Preamble When a student enters my classroom, they will be entering a place where their learning is the main focus.

Everything in my classroom will be done with the students best interests in mind. As their teacher, I will strive to establish the importance of being a responsible citizen in the classroom, in their community, and in the world. I teach my students to become responsible citizens by giving them opportunities to think critically, consider their opinions and ideas in comparison to others, and understand how their beliefs and actions shape their environments. I prepare students to function effectively in the real world. I emphasize that learning happens everywhere, every day, and anytime. For students to gain knowledge that is meaningful and relevant to their own lives, they need the opportunity to discover for themselves, and practice skills in real-life situations. Preventive Techniques Classroom community: One of the most important preventative strategy that I can implement into my classroom is the building of a strong classroom community that focuses on respect for the people, places, and things around us. In order to do this, I will build a classroom community in the following ways: Layout of the classroom- The layout of my classroom will be set up in a way that is conducive to collaborative learning. In order to encourage working as a group, student desks or tables will be positioned so that students have access to each other. Ideally, I would like desks set up in to two half circles (one within the other) with a table in center front for me. With this set-up students are positioned more as if they are gathering together. This setup will be beneficial in facilitating classroom meetings.

Classroom meetings- Behavior tends to improve when students are asked to participate in reflecting on difficulties in the classroom and taking steps to resolve them. (Charles, 2011). Class meetings will be held at the end of the day. These meetings will be used to discuss what is going well, what needs to be worked on, our plans for the future, what was learned that day, and anything else the students or I feel is important to discuss at the time. Students will be encouraged to not only participate in the class meetings, but to also lead the discussions.

Student roles/jobs- When students have jobs within the classroom they develop a sense of ownership. Jobs help the students feel as though they are a vital part of the classroom community. I will incorporate jobs into daily routines, as wells as require student roles during group work.

Classroom Rules: An important aspect of preventative classroom management is the implementation of classroom rules. Students in my class will understand that they have a right to learn, their peers have a right to learn, and I have a right to teach. Students have the right to be in school, but they also have the responsibility to respect the rights of those around them. Rights and responsibilities go hand in hand (Coloroso, 2011). The responsibilities of my students that I will expect include treating all people and things with respect, attending classes regularly, being cooperative and not disruptive, doing their best work, and learning the required content (Wong, 2011). While these are the underlying expectations I will maintain, an integral part of creating an inclusive classroom is involving students in the process of creating classroom rules. I feel it is important ask students to develop a set of classroom rules and consequences that will allow all students to have access to learning. I will give students the opportunity to make decisions about the

structure of our classroom in order to create a sense of community in which everyone can grow. We will discuss rights, responsibilities, and rules at the beginning of the year. I will post them in the room, but allow room for amending the rules if need be. Classroom Procedures: Daily Attendance and Self Start- As students enter the classroom, they will be expected to quietly go over to the smart board where they will find their name, and using their fingers will slide their name into the open box showing they are present for the day. They will pick up a self-start paper where they will find a math POD (problem of the day), and a DOL (daily oral language) sentence. Students will work on the self-start with no talking until I stop the music that will be playing during that time. Using the restroom- Students will have time to use the restroom after recess and after lunch. If students have the need to use the restroom other than these times, they will be able to do so as long as it is not during instruction. Only one student may go at a time. They will need to put up the restroom pass to show that someone is currently using the restroom. Students will indicate that they need to use the restroom by raising their hand and displaying two fingers. They will wait for me to give them a nod to show that it is okay to go. Getting a drink- Students will follow the same procedures for getting a drink, but rather raising their hand and displaying one finger to specify the need to get a drink. Lining up- Students will be expected to lineup in an orderly fashion. This includes waiting to be called on to line up, lining up in a single file line with arms and hands kept to themselves, and voices off.

Pencil sharpening- Students will be free to sharpen pencils whenever they need to as long as they are not being disruptive.

Speaking in class- Students will be expected to raise their hand until they are called on. Students will learn early on that I will only pay attention to students who are raising their hand. Students must wait until their classmates are finished speaking before raising their hands to talk.

End of the day- At the end of the day, students will fill out their planners by copying down the homework assignment for that night, write what they learned during the day at school, and clean their desk and around their desk. Students parents will sign the planners indicating that they saw what was written. After students fill out planners and clean up around their desk, they will get backpacks from lockers and other any other things that may need to go home with them. We will spend the last part of the day in our classroom meeting discussing what needs to be discussed.

Momentum/Engagement: There are conditions of a classroom that can make it difficult for students to learn. These conditions include sitting still and keeping quiet for long periods of time, working alone, not knowing why something is being taught, memorizing facts, completing lengthy assignments, doing repetitive work, and having little choices (Charles, 2011). Effective teachers manage lessons in ways that keep students alert, on task, and involved (Kounin, 1971). I agree with Kounin when he says that the most important factors in preventing behavior are presenting lessons that students find engaging, managing those lessons to keep students involved and accountable, and keeping track of what is going on in all parts of the classroom at all times and it evident to students.

Supportive I will have a system in my classroom that involves consequences when classroom rules are broken, but that leave room for improvement. It is important for me to show students that there are opportunities to restore misbehavior. I will have a chart placed in my classroom that will be accessible to all students. This chart will represent a scale of seven levels of behavior. Each student will have a clothespin with their name, and the clothespin will be moved by the student themselves when I notice a misbehavior or good behavior occurring. Students will all begin the day in the middle of the scale at the good level. At the bottom of the scale it will have R,R,R (restitution, resolution, and reconciliation) in which students will have a meeting with me as a final step in correcting behavior. At the top of the scale will be awesome which will be the highest-level students can achieve for the day. If students achieve the highest level there will be positive activities students can redeem. Setting limits by communicating with students: As a class we will discuss what I will do to help students abide by the rules. I will explain to students how I will show my approval and appreciation when students follow rules properly, along with what I will do when students misbehave. I will use body language, eye contact, facial expressions, or physical proximity to remind students what they should be doing (Jones, 2011). Positivity: As the teacher in classroom, I want to play the role as encourager, mentor, and role model as opposed to the rule enforcer (Charles, 2011). In order to do this I will, always speak in positive terms, encourage students to strive for improvement, emphasize students strengths, help students learn from mistakes, encourage independence and responsibility, show faith in students by offering help, encourage students to help each other, show pride in students work, be

optimistic and enthusiastic, and use encouraging remarks (Dreikurs, 1972). Positivity in the classroom will also include demonstrating Glassers seven connecting habits in order to build good relationships with students and gaining their willingness to cooperate. These habits include caring, listening, supporting, contributing, encouraging, trusting, and befriending (Glasser, 2001). Student choice: Students choose to behave as they do. It is important that teachers view behavior as a choice and influence students to make better choices in how they behave, thus leading to success in school (Glasser, 2001). When I see a student beginning to emulate a behavior that is not acceptable, I will ask students in a friendly tone if the choice they are making is a good choice, why they think that, and what might be a better choice. I-messages: Teachers should feel free to express feelings towards students, but when doing so should use Imessages. Using an I-message, the teacher might say I am very upset rather than say you are very rude (Ginott, 1971). While I-messages may be applicable when teachers are upset, they are also beneficial when trying to point out positive things students are doing. I will use Istatements to show students that I care and that I do notice good things about them. Corrective The most effective approach to discipline involves self-restitution, a process by which offenders restore themselves, leading to an increased sense of personal responsibility inside and outside the classroom (Gossen, 2004). Intervention will occur when students reach the lowest level on the behavior scale. When students misbehave and a corrective procedure is needed, I will help students learn self-control by taking steps that help students understand what they have done

wrong. Students will take ownership of the problems involved and I will suggest strategies for solving the problem while making sure students dignity remains intact. This will be done by guiding students through a process of restitution in which students repair the damage done, resolution in which students identify and correct what caused the misbehavior, and finally reconciliation in order to heal relationships (Coloroso, 2011). Communication with parents: Every day, the students will be sent home with their planner for parents to initial. If need be, I will write notes in the students planners in order to communicate with parents. I will expect parents to sign planner every night to indicate that they saw it. If I do not get a signature from parents, I will attempt to call or take other measures in getting ahold of parents.

References Charles, C. (2011). Building Classroom Discipline. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Coloroso, B. (2011). Responsibility and Inner Discipline. From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 74-75). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Dreikurs, R. (1972). Human Needs and Democratic Teaching. From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 70-72). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Ginott, H. (1971). Congruent Communication. From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 68-70). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Glasser, W. (2001). How Does Glasser Use Choice Theory and Quality Education to Establish Classroom Discipline? From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 138-155). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Gossen, D. (2004). Self-Restitution in Discipline. From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 239). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Jones, F. (2011). How Does Fred Jones Establish Class Discipline by Keeping Students Responsibly Involved? From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 120-137). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Kounin, J. (1971). Lesson Management. From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 6668). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Wong, H. and Wong, R. (2011). How do Harry and Rosemary Wong Use Responsibilities and Procedures to Establish Class Discipline? From C. Charles, Building Classroom Discipline (p. 101-119). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.