In today’s classroom, there are large groups of quiet students who may be hesitant to speak up in class. To engage these students, teachers can create a supportive environment where they feel comfortable and can encourage non-verbal communication. Some strategies include having private chats, making games out of topics, focusing on community, using podcasts, using fun learning tools, and using positive reinforcement.
To make quiet students feel comfortable, teachers should start at the classroom door and greet all students warmly. They can also create a fishbowl panel with students who are ready to talk about a topic, leaving one space empty for any student who wishes to contribute.
Fostering a classroom community is essential for engaging quiet students, as it fosters mutual respect and care. Encourage students to make choices that will help their peers and remind them that their peers will do the same for them. Teachers can also try podcasts, reduce distractions by wearing headphones during tutoring sessions, and use fun learning tools to engage students.
Positive reinforcement can help shy students gradually modify their behavior, even if it means using sticky notes or going up. Teachers can also break away from whole group discussions and use strategies like the popcorn technique and using “I” messages when encouraging participation.
Dividing the class into small groups can also be helpful in allowing quieter students to give their opinions in an environment that is conducive to learning. By incorporating these strategies, teachers can create a more inclusive and effective learning environment for their students.
📹 How To Quiet A Noisy Class – Classroom Management Strategies
Classroommanagement #Classroom #teachertips #ahaslides Classroom management is no joke, and we need every help we …
How to engage a shy student?
Set realistic expectations, be supportive, and encourage. Get down to their level and look them in the eye. Take time to talk with them every day. Listen carefully and respond to what they say. Show students’ work to others to boost confidence.
How to support quiet students?
Ten Ideas to Support Shy Students in your Class. … Provide options other than words. … Don’t pressure! … Use collaborative learning. … Read books and discuss them in class. … Make them feel needed. … Involve parents and former teachers. … Play social situations. As a teacher, you want to support shy students. But it’s often an afterthought. These students are often quiet in class and go unnoticed. It’s not about making these students more outgoing. It’s about encouraging and supporting them, creating a comfortable learning environment. They’ll give you a little more, but it takes time. I’m not a child psychologist, but I’m a teacher and I was shy at school. I’ll share some ideas to help support shy students in your classroom.
How do you get a shy class to talk?
7 Tips for Shy Students in Class Grouping shy students together helps them feel more comfortable talking. … Accept failure. … Away from the podium. … Gradually. … Moving on. … Don’t overcorrect. … Accepting nonverbal answers. ESL students are shy for many reasons. They don’t speak the language. They are shocked by the culture. They don’t know anyone in class. Someone else always speaks for them. These are just a few possibilities. While some shy students are happy to never speak up in class, we must help them communicate in English. But how? It can be hard to get shy students to speak up in class. Here are some tips to help you encourage them to speak more. Grouping together. Grouping shy students together can help them feel more comfortable talking. Sometimes students don’t speak because someone else will. When you put all your shy students in the same group, someone will have to speak up. Your quieter students will be together, so they’ll feel more comfortable speaking. No one will dominate the conversation.
Accepting failure. Let your students fail. Sometimes just hearing the words out loud is enough. You’ll make mistakes. There’s no doubt about it. Speak anyway. Teaching your students about failure can help them feel less afraid. Sometimes saying the wrong thing helps shy students speak up in class. Tell your students you don’t expect perfection. You want them to communicate however they can. They can be creative with their language rather than worrying about getting everything right. If they can communicate, they are successful English speakers.
How do I socialize my shy child?
Help a shy child enjoy social interaction and learn social skills. Show them you love and accept them. … Don’t label. … Help your child build confidence and assertiveness. … Help your child learn social skills. Every child has their own way of approaching the world. Help a shy child cope with new people, experiences, and change. Many children are shy or slow to warm up. Babies don’t like being held by anyone but a few special people. As toddlers, they watch what others are doing until they feel comfortable joining in. A shy child may have trouble with changes like a new childcare provider and may protest when a relative offers a big hug.
Think about your family. Every child and family is different. Think about these questions to help you adapt the information and strategies below to your child and family.
How to motivate introvert students?
Here are 8 ways to help introverted students in class. … Make introverts feel comfortable. … Use tech to help introverts. … Discuss one-on-one. … Let them take risks sometimes. … Team them with extroverts. … Appreciate them for speaking up. Rohan was often seen as lazy because he was quiet and rarely participated in class. He was always sitting alone in the back of the class, not paying attention or participating. His classmates and teacher thought he didn’t care about learning or his grades. The class mentor noticed Rohan was struggling and had a one-on-one meeting with him. Rohan told her he was shy and found it hard to speak in front of others. The fast-paced, noisy classroom environment was overwhelming for him. He also said he was shy and found it hard to speak in groups. The teacher helped Rohan in a way that suited his learning style. She let him work on his own and gave him materials to read. She also let him write about his thoughts and ideas, like in a journal or online. Rohan’s grades improved and he became more comfortable.
How do you engage silent students?
6. Tell them. Tell students you’ll be calling on them. Tell them the question. Listen to their answer before they answer. Ask them which questions they’re comfortable answering. Let them know you agree with them. Let them speak openly and confidently. Helping students prepare answers in advance helps them feel less anxious when called on. It’s great to see your students speak up.
7. Move and learn. Students can respond in different ways.
What activities help with shyness?
Some good activities for shy kids are arts and crafts. Handling a shy school-age child is easy. Oral activities. … Awakening a Child’s Curiosity. … Playing outside. … Gardening. … Family journals. … Topics presented. … Be confident. Some kids are shy and can’t express their feelings. This can make kids feel misunderstood, which can make it harder for them to release feelings as they grow older. As a parent, you can help your child express their feelings by planning activities to help them talk about things. Shy children find it hard to adjust to new places and people. Help your child adjust by telling them what to expect and slowly introducing them to the new situation. If you call your child shy, they might think they are shy and there’s nothing they can do about it. They might use it as an excuse to avoid things that make them anxious. This might cause your kid to avoid social situations. Let’s look at some good activities for shy kids. Crafting activities. Handling a shy school-age child is easy. Teachers and parents can add crafting classes to the schedule. This technique helps kids overcome shyness. Group work helps kids in school. Sharing supplies and a workstation helps kids learn to interact with others. Group work helps shy kids to interact with others. Parents can encourage their kids to stick to the program and develop an interest in crafting at home.
Speech Activities. Some shy kids have trouble talking. Parents and teachers should help these children talk. Students should practice talking about themselves to break the barrier. Parents can lead this activity. Parents should help their children greet and introduce themselves to others. Kids will learn this and it’s the best way to overcome shyness. The kids will gain confidence and be able to talk to visitors at home.
How do you break silence in a classroom?
Working with these students can be challenging, but there are several solutions to breaking the silence in a classroom setting.Discussion Groups. Assigning discussion groups is a simple way to help students address smaller groups. … Let Students Control the Agenda. … Give Students a Chance to Prepare. *Students ought to be engaged in their courses. If they are not participating, teaching can become twice as difficult as it needs to be. Encouraging students to speak in class is often an instructor’s most difficult challenge. Students that take an active role in classroom discussion take interest in the course material, and speaking to an audience prepares students for their academic and professional lives as speakers, thinkers and listeners. *Figuring out why almost any student — extroverted, introverted, shy and so on — can be hesitant to speak up is crucial in deciding what to do about it. Often times, students will have a hard time responding to authority. Other times, students might just be naturally shy or introverted. Working with these students can be challenging, but there are several solutions to breaking the silence in a classroom setting. *Discussion Groups. Assigning discussion groups is a simple way to help students address smaller groups. This can help students sort out their thinking rather than address the whole class unprepared. Disbanding these small groups before engaging in the day’s discussion can help prepare every student to make a statement on the topic at hand.
How can teachers help quiet students?
Split the class into groups. … Use tech to ask questions. … Let students write their ideas down. Let students move around. … Let students contribute in class. Get to know your students. 1. Divide the class into small groups. Small discussion groups let quiet students share their opinions in a comfortable setting. Speaking in front of a whole class can be intimidating. Discussing ideas in a different setting could encourage quiet students to speak up. Grouping shy students together helps them express their opinion and interact with each other. Group activities help students get out of their comfort zones and participate.
2. Use tech to ask questions. Teachers often ask students questions by having them raise their hands. But this isn’t always the best way for shy students to contribute in class. Loud, confident students usually take over, making it hard for introverts to speak up. Use Mentimeter to let students answer and ask questions anonymously. Polling platforms let students test what they’ve learned, play quizzes, and do other types of questions. Anonymous answers let everyone participate easily.
What is the silent teacher strategy?
This approach uses silence to help students learn and take part in class. Teachers can’t dominate lessons with a mix of silence and simple gestures. The teacher redirects and corrects, but students speak as much as possible and develop independent problem-solving skills.
The key characteristics of the Silent Way in language teaching. Gattegno’s work is based on three principles. Richards and Rodgers (1986:99) summarize them as follows.
Learning is easier if the learner finds or makes: The Silent Way is part of a tradition that views learning as a creative, active process in which the learner is the main actor, not just a listener. Learning is facilitated by using physical objects to accompany the learning process. Most traditional language teaching tools aren’t used in this approach. Teachers use different-colored Cuisenaire rods and charts to help students learn to pronounce letters correctly. This means the teacher doesn’t need to use drills or call-and-response exercises. Learning is facilitated by problem solving. People who support this approach often cite Benjamin Franklin’s words as proof of its effectiveness. “Tell me, and I forget. Teach me, and I’ll remember. Involve me and I learn.
How do you teach a quiet class?
Let’s look at ways to be quiet. If students get too loud, don’t shout. Tell them to be quiet. Use their names. Jimmy, be quiet.
How to engage a quiet child?
Encourage your quiet child by saying something positive about their personality. … #2: Be a good role model. … #3: Switch who talks. … #4: Encourage talking. #5: Be part of their life. … Other things that might help:
It takes time for quiet kids to speak up. Let’s look at ways parents can help their children participate.
#1: Say something positive about their personality.
It’s not just you who needs to encourage them, but they need to encourage themselves too. If your child is shy, it will take time to encourage them to talk more. Be patient and help them find the courage to speak. Helping them find their voice will make them happier.
📹 How to make a noisy class quiet – Classroom Management Strategies for teachers with a loud class
How to make a noisy class quiet. Classroom management strategies to deal with noisy classes to make the quiet. Tools and …
Well what i do to have control in the classroom is to be quiet and letting them know that Im observing and evaluating them. When They notice that Im quiet and not saying anything, they one by one start to Sit down. When one of them asks me, why Im not doing anything, i just say, when All of you are quiet i start teaching otherwise Im not beginning. Hey! That works. And Remember to keep your own emotions under control, you send them a message
I agree, great article and information provided but it is important to establish these strategies the first day and stick with it. Kids do so much better with consistent boundaries. I have been in different classes with a different teacher but same kids. If the teacher is inconsistent and doesn’t reinforce, the students act out. The Same kids with a teacher that has great classroom management skills are so well behaved and are not acting out like when they have a teacher that allows anything to happen.
Thanks for your article and advice. One advice that I do (I’m a junior and senior high school teacher in Japan) is look at the person(s) who are causing the trouble and just stay focused on them. Since Japan is a “group” society, usually the students will get those people to quiet down. Another idea is to write the problem students’ names on the board. Those students are going to start to question themselves and quiet down and so will everyone else. The other thing to keep in mind about noisy classrooms is the reason WHY they are noisy. It could be because the next period is a field trip, a holiday, or they are trying to prepare for something next period or later in the day. If that’s the case, then tell them what you need to do (the lesson) and as a reward, you will give them free time. Just make sure they get your target lesson point, or else this won’t work. Thank you again.
keeping yourself silent works very well, as I have experienced in my class. In addition, when they were busy talking or doing something irrelevant to the lesson I would ask them Can I start? then surprisingly, all of them paid attention to me. I taught in a school for 6 months but I must confess that those 6 months were quite pleasant. I missed my students.
Silence doesn’t work in kindergarten for sure. I have 7 groups of 20 kids each. I’ve tried this and they simple don’t care. Btw, there is a big chunk in each class that doesn’t care whatsoever, they don’t respond to anything. They just get up and do what they want, leaving any activity even amazing games
My experience in the Marine Corps has shown me that counting up: 1,2,3, . . . etc does not get students to stop unwanted action. Why, the learn at a very young age numbers get infidelity larger. Johnny, how high can you count. The more effect way it to count down: 10, 9, 8, . . . 3, 2, 1, zero. They know that something big is going to happen at zero, and they don’t want to miss it. Like at the end of a basketball game, time is running out and they want to finish with the most points.
7:09 Learn mma. I’m planning on becoming a teacher because I like teaching, unfortunately I’ve never teach a group of people, never been a group leader, no hand movements while talking and introvert and etc. I am learning those things through YouTube articles but I can’t find any Effective technique to control a group of teenagers including this article! Almost everyone says to do “class class yes yes” method ! But no1 would answer yes in my class instead they would probably just laugh at it coz of how silly it is. I think that’s how my classmates form 2017-19 would react (class 6-8)🤦♂️
I did not completely understand the Spy Agent method. Do you tell the selected student that he/she is the spy? I understand that it is not the case (everyone may thus think they are the spy agent). If that is the case: I understand you never reveal who the spy was. So, I guess this game could work a limited number of times: It works because it creates the illusion that you (maybe) are the spy, so you have to be a great student. This effect would eventually disappear, when people played the game more and more, since in the end the spy is never detected and does not have a personal reward.
You are talking bookish these tools are rubbish when they decide not to come on terms only school college and university higher management can make these naughties in discipline don’t blame teacher blame on administration this is who is responsible to maintain the decorum of class by strictly emphasizing the dos and donts to the students!!
Some of these tips are certainly useful, but the class class class and yes yes yes only works with male teachers, since a woman’s authority is differently built. The woman does not have the necessary deterrent to make it work. It might even appear ridiculous in a woman’s mouth… Some students just don’t have any respect towards a substitute teacher, especially if the grapevine has briefed them negatively. All of your tips work with someone having the benefit of tabula rasa, i.e. being a stranger. If there is a nasty rumor going on about the teacher, nothing works, since your authority was gone even before you entered the room. Believe me, still tried, but chose a different job at the end.
Mona Lisa. On the first day the teacher shows a picture of the Mona Lisa, explaining that she’s exhibiting good behavior: her mouth is closed, her eyes are focused on the teacher, and her hands are empty and in her lap. The teacher calls Mona, and the students call Lisa, and they stop talking. It works most every time! You may need to add a little extra commentary to get students to lay down whatever is in their hands and pay attention, but it’s pretty effective. Thank you, Mrs. Gray!
I’ve been teaching teenagers for about 15 years. I use a stopwatch, and every time I have to wait for them to be quiet, I put the stopwatch on. However many minutes it amounts to, that’s how long they have to stay behind for. If there are no minutes, they get about 5-10 minutes at the end of class to chat and relax as a reward. Works every time, no matter how rowdy the class is. The best part is, it’s the students telling each other to be quiet because they hate staying behind. For teenagers, hearing it from your peers is more effective than hearing it from an authority figure.
These tips will work great in most normal classes, but sometimes you just get a bad mix of kids who refuse to show respect or put forward a basic amount of effort. In those situations you really need the support of the parents at home and the school to follow through with discipline because there is only so much you can do as an individual teacher.
One more trick that works wonders: when you catch someone working hard or being kind or deserving a complement, say as you do it: two claps, two snaps, and two thumbs up for Suzie for ________ They LOVE that! You can just do two claps, or just two snaps, or whatever works for you. You can do the claps by yourself or have the entire class join you. I’ve seen it done both ways. It’s quick and they respond sooooo well to it!
Use index cards. Scramble the spelling on the vocabulary needed for that class on each card I.e. categorize becomes zicagoerite…make it simple or as difficult as your kids can decode. Flash them on the overhead (or use whatever technology you have) as the kids are arriving. The guessing gets their attention right away and you’re reinforcing vocabulary. Two birds with one stone!
We often counted down from 10, varying the counting pace unexpectedly. Clapping sequences worked well. Our school’s universal signal for quiet was a peace sign and an index finger over the lips. It was magical. These are all good ideas. I did love using whiteboard messages, myself. Very useful ideas here.
I am a sub. When I cover elementary school, I write the word Recess on the board. I explain that if they are quiet and do their work, I will add exclamation marks to the end of the word. That means they’ve earned extra recess time. On the other hand, if they are noisy, interrupt me, distract from learning, ect, I erase letters. Each letter I erase corresponds to 5 minutes lost.
I have found that if you directly tell a student to quiet down or sit down, it is far less likely that they will do it than if you simply say, “Johnny is going to sit down now, Sally is getting out a piece of paper,” etc., pausing and waiting until they make ANY move to do what you ask, then quickly moving on to the next student. I also love countdowns in various ways. If there is too much chaos at the end of class, I say, “Seven people need to sit down before we go,” and then count down as they sit, such as “Six people need to sit down,” “Five people,” “Four people,” etc. Depending on the mood of the class, you might even have a couple of kids stand up or something, and the “countdown” turns into “counting up”, the sitting students notice immediately and start telling fellow students by name to sit down, and generally the standing students sit down even more quickly than they would otherwise.
“Call and Response” technique. Teacher says “a lot”. Students complete the sentence by saying “is 2 words”. Students now know class is ready to begin because the expectations have been explained at the beginning of the school year (or teaching day if you are a sub) and continually/constantly used with students.
Thank you so much, these tips are amazing. Oftentimes I use the clapping call and response and it works like a charm. I also walk around the class and observe the students who are doing the right thing and I complement them, and all the kids want to feel complimented and feel accomplished so they all want to do the right thing and follow a good example. I never scream at the students because that doesn’t work. I also stand in front of the class with a big smile. As the “silent treatment” that you were referring to, I often walk around the class with my finger on my lips and my right hand raised which means that everyone is quiet, we are about to start the class, and it always works for me. Definitely your suggestion of calling kids by names helps because kids want to have fun, they want to learn but they also want to be recognized, and I try to be able to help them as much as possible in having them realize their goal. Sometimes I have kids model good behavior in front of the whole class, and that works like a charm too. I definitely take a lot of positives perusal this article, thank you so much for posting this treasure!
My mistake when I started teaching 9th graders the first time (still in my first year) was expecting them to follow directions from the outset and thinking that they would know proper classroom behavior. I have learned to never expect anything in terms of behavior- everything must be told/shown several times. It’s infinitely harder when you get the kids that have just checked out of school and there just isn’t much you can do in the classroom to correct the behavior. For this, the best you can do is call home. Unfortunately, these kids are usually like that because their home lives aren’t even close to ok, so calling parents is definitely a coin-flip. If that fails as well, then talk to your principal about expulsion. If they are not receptive, then you may just need to deal with the student for the year. You are only one person and you don’t have infinite time each day. Pick your battles.
Hi, Eric! I am a new teacher. I’ve started teaching like a month ago and I have two groups of students since I work in a Foreign Language School in my home town. They are preschool. So, my first group is from eight 6-year olds that come to the school by noon for the afternoon. My taks is to teach them English, to make clil lessons and to have fun. It’s been amazing past few weeks. I use 3..2..1 and saying loud their names, slowly and also with calm voice. This attracts their attention with no doubt and they are willing to do their task which is to write a paper with one of the English lettrs for now. 🙂 Only when they are too excited because of the game they are playing is hard to calm them down, but I will definetly use The Hocus-Pocus technique and I’m sure that will have a result right away. My second group is on Mondays and Wednesdays and they are 2nd grade. There they are five boys are they are so nice and fun to communicate with. With them is so easy to teach and to watch for the disipline during the lesson. They know when to raise a hand to give them the word and they know how to reply to questions. It’s so nice. I love my job! <3
I use the “island method.” I made this title up but it works if you think of it this way. Isolate the loudest kids either verbally (“John, I need to be silent for the next 2 minutes because I can hear every word you are saying to your neighbor and you are sitting across the room”) or physically (seat them somewhere else for a short time–not time out though). The trouble maker is on their own island and they don’t like that, so they talk more quietly over time. It also usually quiets the entire room.
It does not work for average teenagers aged 14 to 16 years old. But it does work grade 7 and 8 students. Students swear at teachers, use mobile phones constantly and everything you say they will make fun of. It depends on their capital culture and emotional intelligence. Some students will always be a bully because they will always seek attention. Good explanation though.. Cheers
The most effective way to communicate to your students that you want them to be quiet — AND listen — is a demonstration: you stand at the front of your classroom with your closed mouth and wait for them to be quiet. You MODEL for them. I like to raise my hand to the square as a signal that I need to speak. This can be awkward for the first few days or weeks…but eventually they will learn that you are quiet so they will be quiet. You are the leader, after all. Don’t be LOUD and try to compete with them. The quiet one wins!
I have 2 that I use that gets my students’ attention quickly. I say, “Look at me,” and the kids have to look at me with “crazy eyes”. The other one is, I tell them to put their heads down and I talk softly to give them directions, they do it quickly. When they’re ready, I say “heads up”. I use others, but those work the fastest for me. (3rd grade teacher).
Thank you very much for these techniques you illustrated. I use the “track the speaker and eyes on me, or eyes on the screen” techniques to silence my students. Unfortunately, there are certain times when some students choose to ignore and I have to be direct by mentioning their location, such as those at the back or at the corner to track the speaker. However, It is never too late to learn. I have learned additional strategies from this article that I intend to implement.
Great tips! I usually stand by the door and as soon as the students see me, they stand in silence. Sometimes, the class gets noisy during the period. I will try some of your tips for that. I also considered using the song ‘follow the leader’ during a period to wake them up with a fun activity or get them to settle down and listen again! I have not tried it yet, but will do so soon.
Planning, enthusiasm, positive mindset, empathy, RESPECT for them. They must know what you expect them to achieve, observe them, give them feedback in groups and/or privately. be assertive and control your emotions. Don’t judge but LISTEN to them. We can be strict with the rules, agreements and schools values…but if the case we can be flexible….etc….most importantly, have a clear goal, a plan and be as CONFIDENT as you can…Finally, loosen up a bit, show them that you can enjoy their world too and create a bond thats allow trust and respect to flow back to you…
Yes, very interesting method. My husband is a teacher and the students know that if they make noise, they get a test. Here it depends on common sense and how much you respect the teaching staff. You don’t do what you want in class. There are rules and prohibitions at least in my country and it’s better that way. Otherwise it would be chaos.
When I visit other countries, I visit the schools and find new and fun ways the teachers there, grab the attention of their students or quiet the class. Usually, the call and respond is in another language which makes it even more interesting because when I return to MY students, I have something to tell them about my trip that they can now take with them.
Greattttt. I am also a teacher and use 3 2 1 technique I use to divide the students into groups and do their competition for remaining attentive, good behaviour then i put stars on the board for the group who behave nicely. Now my all students listen to me take interests in class and like me❤. I love my students
For my first graders I have a balloon 🎈 and drew a happy face in one side and a sad face on the other side so every time they start getting out of control and loud I will walk around them show them the happy or sad face and I tell them: you will go home with this face on your behavior sheet if you don’t quit being noisy, as soon as they see me with the balloon in my hand they already know without me talking to them that I want their behavior to chance 😄 believe me it really works! I don’t have to say a word at all because they already know!! 👍🏼😄
I have my students stand until they are quiet. They will start to monitor others around you. I recently put STAND QUIETLY on my Agenda Slide show (on a separate slide) and now I just click on and off the Stand Quietly sign and it is working great. If someone talks right after, they have to immediately stand again. I have never had a kid who wanted the whole class to stand and never had a problem with my method.
Hi Eric, I enjoyed perusal your strategy article. Thank you! I’m a kindergarten teacher and we do use Give Me Five the students think it means STOP! Being a music teacher, before changing my assignment, I love to use CALL & RESPONSE as well as the CLAP RHYTHMN GAME! I like the way you introduced and used many examples of strategies for young children, grades 1-3, and grades 4-6.
Thank you for this article…it is highly insightful…good compilation of the strategies to use in the classroom…I particularly have experienced call and response as being fairly effective to get the class to attention…. Rhythmic clapping is another winner ..so also the number countdown and how it works wonders ..one strategy that I follow is to catch students doing the right thing and appreciating it ..it also motivates others to follow the same
I currently have a group of kids right now that are out of control. Not just for me, but every other teacher in the grade. They fear absolutely no discipline, their parents couldn’t care less, and there are no rewards for positive behavior they even care for. It’s honestly at the point that I’ve just given up. They get out of their seats, talk non stop. Admin does nothing and they took away our ability to give detention.
Currently, I’m trying out a colleagues system: a student gets 3 warnings and once he/she reaches that point they get extra homework. Now after perusal this article I see that it is negative and confrontational. I also see that there are better ways to go about this. I’ve only had this system for 2 lessons so I might want to switch it with a few of these techniques from the article. Good job sharing them! Thanks!
If a teacher says “I’m not going to teach you” that would work really well but only if the thing he is teaching is essential to all students. And the consequences would have to be really drastic and real! Everyone should know including the parents and the principles should support the teacher a 100%, even the entire school and the people who are in a higher position. So, I’m quite sure that not being able to go on with school – meaning that everyone has to repeat an entire year – would lead to an immediant improvement. Sad and sick thing today is, that noone supports such a procedure but it WOULD be very efficient, trust me!
Great stuff! Noise is a real distraction when one is working. It is really impossible to teach in noisy class. Some classes are out of discipline and they don’t understand nice words. Your tips are invaluable. In my mind all teachers need your tips. They are vital and practical. Noise can cause stress, nervous breakdown, unpleasantaries. As a result, it can lead you to conflict or misunderstanding with students. When you put them lower marks, they start showing disagreements or complaints. Children are children and boys will be boys. I want to ask you one question: Why do schoolchildren make noise in class? If the students make noise, whose is to blame to? Teacher or students? I will definitely use tips and tricks to catch their attention. Thumbs up! I appreciate that. Cheers!
Transforming Noise into Focus: Classroom Management Strategies for Managing a Lively Class 🤫📚 Discover effective techniques for taming a noisy classroom and creating an environment conducive to learning. From establishing clear expectations to implementing engaging activities, these strategies empower teachers to regain control and foster a peaceful learning atmosphere.
I have to admit that my middle school classes are usually on the louder side. That’s a bit on my doing since I like for students to do group work and interact with each other, especially after a year of covid virtual learning. When I do need quiet, I sometimes shut the lights, rhythmic clapping, and play the opening them from the tv series 24 or even Baby Shark. Baby Shark is so annoying they beg me to stop. Lol!
Such great and priceless advices! Thank you very much. I’m a preschool teacher, my children are 4 and 5. My problem is not the classroom itself but it’s one particular child who does his very best to distract others, interrupt me through bad behaviour, very stubborn…this breaks the learning process, affects my credibility to the rest of the classroom…I’m frustrated, tried EVERYTHING, talking calmly, shouting, praising him when behaving good for 30 seconds, talkedto his mother, divorced,who is more disoriented and unstable than he is which explains a lot! .Now I feel losing control over my whole classroom. Definitely don’t want this to happen. What should I do?
One teacher in my past had an object that he squeaked whenever he wanted to get everyone’s attention. It always worked to quiet the class. One day when the teacher wasn’t in the class and everyone got noisy, I surreptitiously squeaked my own “toy” and, even without the teacher the class, everyone suddenly got silent and looked around.
Yesterday was my first day in 5th grade. It was a good day but my students love to talk. I’ve been teaching so long I’ve done some of the same things you mentioned in the article. I wish I knew some things you mentioned when I was teaching younger groups. Especially the marshmallow one, that’s cute! 😂
….Have always a short test at the ready on the subject you’re teaching the very day, and let the pupils know that they might take the quiz if they push it too far. I remember my German teacher using that ploy and it got us on edge and focused all through the class. Make it a multiple choice quiz so that it doesn’t take up too much time grading the quizzes.
Notice the instruction for classroom discipline is always a soft couch, never stern. Its a sign of the times- I’m not knocking this instruction-its all we have. But i went to private school where they could throw you out of school, hit you, paddle you. In my childhood school environment not saying one word meant just that. Kids today have gained control- its almost laughable if it wasnt tragic. Tragicomic lets call it, only this current situation isnt from Greek Mythology its real.
This is my second year teaching and i realized every class has to be treated differently. Some classes are just fine even if they talk (but not alot and not too loud), some have to be punished with grades, some you just have to be funny with them and they will follow what you say, some need small praises or gifts from time to time to be disciplined, some need to be shouted at, some you have to be strict with and treat them like they’re in prison since that’s the only way they can stay disciplined… BUT there is one class that i have that is so annoying and till now i can’t handle them. The only way they will sit quiet is when the supervisor checks in from time to time (i told her to help me because seriously this class is a chaos and all teachers complain about this class). I would like to add that this class is a grade 6 class formed of 35 boys only and i swear only 3 from this class are well behaved. The rest are crazy little chipmunks. I don’t want to always depend on the supervisor so I’m going to try this new way which is makiing them stand the whole session and write while they’re standing and only allow the quiet and well behaved ones to sit down. I can’t believe I’ve tried all the tricks and non have worked till now. Hopefully this one might work or else I’ll have to stick with the supervisor coming from time to time which makes me feel ashamed to be honest.
For substitute tchrs: If you have a class of smarty pants kids who don’t respond to the cutsie ways to get students to simmer down, try this: Pull up Microsoft Word and beam it on the Promethean board. Don’t say anything to the students about it. Then, when they start acting up, just write what you have to say instead of verbally correcting them for the millionth time. And don’t forget to write complements too. Ex: the boys in the back corner: stop flipping your bottles. Girls near the door: you are too loud, crank it down a few notches. Everyone is working really well! Johnny, no article games, get back to work. I love how the people near the windows are keeping their conversations related to their work! As soon as you start writing, the kids notice. Then, inevitably someone will ask if you are going to print it and give it to the teacher. I usually tell them if they continue to act up, yes, I will give it to the teacher and maybe even email it to the asst principal. Before you know it, you will be writing only complements and you can tell them they’ll get a great report since they shaped up.
I did research at one of the high schools in my town in the US, sat in one of the classes and it was a mess. Only the students in front were listening and the rest were just doing their own thing. I could tell the teacher had already given up. I also observed an advanced class and the difference was night and day.
That works. You mentioned detention. What would be your detention policy and procedure for a student which repeatedly ingnored your requests to be quiet, even after you’ld given them a private talking to regarding their behavior, and they still take no notice of you? Also, could you break down into age groups, such as lower primary, upper primary and so on please? Yesterday I heard an online teacher say in a job interview that what works with young learners who are distracted works with adult learners too. That made me laugh.
I’m not a 👩🏻🏫 at all, but it’s hard for me to deal with a class at noisy level of sound quality. I’m sensitive to loud noises which is part of my sensory issues to auditory. Many teachers have no control to silence their students these days. It’s not helpful to swear, either. I’m a good singer, so I wonder if I could keep students that I help out when I have a job as a para in an elementary 🏫 or middle 🏫 to keep them calm if they know how to pay attention, of course. 🤞🏼
Hi! I´m from Perú! 👽✌ I learnt some of these techniques before the pandemic. Still, I didn’t use them, even though I have used other ones that say “Clap your hands if you can hear me” and one by one the students start paying attention as well as the other teacher taught us, in this case, the teacher must say “Class” and the class responded by saying “Yes teacher?” and in that way, students also stop gradually what they are doing and we can continue with the lesson. Thxs for the new ones!!!!! 🥳🥳🥳
1. Be loud, Never shout. 2.Silent treatment 3. Call and response * 1 2 3 eyes on me 12 eyes on you * Class class class ….. Yes yes yes * Rhythm claps * L I s t e n * Hocus pocus time to focus * Imaginary marshmallows 4. Give time to settle down * 20 seconds!! * 3 2 1 rule * Give me 5 5 water ( flow) and ice (freeze) 6 animal sounds 7 soft gestures 8 where is my nose? 9 yoga, exercise 10 Simon says 11 write on the board
I really have a noisy thanks I really have a noisy class very much so please let me know like I really have a noisy class I don’t know and their first graders Mike when I’m like saying raise your hand raised your hand raised your hand and they won’t they will say nope nope well well what I say or what they sell
Thank you for these interesting ideas, I also used to make my voice low that makes the students silent to listen, and some times I give them a riddle in another subject suddenly so they come back to me and concentrate again if our lesson is taking a lot of time, but what I really need is strategies for teaching teenagers they are really difficult
I used your techniques it’s very cute 😂❤ especially Are you ready kids?! Ahhyyy ahhyyy captan 😂😂 it’s so hilarious I use also class class ! Yes yes it’s so nice. I’m an English teacher for grade one. It’s so hard to get their attention especially for a long time. But it’s so much fun when they get to use to it. 😊❤ thank you so much. It’s my 3rd year and I’m getting ready for it. Here we go 🎉❤
Saying attention grabbers is one of the most common ways for me to manage the class… it doesn’t only work well for elementary kids, but also for junior high school fellows. Thanks a lot for reminding me ‘r u ready kids? – aye aye captain’ from SpongeBob lol :))) And also, ‘class class class – yes yes yes’! Love them soooo much :elbowcough:
There was a very straightforward solution to this in Ireland in the 1960s. If people misbehaved in the classroom, the teacher broke the wooden leg off a chair and hit the students with it on the palm of their hand until they cried from the pain. This method instantly produced a terrified hush in the room. You were saying ?
Thanks for the call and response idea, just tried it in an out of control class today. I had them listen to the original spongebob soundtrack, which of course they know, and then I shouted “ARE YOU READY KIDS!” at them, and taught them the response, “AYE AYE, CAPTAIN.” They seemed to love shouting back “AYE AYE CAPTAIN!” and the class was easier to control after that. Thanks again.
We started the morning by saying, “Today I love, I listen and I learn.” The class rules in 3 easy steps. I had musical cues. During free time, I would play the pastoral portion of the Wm Tell overture. When it got to the famous charge, the kids had to finish up and get things out neatly away before the end. We also transitioned by reciting poetry. This works well with K and first graders. Right now I am in a 5th grade & none of the methods shown in this article work. I can say, “Class, class!” and they will respond and then continue with their conversations. Give me kindergarten any day! 🤪😁
As an Superintendent, (or School District Leader) i can feel the pain of an teacher cause my mother was a Vice principal and yeah i was one her class that time at she actually came at some students still not behaving correctly and of course, they don’t listen so my mom actually punishes the students (Not harming or beating) like Standing after the Subject, say sorry for 500 times and many more!. That’s soooo Frustrating isn’t it?.
These things only work for little kids, not middle or high school. 😂 I make sure I am prepared, focus on building positive relationships with students, have the expectation for noise level for different types of classroom activities, and explicitly teach those expectations to the students, practice the expectations whenever they get lazy about behavior, and use a doorbell as a quiet signal. It has worked for any age.
Explicit! I must tell you that teachers are born, and this is just me in the classroom. I try all of these erratically as the case may be, and in what class… I also can go “shhhhhhh! Listen, can you hear that animal sound?”😲😳 Response could be “no” basically. Then, I’d say, “just be quite, you’ll hear it in a jiff if only you’re quite for the rest of the day. Shh, shh!” A child or two could claim to have heard, and this makes others curious and quieter.😄 Many thanks for this.
Simple, every time the class will get noisy,, surprise quiz in the middle of discussion.. then more than haft of the class will fail the quiz,, others might get zero,, then next time you will teach them they will keep their mouth shot,, until the very end of discuss.. they may hate you as a teacher but slowly they learn this good manners as a habit. This was my experience during my high school days being a student.
The secret is students must be learning something new, in any subject; or prepare to hear the line: ‘we’ve done that already’; also the class-work must be prompt upon the teachers table (as they enter the classroom) not the last minute panic searching for it; presentation isn’t just a word; it’s everything Mr Dennis
I get them to stand up when I walk in now. Changing atmosphere. Sometimes also turning lights off also gets attention. Lights can be turned on again once they need light to write. Do explaining with lights off. When I was starting I had every disadvantage. I looked young, and I was young. 22 years and teaching up to 18 years. My subject, Music which wasn’t taken seriously by some. I found posters helpful. Homemade ones on topics I wanted to introduce. So they were at least discussing my poster which would catch their attention as it was new. I removed desks so I could see everything. It also allowed more flexibility for movement which is important in Music. Now, the thing I find most annoying is the students slow to get equipment. Some not deliberately, but some yes. So I’m thinking, keeping the others busy with fun activities might hurry them more. E. G. Making rain noise. ( Each student joins in one at a time, hitting thighs. Then drops out when teacher points. ). They always love that one, and transcends all age groups if anyone wants to try.
i found a useful way is to call the class to attention. I will say Attention and have the student stand and salute. That one always seems to work. When all else fails there is always the feedback loop by putting a microphone in front of a speaker. students hate that sound and after awhile police them selves as students who dont want to hear that will tell other students to stop talking
I make 2 columns on the blackboard. In one column l write noisy pigs..and in another one pretty parrots or beautiful peacocks..And then l write one name in the bird column ..and just one alphabet in the pigs column to confuse the children whose name it would be… this trick works wonderful till the class ends..now and then l add a few more names of the most attentive students in the birds column This trick l learnt from a senior most teacher in the school…
“If you can hear me, clap once. If you can hear me.. Put you hands on your head etc” Until everyone is doing it. I’m a sub & it tends to work better for me than a lot of the call & response s. I do silly ones with little kids & simple ones for the big kids. Sometimes throwing in something positive like “if you can hear me, you can go to recess” helps. Then they know I might be saying something they want to hear lol
thank you. I use the techniaue of three minutes to leave some time for students to settle down. however, when the class is stuffed with students it starts to be quite difficult to manage the whole class. the teenagers of high school aren’t quite enough. they are loudy andmay create some disruptive and inacceptable behavior.