In addition to behavioral expectations for specific activities, you need to help students know how to behave in the classroom in general. These expectations are called classroom rules but truthfully getting student cooperation with how they will act in the classroom makes all the difference.
Use the Capturing Kids Hearts team-based process to elicit ideas on how this group wants to be treated. Follow the steps to build the contract.
- Build teams with four or five members on each team
- Give out 3 by 5 cards to each person of every team (four per person)
- Write the four questions on the board that they should answer and have each person write down their thoughts using one card per question.
- Have each group share and come to an agreement on the answers they will share as a group to the whole class.
- The teacher uses a volunteer and flip chart in front of the room to capture the different thoughts from each group.
- Discuss those responses as you go along and have students make connections as they share their group's answers.
- Record the observable behaviors for the class and have every student sign the contact to say they will do their best.
See Capturing Kids Hearts for full details.
Rules or this contract is meaningless unless you are prepared to motivate students to follow the agreed upon behaviors with each other and you. Be consistent. By definition, rules are in effect all the time. When students choose to break a rule, they also choose to accept a corrective action. Make sure you are not backing students into a corner but giving logical choices that support them making a positive choice.