During my first year teaching middle school students, I found myself in a bit of a dilemma. When the bell rang, I knew that my class should be orderly and on task. I had an activity on the board for the students to complete. However, no one did it. Instead, they just kept chatting and laughing.
I desperately needed some classroom management strategies(策略) that actually worked. She gave me the following idea: When the bell rings, write down the names of everyone who is talking on the board, and tell them if they speak out of turn again they will receive a discipline essay.
I tried it. Wow, it worked! Firstly, watch carefully for the very first person that talks and be sure to give him a warning in the form of his name on the board. Meanwhile, say something like, "Taylor, this is just a warning to you. You are not in trouble at this point, but you will be if you continue talking. "
There would still be days when the bell rang and half the class were still talking, but instead of allowing my stress level to rise, I would calmly start writing names. It normally only took three or four names for the class to notice. Then they would quickly quiet down.
If you teach high school, or are just not crazy about this method, look for ways to adjust it. For example, you could give a student a warning by putting a Post-it on their desk. But if you've had trouble keeping order in your classroom, I do highly recommend that you try it.
A. But it simply wasn't.
B. Now let me make an introduction.
C. Eventually, I went to an old teacher.
D. Therefore, I referred to some relevant books.
E. And I felt like a failure in my own classroom.
F. Writing names down may not be a good fit for everyone.
G. This method made the biggest difference at the start of class.
