Part Seven of a Series Just for New Teachers

Think Through the Problem to Reduce the Tension

In a continuing series designed with new teachers in mind, I've decided to share some slides from the seminars about how to successfully support and manage difficult and challenging students I presented pre-pandemic. In this week's post, I think it is first important to see the cycle that most classroom misbehavior follows so that you can figure out how to stop the cycle and get your students working successfully and productively. 

One of the most important aspects of breaking the cycle of misbehavior comes from thinking through the reasons that a student would misbehave in your class. To do this, ask yourself what a student would gain from misbehavior and then consider all of the ways that you can satisfy that need for the student so that there would be no need for acting out. 

Another thing to consider when attempting to break the cycle is to stay in control of your emotions and to approach your students with a calm, matter-of-fact dignity. You can always vent your frustrations later in private, but forcing students to have to react to your loss of control will not be productive. 

At  times when I was speaking with groups of teachers who were having trouble with the behavior of a particularly disruptive student, we would talk about the various ways that a teacher could handle a student who was spiraling out of control. Here are a few suggestions. 

Finally, think carefully about the timing of your interventions. Acting quickly can often keep small problems from exploding.