Ok… but what about Classroom Management?

I’ve been working with a few new teachers lately. I have, since I was around long enough to be considered a not-new teacher, loved working with new (especially prospective) teachers. They do, among a lot of other good things, keep me mindful of what it felt like to not-quite-yet have my own classroom, how these places I had been around most of my conscious life were suddenly terrifying unknowns.

My biggest worry then, and very often (bordering on absolutely always) the biggest worry now of teachers on the way in, is how in god’s name to manage a room full of kids.

Classroom Management seems to be the one thing every prospective teacher most wants to know about, and the one thing they don’t feel ever gets addressed enough during their preparation.

So, I get asked, kindof a lot, about how to manage a classroom.

I’ve tried a lot of things. I don’t get it right all the time now. I know I should have an attention-getter thing that I yell out and the students respond, but I always feel silly doing them. I know that, especially when my patience is low, I insist on quiet that I don’t really need or react with sharpness or loudness that is really unhelpful.

There are some strategies, some skills, some philosophies I’ve found to be helpful. I really wish I had a better answer, but I…