Victoria Mason

November 15, 2018

Introduction

 The Grade range for my Classroom Management Plan is Third through Fifth grade.

 During this time in a student’s life they are going through some changes. Some students are,

“already entering puberty, with body, emotions, and attitude changes,”

(https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/caqdevelopment.asp). This needs to be considered in the

classroom management plan as their hormones may be fluctuating. Students will need

guidance on learning how to manage these changes. In this stage of development, eight to

eleven years old students, “begin to think logically and like to work on real tasks,”

(https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/caqdevelopment.asp). This means these students are more

capable of higher order thinking and handling more sophisticated tasks, than they have been

previously been presented with. However, some student who are behind developmentally

may need more support and scaffolding.

Section 1: Management/Education Philosophy

Within my classroom the education philosophy practiced is that, “the teacher is the map

and the students are the adventurers.” As the teacher I believe is it is my job to facilitate the

learning and let the students progress through on their own. I want my classroom to be centered

around the student’s capabilities. In my classroom I believe the best instruction is implemented

in small groups, that are grouped based of homogenous capabilities. There was research done

where they found that, “heterogeneous grouping or a combination of heterogeneous

and homogeneous grouping under relatively adequate time allocation is optimal for enhancing

teacher ratings,” (Garrett & Hong, 2016). This proves that homogenous groupings are affective.
Another big part of my philosophy is the use of a Growth Mindset. I want my students to,

“believe that their abilities can be developed, and so their major goal is to learn,” (Dweck, p. 8). I

want my student to push themselves to be better students and better people.

Section 2: Approach to Foundational Strategies for Management

When it comes to implementing management in my classroom, I will start with three

rules I have developed. The rules are “Be respectful, Be kind, and Be safe.” These rules are

broad enough that they can apply to many different situations within the classroom. These will

not be the only rules within the classroom. The students will be able to contribute in making two

more rules for the class. Through a classroom discussion where every student can contribute, I

will help guide students to coming up with the two additional rules. Rules that resemble, “Be

responsible and Be a helper.” This makes a grand total of five rules that should cover any

situation that may arise within our classroom. Allowing the students to contribute to the

classroom rules increases their investment in the rules. It encourages them to self-manage as they

created some rules themselves.

I will help reinforce the rules for the academic year heavily in the first two months of

school. After creating the rules, I will have students associate the rules with the fingers on their

hand, one rule per finger (https://www.activeed.com.au/articles/the-five-finger-rule). This will

help the student remember how many rules there are. I will also ask that a group of students

come up and act out one way to break the rule, and one way to follow the rule correctly.

Throughout the following months I will take every chance to reference the rules within the

classroom and ask students to readjust their behavior based upon the expectations we have set

together as a class.
 Transitions are typically overlooked procedures within a classroom that help it run

smoothly. Transitions need to have a set procedure to make sure everyone is safe and there is

organization to limit chaos. In my classroom I will have my students line up or go to their desks

by table group. This limits the number of students up at one time. Students will have time in

between switching from one subject to the next (example: reading to math). Giving them time to

retrieve the right materials for the upcoming block. Students will go back to their cubbies,

walking, to receive the necessary materials, then head back to their seats to await further

instruction. The students will follow the same procedures every day. This will create a sense of

consistency for the students, which benefits them.

During whole group instruction a challenge that normally arises, is having all the students

engaged with the lesson. I will confront this issue through multiple facets. When planning my

lessons, I will make sure to present questions that are higher order thinking questions that vary in

difficulty so students at all levels can participate. I will also use turn and talks as a regular

practice in my lessons. This allows students to express their opinions in a low risk environment

and feel like they have had an opportunity to express themselves. For higher students I will

institute an extension activity or question in every independent practice activity. This will

hopefully push them to think on a deeper level and challenge them more.

Section 3: Rewards, Negative Reinforcement, and Punishments

The rewards in my classroom will be determined by the class, with final approval being

decided by the teacher. As a class we will discuss four tiers of rewards. Students will earn these

rewards through ClassDojo. ClassDojo is a program where students can earn points, dojos. The

rewards progress in the needed number of dojos so students must earn more dojos to receive

rewards of higher value. During a typical week in my classroom a student earns about 16-20
dojos with average behavior, resulting in two rewards. The dojos are a way of praising the

student for either being on task, being responsible, being helpful, being kind, showing

appropriate hallway behavior, or doing great work. I do not award dojos just for academic

achievement because that tells students, “I can look at your performance and judge your

underlying intelligence,” (Dweck, p. 8). Which is the opposite of the mindset students need to

have. Praise is important to help encourage students to be on their best behavior and increase

their likelihood of wanting to participate in the class. An example of the tiers of rewards are

provided below:

Classroom Rewards

Tier Four (30 dojos and Pick one from the top tier and one from lower tiers, or three
up) lower rewards (example rewards: lunch with a teacher, 20
minutes of free time)
Tier Three (16 – 29 dojos) Pick two rewards from this tier or below (example rewards
fuzzy friend, homework pass)
Tier Two (6 – 15 dojos) Pick one reward (example reward: 5 minutes of free draw)
Tier One (5 and below) Results in a phone call/letter home

Allowing student to choose their reward is a vital part of the reward system. It gives students the

sense of choice and autonomy within the classroom, which encourages good behavior. An

example of a student earning a dojo would be if they were the first student to put all their

supplies away silently and be first in line to go to specials. This student would earn a following

directions dojo.

The consequences in my classroom will occur through a pathway. Each day the pathway

starts over again. This give students a clean slate and does not drag drama from the previous day

into the new day. The consequences progress in severity in a way to give students ample amount

of opportunities to change their behavior or their trajectory for the day. Students receive two
warnings that are recorded on class dojo to make sure they are not falsely accused of multiple

warnings. These warnings may be given if a student blurts out too many times or if they decide

to not follow any directions. After two warnings the next step is the revoking of a class dojo

which affects their ability to collect a reward at the end of the week. The next step in the

classroom consequences is a Think Sheet. Where the student will state what behavior got them in

trouble and explain which rule they broke. The student will then explain how they should have

handled the situation instead. The Think Sheet will be sent home and it must be returned signed

by a legal guardian/parent. Having students fill out the Think Sheet allows them to reflect on

their behavior and forces them to think about a better way to handle the situation for next time. I

can support my student’s development of problem-solving skills, regulating their emotions and

their interacting with peers, through discussing their Think Sheet later. Discussing different ways

to handle the situation that occurred that would result in a better outcome. The next consequence,

which is the most severe consequence is a referral to the front office where the appropriate steps

will be taken by administration. Hitting another student would be an example of a referral worthy

offense, as it is severe and could have harmed another student. These consequences increase in

severity to discourage students from misbehaving.

Section 4: Family Communication Plan

I believe in open communication with my student’s families. Communication for me goes

both ways at any time a parent can email me or message me on ClassDojo to discuss a concern,

of any kind when it comes to their student. I believe this benefits the student in the long run to

have people that support them and communicate openly at school and at home. Communication

between the student’s family and myself will be conducted in one of four ways. The four way are

through email, a message on ClassDojo, a phone call, or an in-person conference. The most
frequent form of communication will be through ClassDojo. It allows me to send out mass

messages about assignments, reminders for tests, or school fundraisers. ClassDojo will also be

used to communicate if a student is having a hard day. Just a simple message will be sent home

with any concerns asking for a response to make sure the legal guardian/parent have seen the

message. If the legal guardian/parent does not reply, then I will try to communicate through

email. If I still do not receive a response, I will try a phone call to the number listed for the

student’s contact. The last form of communication that is more of a last resort, unless it is a

regular parent teacher conference, is an in-person conference. This will be a conference where

another staff member will be present for documentation purposes. I will ask for parents to come

in twice during the year to have an in-person parent teacher conference with me, where we

discuss what their student is performing well on. along with areas of improvement. At that time,

I will be sure to provide parents with the resources to help them assist their student’s growth,

whether it be academic or personal.

Ages and stages of development. (2000). Retrieved November 14, 2018, from

https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/caqdevelopment.asp

Dweck, C. S. (2002). Boosting achievement with messages that motivate. Education Canada, 6-

10. Retrieved November 14, 2018.

Garrett, R., & Hong, G. (2016). Impacts of grouping and time on the math learning of language

minority kindergartners. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 38(2), 222–244.

Retrieved from

https://librarylink.uncc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/lo

gin.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1100445&site=ehost-live&scope=site

The five finger rule. (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2018, from

https://www.activeed.com.au/articles/the-five-finger-rule