CBM7 – Handling Classroom Discipline
Objective: After analyzing various scenarios dealing with classroom management, learners will reflect on a prevention plan. After analyzing field notes and a video of a teacher with excellent management skills, learners will point out specific techniques employed.
Rules can become sources of pushback and rebellion if enforced without the appropriate relationship. Teachers and students need structure. They also need an environment with healthy relationships where students know expectations, boundaries, consequences and have the opportunity to learn to take responsibility for their actions.
Developing positive relationships with your students and having a structure in place with procedures, rules, and consequences that are taught, practiced, and reinforced will go a long way to decreasing student misbehavior. However, students will test you. How you react to different types of student behaviors will define you as an educator. Verbal and non-verbal cues and signals can be used to redirect misbehaviors and reinforce appropriate behaviors.
Many veteran teachers will move from one style of managing behavior to another as different circumstances dictate the type of action required to resolve a situation.
The key to the successful management of misbehaviors is awareness and anticipation.
As you learn your students and those who might disrupt the learning environment, have a plan in place. The basic rule of thumb is 10% of your students will take up 90% of your time.
Go to your text, The First Year Teacher’s Survival Guide > Read the following sections:
Prevent or Minimize Discipline Problems – pp. 373 -391
Handle Discipline Problems Effectively – pp. 395 – 450
In addition to these suggestions, you will learn a behavior management model in Capturing Kids’ Hearts based on a series of four questions you ask students. The beauty of the four questions is that they help maintain the boundaries established in the classroom while still preserving the relationships. It also has several other side benefits. It keeps the environment safe, even in conflict, since this model is used inside the classroom (rather than taking the student outside). This model allows students to see appropriately modeled conflict while de-escalating student behavior and keeping you calm and consistent with all students.
The teacher should explain this model to the students prior to using it for classroom misbehavior. Remind students that none of us are perfect. Occasionally we may need a reminder to hold us accountable for the way we said we were going to treat each other. The teacher uses the four questions to hold students accountable and help them get back on task. If they answer the questions and get back on task, there are no consequences. Please note that there is a fifth question for repeat offenders (see below).
When dealing with misbehavior, the teacher should calmly approach the student and ask (Reminder: body language and tone are important):
1. What are you doing?
2. What are you supposed to be doing?
3. Are you doing it?
4. What are you going to do about it?
Here are some guidelines to follow when using the four questions with the individual:
· Ask only the given questions. As teachers, sometimes we want to stay too long and lecture or make up our own questions. This makes things worse. Ask the given questions only.
· Don’t move on to the next question until you get an appropriate answer to the question you are asking. (We will model what it looks like if the student doesn’t answer the question.)
· Don’t fall for smoke screens. Smokescreens are anything a child says or does that is not the right answer. For example, “it wasn’t me,” “he was doing it too,” crying, etc.
· Don’t bail the student out by giving them the answer or part of the answer–unless you really don’t think they know the answer.
· Don’t approach the student when your buttons are pushed. (Here is a tip for you: if you don’t show your students where your buttons are, they can’t push them.) Give yourself a timeout, so you don’t take it personally. Watch your body language and tone of voice.
· Don’t accept good or bad as an answer. We don’t want the students to feel like they are bad, but we do want them to take responsibility for their behavior.
Here are several scenarios:
Four Questions with the Compliant Child
Mary is writing a note to her boyfriend during your direct instruction. You have tried using several other techniques, but she continues to write. You decide to use the four questions:
Teacher: Mary, what are you doing? (said in a calm voice, watching body language and tone of voice)
Mary: I am writing a note.
Teacher: What are you supposed to be doing?
Mary: I’m supposed to be listening to you and taking notes.
Teacher: Were you doing that?
Mary: No
Teacher: What are you going to do about it?
Mary: I’m going to start listening and taking notes.
Teacher: Thanks for making a good choice.
Scenarios for the Four Questions
Four Questions with the Semi-Defiant Child
Mary is writing a note to her boyfriend during your direct instruction. You have tried using several other techniques, but she continues to write. You decide to use the four questions:
Teacher: Mary, what are you doing? (said in a calm voice, watching body language and tone of voice)
Mary: Nothing (Wrong answer. This is a smokescreen… so you ask the question again.)
Teacher: What are you doing?
Mary: Why are you always picking on me? (Wrong answer again. This is a smokescreen.)
Teacher gets silent (this should take a second or two. Watch for body language from Mary indicating her discomfort).
Teacher: (gives a genuine affirmation): Mary, I love the way you are such a good friend and take care of your classmates. You may either answer the question or you are choosing to have detention.
Teacher: So, what were you doing?
Mary: I was writing a note. (**see below for another possible ending)
Teacher: What were you supposed to be doing?
Mary: I’m supposed to be listening to you and taking notes.
Teacher: Were you doing that?
Mary: No
Teacher: What are you going to do about it?
Mary: I’m going to start listening and taking notes.
Teacher: And what is going to happen if you break the rules again?
Mary: I’m going to have detention.
Teacher: Great job. Thanks for making a good choice.
**Note: If instead of answering the remaining questions correctly, Mary instead chooses not to answer the question or gives another wrong answer, the teacher would say: You have chosen detention. And what’s going to happen if you do it again? (Mary should respond with the next step in the consequences system.)
Notice in the video that the teacher followed a series of steps when dealing with the non-compliant student but did not disrupt the entire class. The student chose to take the consequences in one example. This consequence is pre-defined by the classroom teacher or school policy and set out in your rules and expectations.
Making the Questions Work for You
Step One: Initially ask the same question two times.
Step Two: Create silence (Silence is very uncomfortable for the child. It also gives you an opportunity to calm down.)
Step Three: Give a genuine affirmation about the person, not the behavior. (It is difficult to stay mad at someone who is saying something positive to you.)
Step Four: If you don’t get an appropriate answer say, “You may either answer the question or you are choosing the consequence.” (Please note that the child is not selecting his/her own consequence. The teacher is filling in the blank with the appropriate consequence based on where the student is in the consequence sequence already established and posted).
Step Five. Ask your question again. (You may forget what question you were on, so it is okay to post the questions to help you and the students remember).
Step Six: If you get an appropriate answer, affirm, and move to the next question. If not, give the consequence. Remember: If the student gives the correct answers and gets back on task, there is no consequence.
Repeat Offenders: For your repeat offender, ask, “What is going to happen if you do this again (today, this period, this week — use a logical time frame depending on the age of the student)?”
The questions can seem deceptively easy. Watch the video a couple of times and practice what you would say.
Student Misbehavior Scenarios
Below are some scenarios that catch students misbehaving. As you watch the videos, think about a prevention plan for each scenario.
Watch the first 30 seconds of this video as these middle school students enter their classroom. Reflect on a plan to have a successful start of class.
Ineffective Classroom Management. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMhIUo2a1iE
Disruptive Dan
Watch the first minute of this video. Reflect on a plan to work with this disruptive student.
Disruptive Dan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-0AlHFcQfk
Disruptive Classroom 1
Watch the first minute of this video. Reflect on a plan for the teacher to better work with Caleb. Disruptive classroom 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6fS73AFnnk
Challenging Behavior in Young Children
Watch the first 1:15 minutes of this video. Reflect on a plan for the teacher to set up rest time and work with the preschooler. Challenging Behavior in Young Children. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eCfnrGu5xo
Promoting Positive Behavior Environments by Blending Multiple Sound Strategies
Meet Beth Brannon and her use of several effective practices in her ELA 10th-grade classroom.
Note the following assessment of the video as shared by Author of Teach Like a Champion Dave Lemov’s field notes:
Scene 1: 22 seconds
Beth transitions quickly to a very simple What to Do direction–“I want to see directions from yesterday on your desk.” It’s simple, clear, observable, and concrete. There’s just one step. Everyone does it right away.
Though she maintains the warmth of her demeanor, notice that she’s also using aspects of a Strong Voice to ensure her students follow through. After her directions at :22, she doesn’t say anything else for about ten seconds — no other stray verbiage to distract their attention. There’s one clear task, framed in precise language with the minimum number of words.
Scene 2: 46 seconds
Beth says: “Do a quick double-check. In the top right-hand corner, make sure your name is there.” Again a super clear What to Do direction. There’s not a bit of additional verbiage while the students complete the task. Teach Like a Champion training calls this Specific Language and no excess language the Economy of Language. Having the students complete her directions is foremost in her mind. She augments this by scanning the classroom visibly after giving her directions, Be Seen Looking (at :50 on the clock). She looks to see if they follow through, and to let them know that she cares whether they follow through.
Scene 3: 58 seconds.
Another simple, clear, observable, and concrete direction: “Pen, directions, chart paper.” Again, Economy of Language. There aren’t even any verbs! She gestures to indicate they should sit near the chart paper. This constant Economy of Language with her directions makes her seem so self-assured and clear on what she wants from them that she doesn’t have to “go all stern on them.” Space is made for her warm and thoughtful personality by her excellent technique.
Scene 4: 1:07
There’s one last perfect bit of Strong Voice as she stands by the chart paper, facing them wordlessly and not moving a muscle. It’s a classic Square up/Stand still. Message: “Completing this transition to the front of the room is the only thing on my mind. I won’t move until I see it underway.”
You’ll also see her ask her 10th graders to essentially transition Engineer Efficiency to “the carpet.” She deftly moves them upfront to sit on the floor for instruction in a way that vaguely recalls the multicolored carpets of elementary classrooms. And yet in Beth’s hands, it’s perfectly natural, perfectly mature. It doesn’t feel strange or out of place.
Scene 5: 1:35
Beth starts a countdown. As she does so, she’s using gestures—i.e. non-verbal interventions —to keep students on task and processing through the transition without distracting others or calling their attention to it. In a last bit of skill, she cuts off her countdown at two and without a second’s delay starts in on teaching, with yet another perfect, What to Do direction: “3…2… Look at your paper from yesterday.” Then watch how quickly they become attentive. Basically, she can be both warm and engaging (intellectually) because her technique is strong, and it’s very clear what she wants them to do. Her personality is brought to life through technique.
Scene 6: 2:09
Beth says: “Go to step 3. What’s our job today?” By now, that use of clear, concrete, single-step directions must look familiar. But now she brings in something new. She engages her students via Call and Response. Over the next minute or so, she actively engages them in the directions by having them answer her questions 10 times via Call and Response. Simple but useful. They are not sitting passively. They are actively engaging as she explains the task. The most important round of Call and Response, then, comes at 2:17 when she “Sharpens Up.” She re-asks the question, “what’s our job today?” because many kids answered the first time, but everyone didn’t. For this tool to engage her students, she needs everyone joining in. She throws in the word “everyone”—positively, subtly—between question and response and successfully sets her expectation.
Scene 7: 3:00 and 3:20
Beth also mixes in two warm and genuine Cold Calls to ask for input from two students—Oscar and Brooke—who had not raised their hands. This technique ensures that students stay engaged, as they could be called upon to contribute at any time. But cleverly, these are also some of her warmest and most personable moments in the clip. Not only does she joke about teenage crushes, but she smiles as she Cold Calls, and this yields a key lesson. The times when you access your accountability tools, are often the very times when you can and should be your warmest. The technique is doing the hard work so you can reinforce connections and relationships.
Notice her Pacing here –the variations of format, Call and Response and Cold Call (and the occasional hand), allow her to explain the task and review the model quickly and energetically; it’s a constant quick back-and-forth. The potentially dull work of “here’s what we’re gonna do” feels fast and energetic.
Scene 8: 4:00:
Finally, when she sends students off to do their work, she Checks for Understanding. Many teachers might use Self-Report here: “Everyone understand?” In that case, the answer is always yes. And usually wrong. Beth requires students to actually respond: “What’s the first thing you’re gonna do? What’s the second thing? What questions do you have?” She asks these questions genuinely, with a real pause for possible questions. And then “Go!” and off they go.
Watch the video, re-visit the field notes from author Dave Lemov, and share any other comments you would like others to see in the comment section provided below.
Assignment:
Access your GO TO Page and add the four questions that will help you handling misbehaviors.
Reflection Assignment:
Managing behavior is one of the toughest jobs that a teacher has.
Go to your text, The First Year Teacher’s Survival Guide > Read “How to Quick Reference Guide to Common Classroom Discipline Problems”, pp. 451 – 494.
After watching the videos above, illustrating common discipline problems, read the text assignment, select three discipline problems that you might encounter with students, and mentally plan how you would address those situations if asked in an interview. This assignment calls for reflection; it does not require an assignment submission.
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