Managing a Class vs. Class Managing You

Have you ever had that day where you go home, and you think “what just happened.” You think you have a handle on a class, but come to find out they played you like a fiddle. It's ok we have all had those days. Even when you have a great classroom management system set up in place you just sometimes have those, ‘Oh My Goodness, That did not just happen.” Kind of days. Well, to make those days a little bit easier I have my own classroom management system. I love it because I do not have to do much. My students are in charge of it. Let me explain. 
     
I have five tasks (rules really but my kids want to break rules, so we don’t have “rules” in my classroom) that they have to do each class. Those tasks are...

1. Ninja Entrance (you can't see or hear a ninja so when they enter the classroom that has to be silent)
2. Raises their hand when they have something that they would like to say or ask a question. 
3. Following Direction
4. Volume Control, which I have a yacker tracker to help tell me when we are too loud. 
5. Sparkling Clean up.

I have all five of these tasks posted on the front of my room with smileys beside them. The moment one of those tasks are broken I replace it with a red sad face. If the class gets two red-faced we go to silent art for five minutes, and then if they lose three, I take their artwork away and I have a refocus form that they fill out. So they are writing about their choices, and how they are losing wonderful fun art time. But if the class keeps all the smileys I put a paintbrush in their pocket. The first class in each grade that gets 5 paintbrushes will get a trophy that goes back to their classroom. Then everyone in that grade starts over, and the next class to get five paintbrushes will go steal it from the previous classroom. Doing this type of management has helped my students a ton because they get to own their successes and mistakes visually. 

My students love these art trophies. Because they are proud of them and want to have them in their classroom. However during class when a student starts to break one of the five tasks other students will redirect their behavior because they do not want to lose any points. This has been helpful for me, and I hope it can be helpful for you as well.

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