1. Teach a Book: Classroom Management for Middle and High School Teachers
Edmund T. Emmer
Carolyn M. Evertson

2. Chapter 1: Organizing Your Classroom and Materials
Room arrangement:
Consistent with instructional goals and activities
Teacher-led vs small groups
Mix of both?
High-traffic areas free of congestion
Students easily seen by teacher
Frequently used materials/supplies easily accessible
Students easily see board

3. Chapter 1: Organizing Your Classroom and Materials
Suggestions for arranging your classroom:
Bulletin boards/walls
Daily assignments on decorative display (colored paper or borders)
9th grade and below post rules of classroom
Reward “class of the month”
Floor space - starting point: where is whole-class instruction?
Student desks - avoid students w/backs to instructional area
Teacher’s desk and other equipment
Storage space and supplies

4. Chapter 1: Organizing Your Classroom and Materials
If you have to float:
Familiarize yourself with the room
Try to arrange a projector for daily use
Prepare transparencies for lessons/hw assignments, and notices
A regular space on the board for assignments
Storage space for materials that cannot be carried with you everyday
Try to get a cart
Assign early arriving students the task of preparing the room
Erase boards, set up projector, arrange chairs

5. Chapter 2: Choosing Rules and Procedures
Why rules and procedures are needed
Rules identify general expectations or standards - best when positively stated (You may talk when given permission)
Procedures communicate expectations for behavior - apply to a specific activity
Planning classroom rules and procedures (consequences?)
Identify school rules and procedures
Around 5 sufficient to cover most behavior (student participation?)
Bring all needed materials to class
Be in your seat and ready to work when the bell rings
Respect and be polite to all people
Respect other people’s property
Obey all school rules

6. Choosing Rules and Procedures
Chapter 2:
Choosing Rules and Procedures
General Procedures
Beginning of period
Attendance: use seating chart, keep track of missing work
Absences: write name and date on handouts and keep in absentee folder; daily assignments on calendar; student volunteers to assist returning students
Tardy students: be consistent; sign in sheet
Expected behavior: Warm up questions at beginning of period, copy outline of class activities
Leaving the room: emergencies only; keeping a record; reduced credit for work not brought to class
Use of materials and equipment: teachers and student materials
End of period: clean up of materials and reminders of upcoming work

7. Choosing Rules and Procedures
Chapter 2:
Choosing Rules and Procedures
Procedures during seatwork and instruction
Student attention during presentations: respect and note-taking
Participation: raise hands, student call?
Seatwork
Talk among students (no student talk vs quiet talk)
Raised hands for help
Out-of-seat procedures: sharpen pencil, get paper; one-at-a-time
When work is completed (enrichment activities folder, work on hw)

8. Choosing Rules and Procedures
Chapter 2:
Choosing Rules and Procedures
Procedures for group work
Distribution of material stations/helpers
Assigning students to groups: well-balanced, separate clashing personalities, save time, efficient
Outline goals and participation roles (recorder, reader, etc.)
Cooperative learning
Miscellaneous
Signals: obtain student attention, transitions (turn off lights, bell)
Announcements, special equipment, fire drills, and split lunch periods (what to do with work and personal belongings)

9. Chapter 3: Managing Student Work
Your grading system and record keeping
Achievement, effort, hw, improvement, participation, and percentages
Accurate assessment: frequent evaluation
Record all student info in grade book rather than separate lists
Feedback and monitoring procedures
Students check own work (different ink and model how to check)
Students keep own record of grades
Long-term/group projects: divide into smaller goals and deadlines
Peer review (must teach)
Guided beginning for group seatwork then work the room
Long-range monitoring - keep track of missing assignments

10. Chapter 3: Managing Student Work
Communicating assignments and work requirements
Instructions for assignments
Oral explanation of requirements/rubric as well as visual aid on board
Routine of copying down assignment
Standards for form, neatness, and due dates
Procedures for absent students
Post weekly assignments or keep absentee folder
Length for make-up
Place for late work turn in and graded pick up
Missed group work - assist groups in inclusion of absent members

11. Chapter 4: Getting Off to a Good Start
Perspectives on the beginning of the year
Resolve student uncertainties: expectations, procedures, and rules - opportunity for students to learn appropriate behavior
Plan uncomplicated lessons to ensure student success
Keep whole-class focus (group work should maintain this); prepare extra credit or enrichment assignments; later introduce complex activities
Be available, visible, and in charge: work the room; praise, prompt, leave
Teacher authority: rights to set standards for behavior and performance
Traditional, bureaucratic, expert/professional, charismatic
Most teachers derive authority from several sources
Authoritarian (control through threats and punishment) vs authoritative (provide basis for actions/discipline, give students independence for maturity, and administer consequences fairly and proportionately)

12. Chapter 4: Getting Off to a Good Start
Planning for a good beginning
Checking books out to students (wait until lockers have been assigned): record book numbers, name stamp, cover
Paperwork (hall pass, emergency forms, etc): all forms on hand and separated in folders
Rosters organized by period, noting accommodations for seating/medication, 3x5: name, book #, attendance, grades until class stabilized - useful for calling on students
Seating assignments: learn names/attendance faster, class management
First-week bell schedule, tardiness leniency for first few days, administrative tasks, rules
Course requirements: tests, quizzes, hw contributions - parents sign?
Beginning routine and alternative activities (wkst, puzzles, logic problems)

13. Chapter 4: Getting Off to a Good Start
The first day of class
Stand near door (sign w/name outside), make eye contact and smile, correct any students that enter with unacceptable behavior, and make sure students are in the correct room
Administrative tasks (forms on hand), check attendance by raised hands (not call-outs), teacher/student/course introductions
Discussion of class rules and rationale/penalties, emphasizing benefits to all, and presentation of course requirements
Interesting initial content activity: should require little or no assistance, which allows time for teaching procedures
Explain what students are expected to do, list steps on board if complex, demonstrate when possible, give corrective feedback
Avoid pre-tests, small groups, projects, and individualized instruction
Establish end-of-period routine

14. Getting Off to a Good Start
Chapter 4:
Getting Off to a Good Start
The second day of classes
If 1st day was short, review class procedures and follow 1st day plan
Identify new students and get them seated, re-state beginning-of- class routine, review major rules and procedures
Present content activity
Close period with procedure introduced on day 1
After the second day
Continue using procedures, adding new ones as needed
Monitor student behavior and give students feedback when their behavior does not meet expectations
Should start giving regular assignments for in-class and at home and check work promptly using grading procedures

15. Chapter 5: Planning and Conducting Instruction
Planning classroom activities: types
Openers to transition into the classroom (Do Now’s) and Closers
Checking work: must teach appropriate procedures (different ink color)
Recitation: oral check of student understanding, distribute questions to all members of class, watch for too slow or too rapid pacing
Content development: intro/extension of material, concepts, or skills; teacher questions/collect work for understanding
Discussion: encourage evaluation, awareness of other points of view, sharing of opinions; requires planning prompting questions and management of activity
Seatwork on previously presented material, start as class then independent work
Test administration (plan work for early finishers)
Student presentations and demos - give guidelines in advance, audience behavior
Small-group work: lab work, promote greater comprehension, cooperative learning, reciprocal teaching
Tests and presentations/demonstrations

16. Planning and Conducting Instruction
Chapter 5:
Planning and Conducting Instruction
Organizing activities - depends on number of different topics covered in class; focus on see- say-do
Kounin: managing group instruction - activity flow
Preventing misbehavior
withitness and overlapping
Managing lesson movement
momentum (pacing) and smoothness (continuity; ex. dangle, thrust)
Maintaining group focus
group alerting (tell students they might be called on next)
encouraging accountability (performance observed and evaluated)
higher participation formats: write answers, read along during instruction

17. Planning and Conducting Instruction
Chapter 5:
Planning and Conducting Instruction
Transition management (see problems/solutions)
Instructional management
Planning
anticipate problems (new terms and examples, demos)
do homework to find difficulties - build hints in lesson
infuse enthusiasm into lesson
Presenting new content clearly: Learning objectives at beginning and provide an outline for a complex lesson or video
Checking for understanding: formative and summative assessments
ask review questions
discuss and solve problems as a group; recitation
indicators (multiple choice question, “hands” to indicate response

18. Chapter 6: Managing Cooperative Learning Groups
Research on cooperative learning
Equal or greater learning than individualistic or competitive teaching methods with effective cooperative groups due to increased engagement with content; NEED feedback/instruction on how to collaborate
Strategies and routines that support cooperative learning
Room arrangement - line up desks to marks on floor for quick transitions
Talk and movement procedures: 6-inch voices, materials manager, state timed movement expectation w/verbal reminders
Group attention signals: MS raised hands, HS turn on projector and ask for eyes at the front; avoid interruptions/present info ahead of time
Promoting interdependence within groups: individual tasks (vary skills, research different topic for report), group grades
Individual accountability - id contributions, peer evaluation, individual notebooks graded at various times, individual responsibility to explain

19. Managing Cooperative Learning Groups
Chapter 6:
Managing Cooperative Learning Groups
Monitoring student work and behavior
Work the room w/clipboard to write notes about all students about satisfactory group functioning - note degree of explanation/demonstration and use for feedback
group and individual performance -self-monitor to identify difficulties
Interventions
Non/verbal redirect, time out/work alone, conference w/individual students, conference w/entire group
Effective group work skills:
Social skills: teach active listening/sharing/support before group work
Explaining skills: Rotate summarizer role, explain something to partner and explain back, work as group to answer a question and present to class
Leadership skills: assign presenter/discussion leader roles to build skills

20. Managing Cooperative Learning Groups
Chapter 6:
Managing Cooperative Learning Groups
Beginning the use of cooperative learning groups
Room arrangement, procedures, and routines
Forming groups: star with pairs, working up to larger groups that have a range of achievement levels, match extremes w/middle to motivate lower achiever
Initial group tasks to build skills: turn to your partner and explain/compare answers, drill partner, reading buddy, checking, reviewers
Teaching group skills: listening, explaining, asking for help, encouraging, and sharing - introduce one/week and give feedback; assign and rotate roles (keep on index cards w/behaviors) so everyone gains experience
Using group and individual rewards to practice/improve skills - tickets for good behavior for toy raffle/points for fun activities

21. Chapter 7: Maintaining Appropriate Student Behavior
Monitoring student behavior
Student involvement in learning activities: “active eyes,” work the room and don’t spend more than 1-2 min/student, start whole-group activity
Student compliance with classroom rules and procedures: clear expectations that have been communicated to the class
Consistency
Inconsistency from unreasonable/inappropriate rules, no detection of inappropriate behavior, not willing to enforce every time
What to do if you are inconsistent
Re-teach procedure (discuss problem) and enforce it
Modify and reintroduce it
Or, abandon it and substitute another in its place

22. Maintaining Appropriate Student Behavior
Chapter 7:
Maintaining Appropriate Student Behavior
Prompt management of inappropriate behavior
Eye contact/move closer and prompt appropriate behavior
Reminder of procedure by stating correct one or note students who are doing what is expected
Redirect attention to task and monitor shortly thereafter
Ask/tell student to stop inappropriate behavior
Make it private: call to desk, whisper, nonverbal cues
Briefly talk to student/assess penalties
Time out at desk or another room

23. Maintaining Appropriate Student Behavior
Chapter 7:
Maintaining Appropriate Student Behavior
Building a positive climate
Communicate positive expectations to students: convey confidence in students’ ability to do well, can do attitude, maintain high expectations
Appropriate teacher praise (public vs private): both informative feedback and genuine teacher approval that focuses on accomplishment, not effort
Improving class climate through incentives or rewards
Grades (tie as many facets of work as possible) and recognition (display work, certificate, verbal, stickers, improvement/conduct)
Activities (PAT) and material incentives (food, games, books): relate to behaviors most important to you (attendance, hw), everyone can achieve it
Caution of effect of rewards: enhance or hurt? - imperfect conditions

24. Chapter 8: Communication Skills for Teaching
Constructive assertiveness
Clear statement of problem or concern and describing effects - reduces student defensiveness, avoids labeling students/behavior, use statements
Unambiguous body language: eye contact, posture, facial expression matches tone of statements
Obtaining appropriate behavior and resolving the problem: student needs to accept responsibility for behavior, dramatic emphasis for evasive students
Empathic responding
Keeps lines of communication open between you and the student and aids problem solving process
Two components: listening skills and processing skills

25. Communication Skills for Teaching
Chapter 8:
Communication Skills for Teaching
Problem solving
Identify the problem: state purpose of meeting, get students point of view/describe problem, ask students reaction; evaluate: help/hurt?
Identify and select the solution: student suggestion, multiple teacher alternatives; positive focus with plan for improvement
Obtain a commitment: student acceptance for period of time followed by evaluation (sometimes in a contract) with consequences if not followed
Talking with parents
Constructive assertiveness, empathetic responding, problem solving
Express appreciation for parents’ efforts to meet,work w/them as a team
Focus on choices student is making and how to encourage better decisions
Document concerns: student work and notes of behaviors

26. Chapter 9: Managing Problem Behaviors
What is problem behavior?
Nonproblem: brief inattention, transition talk
Minor problem: students calling out, leaving seats, talk during group work
Major problem, but limited in scope/effects: chronically off-task, failure to pass in hw assignments, vandalism, cheating
Escalating or spreading problem: unabated social talking, back talk
Goals for managing problem behavior
Judge short-term (bad behaviors cease) and long-term effects (prevention) of any management strategy chosen
Optimal: Maintain/restore order w/out adversely affecting learning environment; should prevent repetition of problem

27. Chapter 9: Managing Problem Behaviors
Management strategies
Minor interventions
Nonverbal cues: finger to lips, head shake, hand signal, light touch to arm
Get activity moving: quick transitions, all materials ready
Proximity: zones of proximity, combine w/nonverbal cues
Group focus: group alerting, accountability, higher participation format
Redirect behavior: state what should be done, “everybody should be writing answers to the practice problems”
Provide needed instruction: check student work, whole-class instruction
Brief desist: direct eye contact and assertiveness, combine w/redirection
Give student a choice: behave appropriately or continue behavior w/consequence, “choose to clean up now or say after class until area is clean”
I-message: “it’s distracting to me and the class when you get out of your seat,” learn awareness of effects of behavior on others

28. Chapter 9: Managing Problem Behaviors
Management strategies
Moderate interventions
Withhold privilege and earn back w/appropriate behavior (sit near friends, work together on project)
Isolate/remove problem students: desk at back of room, time out, switch if rewarding to student, time out or walk to principal’s office, labels student as excludable
Fine or penalty: extra work, but defined as punishment - quick to administer, but content negatively affected, non-content (look up and copy 10 definitions)
Detention best for behaviors that involve time (tardiness, time-wasting behavior) or repeated rule violations; adv: disliked, administered away from classroom; disadv: takes teacher time, student skipping, additional records
Referral to office for fighting, vandalism, rudeness and disrespect; adv: effective limit, short-circuit escalating situation; disadv: depends on others for effectiveness, potential for discrimination; use sparingly

29. Chapter 9: Managing Problem Behaviors
Management strategies
More extensive interventions
Design individual contract with student - problem solving
Conference w/parent: describe situation and appreciate support that parent gives to help understand and resolve problem, have grade book handy - require time and energy
Check (name on board)/demerit (record that student signs to accept responsibility) system; adv: set/maintain limits, consequences are clear; disadv: catch bad behaviors, hard to detect behaviors
Problem solving
“Think time” strategy - remove student to another teacher’s classroom, debriefing form: what was behavior? what behavior do you need to display upon return?
Reality therapy: establish caring relationship, focus on behavior, accept responsibility, evaluate behavior, make plan, commitment to follow plan, following up
Peer mediation: students trained to listen/clarify issues, help negotiate, write solution

30. Managing Problem Behaviors
Chapter 9:
Managing Problem Behaviors
Special problems
Chronic avoidance of work: good records a must
Ability: break assignment into parts/modify assignment
Parent phone call, reach out to coaches, no grade leniency
Fighting: injury if intervene? disperse crowd, get help
Other aggressive behavior: all behavior, even if playful, is unacceptable; respect others; one warning; separate students; conference w/student
Bullying: bullying prevention programs, monitor student behavior, talk with class about behavior and effects, bully and victim problem solving, involve school counselor, incorporate social skills training in class
Disrespect/hostility towards teacher: don’t go brainstem
Best to defuse: keep it private and individual conference with student
Depersonalize: “This is taking time away from class. I will discuss it with you in a few minutes when I have time.”

31. Chapter 10: Managing Special Groups
Teaching heterogeneous classes
Assessing entering achievement: previous tests, pre-tests, monitor initial classwork (class notes, summary from book)
Modifying whole group instruction: participation (pacing), procedures for managing student work, thoughtful seating arrangement, assignments: EC and enrichment, peer tutoring (expectations and management skills)
Cooperative work groups
Small (homogeneous) group instruction: location of group/seating, materials/storage/accessibility, student movement/transitions, out-of- group procedures and expectations
Mastery learning: re-take tests until proficient by providing increased feedback
Labor intensive: managerial skills, alt. forms of tests, extra grading, scheduling, enrichment activities, recordkeeping
Develop/introduce incrementally, due dates, specified days for test re-takes

32. Chapter 10: Managing Special Groups
Teaching remedial classes
Learner characteristics: high absence/tardies, arbitrary grades, frequent failure, poor study skills, low attention span
Establishing your management system: continually reinforce procedures and routines, question class, practice, feedback
Monitoring behavior and prompt responses
Managing student work of daily/weekly grades for frequent feedback, grade for effort/performance, incorporate participation (involvement, learning, attendance)
Planning and presenting instruction
Short activity segments w/frequent assessment of understanding (see, say, do)
Extra attention to presenting directions and instruction clearly
Build teaching of study skills in lesson (note taking, identifying main ideas)

33. Chapter 10: Managing Special Groups
Students with special needs
Content mastery classroom: provide extra help, extra time for tests, staffed w/special education teachers who can provide suggestions for adapting teaching/management
Inclusion - special education students in general education classrooms: IEPs, regular planned meetings for progress and support, assignment modifications
Emotional/behavioral problems
communication with all, overlook minor inappropriate behavior, reinforce acceptable behavior, identify/reduce/prevent stressors, temporary lowered expectation on bad days, offer structured choices, allow leaving classroom
remember you are convenient target, but not cause of anger
Serious social deficits (ASD)
odd social skills with poor communication skills, extreme anxiety to change/unmet expectations, acute sensitivity to sounds, poor motor skills, stereotyped movement
use visual prompts, brief instructions (write down), social stories, strengths and interests in teaching to provide ways to develop talents, social feedback

34. Chapter 10: Managing Special Groups
Students with special needs
ADHD:
distractible, impulsive, disorganized
predictability and structure, ask others what works best for them, make sure you have their attention when giving clear/brief instructions, observe as they work, remind/reinforce effort and accuracy over speed, finger card/marker for reading
Deaf/hard-of-hearing: auditory devices, center of room seat, projector not chalkboard, repeat/rephrase info, restate responses, close monitoring, note takers
Bind/visually-impaired: board work - read aloud, tape recorders, hands-on work, change in activity to prevent tiring, seat w/back to window, move as needed
Extreme poverty: increased communication and relationship building, presentation of non-weak image/insolence, extra materials/supplies, bracket anxieties, peer buddy, provide underlying assumptions for behavior, + self-talk, help another student
Limited English proficiency: understanding of English, learn key words in native lanuage, body language/gestures, visual aids, long receptive period before confident in classroom, consult counselor if language barrier prevents benefit from instruction