Day 159: Management Ideas

Daily Blog Challenge Day 159/365

I always struggle with feeling like a few students are monopolizing my time and energy and I feel for the students who are usually doing the right things.  The last two weeks I have been trying a few new management ideas.  Some are ideas I have read or learned about from other teachers and some are just things I tried in the middle of the problem. 

It makes me feel more confident as a teacher that I have more tools in my bag of tricks.  I don't use them everyday, but it is nice to have them at my finger tips.  Many of these I have been told about many times and now I wish I would have tried them sooner.

1.  Teach 1:1 or in a small group when kids get done with their first project {We were working on creating a flag and as students completed this project I had them come work with me on learning a recorder/Orff piece.}
2.  Pick students who are behaving correctly to work on the next project or get to do something new first.  {Groups that were sitting quietly got to play Orff instruments first. }
3.  Have a "bonus" activity for students who are showing great behavior (I had them assess themselves.) {I let the students who thought they did a great job get to do an extra Just Dance at the end of class.}
4.  Pick a group a students to demonstrate something new.  {My kindergarteners were having a hard time with a new dance, so I picked students who were not goofing around to learn it first and demonstrate for their classmates.}
5.  Remind them of the expectations (I teach when...) and remind them of the activities they will loose out on if they continue to waste time.

What management tricks do you keep in your bag of tricks?  I would love to hear about your techniques and ideas.  Thank you for reading.