Check out our list of tips on effective conflict and behavior management in the classroom.

Individual behavior plans offer the framework to assist learners with a plan to change behavior. Concentrate on the positive and on reinforcement. Penalties are the last issue you discuss when writing a plan with the learner, educator, and family. Don’t use negative consequences that will humiliate the learner. Carry in mind the dignity of the person.

Learners should be aware of the consequences if they misbehave or do not complete their assignments. Go with your coworkers to be assured the consequences in your class match school-wide consequences. The consequence should always fit the situation.

Instruct learners that respect also means respect for the support staff, janitors, cooks, and bus drivers. We sometimes forget that we are all members of a school community. Respect is for everyone.

Instruct learners what the expectations are for extracurricular activities and sporting events. Learners need to be taught how to act outside the class; don’t assume that they know or have been taught.

Explain to your learners what academic dishonesty is. They also must know the policy and its consequences regarding it. Ensure that you have evidence and not assumptions when addressing a learner’s integrity. If all turns outs to be true, follow your procedures. Don’t ever make a mockery of a learner in front of peers.

Remain aware that your class will consist of actors and actors. You will have the drama queen who believes every moment is a calamity for her. Each group has a class clown who will try to draw attention to their clever antics and one-liners. And the list can go on. Don’t feed the personalities. Concentrate on their strengths, and at the same time, deal with any behavior that may disrupt the learning in the class.

Select an area where you can confer with learners about their behavior outside the instruction area. If you need to react to misbehavior, take the learner to this area to minimize disrupting the other learners. Don’t turn your back to the class when talking one-on-one with a learner in the area designated for feedback.

When you talk with learners about their behavior problems, stand in one spot and talk in a quiet, deliberate voice. Get direct eye contact. Refrain from touching the learner or poking them when you want to make a point. When learners are pulled aside for a behavior management session, the educator is upset or angry with the learner. If this happens, it only will intensify the situation.

If conflicts arise amongst the learners in the class, or are carried into the class from outside, use conflict resolution to help learners resolve the matter with a structured protocol. Ask the guidance counselor about a coaching session that you can attend. Acquiring knowledge in this area will help you throughout your career.

Remain aware of harassment and bullying issues in the class or in the hallway. Find the harassment policy in the learner handbook or the school district’s policy book. Read the policy to the learners and discuss what this means and the implications for those who do not follow the policy.

Once dealing with tough, highly- charged, confrontational situations, remain calm and maintain control. If learners see you as weak, they will not stop their tirade. If you become frantic, take command of your emotions quickly before the conflict between you and the student escalates.

Keep your eyes moving in the class, hallways, and other areas of the school building and grounds. A quick glance might stop misbehaviors from happening. This is a way to stop actions a student might regret later. If you witness an issue, address it with the learner, or report the infraction to the office.

Set up a graduated system for addressing misbehavior within the class. Consider the following consequences as examples of not following the rules: 1st offense: Address the misbehavior. 2nd offense: Give detention. 3rd offense: Double the detention and a conference with the learner. 4th offense: Contact parents/guardians. 5th offense: Send out the office and meet with the parents/guardians.

Other interventions might include writing a management contract for the learner and creating a discipline or behavior modification plan.

Once contacting parents, script what you plan to say to them about their child’s behavior in the class. Talking to parents for the first time on the phone can be overwhelming. Close the conversation by telling parents to call or email you at school when they have questions or concerns.

Utilize office referrals as the last way of dealing with learner behavior. Ask yourself if you have tried everything. Alert the school principal that you have addressed a learner’s misbehavior and inform them of the steps you have taken to fix the situation.

Once writing behavior contracts, ask for learner input because you will have more of a buy-in from the learner. Judiciously craft the wording to reflect the actions the student must follow. Send a copy to the parents, so they know what is happening.

Identify learners for positive behavior by sending them notes that highlight their positive contributions. This will rein- force their behavior and contribute to the positive environment.

Utilize nonverbal cues to send messages to learners to stop misbehaving and refocus. Carry an eye on the learner until the learner resumes appropriate behavior. Using non-verbal cues does not interfere with a lesson’s flow, but it sends a quick message to the learner.

If a glance is not enough, approach a learner who continues to stay off task. Once learners catch direct eye contact as you move toward them, they will get back on task. These movements tell the learner that their behavior is unacceptable.

Utilize gestures to communicate with learners that they need to get back on task. A signal is worth several words if you train your learners to respond to the gesture. Getting upset is not necessary. Instruct the gesture to all learners, practice, and then implement. For example: 1. Tap quietly on the learner’s desk to let them know that the learner is off task. 2. Utilize thumbs up to reinforce positive behavior; use thumbs to the side to warn that a learner is close to misbehaving; use thumbs down to indicate that the behavior needs to stop. 3. Tap on your watch. This is a signal that learners are wasting time and that they need to get back on task.

Utilize gestures to encourage good behavior. Instruct the entire class on how you plan to gain their attention. Using these techniques, you don’t have to shout to get learners’ attention. Practice utilizing one of these ways to gain learners’ attention: 1. Clap three times if you want to silence. They, in turn, clap three times back. Then you have their attention. 2. Utilize a whistle or a bell to get their attention. 3Put your hand in the air, palm facing the students. Count to three by placing one, two, and then three fingers down.

Refrain from arguing with a learner. This is a lose/lose situation. Once you find yourself responding with several points, drop the linguistics, and repeat what you expect the learner to do. If they continue to argue, give the learner a choice to argue after school or focus on schoolwork.

Give learners choices when addressing behavior problems. The learner has some control over the outcome of the discussion. For example, ask the learner if they plan to finish the work now, during lunch, or after school. Ask the learner if they plan to pay attention now or after school.

Refrain from using idle threats, punishments, or other punitive tactics. This degrades not only learners but also reflects negatively on you. Refer to the class rules, and the consequences established, and follow through appropriately.

Remain careful about making assumptions about learners. If you didn’t observe a learner misbehaving, don’t make assumptions about who you think was in the wrong. Apologize if you wrongly accused a learner, if you became angry, or if you were short with learners. Express your regret. Learners will appreciate your honesty.

Refrain from leaving the class. Send out learner or call the office if you need an item, assistance, or help. The class is your responsibility. An unattended class invites misbehavior by the learners, unexpected accidents, or bullying. You will be held responsible for any negative actions during your absence.

Call the office on the intercom if you must leave the room in an emergency; tell the learners. This is an emergency, and you need their cooperation. Learners should realize how to behave during serious moments and will be responsible for their actions for a few minutes.

Find out how to determine what needs your direct attention and what can be dealt with at another time or in a class meeting. If a learner is in danger, if there is a physical altercation, or if a learner uses profanity, address the behavior immediately. If a learner rolls their eyes, gives a sigh, or mutters their disdain, address the situation later in a quiet manner.

Don’t reprimand a learner publicly unless their safety or someone else’s safety is jeopardized. A quick, quiet, and firm reprimand will better impact the learner’s behavior and self-esteem.

Once a learner damages school property, direct the learner to make restitution, repair the item in question, and apologize. Learners need to be held responsible for their actions. The consequence needs to fit the action.

Once a learner arrives for detention in your room, use the time to catch up on missing assignments, talk with the learner, or work together on the day’s work. Learners will sit and do nothing if the detention time is not structured. Utilize the time to optimize learning by structuring the learner’s time with you.

Find out the following: Never give entire class detention. The fewer learners in detention, the easier it will be to focus on individual problems and solutions and clarify any misunderstandings before they manifest and become major conflicts.

Continuously review the way that you are dealing with misbehavior in the class. Analyze your beliefs about class management, teaching style, and organization. Consider ways that you might be contributing to the misconduct and how you might rectify this. You may have too strict of a classroom management plan or be too liberal when dealing with learner misbehavior. You may not have an engaging lesson.

If a learner continues to misbehave in your class, schedule a conference with the learner to gain more info and focus on solutions. Ask the learner to pinpoint the problem. Once the problem is identified and agreed upon by both of you, explore ways to address the misbehavior. Find a result that you both can agree upon. Plan a time to get back together to ascertain how things are going.

If a parent-educator meeting is needed and the learner is denying any link to misbehavior, contact the dean of learners, the counselor, the principal, or another educator to be present at the conference. The first few parent-educator conferences can be intimidating. The presence of another adult can be supportive and helpful in seeking solutions.

Carry all info confidential. You need to behave professionally and show respect for the learner and parents. Don’t comment on a troubled learner’s behavior to other learners.

If learner behavior improves, do not hesitate to send a note to the learner, their parents, and the principal. This positive communication is needed to build effective relationships with learners.

Call the school counselor or administration about resources that can lend support and direction and are available to learners and parents. Does your school district have a social worker, an at-risk coordinator, or a police liaison to help learners with problems?

Understand what agencies, organizations, and other resources are available in the region that might help you. Prior to you contacting any outside resources, contact the school counselor or the administration. Give the name of a support agency only as a solution to the problem the learner is exhibiting.

Understand that some learners must meet with outside agency employees as part of a program. You may be asked to provide input about a learner’s behavior or attend a meeting after school to report the learner’s behavior and academic progress. Give documentation to the meeting about behavior and updated grades.

Remain aware that some learners are adjudicated and require a tracker (a person assigned by the courts to be a contact for a learner throughout the day and night) to check in with prior to and after school. Unless you have been called by the office, do not let a learner leave the class to call their tracker. All calls should be made after class. How- ever, if learners must meet with their court-appointed contact during your class, recall that your class at that time may not be the main concern in the learner’s life.

Find out that you are a mandatory reporter of abuse. If you believe a kid has been abused (visible marks, bruises, verbal acknowledgment, behavior change), make a note and observe the learner until you can talk with a counselor, principal, or school nurse. Your initial step is to contact the counselor, the nurse, or the principal. They will handle the report, but you may have to verify what you know about the situation.

Once dealing with a misbehaving learner, do not stop the class and call attention to the behavior. Move toward the learner and quietly tell the learner that you will need to see them after class about the infraction.

Regularly assess your class management plan. What needs to be tweaked? What is working well? Unless learners are out of control, don’t change the plan. It is difficult for learners to adjust.