What to do with Children who do not listen?

[StillAtUni]

I was just wanting to know what the best way to deal with children who will NOT listen to you - no matter how hard you try! When you tell them to do something, they turn around, look you in the eyes and say NO! When you ask them to go to the office, they will not go. When you ask them to be quiet, they get louder. I know that you cannot constantly get the Principal down to your classroom (they have better things to do and it does not reflect well on you as a teacher) and if you expell them, they will just do this again at thier new school. Has anyone had a child like this and did they have any success? If so, what did you do?

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

Insurbordination = expulsion. They may do it at the next school, but you cannot control that.

Others may disagree, but I would keep calling the principal in. If he doesn't like it, he can recommend the expulsion to the school board. In my opinoin, blatant insurbordination is an institutional disciplinary issue.

[elkimbo]

I think that a quality school with quality admin staff would not have a problem with being called to a class when there is a case of constant defiance and rebelliousness, especially when the teacher is either a student teacher or a new graduate. These teachers should be receiving a great deal of support from more experienced teachers and admin staff.

There are 20 to 30 other students in the class and the time that you take to try to cope with this problem student is taking time away from students who want to learn.

You can only establish a positive rapport with all students and treat them all equally, setting clear guidelines and consequences. There is a stage when this becomes a school problem not just your problem.

[jules]

The school I am currently doing a prac in has a room set aside for students who interfere with how a lesson is run. Teachers first ask a set of questions:
'What are you doing?'
'What rule are you breaking?' - the student has 4 rules to choose from
'Are you going to work with me on this?'

Once these questions have been asked, and assuming that they say they will work with you, they get no more chances and are sent to the room set aside for badly behaved students. There they have to write out a plan for how they will be allowed back into the lesson the next day - and that's all they are allowed to do. It seems to work fairly well and makes any confrontation with students of the sort you have had a systematic, transparent and mechanical. The student gets a 'point' for being sent out of class and if there is any problem during the process a green card can be given which is worth two points. If the student builds up 9 points they are suspended.

For the sort of problem you are describing this would be a good system - maybe you can suggest it to your colleagues or find a way to implement this type of system in your own way. Either way the previous posts still hold true, good luck with it.

Jules

[Unregistered]

In response to all of this, I am faced with the same dilemma. I am a first year teacher and keep getting reminded that I am not tenured yet and it does not look good for me to send a student out of the room or get administration involved. The two times I have sent a student to administration (after a student cursed at me and another wearing a walkman, refusing to take it off and spoke in a rude manner to me) have been interrupted. Another teacher who knew these kids were coming from my class, so she sent them back to my room asking if they behaved would I allow them to return to the class. She then reminded me that I am an untenured teacher and should avoid getting anyone else involved at all cost. What the heck is a new teacher suppose to do?

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

In response to all of this, I am faced with the same dilemma. I am a first year teacher and keep getting reminded that I am not tenured yet and it does not look good for me to send a student out of the room or get administration involved.

It appears to me that you have walked into a bad educational climate (not so much because of the students, but the staff).

Blatant insubordination is the school's problem, not just yours. If I saw a student steal, I would send him to the principal's office. If I saw a student beating up on another, I would send him to the principal's office. If I heard a student blatantly insult me, why wouldn't I do the same? It is a gross violation of the student code of conduct.

Unfortunately, the cultural climate of the school's staff may make your job completely unworth it. The first time a teacher reminded me that I wasn't tenured would be the last. (But that's just me.)

In the immortal words of Johnny Paycheck:

Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.
My woman done left,
An' took all the reasons I was workin' for.
You better not to try to stand in my way,
As I'm a walkin' out the door.
Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.

[Kristi]

:) at Lisa's poem

My first year teaching was last year. I had a TERRIBLE experience. I was at a school with a unsupportive staff and a rowdy group of high schoolers. I sent multiple students to the office multiple times. Occasionally the student was sent to ISSP, but usually just got a lick or two. Corporal punishment doesn't work for high schoolers in my opinion. It's almost like adding stars to their stripes. The more stars the higher esteem they have....makes them feel tougher. Insubordination did not equal expulsion there either. It was all I could do to teach the class. Numerous times I asked administration to sit in on a class. The administrator would joke around with students in the room! What good did that do? zip nada nothing.

Thankfully, I'm in a much better environment this year. My confidence has soared. I've realized that all my problems were not just my ability to teach. Tactics I tried last year actually work on a different set of kids in a different learning environment with administration that supports you.

Don't get too discouraged. Research new methods to try in class. College does not prepare you for managing your classroom...that comes with experience. Be flexible. There are situations where you just have to give a little. Looking back I should have been more insistent with my adminstrators and let them know how I was feeling in the situation. I wasn't the only one at fault.

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

Research new methods to try in class.

Absolutely!

[Unregistered]

Students are like pens. If they don't work, shake them a bit. If they still don't work - BIN THEM!

[bookmark]

I have a 30 second out side the roon conversation with the students in my class that do not want to listen. It goes somthing like this.

You know you are a nice young man/woman. or..You are a pretty good student or could be a better student. I really would like to hear what you think about what is going on in our classroom. But the problem is that you do not raise your hand, and seem to share these things with your friends and actually disturbeing yourself and the eitire class. What do you think we can do about this problem?

Most always they say "I don't know"

I say.

Is there a problem that I am unaware of that needs to be talked about? If so then I choose when and how to deal with that.



If not then I say:
Well maybe you just need to be brought back on task. So what I will do is walk over to your desk and touch it to get your attention or maybe tap you on the shoulder. They usually don't want to be singled out. Lets see if that works for you, if not then we will try somthing else. Now please lets go back in and try to concentrate on what we are doing today.

I give all student one chance, you have used yours. If this doesn't work I will call Mr or Mrs. principle and see what he/she can do to help us with this problem. I also let them know that I do not involve the principle unless there has been no solution to the problem, and they know the principal knows when I send a student down or call him in I mean business and they respect that and know that I will do so.

Sometimes I save the part about the principal for the second 30 second converstion if necessary. Most times with the second converstaion they are very remorseful and things change and I do not call in the principle. I do however follow through after that. Depends on how much the student is showing that they are trying and other factors.

Something else that works very well is to keep on talking about the lesson. As I do this I will look at the student until he/she sees me. I make sure they do by walking closer so they are sure to see me looking. Then give a frown look and shake my head no. Sometimes all it takes is a look. If that does not work then most times other students will catch on that I am asking that person to pay attention and they actually tell that student to please listen.

The most effective thing I use for talkers and those who do not listen is I stop dead in my tracks, look straight at the one causing the problem, do not say a word to anyone until they stop what they are doing. Again it doesn't take much more than 30 seconds sometimes less for the person to either stop or their classmates do the job for me. The more consistant you are with the way you manage these problems the less time it takes and they tend to monitor theirselves.

I will keep a student after class to have another conversation about the problem. They don't want to do this because they are now in trouble with another teacher for being late to class. This gives me almost 5 mins. to address the problem.

I avoid envolving the principal unless all else fails. When I do call them in most times that is the end to the problem, ny students are quiet aware when I call him/her in that I mean busness. I do not tolorate disrespect from my student to me or to their peers. On the other hand I respect them. I never repremand a student in frount of others. You might think I spend a lot of lost time outside of my classroom for 30 second conversations, but I don't. I always let them know that I don't like their actions but I do care about them. For the worst ones it usually takes one time if they hit the principals office. Guess I am lucky to have be in a school where the administration stands by you. All it takes for the other students to know how things are is when you really follow through with one, the others think twice. Sometimes all I have to do is look at the misbehaving student and say, " I wonder what Mr/Mrs Principal is doing right now?"

Naturally if the problem is racial, sexist, or violent I handle things with a firm hand, with the principal. I never, never carry over to another teaching day the problems a student has given me. I alway try to start fresh the next day with them and always show them in some small way that I hold no ill feelings for any trouble that has occured. Develope what works well for you, sometimes it takes a bit of experimenting and depending on the situation with the child, ie. home life, peer acceptance, academic problems there are other avenues to try.

I love my job, and my students know I love them :) regardless of what happens in my classroom or what the results of behavior problems are. After all they are children learning.

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

I like the way you handle the conversation. But my question is, "why weren't they engaged in the first place?"

The best way to deal with this problem, IMO, is to engage the classroom at all times. So how do we do that? Simple: By making it clear that at any moment they could be called upon to answer a question. (Well, that's ONE way.)

Then if that doesn't work for a particular student (but I think it will), your idea sounds like a good followup.

[Unregistered]

I say isolate them, then lure them in with something that they like - then you can talk. This is my third year teaching. Any student that defiant needs his/her space. Hey give it to them! Generally, the other kids in the class will realize that something isn't quite right with that student.

[Sherri Stevens]

It sounds like you have a bad teaching environment and not much administrative support. At our school, we are trying the "Love and Logic" approach. I am not so sure about it, but they claim it works! Just have a phrase you use such as "Let me know how that works out for you" or "That's too bad". Anyway....the idea is to say these phrases to avoid getting into a confrontation with students. For example, with the student who would not take their head phones off, you could have simply said cd players are against the rules and stood there until he handed it over. Then if he refuses to comply you really have no choice but to call the office. Apparently those students have been allowed to do as they please with no consequences. We are also trying a "Recovery room" this year. This is where a disruptive student is sent into another teacher's room to "think about his actions". They are not allowed to come back until they are ready to comply. I'm not sure how this will work. Of couse none of this works without support from the principals.

[Unregistered]

One problem I am hearing here is the way students look at you and the way YOU look at your students. This is my tenth year teaching (Jr. High 7 years High school 3) and I have not sent a kid to the office for the last 6-7 years. I too had problems my first years (who doesn't?), but once I figured it out things became bearable. What I did was treat my students like I do my dogs. I Have a pack of 6 dogs. If you look at discipline as you would when training dogs then you will be able to manage better. Think about it! You love your dogs, but YOU must be the pack leader. A Pack leader will roll a subordinate dog whenever their authority is challenged. The dog did not ask nicely nor did she use love. She growled and the dog rolled over. Size means nothing the alpha dog in my pack (besides me) is a 13 year old cripple. You must do the same. You must be strict but fair. The classroom is yours. You own it.

Some suggestions:

Never ever say please or thank you. Only when they do something positive that you did not ask for.

Never reward them for something they are supposed to do. "I brought my book today! Can I get extra credit?" How bout I don't fail you today. That's your reward. Also; never compliment them for doing their work. Only if they go above and beyond.

Deal with the fact that they don't care about you and don't want to be your friend. Your job is to teach and theirs is to learn.

Don't confuse friendship with respect. If they respect you then the kids will start to "like" you.

Never get into an argument with a student. If you tell them to do something then they must do it. If you compromise even for one small thing then they own you.

Never lie to them. If they are acting like a bunch of clowns. Tell them. If they are lazy sons a... then tell them. Tell them that you will not lie to them. That you will call them on it. Get in their face (not literally) and tell them what you and other think of them and the way their acting.

Show no fear.

There are many others but these are some ideas that came up. I currently teach 10th and 12th grade history. The school is located downtown and 80/90% (?) eligible for free and reduced lunch. This is not a nice suburban school. I own them. But yet was voted fav teacher last 2 years. Go figure.

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

Apparently those students have been allowed to do as they please with no consequences. We are also trying a "Recovery room" this year. This is where a disruptive student is sent into another teacher's room to "think about his actions".

But doesn't that disrupt the instruction in the other teacher's class? And I don't see how this is a deterrence. What would prevent the kid from acting up in the recovery room?

[Unregistered]

My 1st year sounds similiar to yours. But it does get better. What worked for me, and still does, is a form of Love and Logic. I have changed it so that I do not have a confrontation in the classroom. The students have the ability to determine the consequence of the rule that they have broken. What I have change is that the discussion takes place in the hallway. If the student gets to the hallway first, then I will accept his/her version. If I get thier first, then they have to accept mine. The students in the classroom do not know what is going on and they do not have to. If this did not work, then I had no problem calling the principal in.
I should mention that I am 6 ft 2 and used to be a marine drill instructor. The students knew this, and I still called in the principal. The students soon learned that I was not going to accept anything less then their best behavior. After the first year, my reputation had been started and the next year I was not tested nearly as much.
Keep on keeping on.

[guest]

One action that I haven't seen mentioned yet in this thread is to contact the parent and let them know how the child is behaving in class. I do this and ask for the parent's support for my efforts in the classroom and for them to reinforce my classroom expectations at home. The primary reason I do this is "CYA'. If the problem becomes chronic and disciplinary measures escalate to ISS and/or home suspension, the parent has to be notified. At that point, none of my parents can claim they weren't aware of the problem beforehand. Just my .02 but in my 20+ years of teaching, I have seen parental involvement all but disappear in the parent/teacher/student/school relationship. Try to contact parents often, not just about problems but praise and fyi items. Encourage volunteerism. A positive, proactive outreach approach seems to work best with today's parents--some of whom are only 15 years older than their oldest child and have little or no parenting skills.

Another thing---if you have an administration who gives you little or no support, document EVERYTHING and contact your professional organization for help.

If you love teaching, you can hang in there and try to change the school culture. If not, move to another school. If that doesn't work, quit teaching.
Eventually, when there are no more teachers in the public schools, and the children are staying home--schooled or not---the public will get the message.

p.s. I have very few problems in the classroom these days.

[Unregistered]

WOW
All I can say is - I hope many teachers hear what you have to say. I don't know how long you have been teaching but you shared a lot of really great ideas and techniques. You also have a positive attitude and even with my short experience - the way you look at teaching, your job, the importance of respect and the way you treat your students - I bet your students love having you as a teacher. I wish more teachers approached students with the caring attitude you have. (Although, I really believe there are many more wonderful teachers than there are teachers who need a different career) I raised a family first and even though I am older - I am only in my 7th year of teaching. I have learned a lot of things in that time. One thing I really agree on that came from different postings - if you don't have the support of the administration and your colleagues - it isn't going to work. My administration is wonderful. They know by the time a student of mine reaches the office - I have exhausted all efforts (including calling home - which comes before the office, parents need to be informed). I really try to deal with it myself. I also try to be as respectful as I can of all my students because I expect the same from them. So far it has worked (almost all the time - there are exceptions to every rule) and I love my job and my students are wonderful, even the ones that try my patience.
Bless you for being a caring teacher and I hope you have many more years ahead of you.
Another teacher, lovin it!

[Arif Qureshi]

Activities

As you should know one student in duration study learn to activities. If we see to very deeply student activities we feel activities increase to understanding. TFU Guide book (ch 06) page No: 56 showing to performance. Author Wright: student learning in school setting need the same kind of experience the might acquire pieces of knowledge from books and lecture but with out the opportunity to apply that knowledgeable coach they will not develop understanding.
Now we search to answer how we build understanding. We go to kind of Activities
1.. Brainstorming 2. Watching films
3.. role playing 4. Debating
4.. illustrating 5 practicing play
6.. Responding to peer 7. Writing to autobiography
8.. Designing Display 9. Making Maps
10. Interviewing 11. Doing Experiments
we can say that now activities of student go to understanding build. Brainstorming can strong understanding and one student search to drowned ideas. Brainstorming is the build of thinking. We can say growth of thinking. Others Activities can role-playing and create to confidence. Illustrating is growth of ideas. Others activities can to major role in build thinking and understanding.
This is real fact good student always search of knowledge and engaged to search of ideas.
Now we search others Activities around to build thinking.
1.. Dancing Research 2. Note Taking
3.. Making Colleges 3. Writing songs
4.. Making Tableaus 5. Collaborating
6.. Reading 7. Dancing
8.. Singing 9. Acting
10. Playing and Exploring 11. Talking and presenting
These Activities are Good Activities and support to build thinking and develop understanding all activities to have real name of performance.
Supporting of good activities that’s elements have major roles
Hypothesizing, predicting, making metaphors, free-association, calculating, synthesizing, classifying support to better performance and growth of thinking develop of understanding. The Teaching for Understanding Framework (TfU) grows out of the constructivist tradition of education..
Now we search to Activities to performance of understanding. How we can develop performance of understanding and how we achieve to performance Goals what is performance of understanding Goals and Activities.
Performance of understanding is the name of learning experience now we search to answers.
Goals
· Help student understand to importance of classifying.
· Development of demonstrate and understanding.
· Build of thinking

Activities:
Performance of understanding by integrating thinking skill such as
1. Comparing and contrasting
2. Analyzing
3. Inferring
4. Generalizing
5. Synthesizing
6. Interpreting
7. Explaining
8. Predicting
9. Defining Distinctions
10. Making connections
11. Classifying
More we increase step of the Activities and we search new supporting thinks we see new ways of Activities.
1. Relating Facts 2. Assessing
3. Presenting evidence 4. Diagnosing
5. Evaluating 6. Creating Models
7. Theorizing 8. Categorizing
9. Judging 10. Deciding
12.Making Analogies.
Good Activities create growth of thinking. We observe in the school and see to student understanding and listen to views of student and getting to knowledge what is mental status of students and how we can improve if we face to weakness in understanding we get to priority development of knowledge and provide to support of good activities.
We can define means of Good Activities are the build of thinking and performance of understanding. Activities are effectible in the school atmosphere so we locate to understanding and can efforts develop performance of understanding.

[Arif Qureshi]

Q No 1: What is understanding and how dose it develop?
>
>
> Answer: understanding is thing which you can give the idea and make you able
to pass your commits. Understanding is the growth of mind and taking new ideas.
If you achieve your goal and under stand each and every thing so its means you
are doing some thing. so we can say that under standing develop in our thinking.
In Understanding you can choose to better and correct way if we are not
understand particular topic and goal so we are not able to answer the question.
If you don’t know that what to do and by your self you don’t know the topic and
what is going to be asked so you are un able to answer the question. And you
will do mistake so understanding aggrandized to growth of mind. We develop of
understanding our mind also pick of ideas & achieve of goals. That‘s develop of
understanding and other’s way we can develop of understanding for example.
>
> 1. Create the education atmosphere.
> 2. Build your understanding.
> 3. Build your relation with concern persons.
> 4. Accept all the challenges of life.
> 5. Having a Decision Power

mail :arifqr@yahoo.com

[Unregistered]

The best way to deal with this problem, IMO, is to engage the classroom at all times. So how do we do that? Simple: By making it clear that at any moment they could be called upon to answer a question. (Well, that's ONE way.)

and when you call on a student and his response is "I don't know" , then what do you do?

scenario 1 - you continue trying to engage his thinking process till he comes up with something, but meanwhile other kids get bored and start talking

scenario 2 - you let the kid get away with that response, and they pick up the chatt they've been carrying on right where they left off from

So, what's your next step?

[Lisa's Hotscakes]

Easy.

"Okay, I am going to call on another student and then come right back and ask again. So you will need to listen to their response."

It works very well. Saying "I don't know" no longer gets the teacher off their backs, so they have to at least try and answer the question, which means they have to listen.

Never let a kid get away with an incorrect response... that's my philosophy.

[cinderella_9]

I think, first way it is important that they understand they have to respect you. I got a new class with a bad reputation and in the first lesson told them: I will not accept any kind of misbehaviour because I have a job to do and I want to teach you some interesting and useful things this year ...will you give me the chance to do so? The answer was a restrained yes which I thought was positive. In any kind of misbehaviour, let the child comment on this in written form, this strengthens your position when talking to parents. And about parents - have them informed early and regularly, before the problem is big. Get help from colleagues. Invite parents (in agreement with the administration) to sit in class for one day with their child. Children will absolutely hate that and parents might understand better what the problem is all about. Someone posted the idea 'Be aware, that the classroom is yours and you make the rules. RIGHT!!!

[Unregistered]

Do you know the student on a personal level? What I mean is, do you know about their home life? Many times a child will revert to behavior such as this to get the attention they so desperately crave. Do not "call them out" or repremand them in front of the class. This will only worsen the situation. They think of this the same as you would. They feel you are being disrespectful to them. Pull them out in the hall, or talk to them after class, ask them to explain the problems with their behavior and ask them why they would treat you in such a manner that is disrespectful? Make them a deal that if they will respect you, you will always have respect for them. Try to always catch them doing something nice or considerate. Give them positive attenion rather than negative. They may never get attention at home and feel like the only attention they can get from school is negative. With kids like this I make it my life's ambition to find out why they act this way and try to build a positive relationship with them, does always work NO. BUT, most of the time it does. Hope this helps.

[Unregistered]

I am apalled that there is still corporal punishment. I am, even more apalled that you all go to your principal when you have an unruly student. Have you ever heard of Love and Logic Principals by Jim Fay and David Funk. You need to build rapport with your students before they will want to do things for you. Maybe I am a liberal midwestern gal, but around here we make our students solve their own problems on there own. We do not own their problems. We discipline with empathy and consequences that fit the crime. It really does work. I suggest all you uninformed teachers read this book and use the methods taught.

[Unregistered]

I am apalled that there is still corporal punishment. I am, even more apalled that you all go to your principal when you have an unruly student. Have you ever heard of Love and Logic Principals by Jim Fay and David Funk. You need to build rapport with your students before they will want to do things for you. Maybe I am a liberal midwestern gal, but around here we make our students solve their own problems on there own. We do not own their problems. We discipline with empathy and consequences that fit the crime. It really does work. I suggest all you uninformed teachers read this book and use the methods taught.

You mangled our ideas, making it appear that we advocated Draconian punishments for the slightest offenses.

You offer no specifics other than to read a book. Tell us what you know and we can evaluate it to see if it will help in the classroom.

For example, you said that you "discipline with empathy and consequences that fit the crime." It doesn't take a rocket scientist to make such a statement. But what are the consequences?

[Unregistered]

You need to build rapport with your students before they will want to do things for you.

Sounds nice, but how do you manage the classroom until that rapport is built? (It doesn't take 5 minutes [the first 5 to ever spend with them - after that you've already lost them to their own interests (and I can assure you that those interests of theirs is not the same as yours!)]to build rapport with all the students in your classroom!)

[abckids]

WOW.. bookmark - that is a great way of handling things (the beginning of post). Thanks for the ideas. I will keep that in mind when I finally get to enter the field.

:)

[Myprisms]

I have a 30 second out side the roon conversation with the students in my class that do not want to listen. It goes somthing like this.

You know you are a nice young man/woman. or..You are a pretty good student or could be a better student. I really would like to hear what you think about what is going on in our classroom. But the problem is that you do not raise your hand, and seem to share these things with your friends and actually disturbeing yourself and the eitire class. What do you think we can do about this problem?

Most always they say "I don't know"

I say.

Is there a problem that I am unaware of that needs to be talked about? If so then I choose when and how to deal with that.



If not then I say:
Well maybe you just need to be brought back on task. So what I will do is walk over to your desk and touch it to get your attention or maybe tap you on the shoulder. They usually don't want to be singled out. Lets see if that works for you, if not then we will try somthing else. Now please lets go back in and try to concentrate on what we are doing today.

I give all student one chance, you have used yours. If this doesn't work I will call Mr or Mrs. principle and see what he/she can do to help us with this problem. I also let them know that I do not involve the principle unless there has been no solution to the problem, and they know the principal knows when I send a student down or call him in I mean business and they respect that and know that I will do so.

Sometimes I save the part about the principal for the second 30 second converstion if necessary. Most times with the second converstaion they are very remorseful and things change and I do not call in the principle. I do however follow through after that. Depends on how much the student is showing that they are trying and other factors.

Something else that works very well is to keep on talking about the lesson. As I do this I will look at the student until he/she sees me. I make sure they do by walking closer so they are sure to see me looking. Then give a frown look and shake my head no. Sometimes all it takes is a look. If that does not work then most times other students will catch on that I am asking that person to pay attention and they actually tell that student to please listen.

The most effective thing I use for talkers and those who do not listen is I stop dead in my tracks, look straight at the one causing the problem, do not say a word to anyone until they stop what they are doing. Again it doesn't take much more than 30 seconds sometimes less for the person to either stop or their classmates do the job for me. The more consistant you are with the way you manage these problems the less time it takes and they tend to monitor theirselves.

I will keep a student after class to have another conversation about the problem. They don't want to do this because they are now in trouble with another teacher for being late to class. This gives me almost 5 mins. to address the problem.

I avoid envolving the principal unless all else fails. When I do call them in most times that is the end to the problem, ny students are quiet aware when I call him/her in that I mean busness. I do not tolorate disrespect from my student to me or to their peers. On the other hand I respect them. I never repremand a student in frount of others. You might think I spend a lot of lost time outside of my classroom for 30 second conversations, but I don't. I always let them know that I don't like their actions but I do care about them. For the worst ones it usually takes one time if they hit the principals office. Guess I am lucky to have be in a school where the administration stands by you. All it takes for the other students to know how things are is when you really follow through with one, the others think twice. Sometimes all I have to do is look at the misbehaving student and say, " I wonder what Mr/Mrs Principal is doing right now?"

Naturally if the problem is racial, sexist, or violent I handle things with a firm hand, with the principal. I never, never carry over to another teaching day the problems a student has given me. I alway try to start fresh the next day with them and always show them in some small way that I hold no ill feelings for any trouble that has occured. Develope what works well for you, sometimes it takes a bit of experimenting and depending on the situation with the child, ie. home life, peer acceptance, academic problems there are other avenues to try.

I love my job, and my students know I love them :) regardless of what happens in my classroom or what the results of behavior problems are. After all they are children learning.

Hi! I am a multimedia specialist, working in Los Angeles. I'm not a teacher, but would love to take up this career someday. Your perspective on handling the students seems very clear and encourages me to stick with my plans of a career change. I wish to stay focussed like you. Thank you.

[Unregistered]

You have all written very encouraging messages here. Thank you! I am a student teacher and am finding it very hard to teach in a school where the behaviour of the students is terribly bad, and the staff do not support eachother properly. But the advice you have given is brilliant.
I think it is important for teachers to bare in mind that it is not necessarily your fault at all when the class do not learn well because they have behaved so badly. When the other staff do not support you, it is almost impossible to teach a badly behaved class. No matter how many great theories you have, practise can be so very different and the bridge between the two only works if the staff at the school are supporting eachother properly.

Important thing I want to say to anyone teaching or trying to learn to teach........

"WELL DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

You are doing an awesome thing. Here's to making the little buggers into nice thoughtful people!!!