This document provides evidence of the classroom management and routines I put into place. There are photos of students working and a reflective essay on the topic.

1. Manages Classroom Climate
and Operation
Photos of Students Working in Various Arrangements
Photos of Daily Routines and Procedures
Reflective Essay

2. Students Hard at Work…
The students worked in many different arrangements. Sometimes they were at their desks, but other times they worked
in small groups at tables, on the floor and even on the windowsill. Letting students work where they feel comfortable
creates a positive productive environment.

3. As students worked in small
groups on their Pearl Harbor is
Burning ABC posters, expectations
were repeatedly said and
displayed on a chart in the room.
Setting clear expectations that are
delivered in various formats is an
integral part of effective classroom
management to keep students on
task and productive.

4. Daily Routines
Every morning, the students would pass in
their homework in one bin and take the
morning work to get started on out of the
other bin. Students would also pass in any
notes from home in the third bin. This table
with bins was located right by the classroom
door.
Students all had a daily job to perform. Who
performed what job was changed weekly.
Jobs included purell patrol for before lunch,
paper passers and line leaders. Having jobs
created an environment of ownership over
the classroom and instilled responsibility in
the students.
When the students
started to lose focus
or were sitting for
too long, we got up
and moved!
Students would
choose one of the
Drive Thru Menu
options to perform.
This activity helped
with getting
students energized
and paying
attention.

5. At the end of each day, I did read aloud time with the class. Our first book was Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies and
here I am starting the second book, Swindle by Gordon Korman. The read aloud was a great way to build classroom
community. The students were always eager for read aloud time. It was also a great way to manage the ten to fifteen
minutes after Reading class and before dismissal. It brought a nice sense of closure to the end of the day.
As a way to manage class behavior, the
class worked towards minutes each week
to earn free choice time on Friday.

6. Reflective Essay: Standard C
Throughout my practicum, I learned that effective classroom management needs to happen before
anything else can. I implemented lessons and activities in the classroom that had students work collaboratively
and allowed them to work in different areas of the room, but this would not have been possible without proper
management. Proper classroom management includes things such as setting clear expectations, building a
reward system to motivate students and creating an environment that holds all students responsible.
Setting clear expectations was something that I worked on throughout my practicum. At the beginning, I
sometimes assumed that just giving directions or expectations aloud was enough. I soon learned that just saying
something once is not enough to ensure all students follow what was said. To ensure students worked
productively and cooperatively in situations such as small group work, I began to say, write and display
directions. For example, the students created ABC Pearl Harbor posters in small groups. If I just told the
students once what I expected the final product to be and how they were to work together, the room would have
become chaotic. Instead, before anyone moved into groups I talked about the final product and showed
examples from another class, I fielded questions, I assigned the groups and I wrote the four expectations on
chart paper and left the chart displayed in the room. One thing I learned I should have done was designate
certain areas where groups could work and how many groups per area. I found that three groups gravitated to
the rug and tried to morph into one big group. I used this experience to set different spots for literature circles
that the groups rotated through so everyone got a chance at each location.
Building a reward system for the class as a whole is also an effective management technique that I
observed and used. Miss Chiles set up a system where the students earn minutes for choice time at the end of
the week. The class needs to get at least ten minutes for choice time to happen. During choice time, the students
can play a game, color, look at fun 3-D books or play with the various blocks and legos and building sets in the
room. Basically, choice time is ten minutes in the day for indoor recess. To earn the minutes, the class as a
whole needs to be following directions, being quiet when it is time to be quiet, staying focused and on task etc.
The class can also lose minutes for doing the opposite of what should be happening. This was an effective
technique that helped the class as a whole be motivated and work together towards achieving a goal. As I began

7. to take over, I tried to use the minute system, but I put it to the backburner and did not do a good job of
following the system. On a particular couple of days, the students kept entering the room loudly and not settling
in to begin morning work or afternoon work after recess. I tried to have a stern discussion with them about it
and one student asked why I was not doing minutes anymore. I had no real answer for this student, but I did
begin following the minute system again and I saw the behaviors improve. This was proof for me that having a
motivational system in place works. Once I have my own classroom, I will remember to implement a system
such as the minutes and follow it consistently.
Creating a classroom environment that all students feel responsible for and ownership over is an
important classroom management technique. When I began the practicum and was just observing, one of the
first things I noticed was how well the students took to having jobs in the classroom. They took pride in their
jobs and ensured they got done so that the classroom would run smoothly. For example, before dismissal time I
observed students emptying pencil sharpeners, passing out lunch boxes, picking up stray items from the floor
and inspecting each other’s desks for neatness. I was impressed by how these small tasks really created a feeling
of community where everyone pitches in. The students were proud that they contributed to some aspect of
running the classroom. Having jobs in the classroom is something I want to continue with as a way to build
community and promote responsibility.
Student seating arrangement is also something I paid particular attention to in terms of classroom
management. The students’ desks were arranged in groups so that they could easily work with one another and
learn cooperatively. I think grouping desks instead of putting them in rows is a much more effective way to
achieve authentic learning. The students do not have to feel like they are alone in the learning process. If they
have a question, they can easily turn and ask a neighbor for help. I think this is the way learning happens in
everyday life. Having desks in groups does pose some management challenges however. One thing I noticed is
that during quizzes or tests or other work that needs to be completed independently the students have to put up a
cardboard shield. Having the students get the shields and set them up takes a few minutes and they can be
distracting for some. However, I think the benefits of grouping outweigh the inconveniences of setting up
shields. Another challenge to management is the fact that sometimes students take the opportunity to chat with

8. neighbors about things other than the task at hand. I had to diligently work with Miss Chiles to adjust where
some students sat if they were getting distracted by friends sitting too closely. Of course, some level of chatter
beyond school work is expected. But, when it begins to take away from school work or distracting other
students, seats need to be moved. The teacher has to play an active role in knowing who can handle sitting
where. Students with IEPs also need to be considered because some IEPs state that students need to sit as close
as possible to the board or to where the teacher spends most of the time. However, it is worth working through
these few challenges to group students and create a collaborative learning environment.