Third stop on my room tour at the whiteboard!
I
like to think of my whiteboard as the epicenter of learning because it
is a focal point for how I share information with students. All of my
tables are arranged so everyone can see the whiteboard and it's often
the place where our lessons begin. My whiteboard is very long
so there is space for my projector to display as well as space on
either side where I can write information that doesn't have to be erased
during presentations. The photo above shows my agenda and a handy
classroom management tool that I call the noise tracker.
First,
I'll discuss the agenda. I cannot stress enough the importance of
maintaining an agenda. True story: I scored a job interview (and
subsequently the job) by mentioning my agenda as one of the tools I use
to keep my classroom organized. The woman interviewing me over the phone
even admitted that I was the only candidate who talked about one and it
happened to be on the school's checklist for hiring a teacher. Win!
This agenda is pretty basic because we are just starting the year. I add
more details as students get deeper into projects or if I need a visual
reminder to do something with the class, like return artwork, that may
be forgotten if I'm caught up in the momentum of the session. Remember, I
have a typical short, art teacher attention span and am excited about
getting kids working with materials. Students appreciate the agenda
because it lets them know what they are doing that day so they can
anticipate the process better. It also alleviates some of those "what
are we doing today?" questions that slow down the start of class.
"Make sure the consequence you choose is something you are willing to enforce or it will be completely ineffective."
Onto
the noise tracker, which arguably has an even bigger impact on the
day-to-day operations of the art room than the agenda. It's a simple
tool that allows me to non-verbally communicate to the class if they are
being too loud or disruptive. If the volume goes above a comfortable
level or students are talking over my instructions then they lose a
letter, starting with the "e". To save my voice I often remove the
letter and hold it up silently until students notice and start to shush
each other. If I need to, I can give them a reminder that the letter was
lost because they chose to be too loud/disrespectful so they
connect the consequence with their actions rather than my whimsy. When a
class loses enough letters that the noise tracker reads "no" then there
is no talking until the session is over - and I stick to that! No
whispering, it is absolutely silent. If students are bold enough to keep
talking after they've lost that privilege then I start taking minutes
of recess, 5 minutes for each letter (n and o). This could be done
individually or as an entire class if many people choose to disregard
the loss of their talking privilege.
Make
sure the consequence you choose is something you are willing to enforce
or it will be completely ineffective. One of the funniest and entirely
true things I learned in teacher boot camp was about consistency - it is
like pregnancy, either you are (consistent) or you aren't. I find that
teachers fall into inconsistency if they are uncomfortable with a
procedure/expectation and then only fall back on it when the measures
they ARE comfortable with have failed. Here's another thing that art
teachers should always feel comfortable having in their management
toolbox: art class is a privilege and the teacher's time is valuable.
That privilege can and should be taken away if it's being abused, i.e.
make students put away their materials early (or don't even get them
out) if they cannot respect the creative environment.*
Remind
students early and often that they are extremely lucky to have access
to art materials because it isn't guaranteed everywhere in the US and
certainly not around the world. Very likely they are scheduled to come
only one or two sessions every week, if not less, making their art time
even more valuable. Art teachers may feel like glorified babysitters and
just a cover for homeroom teachers' planning time. The administration
may reinforce this by allowing specialist classes to be overcrowded and
under-resourced. But remember, someone somewhere fought for students to
have access to art in your area and if the art teacher falls into the
trap of believing the subject is less worthy than others the students
will immediately pick up on that.
The
noise tracker isn't always a negative thing. Classes that make good
choices and control their volume, demonstrate respect, and so on earn
points toward the Golden Specialist award. Whichever class earns the
most points in a month receives the Golden Specialist award at our
monthly assembly. I have also added that classes who win the award
multiple times in a year will get a special art party. I think this will
be something like watching an art movie with treats or using special
supplies. I can't take credit for this idea because it was already being
implemented at my school. At first, I thought it was silly but the
students take a lot of pride in it so I was able to build their
investment in the noise tracker by linking those two things. I like this
system because there is a minor time commitment in using it, the
rewards are nearly free if I don't buy food for the art party, and it
helps maintain a calm creative space where my head won't feel like it's
going to explode. I know some of my more-sensitive students feel the
same. Even the really bold ones appreciate not being yelled about their
volume, which is pretty counterproductive and hypocritical if you think
about it. So, instead: you get art and you get art and you get art and
you get art! I'm going to continue my Oprah moment in private now...
What
are some other successful behavior management techniques? What
consequences work best with students to help them reflect on their
behavior without being punitive (taking away recess is the unpopular
last resort at my school)? Or what motivates students to stay on their
best behavior?
Artfully,
Catherine
*Full
disclosure: my first year of teaching was in a school in a district
that purposely left a loophole in regulations about class size for
specialist subjects. Enormous numbers of students could be crammed into
the art/music/library/PE room (or even an auditorium if need be) to give
homeroom teachers planning time to implement all of the initiatives
passed down because many schools in the district were failing. The
school I happened to be at was also designated as high-need because of
the socioeconomic background of 99% of the students. My classes were
filled with students that needed more attention, not less, but as a
novice and mere human being I couldn't support my students in the way they
needed. On top of that, I received tremendous pressure to just
get the kids in the room and do something, anything with them because my
room was next to the front office (lucky me) and the noise from
students in the hallway was disruptive to administration (poor them). At
a faculty meeting sometime after the start of school, my principal even gave me a congratulatory pencil
because "the students finally got to make some art". It is unsurprising,
then, that halfway through the year the district sent in several
high-ranking administrators to support our school with academics and
behavior because we were again in danger of failing the state's
standardized test (which we did). I did not remain at that school after
my first year but I do know that the art teacher who came after me did
not allow students to make art until almost Christmas because the
behavior continued to be so unmanageable. No one interfered in the
teacher's decision because there was new leadership at the school.
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