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CHILDREN'S MINISTRY
Classroom Management:
Ready or Not, Here They Come—Are You Prepared?
by Catherine Tyler-Cochran
Imagine you have reservations at a nice restaurant. When you arrive, you notice the beautiful table linens, expensive artwork, soft lighting, and a sharply dressed maitre`d.
However, when you get to your table, the chairs are still stacked in the corner, and the server can’t find the menus. In his rush to get organized, he pours water on the table, and it drips onto your leg.
At this point, do you prepare yourself for a pleasant dining experience? Probably not.
No doubt you’d leave the restaurant that evening feeling a bit robbed of a potentially unforgettable experience. It might prove unforgettable—but for all the wrong reasons.
The classroom is much the same. A spacious classroom, plush carpet, and colorful posters do not guarantee a pleasant educational experience. Adequate preparation can turn a stressful situation into a positive teaching and learning experience.
Be Prepared
Your preparation should have three steps: Organize your room, make teaching materials accessible, and plan for bad behavior. When you’re prepared, you increase the change of student success and maximize your teaching time. Your time is valuable, so you want to make the most of each minute. If students are on-task and working, there will be minimal time for distractions or disruptions.
Organize the Room
Floor Space
Find out how many students are on your roll and make sure you have enough tables and chairs. It’s a good idea to have extra chairs in the event you have visitors. You don’t want anyone to feel left out because you’re short a few chairs. Arrange chairs under the table or in a circle before children arrive. Similar to chairs turned inward at a restaurant, chairs upside down on top of the table in the classroom create an uninviting feeling. It’s a nonverbal message that indicates to the children that you’re not ready for them.
Keep high traffic areas clear. Placing chairs in front of doors, sinks, and supply cabinets causes problems when you need to get to those areas. Your ability to move about freely is essential in managing the classroom. When the students see you walking around and looking at their projects, you send another nonverbal cue that lets them know you care about their efforts and expect them to do their best.
Reserve an area of the room for coats, umbrellas, and other items kids may bring to class to ensure they aren’t a distraction during the lesson. Some classrooms may have a coat rack or cubbies built into the wall, but if you room does not, you can get inexpensive milk crates from a store like Wal-Mart, and some stores may even give them to you. The crates stack easily and keep items out of the way.
Decorate the Walls
Many teachers spend considerable time decorating their classroom with colorful posters and signs. While this may add to the attractiveness of the room, the focus should be what you’re teaching, not your room as a showcase. Over-arranging and over-decorating can sometimes distract children. Remember the best way to decorate is with the work the children do, not with store-bought materials. They love to see their creations and those of their peers on display. As they complete new projects, you can change out the work on the wall, regularly giving the room a fresh look.
Display your rules and consequences in a prominent place so you can refer to them whenever necessary.
Prepare the Teaching Materials
Create a Teacher Space
You may have a small classroom with a large number of students, but no matter how small the space, it is important to have an area reserved for your materials. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a desk and chair, it could be one little corner of the room with a sign indicating “Teacher’s Space.” This will communicate to children that this is your area. You need to have a place where you can put lesson materials for the day, the class roll, and any other paperwork that may be necessary for administrative duties. Choose a place in the room that will not interfere with traffic flow and where you can get to the teaching guide and curriculum as you need them. You may also want to have a first aid kit here in case of emergencies so you don’t have to rummage around the supply closet looking for a band-aid.
Make Teaching Materials Accessible
Be sure to have any materials you will use for the day’s lesson ready to go before the children arrive. This includes Bibles, art supplies, and lesson handouts. If you wait until after children arrive, you may forget something. If you use FaithSteps, make sure you display the unit poster where children can see it.
Test any equipment you intend to use before class begins. I’ll never forget a presentation I gave to a graduate class last year. I included a movie clip to enhance one of the points. Before arriving, I made sure the clip was in the right place but I didn’t do a trial run in the classroom. During the presentation, I pushed “play,” but nothing played. Talk about a moment with sweaty palms and a pounding heart! After the presentation, I realized the television and VCR were not plugged in. If I had taken two minutes before class to do a trial-run, I would have realized the problem and solved it without trouble. If this happens to you, don’t stress out. Children are understanding and forgiving (much more than adults in most cases!). Hopefully, you can avoid a situation like this by trying out equipment ahead of time.
Find a way to distribute materials quickly and easily. Use plastic buckets or coffee cans to store glue sticks, scissors, or crayons. Do this to preserve your teaching time. Classroom helpers are beneficial too. Choose responsible children. Use this task as a reward—children love to assist the teacher.
Plan for Behavior
Know ahead of time how you’ll handle good behavior and disruptive behavior or restless behavior. Even the most prepared teachers encounter behavior problems. An effective classroom management plan takes preventative steps that minimize the possibility—by organizing the room, having materials ready, and positing your rules and consequences accordingly.
Designate a location for students who misbehave. Separate disruptive students from the class in an isolated area such as “time out” until they are able to regain self-control and participate with the group again. Another option is to have the child sit near you so you can monitor them more closely. Determine which alternative best addresses the situation. Remember, your goal is to create an environment that engages children so they can learn.
Be fair and consistent with children, and you will earn their respect, as they will understand that you’re holding them accountable for their actions. If you know how to handle these situations before they arise, you’ll reduce your stress level and gain confidence in your ability to engage your children and teach the meaningful lesson.
Praise the creative, kind, or obedient child, but do not forget also to praise a wiggly child who is finally able to sit still for a moment or the easily bored child who at last participates with the others.
Next month, we’ll examine classroom procedures, and how to establish routines that will promote success in the classroom.
Catherine Tyler-Cochran has taught for five years in Clayton County public schools and currently teaches first grade at River’s Edge Elementary School. She is a graduate of Berry College in Rome, Georgia, and will receive her master’s degree in Educational Leadership from the University of West Georgia this summer.
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