Teaching methods and strategies vary based on teacher, classroom, and any other factor you can think of. Positive behavior can be encouraged in your classroom community with singing, motivating students and whole group ideas to foster your ideal classroom environment.
Positive behavior is what we all desire to see so we can apply the teaching methods and strategies we’ve worked hard to learn.
Heck, we went through four years of college to learn them! It stands to reason that if positive behavior is the “norm” in a classroom environment, then learning can happen.
Positive actions and behavior are often rewarded, edified and modeled in a classroom to add to the the overall classroom environment.
When students’ ideas, thoughts, mistakes and learning risks are handled with respect you are well on your way to fostering a classroom community where learners can flourish.
Here are some tips to set up systems in the classroom so you are both motivating students and applying your strategies for teaching!
Singing
Singing is a great way to keep you in a positive frame of mind and to really capture attention. Why do you think Disney characters are always singing?
Singing evokes happiness and {ahem} we are talking about positivity here. We’re not talking you’re ready to cut your next album, but that you are willing to sing-song your way through little moments of your day.
Here are some great examples of singing little diddies to capture attention, focus students on what you want them to do, recall multiple step directions and add to the fact that you are willing to be open with your students. This will greatly add to the classroom environment.
1. Name on Your Paper – You can save yourself from wanting to pull your hair out. Teach this song to your students and let them take of with it. You’ll hardly have to remind them again.
Better yet, give a student the responsibility to sing it as a cue for others when getting down to work as a signal that it’s also time to work quietly. Done singing, names are done and talking is done.
2. Transitions – No matter where you want students to go, think about how you want them to get there.
Especially crucial for new teachers p-l-a-n you’re transitions until they are more routine for you to be able to pull from your “bag of tricks” and pre-warn students ahead of transitions. Mix them up by singing sometimes like this example from Melissa.
If you can keep a more routine schedule every day it will eliminate needing to create so many transitions to prepare students for. Rhymes and chants work great too!
3. Give Me Five – You can turn even some core expectations, like “Give Me 5” and turn it into a sing-songy set of directions to help give students your expectations or to even cue someone into which behavior you expect to see.
Practice {just for fun} and see how you can sing your way through these free posters to the tune of “London Bridge” if you end with “give me five.”
Motivating Students
You can create systems that work for your classroom, age group and fit your teaching style. These systems are designed to help motivate students and help them learn to self-monitor their choices.
These are whole class systems that you can have in place to motivate students but work on the individual level.
You are rewarding and acknowledging the individual choices that one student makes, but the system for rewarding can apply to all students in the class.
4. Bucket fillers – Based off of a read aloud book, this system can allow not only the teacher to recognize positive behaviors but allow students to give others recognition too.
Using any type of bucket, students can visually see their efforts be rewarded and not go unnoticed. Plus, using a see-through visual like this will also let you know who might need some extra attention.
5. My Work Rocks – You can get quality work from students by including a motivational set of tools. Twistable crayons and beautiful tools just might be the right reward for outstanding work.
6. Free Rewards – Incentivizing individual students doesn’t have to cost money. Some of the rewards most enjoyed by students are ones that they can do right within the classroom.
They feel special and are out of the “norm” so they carry the weight of novelty. Emer, an Irish primary school teacher has a list of some top ideas that would be easy to incorporate into any classroom regardless of grade level.
7. Warm Fuzzies – Doesn’t the name just make you want to investigate? This idea is one that will remind you of bucket fillers.
The main differences are that it is managed solely by the teacher and you can turn this system into a larger one where you assign point values to the fuzzies and they can be redeemed for free reward coupons like mentioned above.
Mel has great tips on free rewards that students will love too.
Classroom Community
You can develop an improved sense of classroom community and there is no lack of ideas where one can start. Learning how to listen to one another, respond with respect and work together are all elements that make a more ideal classroom atmosphere.
Here are some ideas that work well and can be altered to fit your students but is applied to the entire class to keep the community just that.
8. Gumballs – Keep track of whole class behavior in a very visual manner using a see-through container. The class work together toward earning them for modeling your set classroom procedures all at the same time or without re-directions.
Another variation is to use marbles.
9. Targeting Specific Behaviors with Books – Sometimes taking a symptom of a unhealthy classroom community that has eeked its way in can be erradicated by using bibliotherapy {yep, reading books}.
Students can vicariously live through the book characters and empower themselves to reteach and reform habits. I’m not saying reading one book will change your life. I am saying that it will open the door to discussions, repeated responses and give you tools to refer to to help students solve problems and sticky situations.
This can really help keep a community in tact.
10. Keeping it a Safe community (Buddy Room) – Part of having a classroom that functions smoothly does imply having consequences in place. When an individual student disrupts the classroom community and stops learning {the purpose we are all there for} then having a system in place like a buddy room may be a good option.
Be sure to read how Ms. M has created buddy bags for just this type of situation to keep the calm in the classroom.
Singing, motivating students and keeping a classroom community are one piece to encouraging positive behavior and implementing successful procedures in the classroom. I know that whatever you decide to do, be consistent in your expectations of students and have a set of defined positive behaviors you expect to see.
From reading these tips I am reminded that expecting the positive goes a long way and a little motivation can really make a student’s day.
More Classroom Procedures
- Partner Picking for Activities
- Simple Classroom Management Procedure Ideas – Leaving the Room
- Back to School Lunch Procedures
- Teaching Tips for Pencil Management
Leslie {aka the original Teach Junkie} loves learning new things to make teaching easier and more effective. She enjoys featuring creative classroom fun when she's not designing teacher shirts, making kindergarten lesson plans or planning her family's next trip to Disney World.