Disguised as Indifferent Teenagers - Blog

I’m an English teacher. I love irony. However, this irony I could do without: I’m writing about classroom management when, for the first time in at least five years, I have a problem. How do I define “problem”? Today, I had to leave school to take my own kids to the doctor to get their booster shots. As I left my lesson plans for the substitute teacher, I debated what I wanted to say. Should I tell her to “watch out” for a certain situation, or leave the possibility that she’ll be completely blindsided? Having subbed once, for all of three periods, I was not about to feed this poor lady to the wolves (or, at least a small pack of them, disguised as indifferent teenagers). I left her with instructions about behaviors and specific interventions, and then crossed my fingers that tomorrow my note from the sub will be beautifully and profoundly brief: “Great Day!”

Classroom management is one of those activities that teachers must do, consistently and constantly. Sometimes it feels like you either “have it” or you “don’t.” Pretty much nothing in teaching is as simple as that, so when we are talking about the complex interaction of two dozen adolescents (if you are lucky enough to have that few) with varying levels of economic, emotional and academic security, I think it’s safe to say that “having it” or “not” is sadly misrepresentative of a teacher’s ability. Even teachers (like me!) who pride themselves on respectful, engaging and collaborative classroom environments—where teacher and students are accountable for learning—can run up against what I call the “kamikaze student.” When a student has nothing to lose, or believes so highly in the importance of misbehaving to mask his or her truth, there is seemingly nothing that can stop that child from blowing through your classroom, as if on a mission.

I am an optimist, however—a personal cheerleader for all of my students, and I pull for the underdogs. And I push them. And I won’t let go. And sometimes it seems like a big game of tug of war that will never end. My greatest successes aren’t the well-supported students who are surrounded with adults who don’t just notice, but celebrate, their every achievement. My greatest successes aren’t the students who know how to speak easily with adults or have a swarm of friends around their lockers. It is not that I don’t appreciate the complexities that come from any adolescent’s life. However, those “wolves” I referred to earlier are always my challenge. How can I bring them into my “pack?” How can I make the classroom work for them? Because, unfortunately, those wolves, more often than not, are actually “lone wolves”—those that have either left or have been excluded from the pack. And, a lone wolf can become stronger, more aggressive and far more disruptive than the average wolf that is a member of a pack. The result in my classroom: misdirected hostility.

I have been using some Share My Lesson resources in an effort to build community in my classroom. I’m proud of the culture that has developed this year. However, “classroom management” is not a lesson but a mindset. Again, as much as I loathe the phrase, I do believe there must be a facilitator of a successful learning environment—and that person is the teacher. The initial steps to define the expectations of the class, of course, must come early in the year.

Birdheim, a Share My Lesson contributor, has a great approach to overtly teach the rules required for a successful classroom. Her lesson, Social Media Activities to Teach Classroom Rules, provides Instagram, Facebook and Twitter templates. Students use these familiar platforms to help “normalize” the behavior expectations and put them into their own words—in the style of their actual communication, replete with #hashtags. The best aspect of these activities is the conversation that is generated when students are focused on authentic and meaningful content.

Another aspect of behavior management is that the expectations often must be taught overtly. Some students simply don’t know the correct tone of voice for a particular activity or the expected physical interactions. The acronym CHAMPS (conversation, help, activity, movement, participation and success) can be used to directly instruct students in the expected behavior at any time. I’ve seen this used in classrooms with great success, particularly with a difficult group. Share My Lesson has an excellent webinar on the method with Randy Sprick, Ph.D., author of CHAMPS: A Proactive and Positive Approach to Classroom Management, as well as an accompanying PowerPoint. If you have time, the entire webinar is useful; however, I used the PowerPoint as a refresher, and I have decided to use CHAMPS for this week’s activities.

Finally, having even five minutes of downtime can send an otherwise well-behaved group of students way off course. I think teachers, myself included, forget this sometimes. A great solution to the downtime dilemma that happens in the unpredictable world of fire drills, assemblies, half-days, and other interruptions to teaching is a resource by content partner, BrainWavesInstruction. The resource consists of activities that can be done in five minutes, but still require students to use critical-thinking skills and allow them to have fun. Fun in Five (Minutes)—Lesson Extenders is my new go-to for those unpredictable moments that accompany any school year. I’m loading it on to my Smart Board—both for my substitutes and for me!

And, ironically, as I finish this blog, I find myself worrying about the note that is sitting on my desk. Tomorrow I’ll approach my desk cautiously, hoping to find those brief and profound words from my sub: “Great Day!” But, if not, I’ll try again to lure the lone wolves to come back to the pack, knowing full well that classroom management is not something you have or don’t have, but something you learn and perfect every single day.