Classroom Management Plan Goals Create and establish a safe, fun environment for all students. Engage students in creative and active learning that motivates them to participate. Establish an environment of respect and rapport with all students and encourage students to treat their peers the same. I feel one of the most important aspects of teaching is classroom management. If you can t control your classroom then you won t be able to provide an environment for learning. With the correct balance, students should be challenged to work with others as well as think independently. As a teacher who will be certified K-12, I will have to be flexible and have a plan to manage different age groups. Regardless, it will be important that I have a plan for when the time comes and stay consistent and fair when disciplining and rewarding my students. If the teacher shows respect to the students, the students in return will learn to show respect allowing for an environment of positivity and cooperation. Room Arrangement My classroom arrangement will depend mainly on what age level I am teaching. If I am teaching elementary aged students I will either allow them to sit on the carpet or have rows of chairs they can sit on. Depending on their age level will determine if they sit on the floor or in chairs. The room would be very bight with fun colors and have posters of the rules, classroom expectations, posters of famous composers, pictures of instruments, posters of helpful music elements such as solfege or rhythms, and inspirational and encouraging quotes. The middle school and high school choirs will either have chairs or just risers to stand on while we sing. The room would have the same types of posters but geared more toward the older students. It would be helpful if I had space for all students to be able to move around while singing, but it is most important to leave that space for the elementary level. My desk will either be placed on the side or in another room. This also all depends on how the room is already set up. Some choir rooms have separate rooms for offices. My desk placement is not as crucial as other teachers considering I will always be up in front of the group teaching them about music. If my desk were not in another room I would want it to be upfront and off to the side so it is visible to me at all times and students can t mess with it. During classes or rehearsals I will be very specific as to where students sit and stand. If I know certain students can t handle being by each other I will make sure they are on opposite sides of the room. I will also be very clear about when it is time to stand and sit
during rehearsals. The middle and high school students will typically stand the entire rehearsal but I will allow for breaks in between so they aren t standing the entire time. The elementary students will do a combination of all things in order to keep their attention. By having a creative, colorful room I will establish a fun environment for learning. I also believe having a clean room will motivate the students to act respectful in it and realize there are high standards to be met while in the music room. Rules and Expectations Respect your teacher and classmates Listen and follow all directions No Gum allowed in the choir room Raise your hand before speaking Keep your hands and feet to yourself Come to class prepared and ready to make music Remember concerts are not optional and are a part of your grade These rules and expectations will vary depending on what age level I am teaching. However, most of them can apply to both. Creating an environment with respect toward your students and the teacher is key to having a successful teaching career. All age groups will be directed to listen and follow directions. Not allowing gum in the choir room is more geared toward the older students and it will not be tolerated. Students could potentially choke on their gum while having it in their mouth while singing. Every age level needs to raise their hand before talking to avoid chaos in the room. Keeping your hands and feet to yourself is more geared toward the smaller kids but I know this can also apply to middle and high school students. At every level I want the kids to be on time and ready to participate whether it is to sing in choir, learn a new instrument, or study a country. If students are ready and prepared the lesson and activity will go much smoother. Lastly, concert attendance is more geared toward the older students and they will recognize that. They will be given a syllabus with what is expected of them to treat them like young adults. At the beginning of the year each of these rules and expectations will be gone through so there are no questions as to what I expect in the music room. Consequences Students misbehaving will first receive a warning.
The second time I will call them by name and move them from their current seat. The third time I will ask them to see me after class so we can discuss the issue. If the issue continues I will ask other colleagues for advice and see if they have had issues with this student. I will also contact their parents to see if they can help give me tips on controlling their child. The consequences established will also differ depending on what age level I am teaching, but for the most part will be consistent. Older students will know what is expected of them and I wouldn t anticipate too many challenges from them except talking while rehearsing. I think simply looking at them or saying their name will address the problem. The younger students will be the ones I will have to keep on and also use proximity to help keep them under control. I would also like to point out that each of these consequences would be addressed at the beginning of the school year so students aren t surprised when they get punished. I also think it is very important to establish your plan and avoid sending students to the principals office. If you send too many students to the office your principal and other colleagues will think you do not know how to handle your students. The biggest thing is to remain consistent so students realize I am serious about creating a fun learning environment and will not tolerate any misbehaving. Classroom Procedure At the elementary level I will have a fun song playing every day as my students come in. I will also be standing at the door greeting them as they enter. After they are all seated I will take roll call by singing their name and having them sing it back to me. After taking attendance we will start the lesson. All lessons will be made up of visual, aural, and kinesthetic activities to help reach all types of learners. We will also be doing a variety of activities to keep all students engaged for the entire time period. In order to keep class order I will give very specific directions as to what we are supposed to be doing. That way there won t be room for students to get out of hand or run around, but if students do misbehave they know there will be consequences. I will also make sure to plan extra material in order to keep students occupied for the entire lesson. I also think it s important to create learning stations and allow students to independently learn and create music. Stations may consist of computer games, keyboard playing, drumming, music flash cards, etc. Those are just a few examples of things students could do to work independently but still create music. At the middle and high school level I will be directing the choirs. Each day students will need to come in and grab their folder out of the slot. They will then be expected to go to their spot on the risers and wait for warm ups. The first ten minutes of rehearsal will be used for warm ups and sight singing. After we have finished I will make any announcements and then move right into working on our repertoire. Every day will be different and the time we spend on each piece will depend on the difficulty of it. Before the beginning of the year I will look through each piece we
will be singing and time it out. I will then grade it by difficulty to help me determine how much time I should spend on each piece. After we have had time to run through the pieces I will get a better idea as to how much time we need to be spending on each piece. If one piece is coming along better than another we won t spend as much time on it. It will be my job as the teacher to be able to monitor this and make adjustments as needed. At the end of each rehearsal I will always allow for at least a minute for students to put folders away and collect their belongings. By allowing students to do this will also build a positive relationship with other teachers. If they see I am aware of the time and keep students on time for their classes they are more likely to support my program. Positive Reinforcement Affirm students within the classroom and let them know the good they are doing. Give positive feedback to all members of the choir and individual sections of the choir to push other students to achieve the same praise. Give positive comments to students even if they don t think they are doing well. It will force them to want to live up to those expectations and do better. It is important students know and hear the good they are doing. It pushes them to want to do a good job for you as a teacher. In choir you can almost make it a challenge for each section to see which section is doing the best. If I only compliment the Altos then the other sections will want to work harder to get praise from me as well. It can also be a good classroom management technique to compliment the bad children. That way they know you are watching them and it will make them want to live up to those expectations. With the younger students I may give them each a sticker at the end of each class if they behaved. When they get a certain amount they can get a pencil or something fun. By having these incentives, students will want to behave in order to get their sticker. If they misbehave it will get taken away. I think that is also a very useful management tool to keep kids on their best behavior. Conclusion As stated previously, I believe it is important to create a safe and inviting classroom that leads to respectful relationships. I think one way to do this is to allow student involvement. One-way to do this is by asking certain students to warm up the choir or help me hand out music. I can also ask students to listen to the choir and give me their input on sound. By allowing students at any age to be involved will show them you aren t there for yourself but truly are there for them. Although I do not have my own classroom and ways of managing it yet, I feel confident for when that day comes. While at school I have had many experiences to go out and work with students of all age levels and learn how they differ in behaviors. I have picked up many good techniques by watching other
teachers teach and from my professors who have given us advice. I feel when it is my time to be in charge I will have to first get to know my class and see how each one operates. Then I can make adjustments as needed and put into place all of the techniques I have learned to create a controlled environment for learning!