My rules have always been simple. There are four, with an addendum. I've found they work just fine, whether I'm teaching fourth grade in the Union County 'burbs or eighth grade in CMS' 'Achievement Zone'. They are:
1. Sit down.
2. Sit down and be quiet.
3. Sit down, be quiet, and do your work.
4. Sit down, be quiet, do your work, and don't bother anyone.
Addendum: Save the drama for your mama.
Pretty cut and dry, right?
It's time to reevaluate them.
A high-performing classroom is all about using high-yield strategies. Those strategies tend toward collaboration. PDSA cycles depend upon kids' input, and a belief that they can positively impact the productivity of their classroom. As I begin a new school year, with a special focus on the use of PDSA and those strategies - I'd really like to get serious about Project-Based Learning this year - it's time to bring my classroom expectations more in line with my practice.
Within the first couple of days of school, the kids will have set a mission for the year. With that in mind, I toyed with the idea of dropping a list of expectations and relying on that mission. I finally put this together because kids expect it. Some of my newbies will come having had a small amount of time in a classroom that does PDSA, but I don't know how many. I don't want to seem too far out in left field. Some kids (adults, too!) like the security of a set of expectations.
I'm still keeping the addendum. ;)
Anyway, I'm hoping this will do a better job of setting the stage for the coming year, even if it's not so easily memorized. I am a no-nonsense kind of teacher, which you probably guessed from reading the beginning of my post, but I think this set of expectations better reflect the climate I want in my classroom.
1. Sit down.
2. Sit down and be quiet.
3. Sit down, be quiet, and do your work.
4. Sit down, be quiet, do your work, and don't bother anyone.
Addendum: Save the drama for your mama.
Pretty cut and dry, right?
It's time to reevaluate them.
A high-performing classroom is all about using high-yield strategies. Those strategies tend toward collaboration. PDSA cycles depend upon kids' input, and a belief that they can positively impact the productivity of their classroom. As I begin a new school year, with a special focus on the use of PDSA and those strategies - I'd really like to get serious about Project-Based Learning this year - it's time to bring my classroom expectations more in line with my practice.
Within the first couple of days of school, the kids will have set a mission for the year. With that in mind, I toyed with the idea of dropping a list of expectations and relying on that mission. I finally put this together because kids expect it. Some of my newbies will come having had a small amount of time in a classroom that does PDSA, but I don't know how many. I don't want to seem too far out in left field. Some kids (adults, too!) like the security of a set of expectations.
I'm still keeping the addendum. ;)
Anyway, I'm hoping this will do a better job of setting the stage for the coming year, even if it's not so easily memorized. I am a no-nonsense kind of teacher, which you probably guessed from reading the beginning of my post, but I think this set of expectations better reflect the climate I want in my classroom.
I love your addendum! Thanks for starting this blog. I am sure that I will be visiting it often. :)
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