these services, I will make sure parents are involved as much
as possible. This will include monthly newsletters, with easy to understand language. I
will discuss what we are leaning that month, important dates coming up, and any
acknowledgements and awards! I will make important documents color-coded, for
example all forms that need to be signed and returned are yellow. I will make sure to
note if parents do not have access to the Internet or email and instead will call or send
letters in the mail. I want to make sure parents know their child is important to me, so I
will make sure that I call home for good behavior, not just bad behavior. Studentinterest surveys, that I mentioned preciously, will play an important role in this, because
I will need to know if their parents speak English. If they dont, I need to know who I can
contact in their family to help translate, if there is anyone.
Parent-teacher conferences will be very important to me, and I want both
parents and students to know this and feel involved. I will hold parent-teacher
conferences however my school dictates, but I will have examples of good work for all
students, so I have something to show to the parents. If
students are failing, I want to come up with a solution with
the parent, and the student if they come. Ideally, I will have
spoken to the parent via email or phone prior to the
conference, so they already are aware of the situation.
Parents who are not involved in their childrens education
will still receive phone calls, letters, and newsletters from
me, because I care about their childs education. If I dont
hear anything back from them, I will document that so the
school knows I have tried. I want the student to know they
can come to me if they dont feel supported at home.
Parents who are over-involved will be treated with respect, however I want to establish
boundaries, by trying to explain and show parents I am teaching students to be selfsufficient. Show them the rules and procedures of the classroom, either by sending
them documents, or inviting them to witness a class. I will try to ease anxiety about their
childs education and future. I will also attempt to have all conversations lead to
empower the student, by involving the student in any decisions between the parent and
myself. I want the parent to know I care first, and foremost, about their child.