Discussion Notes from:

Teach Like a ChampionChapters 5 & 6

Creating a Strong Classroom Structure

Chapter 5

The Five Principles of Classroom Culture

1. DisciplineAt the core of the definition of ‘discipline’ is teaching

Teaching with discipline implies a front-end investment in teaching kids how to be students

2. ManagementThe process of reinforcing behavior by consequences and

rewardsManagement w/out the other 4 elements loses effectiveness

3. ControlThe capacity to cause someone to choose to do what you

ask, regardless of consequencesControl should be non-judgmental, clear, purposeful, caring

The Five Principles of Classroom Culture

4. InfluenceControl gets them to do what you suggest; influence gets

them to want and internalize what you suggest

5. EngagementStudents who are busily engaged in productive, positive work

have little time to think about how to act counterproductively.

Champion teachers keep their students positively engaged and after a while they start to think of themselves as

positively engaged people

Entry Routine

Make a habit out of what is efficient, productive, and scholarly

Everything students do upon entering should be automatic and shaped intentionally

Do Now

Short activity on the board or desks before they enter

Students should know what to do with no ambiguity

4 Criteria for DO NOW:

1. Completed with no direction or discussion2. 3 to 5 minutes

3. Requires a written product4. Preview the day’s lesson, or review the previous5. A Do Now works because of consistency and

preparation

Tight Transitions

Teach transitions by scaffolding the steps

Transitions should be practiced until all students can follow through as a matter of habit

Practice for speed, accuracy, silence

Use Do It Again (#39) and re-teaching if students test the limits

Tight Transitions applies to materials also:

1. Practice for speed, accuracy, and silence2. Pass and collect across rows, not front to back

3. Distribute materials in groups

Binder Control

Have a required format and place for notes and papers

Everyone uses the same system, and you can check to make sure to has and can find what they need

Consider a numbering system with a table of content students add to

Don’t let the binder go home – students can remove what they need and return it the next day

SLANT

Sit upListen

Ask and answer questionsNod your head

Track the speaker

The word should be deeply imbedded in the vocabulary(e.g. Be sure to SLANT)

Develop non-verbal signals to reinforce and correct SLANTing

On Your MarkShow them how to prepare before class begins and expect

them to do so every day.

• Be explicit about what students need to start class

• Set a time limit (don’t accept “I’m doing it,” or “I’m about to”)

• Use a standard consequence

• Provide tools w/out consequences to those who recognize the need before class

• Include homework

Seat Signals

Students must signal requests from their seats

Signals should be nonverbal

Signals should be specific and unambiguous – non-distracting

Request and response should be managed withoutinterrupting instruction

Be explicit and consistent – require them byresponding to them only

Props

1 second to cue…no more than 5 seconds to execute

Must be crisp

Involve sound and movement

• Quick (“Oh, Yeah!”)• Visceral (e.g. percussive)

• Universal (everybody)• Enthusiastic ((fun and lively)

• Evolving (renew for freshness)

Setting & Maintaining High Behavioral

Expectations

Chapter 6

100 Percent

With anything less than 100% your authority is subject to interpretation

Unless you want to send the message that following an explicit direction is optional,

don’t move on w/out 100%

The more seriously you take compliance,the more you should reflect on the justness and discretion of

your commands –do they help achieve the end goal?

3 Principals of 100% Compliance:

100 PercentPrinciple #1: Use the Least Invasive Form of Intervention

Nonverbal intervention (while continuing instruction)

Positive group correction (“We’re following along in our books.”)

Anonymous individual correction (“We need two people.”)

Private individual correction (proximal, private, calm –The second time brings a consequence)

Lightning-quick public correction (“________ I need your eyes.”)

Consequence(delivered quickly, non-invasive, non-emotional, on a continuum)

Don’t ignore small misbehaviors – use the least invasive form of intervention the first time it appears, quickly and consistently

100 Percent

Principle #2: Rely on Firm, Calm Finesse

Command obedience because it serves the student andmake that evident in your language and demeanor –

“I need your eyes on me so you can learn.”

“That’s how we do it here.”

“In this class we…”

100 Percent

Principle #3: Emphasize Compliance You Can See

Invent ways to maximize visibility(Ask for eyes on you and pencils down – not just attention)

Be seen looking(Scan the room and narrate your scan)

Avoid marginal compliance(Do it and do it completely)

Leverage the power of unacknowledged behavioral opportunities(Find opportunities to practice compliance and build muscle memory)

What to Do

A large portion of non-compliant behavior comes fromincompetence rather than defiance

Teach What to Do, not What Not to Do

What to Do allows you to distinguish betweenincompetence and defiance

If the non-compliance is because of incompetence – teach

Break the task down further in your repeated instruction

Use What to Do (broken down into specific steps) in crisis situations to remain calm and give specific instructions to defiant students

What to Do

Effective “What to Do” directions are:

Specific – What does “Pay attention” look like?(Eyes on me, etc.)

Concrete – Break it into concrete items: physical, simple, commonplace(Turn your body to face me, etc.)

Sequential – Paying attention may involve of sequence of steps.(Put your feet under your desk, pencil down, and put your eyes on me…)

Observable – If your directions are simple and specific accountability is observable. They do not allow for protests.

(“But I was paying attention,” e.g.)

Strong VoiceIn establishing and maintaining control follow five principles

in your interactions w/ students:

Economy of Language – When you need to be all business, be crisp and clear

Do Not Talk Over – Every time! Wait if you need to: Start and then stop

Do Not Engage – Don’t engage with arguments about requests orwhen students call out. Don’t let students distract from your initial request

(“But she’s…, e.g.)

Square Up / Stand Still – Don’t do other task while giving instructions.Show that you take your own words seriously.

Quiet Power – Get slower and quieter when you want control;drop your voice and exude poise and calm

Formal Pose – The importance of a message and the need for attentiveness is indicated in your eye contact, body position gestures, facial expression, and

rhythm of language

Do It AgainWhen students fail successfully complete a basic task they’ve been taught,

doing it again, or better, or perfectly is often the best consequence

It shortens the feedback loop –Do It Again is quick and fresh in a student’s mind

It sets a standard of excellence, not just compliance –Use it when students do things the wrong way, and also when they could do it

better. Excellence first in small things, and then in all things.

There is no administrative follow-up

There is group accountability –Students are made to be accountable to peers as well as teachers

It ends with success –Students build the habit of doing it right

There are logical consequences –Lining up again is a logical consequence for failure to do so correctly

It can be used over and over

Do It Again

Use it positively whenever possible –“We can do that better/faster!”

Striving for excellence.“Oooh, let’s line up again and show why we’re the best!”

Don’t wait until students are lined up at the door to say thatsomeone forgot to push in their chair.

Do It Again as soon as execution doesn’t meet the standard

Sweat the Details

Combat minor but common deviations from excellence

Sweat the Details takes preparation –let students know exactly what you want in neatness, order, dress…

all the small things

Threshold

Stand at the door to set the tone and expectations. Getting it right first is easier than making it right after it’s gone wrong.

Threshold will –

1) establish a personal connection between you and your students, and

2) reinforce your classroom expectations

The point is not so much the doorwayas the power of ritual to show that the classroom is

different from the other places they go.

No Warnings Act Early –

use a minor intervention or consequence to prevent a major one later

Act Reliably –Be predictable and consistent

Act Proportionately –Start small…use a continuum

Use corrections rather than warningsCorrections teach, warnings only remind of the

consequences of continued poor choices

If you determine that a behavior is deliberate andthe result of disobedience rather than incompetence a

consequence is better than a warning

Be calm, poised and impersonal

Be incremental. Take things away in pieces.

Be private when possible and public when behavior involves others