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Recipe for Classroom Management

Classroom management practices are a lot like making a pizza; you need to have a good
base from which you can add your own personal ingredients. It is all about finding a good recipe
that works for you and your students. Much like a pizza, your classroom management plan needs
to have certain types of ingredients, but they might just be different flavours. Before you can
really commit to a plan, you must make sure all of your students benefit from your choices.
Before you can begin, you need to consider what type of safe, inviting classroom
environment you wish to create the dough in your recipe. It is essential that students feel happy
and excited when they walk into your classroom. A classroom should be filled with warm, bright
colors, like blues and yellows, to get away from the uniform prison-like appearance we are so
accustomed to seeing. My desks would be in pairs, aligned in rows and columns, that way each
student has a peer to discuss with while maintaining functionality and easy manoeuvring. I
would want to keep my desk at the back of the room to keep teacher-student conversations more
private, which will lessen embarrassment or insecurity when a student needs to talk to me. This
desk will reflect my personality by being filled with interesting math and science phenomena like
the Klein bottle1 or a density tower2, which double as great scientific conversation starters. To
promote diversity and build classroom community I will let my students, within reason, choose
and contribute to the wall decor. This will effectively instil personal belonging and ownership of
the classroom space. My classroom space will also feature learning centers to develop inquisition
1 Weisstein, Eric W. "Klein Bottle." From MathWorld--A Wolfram Web Resource. Retrieved on October 23, 2014,
from: <http://mathworld.wolfram.com/KleinBottle.html>

2
Steve Spangler Science. (2013). Density Tower Magic with Science. Retrieved on October 23,
2014,
from: <http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/lab/experiments/density-tower-magicwith-science>

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and collaboration throughout the school year. Having laid down the foundation for a positive
learning environment, we then would address the rules and procedures.
In order for the material in lessons to stick with the students like the sauce on a pizza there
needs to be rules and procedures to govern order and facilitate respect in the classroom. It is
recommended that teachers employ only about seven rules and procedures at the secondary
level (Marzano, Marzano, & Pickering, 2003, p. 18). I would take this suggestion and try to
focus on rules and procedures that have universal application, for example: Respect your peers
and the shared learning environment. This rule would essentially cover everything from causing
disruption to physical, verbal or emotional harm to any student. To address the importance of
these, I would show a funny video of classic rules and procedures practiced in the 1960s to
illustrate how manageable a few rules can be in comparison to an extensive list. I would then
open up the list to discussion with students in case they feel something is unrealistic or another
matter needs to be addressed. The goal of this list would be to make sure the classroom
environment is facilitating learning.
To manage behaviour in the classroom like the choices of pizza seasoning we need to
be aware of which types of techniques pair well with students. As a teacher, I need to be aware of
how my attitude and body-language can influence every situation I encounter. In order to get the
best results, I would calmly address the situation and never let my true emotions get the best of
me. My students will be reminded when it comes to consequences that fair and equal can but
do not have to mean the same thing (Curwin & Mendler, 1988, p.86). I will make it very clear
to the class that consequences of their actions will be designed as an opportunity to learn from
their mistakes. If a student feels the consequence is not fitting of their conduct, then they will be
given the opportunity to suggest a more suitable action. In addition to the consequences for

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inappropriate behaviour, I will aim to highlight positive manners of my students in the
classroom. When I really see outstanding behaviour I will be sure to let the student know I will
be making a call home to express to their parents my pleasure in having such a well-mannered
student. When it comes to rewards for constant good behaviour, or exceptional improvement in
behaviour, I intend to offer homework free nights or give students the opportunity to drop their
worst mark in the class. These rewards are infrequent so they still offer incentive for good
behaviour in the classroom.
When it comes to assessments, I would pick and choose techniques dependent on the
desired outcome like the toppings of a pizza. If my intention was for students to be able to
reiterate and retain knowledge, I would make use of the group discussion dynamic. The group
work offers collaboration, social development and diversity. It also gives students the
opportunity to bounce ideas off one another. I would assign different roles in the groups to better
facilitate productive collaboration. By designating students with leadership, facilitating, and time
keeping roles, you ensure that all students are involved and on task. If I wanted to check for
students understanding without having them stress about marks, I would use formative
assessments in which they would peer assess. Having the students peer assess allows them to see
different perspectives and gives them insight into concepts they may have otherwise been
troubled with.
To bring it all together like the cheese on a pizza I top off my classroom management
plan with time management techniques and classroom meetings. It is important that students are
introduced to the necessity of time management early on. As a teacher, I would plan my semester
to include group projects that would require portions to be handed in for review at varying times.
This would ensure the students are meeting multiple deadlines as well as prepares them for real-

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life where deadlines are bountiful. I would try to organize my class in a block-schedule, so that
every day consists of designated lecturing, assignment work, labs or discussion periods.
Chunking up the class into these blocks will give students the practice necessary for scheduling
their homework and play time outside of class. If the students found this organization of the class
too dysfunctional, we would discuss it in the biweekly classroom meeting. These classroom
meetings would be useful for both students and me. It would be used to address concerns with
the course, procedural issues, or attend to issues with assignment and homework demands. I
would set up a Google Form3 that would be available for students to submit topics of discussion
anonymously. Allowing students to freely express their opinions in my class, appropriately,
would really benefit the classroom community.
When it comes to managing my class, I am more focussed on integrating practices that will
benefit my students. A classroom management plan needs to be tailored to the students in order
to fully be successful. Although there may be different flavours of techniques and practices,
essentially they all have the students best interests in mind. When you get the perfect ingredients
together, you have got yourself a recipe for success.

3
Google. Google Forms Application. Retrieved on October 23, 2014 from:
<http://www.google.com/forms/about/>

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Works Cited
Curwin, R. L. & Mendler, A. N. (1988). Discipline with dignity. Alexandria, Va: Association for
Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Marzano, R. J., Marzano, J. S., & Pickering, D. (2003). Classroom management that works:
Research-based strategies for every teacher. Alexandria, Va: Association for Supervision
and Curriculum Development.