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For Teachers: Sanity Savers, a manual in workbook
format, for troubleshooting discipline problems, or
re-designing some or all aspects of your classroom
management system.
Also see: Toby's Way
Introduction |
Table of Contents
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Sample Page
Sanity Savers -
Introduction by Terry Wilhelm
In my nine years as a classroom
teacher, I tried everything to keep my classroom
sane. I always had a quiet classroom, but I
eventually realized that some of the strategies I
used to keep the room quiet were not very student
centered. Eventually I learned how to use more
effective and positive techniques that built
responsibility in students, at the same time
preserving my relationship with them, making
teaching more enjoyable.
When I became a Title I coordinator, I was often
asked to assist new teachers with classroom
management. Sometimes the teacher only needed help
with techniques for specific aspects of management
such as transitions. But too often I was not asked
to help until the teacher was really in trouble, and
overcoming the chaos was paramount. Building student
responsibility could only happen after sanity was
restored. Students cannot be given higher levels of
responsibility if you can't get their attention.
As an elementary principal, I have found that many
teacher training programs do not provide new
teachers with the tools they need to establish a
positive classroom management system with students
right from Day One. Sharing the structures you will
find in this book with my new teachers has helped
establish a schoolwide climate that is positive and
student centered. New teachers have been able to get
off to a good start from their very first day with
students, whether they start on the first day of
school in September, or start a new class or take
over an existing one after the school year has
started.
In this book you will find the tools you need to
tame chaos in your classroom, troubleshoot less
severe yet persistent management problems, or get
your class off to a positive start on your first day
with students. Every lesson and management technique
in this book has been successfully used with
students in real classrooms, by real teachers. That
is not to say that theory and research are not here
- the Bibliography will provide some references that
support the approaches in this book. But most
teachers looking for answers to management problems
need immediate practical help, which is why Sanity
Savers is written for you in a workbook format. If
you need to start from Square One, begin with Part
I. If you simply need to troubleshoot, skim the
contents and choose what you need.
I hope that this book will provide the help you are
seeking. I wish you the best of success in
establishing the most positive, sane classroom
environment possible for yourself and your students!
Terry Wilhelm
Table of Contents
Section Page
Part I - Starting Over 1
What Brought You to Teaching? 2
Why is Management so Difficult? 4
There is No Silver Bullet 5
It's Not the Kids 5
The Case Study 6
You are Not Alone 7
Trouble Tripwires 7
Behaviors to Discard 11
Starting Over 13
Choose the Best Day 13
Prepare the Room 14
Choose a Signal 18
Starting Over Day 19
Respect: The Key to Starting Over 20
The Respect Activity 21
Mutual Respect Statement 23
Rules of Respect 24
The Lessons 25
Lesson 1: One at a Time 27
Following up to Lesson 1 31
Lesson 1 Follow up: Tickets 32
But What If 34
Lesson 2: Respectful Listening 35
Lesson 3: Follow the Signal 37
Effective Signal Behaviors 39
Effective Management Behaviors 40
One More Lesson: Transitions 44
Math Baseball 46
Lesson 4: The Transition Lesson 47
Summary of Starting Over Day 50
Mutual Respect, Continued 51
Part II: Troubleshooting 57
Behavior Lessons for Every Part of School Life 58
Troubleshooting Problem Behaviors 58
Troubleshooting Worksheet 59
Teaching Behavior Lessons for Beyond the Classroom
60
Library Lesson 61
Reducing Wasted Time at the Beginning of Class 62
Direction Giving 63
The Noise Wheel 65
Tattling 69
Avoiding Overuse of the Office 71
Consequences 73
Rewards 77
Non-contingent Reinforcement 82
Protecting Self Esteem 84
Boredom Busters 88
Three Kinds of Responses 89
Lesson 5: Three Kinds of Responses 93
Cooperative Learning 93
Individual Strategies for Challenging Students 96
Supportive Strategies for ADD/ADHD Students 107
In Conclusion 122
Appendix 123
Bibliography 129
Educators 2000
PO Box 1627,
Claremont, CA 91711
Phone and Fax:
(909) 624-8899 |
