"There's One or Two That Just Won't Listen to Me!"

Even though the school year just began, if you're like most teachers I know, you are already feeling the panic of testing looming in the air...  Stay calm. Those few students who seem to be struggling with the routines and procedures need your help the most.

Four Strategies for helping students who are struggling with the demands of school...

• Meet the student at the door.  Look in his or her eyes and quietly address him or her.  Ask if there is anything you can do to help the child feel ready for school.  Remind the child that you're on their side and looking forward to a great day together.

• Write the student a personal note.  It only takes 1-3 minutes.  Fold it up and pass it to him or her as the morning begins.  Your note might say something like, "I'm counting on you.  I know you can do it!"

• Plan a luncheon with the student.  You might say something like, "I noticed we are having a hard time getting along in class.  Can we have lunch together and talk about it? I think we can make it better."

• Encourage the student before transitions.  As you line your students up for a transition to a special remember to leave enough time to remind them about your expectations while they are there.  Remember that they look to you, like a parent, to guide their behavior even when you are not in their presence.  Crouch down and make eye contact with a student experiencing challenges and whisper words of encouragement. "I want you to come back and tell me one thing you did to show you can control yourself in Mr. X's class.  I can't wait to hear about it."

• Support the student at the end of the day.  Before students leave, find a way to check in and ask them how their day went.  Be sure to make direct communication with any child you know is struggling to get along with others or to follow the classroom rules.  Point out one thing you noticed he or she did that you would love to see more of tomorrow.

Finding Your Rhythm

Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed, and in such desperate enterprises?  If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.

         Henry David Thoreau


This is your time for...

• Demonstrating who you are as a teacher to your students and to your colleagues

Your identity as a teacher is important.  So much of who you are is transferred to your students every day, often without even realizing it is happening.  It is not unlikely that your students will act in ways that mirror your own behavior.  If you want students to be more thoughtful, make a point of demonstrating your own thinking.  Use a "think aloud" strategy to make your thinking about academic and social problem solving more transparent.  Then ask students what they heard you say and saw you do.

Reserve judgement when talking to your colleagues.  Presume they have positive intentions, it's likely they do.  It's easy to misspeak and injure each other's sense of teacher identity.  Listen carefully and ask questions for clarification when you are communicating with each other.  When you do this in front of your students, you are demonstrating positive social skills that they can (and will) emulate later.

• Putting in place the rituals and routines that set the pace and tone in your classroom

Create a rhythm in your classroom with a few daily rituals and routines...and then stick with them,  This will help center your students and create a more peaceful classroom environment.  Select your routines carefully, too many and children will feel over scheduled and stressed, too few and they may feel lost and without an anchor.  Choose rituals that are meaningful to your students and help them to understand why they are important, for example "applying" for classroom jobs, or beginning every day with a special message, quotation, or meeting time. Build in opportunities for your students to feel successful in following the routines you set up, and verbally acknowledge their attempts and capacity for sticking to these routines; "Juan, you knew exactly what to do this morning, that helps to make the start of our day run smoothly."