Super School Routines to Soothe Classroom Chaos

Routines are so important in making sure your classroom runs as smoothly as possible.  There are endless routines you could implement and I'm sure you will find that some are naturally developed as you go through the year.

Some that I have found to be invaluable and are a must for your first few weeks:

Lining up

This cuts down so much time.  I have a line order that they always line up in (no squabbles) and they know they need to line up in silence.

Key Commands

Anything you say that they need to do something in return.  For example, I use '3, 2, 1 Look this way', by the end of this the children should be in their seats and looking at me as I'm going to talk to the whole class for a little while.  'Freeze' is when I want to say something quick and the children just stay still and look at me.  'Off you go' is used after I am giving an instruction so they know it is the end of the instruction.

Beginning of the day

What do you want them to do as soon as they come into the classroom?

I have done a number of things - at one point the children did their jobs, signed the reading chart, got their reading records out and go on with a spelling task on the board.  Later in the year I got rid of the reading chart and jobs at the beginning of the day as too many children were out of their seats and it was feeling chaotic.  I've found keeping it as simple as possible works well on a morning.  It needs to be calming and set the tone for the day.

Beginning of lesson

Where are the children's books?  How are they putting them on the table?  Where are any resources? Who is collecting these things?  Do you start the lesson with a particular task?

I have boxes for each table that hold their books, in these boxes I also have a clipboard which, at the beginning of the day, I put on any resources they will be needing during that lesson.  I have boxes for Maths, Writing, Reading and Project and Science.  Each table has a box monitor who collects the box at the beginning of the lesson and returns it at the end of the lesson.

I also usually start the lesson with a particular task - which will be on the board - they 'boards' for these will be in their boxes and they know to get them out as soon as they sit down.  All you need to do is teach the different tasks and which boards they need for each, then they sort themselves out.

Resources

The best way I have found to do this is to allocate it as a 'job' (they love to help!).  I had two children who would get any glue sticks, scissors, pens and pencil crayons, two children who would give out any paper based resources and two children who were in charge of arts and crafts.  It was a lifesaver and saved me from spending too much time giving things out.

End of lesson

Do you want the children in their seats?  Behind their seats? Lined up?

I always got the children to tidy their tables away then move into the next lesson if we had two lessons back to back.  If it was before break or lunch, I would get them to stand behind their chairs and once they were all ready they lined up.

End of the school day

This was chaos to begin with but I gradually got better at managing this.  The children know the end of they day is near and begin to misbehave a little more than usual!  I would make sure they were all tidied away and sat in their seats then send them a table at a time.  Eventually we had a routine where the tables were in an order and would follow on from the one before them when most of that table were back in their seats.  I would read to the children while they were sorting themselves out, which ensured they did it quickly as most of them wanted to get back to hear the story.

Before sending them out I would get the children who walked home on their own to line up and let them out first.  The other children had to stay in their seats until their name was called.  It was ridiculously loud if they were allowed to do anything else.


I'm sure there are tons of other smaller routines I have but these are the major ones that need a little thought about them.  What routines do you use?  Are there any other routines you would recommend? x

My NQT Year Experience - Part 2

With only a couple of days before I'm back at school I've been reflecting on my NQT year and what I have learnt which may be of help to this years NQTs and ITTs.  I've already highlighted the importance of being flexible and taking the lead in Part 1, there's so much more I can take from my first year of teaching though...

• Smile and laugh along with them

So so important!  The old saying of 'Don't smile until Christmas' is wrong on every level.  You need to build a positive relationship with your class to get the best from them.  I work in a school in a very deprived area so behaviour can be tough, this means I do need to be firm and make my expectations very clear.  However, it does not mean I can't smile and laugh along with my class.  This really makes the job 10 times more enjoyable.  I've lost count of the amount of times I've laughed out loud with my class.  Some of my more memorable moments:

Reading 'The Christmasaurus' in front of my class and their visiting parents....it was probably the most embarrassing section of the story where the elves are singing silly songs about Santa's giant bottom...I'm fairly certain my face was as red as his Santa suit but I just laughed along with them.

Our end of year Pirate Party where I took on the swashbuckling role of Captain and made them all walk the plank (very satisfying!).

When they do something utterly ridiculous - for example, dancing when they didn't realise you were watching or putting on a high pitched voice in the dinner line because they were daydreaming and just following the pitch of the voices before them!

• Go in tough on behaviour

On the other side of the point above, it definitely pays off to go in tough on behaviour in Autumn term.  Once they understand where the boundaries are, they settle into the routines (another very important point!) and work for you rather than against you.

One of the most important lessons I have learnt is to remain consistent.  If you say you want them to line up in silence, do not accept anything less!  If they don't do it how you have asked, make them line up again, and again, and again, and again.  I saw what happens first hand when rules aren't consistent when I was joined by a second year BEd student who didn't do this.  It becomes chaotic as the children end up feeling confused because they don't know where the boundaries are.

Every child needs to be treated equally (to a point, certain children may need slightly different methods).  Make sure your class rules are sanctioned consistently - if the quiet, well-behaved child does something you would normally sanction, then sanction it.  It's really important that the children see you treating them all fairly.

Just as equally, reward consistently as well.  Whilst prizes and reward points work well, I have found telling them what they have done well and praising their strengths works incredibly well too!

If you have any other questions or comments please get in touch!  I'll carry on my NQT year reflections soon x

My NQT Year Experience - Part 1

Wow, what a year!  It has flown past and I can't believe it's been so long since I have written a post. My NQT year was nowhere near as full-on as my PGCE year but I do feel considerably more exhausted than I did this time last year.  The paperwork is less but it is more intense.  You go from having the security of having the class teacher with you to flying solo and being the only responsible adult in the room.

I have had so much thrown at me this year (as I'm sure every NQT has!) but I have come out of it on the other side and still feel the joy of teaching.  I honestly feel so lucky to have found the career for me and owe part of this to the school I work at.

It's funny, because I swore I would get a job at a small village school just like the one I went to as a child.  However, a couple of weeks into my second placement made me realise that a small school wasn't for me.  I am able to make such a huge difference to the children I teach and it has opened my eyes to the struggles some families deal with.

I've pulled together a list of what I have learnt from my NQT year, which will hopefully help future NQTs :)

Just to give some context - I work in a school where they use a two-teacher model, so each classroom has two fully qualified teachers.

• Be flexible!

So important.  I have had everything thrown at me this year and being flexible helps you to bounce back quickly.  We began the year with a move into the hall, where we taught for half a term until the building work on our classroom was finished.  We then had a relatively calm half term on the run-up to Christmas.  

Spring term was possibly the craziest.  My teaching partner and I gained and extra 8 children from year 3 for half a term.  Then my teaching partner (and the 8 children) moved back to year 3.  Looking back I feel slightly ridiculous at how nervous and anxious I felt because most other NQTs would have begun their year on their own.  After a few weeks of adjusting to being at one teacher, my confidence grew and it was the best thing to happen to me this year.

• Show off your passion - Take the lead on something

Anyone who knows me will know I am quite quiet.  Having organised an amazing STEM week for my class during my PGCE year, I knew I wanted it to be bigger and better this year.  When they asked for someone to take the lead and organise a STEM week for the school I knew I could do it and do it well.  So I went for it.  

I was petrified when I did my first assembly during the week but it came together and actually went well (even though it felt like it went on forever and someone in the front row produced a very audible yawn).  I managed to get engineers in for everyday and there was a huge buzz as the week ended. Next year will be even better!

Part 2 talks about behaviour management and connecting with your class :)