2014 Blog 5- How will you address classroom management in the final weeks of school?  Will you change anything? What kind of positive incentive plan will you implement in your classroom?  How will you communicate it to students and parents?

Classroom management in the final weeks of school is challenging. Students are burnt out and I am a little as well. In the last weeks of school it is incredibly important to be transparent with students, making sure they understand why you are doing each review activity. If students understand the reasons behind an activity they are more likely to be motivated to complete the assignment. Another idea to improve behavior is to use games and competition to get students invested in an activity. I use a class points system in my classroom to reward positive behavior. I have my classes compete against each other to see who can earn the most amount of points in a certain amount of time. I am sure to emphasize this in the last weeks of school. If any class gets 15 points they receive a class rewards. I also run a "Neel Notes" systems for individual rewards. If a student earns five "Neel Notes" they can choose from a certain number of three individual prizes. Finally communication with parents is key. You do not want to have any surprised parents when report cards come out at the end of the semester. I have called all my potential failing or failing students' parents. However, I also believe it is important to call home when students behave well (especially for students whose parents only receive bad phone calls). This positive reward has really helped some student behavior problems in my classroom.