Ripp says that students already know the rules, and we don't need to quote them in our classrooms.
'"Isn't this your 6th year in school?" All nodded and starting to wake up a little. "Do you need me to explain the rules or can you tell me what they are?" With this, the buzzing started. That little bit of chatter that kids get involved in when they start to see the light. "We know the rules, I know how to act, we can set the rules...."'
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When I tell colleagues that I have no classroom rules, they are shocked. For some reason, there is an obsession with posting a bunch of Do's and Dont's around the room in gigantic type size.
As Ripp suggests, students already know the rules, especially older kids who have had rules and consequences hammered into them year after year by every teacher with a whiteboard or poster and tape. So, why repeat them? Why not discuss what will make any class successful, instead? Why not allow the students to lead the conversation, like Ripp did.
"I gave my students a voice and let them lead and they showed me they already know. I am so excited for the rest of the year."Give your students a voice, and you will be on your way to a problem-free classroom.
Hi Mark,
ReplyDeleteThis puts a little smile on my face.
I had class rules. They were: 1) Be respectful. 2) Try your best. 3) Use common sense. Would you say that my rules and your lack-of-rules were about the same thing?
Kind regards,
Tracy
Tracy, your "rules" are definitely similar to my "lack of rules." Not to split hairs, but I really don't like using the word "rules" at all. It's just so negative. Ignoring rules and consequences completely works better for me.
ReplyDeleteThanks, as always, for chiming in.
And really I wonder whether those 3 rules that Tracy mentioned even have to be designated as class rules. Were they posted? I think sometimes even when we post them it is an empty poster, the kids already know it, so why the need to post; just so we have something to point at and say "this is the rule you broke?"
ReplyDeleteHi Pernille,
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, yes, they were posted. Why? At the time, the teacher evaluation system had "Rules are Posted" as part of the teacher evaluation. So, in my response, I posted them because I wanted to earn the trust of admin and it was too contrite to put up a fuss about it.
More importantly, the students responded positively. They were used to the first day of school spending lots of time on rules with do's and don'ts. In my class, at the end of the day when we reflected on how their day went, students brought up what they were expecting... and one or two would point out the rules posted... and we'd conclude with we already know the rules so why waste time talking about them.
Furthermore, the moment they left my room, I was busy making phone calls home letting the families know how well their child adapted to class and shared a specific story about what I really liked about the student. Yes, I was at school very late that first night, but it set the tone for the entire year... and quite honestly, it still does because those families knew/know how much I care for each of them.
Kind regards,
Tracy