Behaviour/Classroom Management PLC

Mindful Minutes- Every day after lunch recess the students had 8-10 minutes of Mindfulness. Students could choose an activity to work on quietly, such as reading, crafts/drawing, writing, and building. During this time, conversation was to be minimal and if they were talking, they had to whisper. This time gave students the opportunity to work on something of their choosing, while also allowing them to unwind and settle themselves after lunch.

Expected/Unexpected Behaviours- When setting expectations, discuss with students the difference between expected behaviors - behaviors that are reasonable and anticipated - and unexpected behavior - behaviors that are out of the me norm or unusual. Discuss what expected/unexpected behaviours would be for various school environments and situations (instruction time, independent work, recess, lunch). You can make lists/posters and hang them in the classroom for reference. This strategy doesn’t address behaviors as “positive” or “negative”, instead it encourages students to consider how their behaviors affect situations and make others feel.

Chunking and Sand Timers- Students who struggled to stay on task and complete work in a given time can use chunking and sand timers to self-regulate their work. Students can select a sand timer (I had various sand timers, between 3-5 minutes) and can decide what is reasonable amount of work to get done in the allotted time and mark it on their work. This can be done with teacher assistance at first, but students can do this independently with practice. It is encouraging for students to see how much they can accomplish in a short amount of time. It also gives them a short-term goal if the whole assignment seems large and daunting.

Filling a Class Bucket- To encourage positive behaviours and interactions between classmates, we created a classroom bucket to fill. This is based off the book “How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids” by Mary Reckmeyer and Tom Rath. Read the book to your class and discuss actions that would fill or dip people’s buckets. Then, cut a big paper bucket and hang it in the classroom. Anytime you see a student do something that fills another student’s bucket, write a bucket filler ticket and add it to the bucket. Students can also help fill out tickets by telling the teacher when they witness students being bucket fillers. When the bucket is full you can have a class celebration, and you could empty the bucket and start again!