Guidelines for Classroom Management for elementary students

Build Relationships
“This year it is particularly important to build relationships with and among our students,” says Dr. Debbie Silver, former Louisiana State Teacher of the Year and a speaker, author, and presenter. A teacher for 30 years, she now coaches other educators in professional development around the world. She adds: “Social and emotional skills took a hit when students were mainly interacting online. Common courtesy and manners need to be reintroduced and reinforced as we weave appropriate social- and self-skills into student learning. Building a considerate, caring environment is as good for the teacher as it is for the students. Let’s work to restore civility in the places we control—our own classrooms.”
Here are a few of Dr. Silver’s favorite tips on getting started:
Try to begin the year with as clean a slate as possible. Dr. Silver always preferred to have as little information as feasible from secondary sources about her new students. Aside from medical concerns, she wanted to be able to make up her own mind about kids, as well as give them a true chance to begin anew.
Immediately have students fill out inventory sheets about their strengths, preferences, motivators, and so on. The more we can know about a student’s self perception, the better we are able to connect with them.
Do quick team-building activities to help students feel welcome and safe in their class. Forget the pacing guides for a while and try to weave social and emotional learning (SEL) skills in with the curriculum from the start. Play name games to help everyone learn each other’s names.
Consider making a bulletin board on the topic “Know Your Teacher.” Along with current pictures of who you are and what you do when you’re not at school, post pictures of you when you were the age they are now. If you’re brave, you can even display an old report card or two. Let the students know you are human; build empathy with them.

Don't Talk Down
Teenagers know when they are being spoken to in a way that suggests they are five years old, disempowers them, or conveys a lack of respect. If you respect them, they are more inclined to respect you. If a teacher treats their students like willful, disobedient children, those students may well decide to act exactly as they are being portrayed.
The key to not “talking down” is actually to listen with your full attention. Really tune into what the students are trying to tell you—even if they may seem argumentative or disagreeable. Sometimes they just want to know that they are being heard. Find creative ways for them to express their feelings and needs. For example, you could allow a student who is complaining of boredom the freedom to pursue a unique community project that fuels their passion.