Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Spring 2018
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Section 1: Theory
The content area of social studies is the most important subject that is taught in a school.
Universities, businesses, and multiple other institutions have a strong desire to find passionate
employees with critical thinking skills, which are taught vigorously and productively through the
subject. Social studies is the only content area of its kind where we look toward the past to seek
out flaws, the solutions to work around them, and the best ways for us to cooperate with one
another on a human level. The best guide for exploration, can be me, as the educator. As the
teacher, I must be fully equipped to prepare my students and to push for their best work day-in
and day-out. My classroom management is what allows me to do this, as “it is a teacher – what
the teacher knows and can do – that makes the difference in the classroom” (Wong, 2009. P 81.).
I firmly believe that student success, growth, and achievement can begin and end with me. I have
devoted myself to work each day to make the classroom safe for exploration, sharing opinions,
and developmental growth. This directly allows for students to become invested in the
curriculum.
Students have needs in young adolescence that requires me to set up and display my
classroom in a specific way. First, creative expression, referred to as development need #4, in
written verbal, and visual work is a critical part to the environment in my classroom. The goal is
to tap into each student’s innate desire to learn in unique ways. Positive social interaction,
referred to as development need #1, is also critical. Positive social interaction is at the root of all
forms of social studies as debates and discussions. In my classroom, we will work toward
understanding different viewpoints and developing our own critical opinions. Thus, listening is
critical, just as much, if not more than, speaking. Furthermore, my classroom, like any great
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social studies classroom, has structure, clear limitations, and a passion and desire for students to
achieve, developmental needs #2 and #3. I have daily routines and procedures I take my classes
through to provide clear structure, and opportunities for assessment, achievement, and growth.
The syllabus and class schedule, provided at the beginning of the academic year, outlines our
My classroom has routines and procedures that are set and unwavering; however, I will
not discount student voice and choice within my classroom. Students have a right to be
concerned over what they are learning, how it impacts them, and what the knowledge will do for
them in the future. Thus, they must be given the choice to take part in the learning process and
have a say in what type of activities accompany it. This will give students the opportunity to feel
a sense of belonging, power, freedom, expression, and fun and not have to worry about survival.
This is directly taken from Glasser’s Choice Theory. This allows the students to answer and
express what directly is best for their needs, while the teacher is supporting each student through
The power of choice has an environmental and climate impact within the classroom. This
development can be the cause for rapid personal growth but can open the door for classroom
disruptions depending on the personalities and maturity of the classroom as an entity. When one
looks at Jacob Kounin’s work and philosophy, it can be implemented alongside Glasser’s theory
to an extent. Kounin’s work can be broken down into five main topics of implementation: “with-
it-ness,” overlapping, momentum, smoothness, and group focus. It is my duty as the educator to
be responsible for inhibiting poor behavior in and out of my classroom. This can be done through
non-verbal expression such as making eye contact with students. When a student has finished his
or her work, I can combine Glasser’s and Kounin’s theory with the concept of overlapping. As
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the educator, I can lay out a handful of items to move onto once their work is done, this gives
students the power to choose between their next step, but also implies Kounin’s overlapping
theory by keeping students engaged with work. It is within my realm to create an environment
that expresses and demands constant growth in a multitude of senses: socially, academically, and
emotionally.
Finally, there are commitments for me that I must make explicit towards the classroom
and the students. This can be interpreted from Vatterott’s work (2007, P 17.). I must be
committed to young adolescents, advocating and having reasonable, yet demanding, expectations
for them, as well as a clear vision for their short-term and long-term success. I must create a
positive environment in my classroom, demand myself to use different approaches to tap into
different learning styles, as well as different types of assessment to accurately and fairly
represent in writing what each student is doing in class. I must reach out to families and different
initiatives begin and will help lay the foundation for continuous growth. It is my responsibility to
live up to the standards set in front of me, in supporting all students along the way.
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Section 2: Policies & Procedures
Expectations (Rules)
Rules are essential in my classroom in order to create and ensure a safe and effective
environment. Additionally, this will provide my students with clear structure and limits which
with” rather than a “power-over” room. Thus, this will promote student choice and I will give
students a voice in the creation of the rules and expectations for our classroom. Students will be
presented with the opportunity to write down potential rues in response to guiding questions
about how they would like the classroom to run and how they would like their peers to behave.
After the students create a list of their own thoughts, they will then meet in small groups and
narrow down these rules before returning to a full-class discussion. At the end of this, the class
will have chosen no more than 5-6 general rules for their classroom.
In my classroom, there are certain expectations presented for all of my students. These
expectations must be developed, and I must also follow these rules and set the expectations. My
specific policy is that of which an expectation is broken, I have the right, as the educator, to let
my students know individually. Also, if I break any, or do not follow my own set of
expectations, the students may respectfully inform me. This would create a sense of community
and a level of accountability among peers and the educator. This also would create a sense of
student power, alongside myself, in the classroom. Thus, helping the class move forward and
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toward the perfection of the classroom expectations. Now, I have listed below each of the
1. Respect!
To me, this is the most critical expectation for my classroom. All of the aspects of the
classroom are reflected in the terminology, classroom participation, and practices. The definition
of respect can be interpreted in many different lights. In the terms of respecting student’s
background, in areas such as race, gender, ethnicity, interests, opinions, ideas, etc.). However,
this goes much further and into more detail in regard to conduct in a social studies classroom.
First, we will display and practice respect by not talking over anyone, listening to what your
peer, guest, or educator has to say, and finally to not assume anything about him or her. It is not
expected that any student must answer any personal question, the goal is to keep the classroom a
safe, approachable, and accepting environment. The classroom is an area to embrace who you
truly are and to have personal reflection for growth on who we wish to become. The expectation
of respect is important for all students to stay on task because distractions, late work, and
With the assumption that the classroom community has agreed to the expectation of respect,
we must always make sure that each student has a voice and is heard within the classroom. If we
respectfully and politely ask questions to make their opinion/argument/thought process clearer.
This is crucial for students to follow as the educational process of social studies involves
discussion and debates among controversial topics. It is also expected and important for the
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students to approach me and ask questions, as it will (hopefully) increase their understandings of
the content, skills, and the goal for learning in a general aspect.
This idea is extremely crucial so that each day, a student brings different personal issues,
problems, and baggage into the classroom. Some days, this could impact only a single student;
however, other days it could be an impactful to the whole class. Rather than waiting for those
things to build up, boil over, and distract the individual student, or surrounding peers, we agree
to this expectation. This infers, that we will check the issue, before entering class, at the door.
This can be enforced and monitored tangibly by using an entry-ticket, where each student takes a
notecard to his or her desk and will have written out the explanation of what is happening today
if anything. It is not required or expected for a student to write anything, but this allows for the
student (him or her) to inform me, confidentially, if anything is happening that may cause
With rules and expectations in place, students will and can still bring in disruptive
behaviors to our classroom. I must address the issues in a respectful, but also stern manner. The
consequences for any unruly action or nature must be weighed and addressed in a fair way.
Students may choose to act out because of family/home issues, not fulfilling their seven
developmental needs, not reaching Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and other teenaged drama. I
Foremost, the educator can and will be held to the same expectations daily as the students
are. However, there will be only teacher-specific limitations to the expectation: Be the best you
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can daily! By this, it is expected that I will grade submitted assignments as quickly as possible. It
is the expectation that student/course work will be returned and graded to the student within 2-3
class meetings. In case for a weekend, it is expected to be returned by the following Monday or
Tuesday class meeting. However, this time may be extended given the length of the assignment,
such as a research paper, to best grade and give feedback to each student. This will be explained
beforehand, and the students will be informed and reminded about this process. This will allow
me to display the respect I have for the students’ time, while also giving them the best feedback,
corrections, and positive reinforcement through comments beyond just a simple letter grade or
percentage. Additionally, this expectation should be a telling sign to students that they can expect
me to create and instruct the curriculum for them, and this process will usually be bell-to-bell.
perform to the best of my abilities and towards the students’ expectations for me, I am obviously
not doing the best I possibly could. This would set a poor precedent for how my classroom and
Classroom Climate
The goals of my classroom climate are to encourage student voice as much as possible,
offer students a piece of power through choice (Glasser), and to bring in items, films, primary
documents, and other instructional elements of relevance to the topic of the class/lesson. With
regards to student voice, I personal believe this is a crucial and critical piece to a successful
classroom. Each day, as it will be explained in “routines & procedures” section, I will seek out
ways to encourage students to find current events, issues, and praises to discuss in a critical
historical sense. This may mean to find a way to connect a current political, economic, or social
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issue to a similar issue from decades/centuries ago. Furthermore, students may even begin to
brainstorm solutions to the issue, which allows students to articulate what has personal interests
to them and find connections to what we have or what will be discussed. The second goal, power
through choice, is important in any, and specifically my, social studies classroom because it
allows for differentiation in skills for the students. Some assignments in secondary classrooms
must be papers or certain projects that give students the experience of what takes place in the
field of history, middle school is a period of experiences to foster creativity and the personal
desire to learn and grow. I will offer students various types of assessments in terms of test
formats and projects. Some generic tests, such as multiple-choice tests, may have to be
implemented, but any unit-long, formative, and summative assessments should revolve around
the aspect of student choice. Finally, I believe in bringing in relevant documents and materials
into the classroom. This adds to the friendly and engaging environment with a sense of creativity
and exploration, which can be stereotypically lost in the thought of what a Social Studies
environment is like. A duty of mine, as the educator, is to create the environment to be friendly,
engaging, and make the subject relevant to their daily lives to enhance the connection.
Routines – also known as classroom procedures – rid students of distractions that can
neglect classroom time and interfere with learning. Routines and procedure will help minimize
guesswork. Also, minor frustrations are less common, as are opportunities for misbehavior. If my
students know what to do and how to do it during every transitional or procedural moment of the
school day, they can more easily attend to what is most important. Furthermore, adding more
responsibility and purpose is a surefire way to boost classroom and individual morale.
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Everything in my classroom that is done repetitively should have a set routine. This will
eliminate stress for the students and myself on day-to-day classroom activities.
1. Homework
Multiple studies have shown that homework can be ineffective if not implemented
properly. I will not give my students any homework that is just simply “busy
work.” Rather, I will assign meaningful work in which draws upon the previous
easily followed sheet to introduce the next topic within the curriculum.
Homework will be turned in at the beginning of the class period. I will count any
assignment not turned in at the beginning of the period as “late work.” I will
continue to accept late work up to 5 school days late. Each day will result in a
deduction of 5% from the final grade for the assignment. After 5 school days, if
the assignment has not been turned in, it will be recorded as a “zero” unless it is
The art of passing out papers is a skill that can be ran through trial and error. My
the front row (depending on the classroom set up my district allows me to have),
retrieving the papers and other materials. This allows for some kinesthetic
movement for some students. For turning in papers, I will have marked trays on a
table, either in the front or the back, that allow students to turn in their work. I
will collect the papers from the tray. This way, I will know who turned their work
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in on time (refer to section 1: Homework). Graded homework assignments will be
many overarching topics as well as the specifics of certain historical events. Thus,
take place. For situations revolving discussion and debate, we will abide by our
crucial to ensure that each student has the chance to be heard. In my classroom,
will not always be arguing for the side they naturally choose, but rather take
With a goal to share power with students, I may also have them moderate debates
instead of me, this will allow the students to create the rules, topics, characters,
The more common type, informal debate, applies to the daily discussions
about what we are learning, as different interpretations of a topic and event are
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discussion. Furthermore, informal debates will take place during discussion of
current events. When dealing with topics, that can be controversial in some
manner. If a student does not wish to accept the circumstances, and chooses to act
student enters the classroom as the class period is beginning. I will have my
what could be on their mind each day. They will then place these face-down on a
table/desk at the front of the room, and when students are reviewing their work, I
will read each slip to prepare myself appropriately for how I need to approach that
class period for the day. After students have completed the entry-tickets, they will
begin working on a review sheet of the previous week’s or day’s topics. This
review sheet, once completed, will give students another set of notes to study for
when the unit exam/test comes around. If we do not have a review sheet for that
class, we will swiftly move into “current events,” in which we discuss what is
happening in the world, and how that relates to what has happened elsewhere in
Discipline
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I would like to preface this section by stating that I will always do my best to keep
students in the classroom, engaged, and learning. Therefore, I will discipline inappropriate
behavior through a system labeling the behavior as a minor, moderate, or major issues.
1. Minor Issues:
c. Interrupting classmates
These issues will be addressed, for the most part, informally. I may say the
students name to refocus the, place a hand on the desk, or use proximity control to
discourage the disruptive behavior without “calling out” the student in front of his
or her peers.
2. Moderate Issues:
Some of the specific instances that fall into this category. These may require me
to have a brief and private consultation with a student to discourage the behavior
from occurring again. It is my goal to never escalate the situation. In both minor
and moderate issues, I will use preventative measures to stop unruly behavior(s)
before they happen. My goal is to use humor to diffuse tension and may ask
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disruption comes from a pair of students sitting alongside one another, I will ask
3. Major Issues
If a major offense occurs in my classroom, this will almost immediately result in the
student needing to step out into the hallway. While I will perform to the best of my
ability to catch things like this before they happen, I know that all my students are
human and will have days in which they will not want to cooperate. Once I give the
students in the class something to do, such as an assignment, I will go out and discuss
what happened with the student one-on-one. If the infraction is not as serious as
other choice than to send the student away, as the students in my classroom will also
require my attention, and I cannot afford for a student to keep disrupting the class
moderate and major issues would be expressed in forms contacting family members,
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Ideally, I should not have to enforce and consequences for unruly and unjust behavior;
however, all of my students are human and are capable of having “off” days. If a student is
3. I will try to implement proximity control (if needed after steps 1-2)
4. Finally, I will have to make a phone call home or to an administrator’s office depending
Additionally, I will discipline with dignity, cooperation, and mutual respect. A good
myself and my students. It should be brought about for individual growth and long-term
personal commitments.
In my instruction, I will make sure that any needs for specific students are accommodated
for appropriately. If a student has issues with hearing, I will place him or her near where I tend to
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spend most of my time. If a student has a vision impairment, I will place them near the front of
the room for best view of lecture, videos, and presentations. I will appropriately assess and
inform myself on any student’s IEP and focus my attention on what I can best do to
accommodate them.
learners and learning styles. For me, lecture will never just be reading off of notes to my
students. But instead, it is creating an engaging presentation to appeal to visual learners, to draw
in aural learners through clearly articulating the topic and subject, bringing in physical items for
kinesthetic learners, and providing developmentally appropriate time to present the opportunity
to read texts, write reflections, and work on assessments for the reading and writing learners. My
goal, as the educator, is to provide at least one piece, that is created for each type of learner, into
the lesson. The goal is to create a diverse lesson that engages the students from start to finish.
Outside the practice of lecture, I will still focus on students’ academic and learning needs.
Non-traditional styles of education, such as “Notability” allow all types of students to display
their notes in a format that would be appealing to them: written words, typed words, charts,
drawing, and even speech boxes. A simple strategy that can be used, is cutting and pasting
images, charts, and other information from one note guide into a student’s notebook. This will
allow the kinesthetic learners to actively manipulate and physically engage with their notes.
Also, the visual learners would be gaining a new note for reference. This can be combined with a
Teacher Feedback
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When providing feedback on student work, the educator has the ability to motivate
students. I will use written feedback rather than just giving a general letter grade or percentage
on an assignment, paper, or exam. I believe when we take the time to focus student attention on
ways to improve, we are telling the students that we believe in their ability to develop beyond the
stated point. Written comments are private and allow students to digest the suggestions without
the defensive response that can result from a public discussion. Another simple way I can
approach teacher feedback is by simply changing the color of ink I choose to grade with.
According to a Science Netlinks study, from 2007, “Research has shown that the color red has
negative connotations, both in and out of school. One study showed that the use of red, even in
labeling a test, resulted in a 10 percent drop in scores.” Using green is a slight and subtle way of
informing the students that forward movement and growth still exists, even after one “bad”
grade. As the educator, I must also include my students in setting the achievable goals as patterns
begin to emerge. By speaking to students about specific, short-term goals to improve in errors
they are making will strengthen the connection between myself and each student. It will clearly
demonstrate that each student is capable of improvement and it involves them directly in their
Preventative Instruction
In creating active and engaging lessons, I believe most students will not have the urge to
act out in class. However, as expressed in my “expectations and procedures” outline, some days
a learner or myself could not be at their best. A simple way to display care and concern for these
students, while acknowledging their personal feelings, is by using proximity control. This
practice has a behavior connotation to it; however, I believe that it can display to students that
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the educator cares about them and knows something may be going on. When an educator stands
near a student and shares physical gestures, such as a smile, a fist-bump, or a high-five, we are
making sure that they know we are giving them the attention the long and desire for.
Another strategy that can be implemented for preventative management is group work.
Whether this takes the form of a think-pair-share or small group discussion, this allows students
to gain social interaction they need and want. This will lower the chances for students wishing to
speak across the room to their friends during class. However, I will need to closely monitor the
discussions and make sure the students are staying on task. I personally believe that many of the
management strategies, outline in section two, allow for preventative instruction within my
classroom. If those fail and students begin to act out, I am able to fall back onto my discipline
Assessment
My students’ academic needs are going to be very diverse, and I need to meet all of them.
I need to keep all of my students interested and in their zones of proximal development. In order
to do this, I will use lots of projects, group work, and varying styles of instruction to keep my
students “on their toes.” A lot of the class will be discussion based. These discussions will not be
graded on a discussion-to-discussion basis, but there will be an overall participation grade in the
class. This will give the students a chance to make meaning and sense out of the historic stories
and events that we look into. Students will learn to formulate opinions and thoughts and share
The purpose of assessment is partially to hold students accountable for their schoolwork,
but it is also to help me as a teacher know where my students are academically. For this reason, I
will explain to my students in my syllabus that I take a mastery approach to most assignments
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and that if I believe that they honestly tried on their homework or assignments I will give them
the chance to redo any poor grades for credit as needed. If a student does not turn in their work at
all I will give them the opportunity to turn it in, but it will come with a consequence of deducting
points or not earning full-credit. Testing as an assessment will be formed in a variety of ways
outside of discussion as well. I will give tests/exams, but they will be sectioned into different
types of assessment such as short-answer, essay, and multiple-choice. Formal and informal
assessments can and must reflect higher-level thinking because I demand that my students must
students will have a say in what they learn and how they will learn it. When students have
increased “control or mastery of their own learning and decisions that affect their classroom and
school” they are more motivated to learn (Vatterot, 2007). All classrooms do not start as a
Section 4: Motivation
Motivating young learners is essential and critical for a healthy and productive
classroom. Motivation is extremely important for students, without motivation, the desire to be in
the classroom decreases, and so, too, does the overall desire for engagement and to learn. As
educators, we must look for strategies that will help us connect to the students’ best interests and
enhance the desire for motivation. Outlined by Barbara Gross Davis, of Indiana University, these
following points are research-supported strategies that are designed for educators to use to
1. “Give frequent, early, positive feedback that supports students’ beliefs that they can do
well.”
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2. “Ensure opportunities for students’ success by assigning tasks that are neither too easy
5. “Help students feel that they are valued members of a learning community.”
These five points were constructed from her undergraduate class studies; however, they can
serve an essential and pivotal role in a middle-secondary classroom as well. However, the way
these five points look in a classroom can and will vary from teacher to teacher and lesson to
lesson. Point one, for example, “give frequent, early, positive feedback that supports students’
beliefs that they can do well,” is discussed as the ideology of positive feedback for students. This
can look like physical feedback on an assignment that he/she turned in. But, the feedback can be
taken intrinsically. This is the desire to receive that physical feedback and motivation more often.
The feedback and the “feeling” with it is short-term. The short-term feeling may push many
students to do better during the next class periods in order to receive it again; but, the students
will also turn it into long-term motivation, as they will return to the classroom in hopes of
Points two and three would fall into the category of long-term motivation. Students will
be able to see from the beginning of the academic year where the curriculum will be headed. As
previously discussed, in section two, having daily current events being introduced to the
students can see the planned and structured curriculum throughout the course, they are able to
look forward and gain a sense of excitement for discussions and healthy debates in the
classroom. However, as a result, the assessment must match the curriculum and seek ways to
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bring relevancy for the students. If assessment is done in a manner that does not allow the
student to connect with or grasp an understanding, then it is likely that they will lose any sense or
and thus allowing students to express their knowledge and skills in creative as well as
appropriate ways. I must not create an environment or an expectation for outrageous directions to
assignments without preparing students adequately. Furthermore, I cannot have low expectations
with regards to the students being adequately prepared. I must be flexible in my teachings to
adjust lessons and instruction appropriately to match the students’ skill set and comfort level.
Points four and five discuss the learning environments we provide to the students. The
environment, I must make the classroom itself a warm and welcoming place. I am not one to
aimlessly and meaninglessly hang things throughout my room, I want the students to feel
comfortable to explore the space and tap into their own interests. When this happens, students
can take control of the atmosphere and remain in a feeling of positivity and safety. A community
in the classroom makes the students become part of the learning community outside of it, which
is sadly lost in many classrooms from time to time. I must make sure that my students are aware
that they can affect change in the classroom community and the societal termed community as an
entity. Whether it is don’t through writing a letter or posting an online article, I will make my
students aware of the best ways to carry on important and growth-minded discussions in an
community within my classroom. Thus, my classroom will have partnerships with outside
resources that can come in the forms of artifacts, documents, papers, articles, speeches, or even a
guest lecturer.
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Section 5: Teacher Relationships with Students and Parents
Throughout life, relationships offer assistance and comfort which are often not available
through any other means. In my own personal view, they are important to me in terms of
potential growth, learning, and raising my own confidence. Growing relationships with my
students is one of the biggest priorities in regard to my educational philosophy. Without these
relationships, I will not be relevant or current – I will not know the interests of the classroom or
of those in the building. If my classroom was entirely teacher-focused it would lead to failures
for myself and for my students. I will rather have my classroom guided in terms of student-
focused instruction. In addition to building relationships with my students, I must begin to reach
out to their parents and/or guardians to build a bridge of trust and understanding. If this bridge is
not constructed, the parents/guardians will not be able to trust me, and they may limit their
children’s time in my classroom, or at an extracurricular event, before or after the school day.
However, when these relationships are healthy and present, the sense of trust is more easily
shared, and the respect for my job will allow me to best prepare all students for their continuing
academic career and life in ways their parents/guardians may not be able to.
At the beginning of the academic year, I will send home a folder or packet, as well as an
email if applicable, of relevant information to the family of what will be taking place in my
classroom. First, I will provide a course schedule/syllabus for them, as they can then see and
keep track of what their student will be learning. Second, I will provide a letter introducing
myself, my background, and what my personal interests are. In this letter, I will additionally
provide a link to my class webpage on which I will be able to post any materials that the students
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or parents/guardians may need access to for a variety of reasons: missed class, updates of the
classroom activities, and even photos from class (if this is allowed under the school’s policy). I
will provide a sheet which parents will sign, and students will return, proving they read the
material in the packet, and a section of contact information in case I must contact them for
waivers, discipline actions, good news, etc. The goal is to update the webpage throughout the
year and keep the parents involved and informed of what is occurring within my classroom. This
is a way for parents to recognize the hard work of each student and expand on the fundamental
principle of trust that has been created between the two parties of educator and parent.
Additionally, I would like to foster an environment that allows the parent/guardian and myself to
create an informal relationship. This can be done through parent open-houses that I will offer
throughout the school year and prior to the beginning of each academic semester. At these open-
houses, the conversations will be open-ended, but I am willing to discuss academic and behavior
At the beginning of the year, I will have my students fill out an “about me” sheet or
notecard, where they will tell me their interests, hobbies, preferred pronoun, and their favorite
piece of social studies. This is done for two reasons: first, it allows me to easily learn their names
because it will pair information with faces and names; secondly, this allows for personal
relevancy in creating lessons, analogies within a lesson and lecture, and activities for the
students. Being able to identify and know their interests will help me create easier ways to
manage differentiation. I will also follow an open-door policy, in which if I am in the room and
not working on or discussing anything privately, anyone will be able to walk in and work on or
discuss anything on their mind. This will hopefully build another layer of trust between me and
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my students and it will allow more opportunities to get to know my students and other students
throughout the year. For me, this opportunity provided some of my most fond middle and high
When someone enters my classroom, they will see an environment of comfort, hard
work, hope, and growth. Inspirational posters, quotes, and images are on the walls along with
maps, pictures, and items of relevance. Students will be spread throughout the classroom and
sharing their information and helping guide other peers to the end goal. You will see a physical
set up of tables and desks in ways that will promote collaboration and discussion- not rows of
When you observe the room, you will see the students using the provided space to their
benefit. This will depend on the type of lesson and presentation is provided. For example, if I am
lecturing for a section then you will witness students asking questions and engaging in discussion
with one another when appropriate. In other scenarios, you will see students working in groups
to complete assignments and projects. Jigsaw learning, group projects and other multi-member
I will be walking around the classroom observing students, helping them answer
questions, and using proximity control to best handle behavioral issues. I believe this is the best
way to informatively assess participation and group work, while also aiding in the difficult
moving in this way to best help them. Regarding proximity control, this is the best way to
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preventatively teach, meaning stopping problems before they arise. If this is done correctly,
many issues can be addressed while they are in a minor form, rather than becoming a distraction
and interrupting the flow of the class later. If a moderate or major issue was to arise, and it not be
stopped earlier, I will be following the procedures laid out earlier in this classroom management
plan. Rarely, if ever, will a student be removed from the classroom or sent elsewhere. I will be
using humor to diffuse situations, while also trying to connect to the student to find out what or
One of the most obvious things anyone can see will be the students and myself enjoying
the educational atmosphere. Being a member of the learning community means growing in
community together. If we can foster that environment, incredible things will happen in the
classroom. The projects, assignments, and content become more important to all of us, and the
relationships inside and outside of the classroom increase in depth and care. To create and foster
a productive and healthy school environment, it must begin in the classroom, and we are called,
as educators, to begin the process of transforming schools and classrooms with us.
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Works Cited
Brunning, Norby, Shraw, and Ronning (2004). Cognitive psychology and instruction (4th ed.).
Curvin, Richard L., and Allen N. Mendler. “Stuff4Educators.com.” Discipline with Dignity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5kETSAn0j8.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5QFZPylt0E.
Larson, Bruce E. Instructional Strategies for Middle and High School Social Studies: Methods,
Assessment, and Classroom Management. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2017.
TGnSf4&list=PL0134792CEB4EF46D
http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/sci_update.php?DocID=323
Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (2009). The First Days of School: How to be an Effective Teacher.
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