Manage Your Science Classroom (and Your Sanity)
By: Hayley Johnson
I’d like to hope that your classroom will never get to a point of extremity where you will need to use this strategy for management, but it is comical to think this may have been the last resort for some teacher out there (or a cruel joke).
Hopefully these words do not scare you, or bring back horrible memories of previous mismanaged students. My goal is to keep this blog post positive and equip you will tips and tricks for a great classroom environment, whether it be a science class or any other subject!
Some things to keep in mind…
“Love your students — and stand firmly against behavior that doesn’t meet your expectations or reflect their inner greatness.”
“[Students] needed to know that I cared for them and would not accept their poor choice because it would ultimately hurt them and didn’t reflect how wonderful they truly are.”
“Call attention to the things your students are doing that meet your expectations.”
“In those first few minutes, hours and days in the classroom, you are essentially creating a world. And you want a world in which students do things that will keep them or put them on a path to a life replete with meaningful opportunities.”
“Tell your students about who you are and why you’re there. A classroom where each student deeply trusts the teacher has the potential to be a great environment for learning.”
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/7-tips-better-classroom-management-tyler-hester
^^^ As you can see in the cartoon above, lab safety in a science classroom can go hand in hand with good classroom management ^^^
Science Classroom tips:
-Following posted rules and keeping important guidelines in mind can help everyone stay safe and have fun during science class.
-No matter how well prepared you are, accidents do happen. Knowing how to handle them can dramatically reduce the chance of severe injuries.
-Have a plan in place for how school personnel should handle a science classroom accident, and educate students about their role in helping out.
-Posting classroom rules and following safety guidelines will help avoid accidents and ensure a positive and safe learning experience.
-As long as students are safe, science class can be one of the most exciting and educational parts of the school day.
Key Terms:
Manage, establish, safety, cooperation, clarity, expectations
Hayley,
I really loved all the quotes you used. I thought they were a great and creative way to infuse real life experience with your blog topic! Maintaining a constructive relationship with all of our students is crucial to not only our classroom management, but also for their personal development and success.
Your images were also really powerful and engaging! Very well done!
Billy,
I always center my blogs around the strong wuotes that I find that I think encompass my main takeaways. I think hey exemplified the idea of classroom management while maintaining a focus on our relationship with our students. Thanks for the comment!
Hayley-
Those quotes really stood out to me! Such an interesting element to add to this blog, and not one I expected. Great job!
Meghan,
Thank you! I always try to include a few powerful quotes that encompass my blog’s message instead of typing out a few paragraphs. They highlight the purpose and importance of classroom management and having a good classroom environment. Thanks for the response!
Hayley,
Those quotes you provided are awesome!!! I think sometimes we as teacher can loose sight of what is most important and what our relationship should be like with our students. The quotes do a great job of helping us learn both of those things. Also the tips that you provided are wonderful and helpful!
Tom,
I always love included a few key quotes in my blog since I find ones that resonate well with me and my blog ideas. I loved that the article I pulled the quotes from had this positive feel and talked more about building a foundation and gaining trust, love, and respect rather than being in control and being demanding in the classroom in order to get students to stop talking and follow directions. I think that is how I will approach my classroom since I don’t have a demanding personality but still need to be able to manage my classroom. Thanks for the comment!
-Hayley
Hayley,
I loved all of the quotes you included at the beginning of your blog! They really help highlight that the student has to trust you and respect you as a teacher before they will fully cooperate in your classroom. I also really liked all of the cartoons that you included!
What kinds of rules are you going to have in your classroom to make sure you have the trust of your students?
Shay,
Thanks for all of the nice comments! I think starting with making my classroom feel like a safe place- where they can come to me with any issues (school or otherwise), and having no tolerance for bullying or disrespect- can start to set up the classroom environment without having to have specific rules in place and laid out. I would have classroom rules for safety and expectations, but other than that I think the trust aspect will come from my actions and behavior towards the students.