by Berit Gordon
Listen to Berit discuss more classroom management tips for new teachers on the Heinemann podcast.
New teacher, you're not alone if you give yourself pep talks in your car before heading to school, have a million undone items on your to-do list, or scarf a bag of chips at the copier for lunch, having abandoned meal prep weeks ago. By November, many new teachers are overwhelmed with everything they meant to do, but the time and energy to get them done has evaporated, along with their immune system and sleep. You may even wonder how you’ll make it to the end of the year.
First, take stock of what you’ve done. You get hero status for being here and navigating the most challenging months of your teaching career. You’ve figured out your commute, school system, schedule, a host of new colleagues and administrators, online curricula or learning platforms, students' names, attended numerous meetings, fought off viruses, rolled with countless changes, and likely redone your planning and management systems a few times.
It’s easy to lose sight of how much you’ve accomplished and how much farther you (and your students) are now than in Week One. Allow me to insist that you end your teaching day by noting at least one thing you did to help students. There will be many, but start there.
Second, pick one small move to help you manage your time and manage your class. You need a quick win to remind yourself that your efforts pay off. This helps you stay in problem-solving mode, not utterly exhausted mode. When we try something that helps ease our day and boost learning, it’s energizing. Then, you might try another tip. Or, pat yourself on the back and take a nap.
You deserve to find ways to enjoy your teaching day and feel the impact of your hard work. You might not magically start meal-prepping daily nutritious lunches, but the morning pep talks might happen less. That’s a win. Prioritize your sanity, rest, and save the dense bean salads for Year Two.
Quick Tips to Manage a Never-Ending Workload: Which one will you try?
- Budget a realistic time frame to complete a must-do task. Commit to using only the allotted time. Stop when the timer goes off, even if the work isn’t precisely to your standards. Trust me, the world will keep turning if you do some tasks as C-level work. A+ that they’re done.
- Pomodoro Technique: Set a twenty-five-minute timer to work on one task, then take a five-minute break to reset your brain and start again. Neuroscience backs up that short time frames with breaks allow us be more productive and pace ourselves when to-do lists are long.
- Find a parallel play work partner: Facetime or get on a Zoom together and silently get stuff done. Hold each other accountable for an end time.
- Set three priorities for the day. Knock those out, and anything else that gets done is a bonus.
- Say, “Thank you, let me think about it,” when asked to take on extra roles or attend evening or weekend events.
- Answer emails at one set time each day. Read them whenever, but only compose responses during that one limited time. You’ll get less back and forth, you’ll reply when you’re calm and rested, and often, the sendee has figured it out or moved on. One less email chain to contend with.
- Your brain will thank you if you doom scroll less and do any hobby with your hands just a few times a week: think fifteen minutes of friendship bracelets, beading, sketching, working on a puzzle, or building a LEGO tower. The constant stimulation of a classroom means your brain needs these moments of “focused” distraction, soothing it into a calm state.
Quick Tips for Classroom Management: Which one will you try?
- Management problems can sometimes be due to pacing problems. Try to eliminate down time. This means all your tabs are open, videos are uploaded, your handouts are ready, and everything you need to write is written before students walk in. Give students a little less time than they need to complete a task, which creates a sense of urgency. There will be fewer opportunities to go off task, and less for you to “manage".
- Planned breaks and downtime are still okay! Just designate those times so you are in charge of when they happen.
- Whenever students (grades 3+) hand in work, have them highlight their name in one of three colors as a quick self-assessment (e.g., yellow—they feel confident, orange—they did okay, red—they struggled). This gives you a fast visual assessment on whether to reteach the whole class or a handful of students, and bonus—you will always get names on assignments.
- Put some old textbooks in a tote bag. Let a couple of other teachers know (ideally, their room is a nice long walk from your classroom) that if one of your students shows up with it, thank them, take the bag, and send them back. The next time a student (or you) needs a minute to cool off, pretend you just got a request to send those books elsewhere. The student will move their body and feel helpful, and you both will gain a few minutes to regulate.
- Things don’t always go according to plan? You’re not alone! Prep a couple backup, ready-to-go activities that you can whip out when schedules go screwy or a lesson flops so you don’t feel like a deer in the headlights. I like to say, “What I planned to do next is…” and students think the random activity was intentional. No one is the wiser, and I keep things moving.
- Say less. Explain yourself less, and use fewer words overall when directing or redirecting students. They’re less likely to tune you out, and you reinforce that listening happens the first time you say something. “
- Go back and practice routines (entering the room, lining up, talking to a partner, getting out laptops) whenever needed. Reinforce the idea that when we aren’t doing things well, it means we need more practice. If a small handful of students still resist a routine, they practice while others do a more enjoyable activity. You avoid yelling or threats, and the few who struggle to line up or use time well are more motivated to get the routine down so the next time they get choice time.
- “Notice” students who struggle. Use this sentence starter in any neutral, positive, or calm moment: “I notice you… like the color purple/walk to lunch with Kiara/finished your math problems/have a little sister/read manga.” Students who are often disregulated or disruptive are likely to have multiple disapproving adults in their life. Stand out by seeing them for who they are apart from those struggles. Simply see them. They will shine brighter in your class.
New teachers, we need you, your energy, your fresh skill sets, and your love and compassion for students. Remember to show that compassion to yourself by finding strategies that work, and problem-solving the hard parts of teaching. Students deserve high-impact teachers like you in their lives. Thank you for being here.
