I am a health and fitness teacher who has a 6th grade class who are monsters! HELP!!?

Question

I teach a 6th grade health class and I am a first year teacher. This class is horrible and are very disrespectful. Every minute I am telling them to be quiet, get back to work, keep your hands to yourself....I really need some suggestions on how to deal with them. I dont want to give them detention because most of them are already in it...so is there something else I can do in the classroom that will make them change?

Answer 1

Develop a reward system for good behavior. Most kids respond better to positive reinforcement.

Answer 2

I used to teach 9th grade. I agree with the rewards system. Give out goodies to those who did well during the week or month. Movie passes, fun pencils, etc. Lots of people in the community would be willing to donate items so you don't have to spend money. Also, I found that keeping them just a few seconds after the bell was the worst punishment. They felt they had to leave right when the bell rang so if they were bad I'd keep them for 15, 30, 45 seconds. If they were good they were occasionally allowed to line up at the door.

Answer 3

Your first step will be clearly defining the behavior that you expect. Create 3-5 simple rules that cover most situations. Then, have students create t-charts to show what those behaviors look like and sound like. Next, come up with a clear, predictable routine for how the class will run. Start with a warm-up on the board for them to do as they come in, or, if you are in a gym, an activity that they need to start from the first moment. Nothing breeds trouble like idle time.

"But what if they don't do it?" you are wondering. Create a two-step timeout. One desk in the classroom for students to sit for a short period of separation from the classroom, and a desk in a buddy teacher's room for longer problems. Sixth graders feed off of peer response. Remove the audience, and you will remove part of the reason to misbehave. (I've been in those classes, where one giggle will ignite a firestorm of sniggering and just rotten behavior...don't worry, though. It can get better!)

You will need to change your entire body language and demeanor. Something about you has communicated to your students that you don't mean business, and you need to change that. Think clear, quiet, but firm voice, and slow, deliberate actions. This may take practice. Some people are born with it, while others need to develop it. Through your body language alone, you need to communicate that you are in charge. Period.

You will need to do some reading. Read "Setting Limits in the Classroom". It sets out a clear pathway to ending the "dance" of classroom discipline. "Tools for Teaching" is another good one. The Fred Jones website (author of Tools for Teaching) can give you some great tools that will help you on Monday. Links to great advice can also be found on the EducationWorld.com website. To help you plan in future years, check out Responsive Classrooms...an approach that works wonderfully once you are experienced with getting and keeping control. (Once you prove that you are in control of the classroom, you need to slowly hand that control back over to students...but this is probably beyond what you'll be able to do in your first year!)

Rewards can be a useful tool, in the short-term. But, if you're in teaching for the long haul, you're going to need to do some soul-searching about this. Alfie Kohn has written some pretty compelling books about the problems with rewards.

Answer 4

Yes, a reward system is good. By middle school, you can do a class-sized reward system because of peer pressure. Get a clear jar, add marbles (or whatever) when the whole class is being good. When it's full, they can have a party.

A couple good discipline websites are below.

Answer 5

I teach K-5th Art and I am relatively new at it (i'm in my fourth year). The first couple years were my real education. I have been teaching at an innercity school and it comes with it's share of problems associated with working with innercity children with low SES. I must admit that I have an advantage because I grew up in the same environment and can identify with my children.

What I found to be the most helpful with classroom management issues was observing veteran teachers. They have worked through these issues. I learned from one teacher how to come up with a phrase that the students like to say. When the children begin to get off track I simply say..."Heads Up!" and they reply with "What's up?" I'm basically telling them all eyes on me, give me the respect of stopping what you are doing because I have something important to say. The children love this approach because I'm not nagging and repeating myself. When you resort to nagging and repeating yourself....your words lose their power.

When you send them to the office or out of the room....you lose your authority as well. Avoid doing those things and brainstorm for ideas for dealing with the situations yourself. You are doing the right thing by coming on here and asking for advice.

I myself am not an advocate of giving out "rewards" because to me you are just rewarding them for what they should have been doing in the first place. I explain it to them just like that. I say...why should I give you a piece of candy because you decided to follow the rules that you were supposed to be following all along. I come to work everyday like I should and do my job and don't ask you to give me things. This is a real life lesson. Some children and adults feel this sense of entitlement to anything and everything. That is so ridiculous to me. By giving rewards, you are placating them for a moment and priming them to expect rewards for doing the very basic that is asked for them. I believe that expectations should be set high and when you do that real learning can take place.

Instead of sending students out of my room, I give them ample warning. If they continue to be disruptive or disrespectful, I put them in an area where I have art reproductions with art history information on the back. They have to examine the artwork, read the information, write the information, and then draw their version of the artwork. If you have this sort of situation in place, half the battle is already won.

If students fall out of their seats or sit in a dangerous way (wer have metal stools with no backs on them). I warn them with a look or tap them lightly on the shoulder. If they don't get it..they have to stand up. The ones that have had to do this, have only had to stand up for that one time. They remember after just one time usually.

The other enrichment teachers and I have a system in place for repeat "offenders". We call it MAP (Music, Art, P.E.....appreciation) Students that do this can't go to the next week's planned enrichment. Instead, they have to go to the one they misbehaved in to do alternative assignments or do chores. They have to know that consequences do exist. They know that our classes are all on this system and that we won't budge....find buddy teachers that could help you work out a system like this.

I also have these progress notes that basically say....Dear Parent,...Your child, ________________________ did not reach his full potential in Art due to:
____wasting time
____disrespecting others
____not following directions
____disrupting class

etc.
These forms require the students to get a parent's signature. If the situation was severe, I draw another line for the principal to sign. This cuts back on the number of official referrals to the office, but at the same time, allows the principal to be involved. I make a copy of these notes, in case the student decides they don't have to bring it back the next day. If they don't bring it back, I call their parent. Stay on it early on and you won't have problems down the road. Nip it in the bud early.

It might seem that I am a strict teacher, but it's quite the opposite. My students are comfortable and know that they can talk with an appropriate tone about anything pertaining to the project (unless they are having a quiz). When students start to play and be disruptive to their peers and myself, I have to set boundaries. I take that privlege away from them and tell them we are going to have a "whole class time out". That entails a time out from talking. When they get back on track, they resume.

I read all those books about "First Days of School" etc.....and I did learn a few things from them, but I learned the most from trial and error, vetran teachers, and making use of plain old fashioned common sense.

Anyways, I hope you could glean something from this.