Finish the School Year Strong Effective Classroom Management Tips

Finish the School Year Strong: Effective Classroom Management Tips

With summer right around the corner, students are become increasingly restless in the classroom. How do you keep them interested and involved withoutlosing your cool? Finish the school year on a high note with these tried-and-true tips for end-of-year classroom management.

Anticipate the slump.

You’re all too familiar with student behavior changing as the school year draws to a close. Make sure your students know what is expected of them beforethe restlessness kicks in and reinforce the message that classroom rules should be upheld even until the very last day.

Adapt

As a teacher, this tip is probably old hat. Your flexibility and adaptation skills will be more valuable than ever during the final weeks. Design classplans based on your current situation and take each day at a time.

Keep a life/work balance.

Anticipation and adaptation sometimes aren’t enough. On days when you feel especially weary, make sure you take time outside the classroom to do thingsthat are meaningful to you. This will help you start each work day with confidence and a positive outlook.

Let the kids be the teacher.

Why not try a different kind of lesson plan? The end of the year is a great time to incorporate fun, interactive activities. Keep your students involved bygetting them to showcase what they have learned so far by teaching a class.

Teach a lesson you didn’t have time for.

There is always a lesson or two you may have decided against due to constraints. Now is the perfect time to have students learn by “doing.” Grab theirattention with that fun Mythbusters-style science experiment you’ve been wanting to do all year!

Make the outdoors your classroom.

Your students are already dreaming about being outside. Try making it educational! Conduct your lessons in the sunshine and get them involved in nature atthe same time. You can even make this their incentive for their good behavior indoors.

Choose a Theme Week.

Remind them of how much fun they had during Spirit Week and create a Theme Week for the end of the year! Whether it’s a math-a-thon or a “dress like yourfavorite historical figure” week, you can keep students excited about being at school and finish out the year in style.

Explore community service together.

Send your students off with a good sense of community. Spend time in the classroom researching volunteer activities or causes that they resonate with, andhelp get them started on a productive summer.

If you already practice these methods in your classroom, then you are on the right track to a successful end-of-year! What other approaches have you takento manage your classroom and students? We would love to hear them. Please comment below.