Eight Ideas to Help You Set the Right Tone for Your Classroom

from Education World ®

1. Characteristics of Good Students

Arrange students into small groups. Have each group come up with a list of characteristics of a good student. Give the groups 10 to 15 minutes to create their lists. Then bring together the groups to share and create a master list of the qualities of good students. Use those as the material for creating your class rules.

2. Rhymes for Remembering Rules

Poems are a great tool for helping youngsters remember rules. Try some of these poems out on you K-2 students:

• School/Class Pledges
• Welcome Back to School Poems

3. Establish the Need for Rules

Arrange students into groups of four. Give each group 15 blank index cards and a pair of dice. Give the teams 15 to 20 minutes to create and play a game that makes use of the dice and the cards. When time is up, have a member of each team explain the game the group invented. The students will share the "rules" of the game. Discuss why rules are necessary. Then segue into creating your list of most necessary class rules.

4. Solve the Equation

Write on the chalkboard r - r = r and r + r = r and then ask students what they think the equations mean. Tell students they have something to do with the rules of the classroom. Arrange students into small groups, and ask each group to think of a list of words that begin with the letter r that might relate to classroom rules. Then students use their list of words to come up with expressions that might fit the formula. For example: respect + rewards = rules or rules - respect = rebellion. Other possible r words might include the following: regulation, relationships, reflect, routine, resolution, regard, read, react, ratify, reason(ing), reckless, and recommend.

5. Under-the-Desk Q&A

I found this fun activity on the MiddleWeb listserv; it was posted by Andrea, a fifth-grade teacher in Florida. She uses this activity to share classroom procedures. Before the students arrive, she tapes an index card under each student's desk. A numbered question is written on each card. When it's time to talk about class rules and procedures, the teacher asks students to check under their desks. The students find the index cards, and the teacher calls on the student who found the question with the number 1 on it. The student reads aloud the question. For example: "Mrs. S, when can I sharpen my pencil?" The teacher excitedly replies, "Oh, John, what a wise question!" or "Oh, Tricia, I'm so glad you thought to ask that question!" Then the teacher shares the procedure, rule, or information prompted by the question. Continue around the room until all the questions have been asked and answered.

6. Attitude is everything

Write the word attitude on the board or a chart in this way:

A = _____
T = _____
T = _____
I = _____
T = _____
U = _____
D = _____
E = _____

Have students write the same thing on a small sheet of paper. Then instruct students to write on the line the number that corresponds to each letter's position in the alphabet (for example A = 1, B= 2, C = 3 ...). Finally have students add up the numbers on the lines. What is the answer? The answer is 100, proving that attitude is 100 percent -- attitude is everything! Use this activity to lead into a discussion about the importance of attitude. Why is having a good attitude important? How do you recognize a "good attitude" in a person? Create a poster that has the ATTITUDE addition problem on it in large letters and numbers; the poster will serve as a constant reminder of the importance of a good attitude in your classroom.

7. The Perfect Classroom

Ask students to write a paragraph that tells what they think the perfect classroom should be like. (This is not fiction/fantasy writing; they should describe the atmosphere of an ideal real classroom.) Arrange students into groups of four. Ask each student to underline in his or her paragraph the "most important words or phrases." After students have done that, they should pass their papers to the person in their group who is seated to their right. Students should continue passing papers and underlining important words until the original writer has her/his paper back. At that point, students will share with the group some of the important words and phrases in their own writing; a group note taker will record the words and phrases that might best describe a perfect classroom. Group members will review the list and decide on five words or phrases to share with the class. When the class has a fully developed class list of words and phrases, they will use some of those words and phrases to write a "class statement" that will be posted on the wall for all to see. When things are not going "perfectly," it is time to review the class statement.

8. Reinforcing rules each day

Click here for a worksheet to use with this activity. The printable page provides spaces for writing five classroom rules.

• Stuck for the kinds of rules that might be appropriate for students at your grade level? See some suggestions on the Classroom Rules and Classroom Rules -- Elementary Level Web pages.

The grid sheet allows you to put a happy face, a frown face, or a face that shows no emotion next to each rule each day. That way, students get positive (or negative) reinforcement about their abilities to follow the class rules. This sheet can also be used throughout the year to help selected students work on specific behaviors (for example, "I will hand in my homework assignments on time" or " I will not talk while walking in line in the hall"). The completed sheet can be sent home at the end of the week for a parent's signature.