I remember teaching my first class like it was yesterday even though it has been 16+ years ago.  I completed all of my course work, visited classrooms of veteran teachers, and I loved children…  What more could I need?  Well, I needed a lot!  My reality check came when I started teaching a summer school camp right after graduation.  I told my students the rules for the classroom and my reward system.  I wouldn’t need consequences as MY students would respond to positive reinforcements.  Ugh, was I wrong. In this post, Classroom Management Thoughts for a First Year Teacher, I am sharing my strategies for handling student behaviors.

Words of Wisdom for a First Year Teacher

If I can give new teachers any words of wisdom, they would be to have at least four consequences for bad behavior.

• Verbal Warning
• Student/Teacher Hall Conference
• Refocus Assignment
• Parent Phone Call

It is as important to have positive reinforcements for the students who always do the “right thing”.  I have seen classrooms without positive reinforcements and, sometimes, your “perfect” student will stop being “perfect” because they are not recognized.

In this blog, Managing Classroom Behaviors with Check Sheets, I offer an infraction log.  This has been an invaluable tool for parent conferences and solving difficult behavioral problems.

I hope your first year of teaching was as exciting as mine!