Setting up for a positive 2010
It is a good time now to reflect on how things have gone in 2009 - the things you will continue to do next year because they worked well and the things you would like to change and improve on.
At TLN yesterday we talked about how we can effectively set the scene for learning in our classes right from the beginning of Term 1.
Some questions/ ideas that we thought about in terms of our own classes and then discussed were:
• What climate do you want in your classroom?
• How will you make it happen?
• What methods have you seen that you can use or modify to achieve the climate that you want?
• Plan for behaviour – be clear about your expectations and what your responses will be before you enter the classroom.
The next stage in planning is making a list of key to dos and notes on how you can make these things happen. See this handout created by Cathy Pole.
Other resources that may be useful:
• Some ideas for establishing class rules (from Bill Rogers)
• The Positive Classroom: Seven Strategies for Building Positive Classrooms
• Best Practice Behaviour Management: A View from the Literature
A fun activity idea from Renee about how to establish a Class Charter:
Put students in groups of 4. Give each group a piece of A3 paper and get them to do a see, hear, feel, think, do brainstorm. I.e. What would you see in your ideal classroom? What would you hear? What would you be thinking? What would you be feeling? What would you be doing?
It doesn't have to take long and once you have done that you could get them to move groups again for the formal development of the class charter, so that each group has a person who has some different ideas for the class.
Thank you for reading the blog and all your positive responses (via email) to my postings. Have a lovely and safe holiday.
