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These students are the worst ever!

August 28, 2008 – 2:40 pm

They just keep getting worse and worse!

Have you ever heard a teacher say that?  If so, run in the other direction!  A teacher who has resigned himself or herself to seeing the students as getting worse and worse just hasn’t realized that the only thing getting worse and worse is that teacher.

My experience has been that it only takes one or two students to jade how you look at your entire year.  But for the most part, the students all want to succeed.  The vast majority of students want to do well.  It then becomes a matter of motivating the class to do what you want them to do and minimizing the negative impact of those very few students who simply won’t buy-in to your class.

The teacher who let’s their perspective be perpetually focused on those few negative students misses so much of what makes teaching great- those precious students who really are inspired by what you’re doing in the classroom, those students who look forward to a kind word from you all day, those students who take the time to write you a nice note telling you how much you’ve meant to him or her.

Wouldn’t you rather have your perspective of your students crafted by those positive moments instead of dwelling on those few negative students?  Wouldn’t you rather enjoy your teaching job instead of dreading getting up in the morning?

Each year it seems my students are getting better and better.  Could that be possible?  I hope so, because that means next year is going to be awesome!

Darren B.

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Check out my classroom blog to see what’s happening there!

August 26, 2008 – 5:46 pm

As many of you know, I’m teaching the 7th grade in a rural western North Carolina middle school.  I love teaching there as the students are so great and rewarding.

The school I work at, Canton Middle School, recently received a grant for a bunch of new technology to be integrated into classroom instruction.  A part of that grant included training and help implementing that technology.  And a part of that implementation is our classroom blogs.

I’ve just made my first post of the year on my classroom blog, but I’ll be adding small podcasts from my students later this week.  If you’re interested in what I’ve got going on in my classes, check out my other blog at Mr. B’s Language Arts Blog.

I’d love to hear a comment from my loyal readers out there!

Darren B.

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What is the most important first lesson of the year?

August 20, 2008 – 5:38 pm

More than almost anything else you can do as a teacher, the first lesson you should teach is really quite simple.  It won’t take you long to plan it.  It won’t even take long to teach it.  But failing to teach this simple lesson can doom you to another year of frustration.

What am I talking about?

It’s quite simple.  You must teach your students how to listen.

Yes, you read that correctly.  The first lesson you teach your students needs to be how to listen in your classroom.  Can’t you hear your students already?  “I already know how to listen!”

But, as we all know, hearing and listening are two entirely different things.  Hearing happens unconsciously.  Listening takes an active thought process to happen.

If you don’t teach your students how to listen, you’ll spend so much of your year repeating yourself to your students that you won’t be nearly as effective as you could be.

How many times have you taken the time to give very clear directions for a class lesson and then told the students to get to work, only to have a student or two say, “What are we doing?”

Clearly that student wasn’t listening.  Yes, he or she might have heard you, but the active listening process just wasn’t happening.

Yes, our students should know how to listen.  It seems silly that we, as professionals, would need to teach our students such a simple concept.  But take it from me.  When I look back on the two years I spent teaching without having taught my students how to listen, I remember so many more frustrating moments than in the following years when I took the fifteen minutes to cover this vital lesson.

So, how do you teach your students to listen?

My free online classroom management videos will walk you through the process.  Just click on the following link to be taken to our class management video download center.

Classroom Management Videos

Don’t make the mistake so many struggling teachers are making.  Take the time to teach your students how to listen.  It will make all the difference for you this year.

 Darren

 

DarrenB | Class Management Videos, Classroom Management Tips, Teacher Tricks | Comments (0)

Visit our Classroom Managment Forums!

July 24, 2008 – 2:44 pm

If you haven’t been to our forums in a while, you should stop by.  Things are picking up over there.

I’ve always been so impressed by the combined experience of our forums collaborating to help teachers trouble shoot and problem solve the difficult situations we face in our classes.  Even though I feel pretty secure with my classroom management, I love picking up a trick or two from the other pro’s out there.

And if you’re not a pro and just want a bit of help with something you know you’ll be facing in the class once our students come back, post it in the forums.  I’m sure someone will help you see a way through.

Here’s the link to our forums:  www.helpingteachersgrow.com/forums

Darren

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Classroom Management in Writing

July 11, 2008 – 7:08 pm

I’ve been taking a lot of time this summer to write my book.  No, it’s not the great American novel, even though I’ve got one of those lurking in the depths of my brain.  It’s my whole classroom management system and teaching philosophy rolled into one.

What’s interesting as I write this is that the simply process of putting down into words my management system and my teaching philosophy requires me to become even more clear on what I think makes a class run smoothly, what I think helps me as a teacher be successful.

And then trying to put that into a verbal expression that will help other teachers experience success like I have takes the challenge to an entirely new level!

I’m really enjoying this challenge, though.  I’d thought I would spend much of this summer creating more classroom management videos- and I was able to make one more- but I’m spending almost all my free time on this class management book.  When I get it finished I’ll let you know.  Already, it looks to be a solid solution to so many problems our teachers are having with the management of their students.

I know these systems work because they work for me and they work for others I’ve taught over the years.  I just can’t wait to spread this easy and powerful system to more and more teachers in the hopes that I can expand my influence beyond my classroom and school.

Be good out there.  I hope you’re getting more outside time than I am.

Darren Barkett

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Class Management on Vacation!

June 21, 2008 – 6:35 pm

Hey everyone!  I’m headed out of town for a week to relax at the beach with my family, but while I’m gone, if you haven’t seen my newest video on classroom management, head over to the website for a quick look.  In this ten minute free class management video, I show you how to create a system that gets your students to listen every time someone speaks in your class.  Doesn’t that sound good?

This system really works.  I’ve used it for over ten years, and, if you reinforce it consistently, you’ll be amazed at the changes it creates for you and your classroom environment.

Here’s the direct link to the sign up page to see my videos:  Classroom Management Videos

Let me know what you think or if you have any questions about how to implement the information into your classroom management system.  Also, when I get back I’m creating a whole new set of videos addressing new issues in your classroom, so let me know what you want me to cover!

I’ll think of you when I’m lounging on the beach!

Darren

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Ever Get Antsy With All This Free Time?

June 18, 2008 – 1:17 am

My first week home from school is always an adjustment for me.  My mind and body is so used to being constantly involved from the moment I get to school at 7:45 until the moment I leave work.  Now that I’ve got time to relax or reflect or exercise, it’s taking a bit for my mind to adjust.

Anyone else feeling this lag time?

True, summers off is a great perk of being a teacher.  But making that adjustment to having so much flexibility in my schedule is a lot easier said than done.  I no longer have to wolf down my food at lunch.  I don’t have to time out my bathroom breaks.  I can actually watch a bit of tv during the day if I am so inclined.

Last summer my family and I went on vacation the week after school was out.  This was a great way to transition into the summer.  By the time I returned from vacation, I’d completely adjusted to my new time frame.  This summer, though, our vacation is next week.  And I’m here with all this energy that had been focused on running my classroom.

Luckily I’ve got my classroom management training I’m working on producing for release this August.  It’s got me keeping focused more than in the past.  And it’s exciting to connect with other teachers out there who are looking for ways to grow over the summer.

I hope you’re finding ways to adjust to our wonderful summer schedule.  Let me know how you are coping.  And I’ll make sure I keep you informed on the progress of my latest classroom management videos.

If you haven’t seen my latest offering on how to get your students to listen to you every time you speak, check out the video at http://www.helpingteachersgrow.com/classroommanagement_freedownload.html

You’ll find both of my free videos available to you there.

Enjoy these long days of summer!

Darren B.

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That bitter sweet last day of school…

June 10, 2008 – 11:16 am

I had a couple extra minutes this morning since my children are already out of school, leaving me with several less tasks to do in my morning routine, so I thought I’d get one last blog post in before heading into seeing my 7th graders off for the summer.

The end of the year is always a bitter sweet moment for me. Especially when I’ve had such a great year. My students were top notch. I had so few discipline problems. The level of buy-in from my students was the highest it’s ever been. And we were able to accomplish so much! Their scores were high and their motivation was higher! I hate to see this crop of kids go.

But, as always happens in this job, they will go. And I’ll have a whole new batch in next year, ready to start the entire process over again. I love that about teaching, having a fresh start every year. That cyclical sense of time and process really helps me manage my personal growth, as no matter how rough a year gets, there’s always next year.

So, in a couple of hours, I’ll be on the bus lot, waving good bye to all those great kids I was blessed to work with this year. And, once they’re gone…it’s time to celebrate!

I hope you’ve had a great year and are looking forward to some very deserved time off!

Darren

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When all else fails…smile!

June 4, 2008 – 6:09 pm

Here I am, like so many of you out there, suffering through your final days of the year. Here in North Carolina, we’ve already had our end of the year tests and our grades have already been turned in. Typically, this is the time of the year when our students start unraveling, sometimes more than just a bit…  Now my homeroom students this year have been just fantastic.  I wish I could keep them all day.  We could work on a loosely organized project for hours and have a great time together.

But some of my other classes…Well, they can get a bit trying.  I often find myself getting a bit uptight at these changes in my students’ behaviors. I want to jump all over them and fuss at them and tell them how disappointed I am with their behavior.

But then I remember. It’s the end of the year! We’ve only got a few days left together! As long as they aren’t being unsafe or hurtful to others, then perhaps I can take a different approach. Perhaps I can try just smiling and laughing and *gasp* relaxing a bit with them.

If figured it was worth a try.  And wouldn’t you know, they actually became better behaved.  Instead of taking my more relaxed attitude as a sign that they could continue to behave inappropriately, most of my students showed better behavior.  Their behaviors actually improved.

I really like being able to relax with my students at the end of the year.  All too often we get caught up in all these last minute tasks that take so long to accomplish that we get a bit grumpy.  But if we can just remember that our students will remember us more for how we are on these last days of school that we were throughout the last 180 days, it might make it a bit easier to…relax and enjoy these last moments with our students.

Darren

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Tricky Classroom Managment Situations

June 1, 2008 – 9:47 pm

Here’s a copy of an email I received from a member of our community I thought you might like to read.  It really highlights the need for an effective classroom management system that provides a framework for addressing all of the situations that come up in the classroom.

OK “What if” you tell the student  he has a mark for not following the rules, and you try  to move on, but he/she yells (and I mean yells) “What? I didn’t do anything,tell me what I did, I’m not the only one….”

I try not get caught up in verbal confruntations (it’s hard) but how can you continue teaching with this going on? Usually his friends will join in yelling to defend their friend. Jr. High is obviously not my happy place…but can I do to to teach through this?

I think all of us who have worked within a classroom management system have had to deal with this.  The thing to remember is that it is of primary importance that you remain calm and in control of your emotions.  So many of our students are used to the verbal confrontations and power struggles that plague their lives.  If we refuse to be drawn into these power struggles, our classroom management will be able to take effect and cover these difficult situations.

When I have a student who gets extremely upset at receiving a “mark” I explain very calmly to them, looking at that student directly in the eye, “If you don’t understand why you received a mark, I will gladly discuss it with you after class.”  And then move on.

 This sounds simplistic, I know, but over time, this approach reduces the number of times the students act out after being disciplined.  When the students see that you will not be drawn into a power struggle, they will eventually stop trying to draw you in.

Now if the student continues to make a scene, I give them new directions.  “Johnny, I need you to sit there quietly while I continue with this lesson.  If you do not, it will be another mark.  Do you understand?”  Then, if the tantrum continues, calmly give the student another mark, and remind him that another mark means they are out of Fun Friday or whatever reward you’ve established.

And if the student becomes completely uncontrollable, give them the ultimate directions with clear consequences.  “If you can’t control yourself in my classroom, I will have to call _______ to come remove you from my classroom.  Do you understand?”  Again, you’ve done all this with the utmost calmness and neutrality to your voice.  Typically, the student will regain control.  If not, you can either have an administrator come and take the kid from your class, or you can send that student to an already arranged other teacher’s classroom for some time out.

 Remember, you must be the voice of calm and cool in the classroom.  When the students see that you won’t get upset at their childlike behavior, that childlike behavior will begin happening less and less.

 Now doesn’t that sound good?

Darren

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