10 Expert Tips for Really Effective Elementary Classroom Management
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As an elementary teacher, one of your biggest challenges is likely classroom management. Managing a room full of energetic, curious kids can sometimes feel like herding cats, but don’t fear! Sprinkle these 10 magical classroom management tips into your teaching routine to actually make your days run more easily!
- Wireless Doorbell for Attention and Transitions
- Songs and Chants to Remember Routines
- Traffic Cones as Student Placeholders
- Signs and Light Switches to Gauge Voice Levels
- Finished Work Signs to Turn In Work
- No Name Board for Nameless Work
- Secret Walker for Hallway Behavior
- Daily Feelings Check-In
- Classroom Worry Jar
- Pencil Sharpening Routine
What You Need to Know about Classroom Management as the Teacher
EVERYTHING you do with your students hinges on how clearly you share expectations and give explanations. This is no different when considering how to successfully manage your classroom.
Don’t just TELL them what you expect, show them! After you’ve shown them, provide lots of guidance too.
Tell-Show-Guide… Tell-Show-Guide… Tell-Show-Guide!
Remember, classroom management is a process. Some things will come along quicker than others. Be patient with your little ones as they learn, and give extra grace when they don’t respond quickly or correctly. It will take time, but they CAN learn!
EXPERT TEACHER TIP: Instead of just telling students what to do, explain WHY this is the process and even allow them to have some input into what processes are being put into place. This will have a much better effect on your students. It all works together towards a more positive classroom environment!
10 Classroom Management Tips You Need to Implement
Implement these 10 tricks to take you from being frustrated to feeling fabulous!
Wireless Doorbell for Attention and Transitions
Use a REAL wireless doorbell to seek your students’ attention and help your times of transition throughout the day. Hang it by your door or place it beside your desk. When it’s time to switch activities, begin working with a partner, clean up, or quiet down– give it a ring!
Grab an extra doorbell that chimes directly into your colleague’s classroom to let them know if you need to meet at the classroom door for “important” information.
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Songs and Chants to Remember Routines
Songs and chants are a great way to keep learners engaged and energized. Help students remember particular routines throughout the day.
When it’s time for that routine to happen, start singing! You’ll be surprised how quickly your little ones learn these songs and know what to do when they hear them begin to play.
Make things super easy for yourself and grab these FREE made-for-you Classroom Management Songs & Chants.
Traffic Cones as Student Placeholders
Kids are on the move ALL DAY–going to the restroom, visiting the nurse, running an errand for you, seeing a support teacher, and more!
Use traffic cones as placeholders when students leave the room to help you remember where they have gone. Label them with different locations and call them the “I Am Out Cones”.
Grab this set of FREE Classroom Management Cone Signs to help you keep track of all of your busy students’ schedules more easily. You will get a download of 16 different cone signs to choose from, and 10 different locations!
Signs and Light Switches to Gauge Voice Levels
With a classroom full of students, it can get loud FAST! Use classroom signs and light switches to help gauge voice levels.
Turn the light on under the sign that matches the volume of voice level needed for the activity.
With this Voice Level resource, you’ll not only get the signs needed for this great classroom management tool but also a related social skills story and several activities to help your favorite little ones understand different voice levels with ease!
Finished Work Signs to Turn In Work
Having options for students to choose from when it is time to turn in their work makes grading papers easier because the students do the separating for you.
You now know who finished with no problem, who isn’t done yet and needs to keep working, and who needs some help because they have not yet mastered this skill.
This classroom management tool also starts getting kids used to taking control of their own learning!
Get your own FREE copy of these Finished Work signs, and start using them as soon as today!
No Name Board for Nameless Work
Keep things easy for yourself by creating a no-name board for nameless papers!
You can easily make this using a board, clothes pins, ribbons, paint, glue gun, and scrapbooking letters. Hang the papers with no name on the board, and then when students don’t get their work back, they know where to look.
This is another great way to teach accountability!
Secret Walker for Hallway Behavior
Choose a secret walker each day to help keep hallway behavior on point.
This is a great way to keep students extra motivated while holding them accountable.
Use this social skills story about hallway behavior to make sure your students clearly understand how they are expected to act and what’s not okay too!
You can grab the Secret Walker Kit for FREE to help make monitoring hallway behavior a breeze.
Daily Feelings Check-In
Have a feelings check-in time each morning to help you stay in tune with how your students are feeling each day. It’s also a great way to ensure that all students feel supported when they are having a hard day.
These FREE Personal Emotion Strips are super helpful to guide students in keeping track of their own emotions throughout the day too!
Classroom Worry Jar
Use a worry jar in your classroom as a tool to help students unload their anxious thoughts throughout the day.
Encourage your students to add to the worry jar when they arrive in the morning, but ensure that this helpful tool is accessible throughout the day too!
By being mindful of and supporting your students’ emotions, you will have a much easier time managing classroom behaviors!
Pencil Sharpening Routine
Establish a consistent pencil sharpening routine to avoid any pencil-related behavior issues.
Teach students the exact expectations you have for the sharpener such as:
- How to correctly sharpen a pencil
- When they are able to sharpen their pencil during the day
Help your students become more independent in this skill by posting this pencil sharpening sign near your pencil sharpener as an extra reminder of the expectations.
EXPERT TEACHER TIP: Get a really good ELECTRIC pencil sharpener for your classroom to make this process even easier!
So, there you have it– 10 classroom management tips that will turn your days from a circus act to a smooth sailing adventure!
Do you have classroom management tips or tricks that have worked wonders in your elementary classroom? Leave a comment below or send me a DM on IG to share your successes with other teachers! We’re all in this together, right?!
Let me know if you have any questions about anything you see here. Don’t forget to pin this post to refer to it later!
Other posts you may enjoy:
Successful Strategies How To Improve Student Behavior at Assemblies
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How to Easily Accommodate Students with Severe Food Allergies into Your Classroom Community
KEEP HALLWAY BEHAVIOR ON TRACK WITH THIS
Free Secret Walker Kit
Monitoring hallway behavior has never been so easy and so motivating!
Diane Romo
Thank you for being here! I love sharing ideas with other teachers! If you are looking to enhance your teaching and build a positive classroom community, you have come to the right place!
