The Only Rules You'll Ever Need

Everyone remembers the classroom teacher with a million rules posted on their wall:

No gum

No food or drink

Stay in your seat

Raise your hand

Listen to the speaker

Use indoor voices

No voices!

I could go on.

For a student with special needs, these are just too many rules. For a student who is a smart aleck, these rules don't cover enough!

How Do I Pick The Rules?

When creating a set of rules, you must keep these two principles in mind:

1. Rules need to cover every aspect of the day

2. Rules need to say WHAT to do

What Rules Cover Everything?

Through out my time working with students [elementary and middle school], I have found that these 4 little rules cover everything [and I mean everything!].

Respect Rules [The Only Rules You'll Ever Need]

1. Respect Yourself

2. Respect Others

3. Respect Materials

4. Take Responsibility for Your Actions

That's it! 

How Do I Make The Rules Work?

Simple: Show and Tell

• Everyday, start your day off by reciting the rules as a group. I like to do a "3, 2, 1...ACTION" to make things fun. 
• After reciting the rules together, ask a student to answer the following: "What is one way you can follow a Respect Rule WITHOUT saying 'no, don't' ?". This way, students know what to do rather than what NOT to do!
• When redirecting students, bring it back to the Respect Rules: "Which Respect Rule were you not following?" If you are consistent with reciting the rules and using the Respect Rules as your script, you'll have students who understand your expectations.

 

If you don't set the expectations, kids won't know how meet them.

 

-Crystal

Rick Morris: Classroom Magician!

Rick Morris: New Management 

Who is Rick Morris?

Rick Morris is a behavioral consultant for classroom management. I had the pleasure of attending one of his trainings when I worked in Chula Vista. Rick's tagline "fair, firm, consistent"is a behavior management technique I live by everyday. Be it in the classroom, camp, or after-school setting, having that mantra will help keep you in control.

My 2 favorite technique from Rick: 

1. Sign Language Posters---Nothing is more annoying than being in the middle of a lesson and a kid raises their hand & you think "Yes! Its an important question!". Little do you know, its really a question of "When do we clean up?". Say goodbye to those problems! Using sign language in the classroom is perfect for any age/grade; even if you don't know any sign language. Rick Morris simplifies communication by using signs for students. By showing your students different signs for common questions/sayings such as: 'I have a questions', 'I need the restroom', 'I need a pencil', 'I have a comment'. Since I'm going into Deaf Education, I will be using ASL everyday. Yet, I have to say that even with hearing students, they easily learn the signs! Even my after-school leaders [who don't know ASL] use the signs! Try it and it'll do wonders!

2. The Choices Program--This is hands-down the best "write up" for students. Now, I am a firm believer in preventative behavioral techniques. However, there are times where a student needs to realize that their misbehavior is unacceptable and their parents need to be informed. This form works wonders in and outside of the classroom. Why? It causes the student to self-evaluate their behavior and makes them realize that their behavior is a choice!

[Here is a sample from Rick Morris: You can get the template off his website for free!]

Click here for his awesome website!

Rick Morris has a plethora of books and tips available at his website! Everything he teaches is adaptable for any education environment. If you ever have the chance, take his workshop. It's worth every penny.


-Crystal



P.S.
Sorry I haven't posted: grad school & my promotion at work has got my schedule jam packed! I'll try to blog more often.