Students entered the classroom and immediately went to their desks and pulled out notebook paper
Consequences
Echelons of discipline posted to wall
Step 1 - Conference with Teacher
Step 2 - Parent Phone Call
Step 3 - Detention
Step 4 - Visit to Principal
*Severe infractions will go directly to principal
Expectations are known from day one of class
Students help create classroom expectations and are thus more likely to remember them
(http://www.education.ne.gov/bmit/pdf/establishingclassroomrulesandconsequences.pdf)
Design/Decor
Objectives List
Students seen looking at objectives list to double check learning goals
Agenda Posted
Students have clear and concise details as
to what the class will be doing that day
Desks set into groups of four to balance groups
Convenient way to shift groups every three weeks and
maintain a shifting classroom that allows for students to
familiarize themselves with the whole class over the semester
Inspirational posters of notable figures to
encourage students to do their best
7 habits of happy kids posted on walls (http://www.theleaderinme.org/the-7-habits-for-kids)
Habit 1 - Be Proactive
Habit 2 - Begin with the end in mind
Habit 3 - Put first things first
Habit 4 - Think win-win
Habit 5 - Seek first to understand, then to be understood
Habit 6 - Synergize
Habit 7 - Sharpen the saw
With these habits in place students can
develop behaviors that will carry on into
multiple aspects of their day to day lives
Procedures
Class Meeting to start lesson was demonstrated
Students in control of their own academic progress and focus on outcomes (Glasser
http://www.wglasser.com/the-glasser-approach/reality-therapy)
"Bell Ringer" - Assignment on white board that listed initial work to be done by students
Allowed for Differentiated Instruction for specific students with disabilities
Use of "Anchor Activity" allowed observed teacher to explain individually to a student with a low
reading level and student with ADD (Tomlinson, p. 31, 2001)
Cooperative Learning/Peer Teaching
Kagan Cooperative Learning (Kagan, 2013)
Combination of Elements from Component 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, & 2E (Danielson, 2007)
From first day of school year, a script has been in place and procedures have been established
"If you do not plan, the students will plan for you" (Wong, Your First Day,
http://www.teachers.net/wong/JUN00/)
Teacher observed moved through plan close to
exactly as she had laid it out to me before class.
Modified as was needed to suit class and student
needs