Behavior Management
Behavior Contracts
During the first weeks of class, the students and I will come up with the expectations and rules for the classroom. I will come up with a behavior contract that me and the students will sign. This will be an agreement that they will behave a certain way and they will live up to the classroom expectations we set together, as a class.
I will also have my own contract that lets the students know what they can expect from me. This contract will include the steps I will take when someone is not living up to their end of the behavior contract.
Inappropriate Behaviors
Inappropriate behaviors are behaviors that are against our classroom rules and expectations that we came up with. These behaviors can jeopardize the promotion of a positive classroom learning environment. When these behaviors occur, they take away from the overall class and can keep the other students from being able to learn. That is why it is important to address these behaviors immediately.
The first step I will take in addressing off task or inappropriate behaviors is that I will place walk over to the student and draw an "x" on the corner of their desks. This will allow me to make the student aware that they are off task or behaving inappropriately without having to stop addressing the rest of the class.
The next step I will take, if the student does not get back on task, is that I will say the student's name and say "2". This gets their attention and lets them know that this is their second warning.
If we get to a third warning, this is when I pull the student aside and we have a conversation about their inappropriate behavior. I will ask them why they think I am pulling them aside and why what they were doing was not in line with the contract they signed. Then I will ask them to reflect on their off task behavior and what they would do to change it in order to have them behaving the way they are expected to.
While I know this will not work for all behaviors, this will be my course of action with minor inappropriate behaviors like talking, playing around, not being on task, having something they are not supposed to have, etc.
For moderate behaviors I will have to be more direct. These behaviors would include arguing with another student, talking back, refusing to do work, etc.
For these behaviors, I will immediately pull the student aside and have a conversation with them. I will ask them why they made the choices they made and what we could do together to move past this behavior and get back on task. If this does not work, we will make a phone call home. This phone call will come from the student. They will explain to their parents why they are calling them and what they did. After they get off of the phone, the student will be given the opportunity to go to the "cool down corner." In the corner, they will have their journal and they will write down how they were in violation of their behavior agreement, why they did what they did and how they could have made different choices that would have kept them within their classroom expectations.
For significant inappropriate behaviors such as defiance, fighting, bullying, tantrums, etc. These types of behaviors will lead to removal from the class. I will call the behavior specialist and have them take the student from the class. Before they can return to the classroom they will have to understand what they did that was inappropriate. I will sit down with the student and we will discuss their behavior, how it was inappropriate and what they should have done instead. The student will still call home, spend time in the "cool down corner" but they will also have to sit down with me and we will come up with a personalized behavior contract where we set aside goals and new expectations based on their inappropriate behavior.
Student Accountability
I believe that every aspect of the classroom should be student centered, this includes coming up with the rules and expectations of the classroom. By doing this, the students know how they are expected to behave in the classroom and what they are expected to do. This allows for me to be able to give them self-reflected consequences. Giving them the opportunity to reflect on their inappropriate behaviors allows them to take ownership of what they were doing that they weren't supposed to be doing, then having them talk about what different choices they could have made gives them the chance to really think about how they could have behaved differently.
This type of self reflection makes them very aware of their actions. It makes a lasting impression and gives them something to think back on when they are acting in an appropriate way. This may give them the opportunity to have them think about their reflection the next time they act inappropriately. This could allow them to correct their behavior on their first warning rather than having to get to the 2nd warning and further consequences.
There are a few behaviors that will NOT be tolerated in our classroom. There will be no warnings, these behaviors will be addressed immediately. It is my responsibility to foster a safe learning environment for your child and the other children in our classroom. For this reason, these behaviors are not acceptable.
STOP
Bullying: There is a zero tolerance policy for bullying in our school, and this same rule applies in our classroom. If a student is caught bullying, they will be sent directly to the office and a phone call will be made home immediately.
Abuse: As a mandatory reporter, I am required, by law, to report any suspicion of abuse of any kind.
Discrimination: Our classroom is a safe haven where all of our students are appreciated for their uniqueness. For this reason, I will not tolerate any kind of discrimination. If I see a student discriminating another student, there will be a meeting right away. This meeting will include the student and their parents.
Harassment: According to the behavior contract all of the students signed on the first week of school, they promised to treat each other with respect. If a student is harassing another student and making them feel unsafe in the classroom, they are not living up to their agreement. Any signs of harassment will be addressed immediately, starting with a one on one meeting with the student. And leading to, a meeting with the parents or school-wide disciplinary action.