My goal is to build a safe, encouraging, challenging and joyful classroom for all students. The children and I will work together during the first few weeks of school to build a community of learners in which respect and caring are the basis for all our interactions. In order to accomplish this, there are a few things that we will be doing…

Responsive Classroom emphasizes the social, emotional, and academic growth of elementary school students in a strong and safe learning environment. The Responsive Classroom approach incorporates the students’ social and emotional growth into their academic learning, stemming from the notion that children learn best through social interaction and when they are explicitly taught social and emotional skills along with their academic lessons. The goal is to enable optimal student learning, and through the implementation and refining of classroom and school-wide practices, the Responsive Classroom approach has been shown to increase academic achievement in elementary school students, decrease problem behaviors, improve social skills, and raise the quality of instruction.

Review our Classroom Rules together every morning which include Be Respectful, Be Responsible, and Be Safe.

Model- As a class we will be modeling our routines and appropriate behaviors. We will also be practicing them to ensure that every child can be successful.

Use reminders and redirection- When problems arise, the child will first be reminded of appropriate behaviors, then redirected to the desired behavior.

Read Books that emphasize leadership skills, friendship, cooperation, and respect.  A few of these are:

• Whole Body Listening
• The 7 Habits of Happy Kids Collection
• Have You Filled a Bucket Today?

We also incorporate Go Noodle and other activities as brain breaks to calm down, get energized, or practice being mindful of the task hand.

Discipline is monitored on an individual basis with logical consequences. For example, a student runs in the hallway. The logical consequence would be to go back to the starting point and try again.  If morning work is not completed or students were off-task during a specific period, students will complete work, review expectations, or practice the expectation with me at the beginning of recess or during a choice time.  Most behaviors can be addressed through modeling and practice, other times, students may need to work through a Think Sheet with me that will come home for you to sign and review with your child.  If the behavior is repetitive or extreme I will also contact you.  We will work together to help each child do his or her personal best!

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