Classroom management

What is classroom management ?

Classroom management has to do with every things happening in the classroom, It is the methods and strategies an educator uses to ensure that the classroom is running smoothly and that the students are organised, focused ,attentive, on task and academically productive during a class.

It is a difficult aspect of teaching for many teachers. ‘Teachers do not focus on learning classroom management, because higher education programs do not put an emphasis on the teacher attaining classroom management; indeed, the focus is on creating a conducive learning atmosphere for the student.

 

What happens when the classroom is poorly managed ?

Disruption of the classroom through poor child’s behaviour can impact the learning atmosphere for others through the following ways

 

• • • the time a teacher must take to correct misbehaviour caused by poor classroom management skills results in a lower rate of academic engagement in the classroom

• • • a high incidence of classroom disciplinary problems has a significant negative impact on the effectiveness of teaching and learning 

So, in order to teach effectively, we need classroom management skills: “Teachers who apply strong and consistent management and utilise organisational skills have classrooms that experience fewer discipline problems.”  

Classroom management skills

 

 

 

 

• • • Model ideal behaviour

Children  tend to follow what they see hence make a habit of demonstrating behaviour you want to see, as many studies show that modelling effectively teaches children how to act in different situations.

A straightforward way to model certain behaviours is through the following;

• • • Use polite language
    • Maintain eye contact
    • Use the magic words ‘please’ and ‘thank you’
    • Speak in a respectful manner

Related; Easy way of becoming an early years practitioners

• • •  Be aware of a child’s capability

Every child develops and gains new skills in his/her own natural space as no child is the same within the same age group

 knowing a child’s capabilities can greatly enhance your ability to help each child grow mentally socially and emotionally,and  allows you to offer varied assessments and activities that allow the child to learn at their own pace.  

 

• • •   Show confidence in a child

Dr. Montessori herself once said, “We habitually serve children; and this is not only an act of servility toward them, but it is dangerous, since it tends to suffocate their useful spontaneous activity.” 

Instead of constantly  jumping to help them do things let’s give them the chance to do it themselves .

Allow the child  to carry and open his lunch box , let him clean up after himself, encourage him to tidy up after making a mess, and ensure you are consistently supervising what they are doing .

when you see a child struggling to do something ask them if they would like you to help, be sure to get their permission, do not just jump in to take over the situated as this will not help the child in their development

letting them be in charge  will empower a child, boost his confidence, and increase his ability to do that particular task; after all, learning is doing.

 

• • •  Seating Arrangements

 Classroom management can be affected by how the  seats are arranged. A conducive and unique classroom furniture should be arranged in such a way that there are many play and learning areas

which must  include all the seven areas of learning, each with a theme ( Role play area,maths area, literacy area..) and interesting, accessible toys and materials.

Boundary each area with shelves, each area open only on one side. Make sure there are no wide-open spaces or corridor-like temptations to race around in your room.

 

Rewards  of effective classroom management

• • • Effective teaching

Classroom management strategies help create an organised classroom environment that’s conducive to teaching, its help the teacher to teach with ease thus the children are able to learn in  conducive environment which is great for their learning journey

 

• • • Effective use of time

Taking time before school start to create routines and procedures saves you time in the long run, when the children knows what to do its becomes a natural part of the routine after a few weeks, you don’t need to tell them what to do.

The children knows they need to pick out their names and stick it to the name board every morning and they know that they need to wash their hands before carryout their lunch box for lunch

when you train them how to do each part of the school day you don’t need to spend as much time giving directions.

 

• • • Consistency

Creating a consistent routine is a great management skill as the children knows what to expect everyday when its comes to the routine,

for example, the children know that when it’s circle time they need to sit cross  legs on the carpet, constantly telling them  ‘sharing is caring’ they will learn to share and if they see a friend not wanting to share they will be the first to remind that friend that ‘sharing is caring’ .

If you focus your attention on respect and responsibility incorporate them into your management techniques and in the long run you will see them doing the same thing or saying the same words

 

• • • Reduce misbehaviour

Effective classroom management leads to fewer behavioural problems as there is little or no time to misbehave because they clearly know what to do, when to do it and how to get it done thus there’s boundaries.

Related;13 Effective coping mechanisms for stress as an early years practitioners

 

 

https://bloomingearlyyears.com/mechanisms-for-stress-relief-for-educators/

https://bloomingearlyyears.com/the-seven-areas-of-learning-in-early-years-foundation-stage-eyfs/