The Classroom Management Secret: And 45 Other Keys to a Well-Behaved Class

by Michael Linsin

You see, there is no magic in the plan itself. It has no power to influence behavior. Only you have the power to influence behavior by creating a classroom your students want to be part of and then strictly—obsessively—holding them accountable. Therefore, your plan doesn’t need to be elaborate, complex, or involved. It just needs to be followed.

A classroom management plan has two, and only two, purposes: 1. To state the rules of the classroom. 2. To state exactly what will happen if those rules are broken.

Every student, deep down, when shown the way, wants to do well. They all want to experience the feeling of being more than what they thought they could be. They all want a chance to be a part of something unique and meaningful and remarkable. We all do.

The solution is confidence, confidence in knowing that it is indeed best to follow through with your classroom management plan every single time.

HOW YOU GIVE a consequence matters. How you speak to your students, what you say to them, and how you react emotionally and with your body language after they break a classroom rule goes a long way toward curbing misbehavior.

When your students know that you’ll never participate in unspoken deals, bribes, or quid pro quos, then almost magically their behavior changes.