Tears. I cried buckets of them each day from August until December 2015. There were so many disruptions to instruction. It was my ninth year of teaching, and classroom management was one of my strengths: My room was generally described as autonomous and student-centered. But not that year. That year, my 4th graders spoke obscenities, screamed across the room, rolled their eyes, and said, "NO!" It was the most challenging group I had ever taught, and I was at my wits' end.
That was also the year that I worked with our instructional coach, Amber. As we debriefed one day, she suggested scrapping my list of teacher-created disciplinary consequences, and instead having the class create their own norms and consequences. I was dumbfounded by her suggestion. I couldn't believe she wanted my students, who were so blatantly disrespectful, to create the boundaries and determine what should happen if they crossed them. I think my exact words were, "This is hokey. It's not going to work, but I'll try it."
So together, Amber and I framed a discussion of norms and consequences around Joan Richardson's article, "Norms Put the 'Golden Rule' into Practice for Groups," published by the National Staff Development Council (now Learning Forward). Here's how we did it:
1. Clearly define what norms are and why we have them.
We asked students what they thought learning should look like. We explained that norms are different from rules. Norms are how we want each other to act so that we can all learn—and they can be revised. Rules, however, are predetermined and stay the same (we would still follow the rules set by our school and district but use norms to guide our behavior in class).
2. Facilitate a discussion to generate norms.
First, students discussed with partners what they felt should be expected of them. Second, Amber and I facilitated a whole-group conversation in which norms were suggested and clarified. For example, when a student suggested the norm "We will listen intently," we asked how to tell if someone was listening intently. The student responded, "You look at the person speaking. You don't interrupt." We made sure that any norm we added had a clear, tangible, and shared definition.
3. Hone your list of norms.
We knew we needed a short list of four to six norms. Keeping this in mind, we asked students to decide which norms were most important to creating a successful environment for learning. They voted for six norms, including "We will be ready to learn in a timely manner" and "We will look at the speaker."
4. Have students decide the consequences.
The next day, we asked students what should happen if a norm was broken. This discussion was intense. I could not believe how engaged the students were, given how difficult it had been to maintain their attention previously. They agreed on consequences such as a verbal warning, loss of privilege, silent lunch, and a behavior reflection that their parents would sign. If they broke a norm, they vowed to respectfully accept their consequence.
5. Consistently revisit norms and consequences.
As we implemented the norms and consequences, we held a class meeting every Friday to make revisions. We went through many iterations, with students progressively expecting more of each other.
For reinforcement, a student read the norms and consequences aloud at the beginning of each class. Students also shared a goal related to the norms, such as staying in one spot to reduce distractions, and had partners hold them accountable. At the end of the day, students would reflect on whether they had met their goal or if there was still progress to be made.
In December, my tears dried. In February, colleagues commented on my classroom's transformation. In April, the mother of my most challenging student shared how impressed she was that her son now spoke respectfully to others and had friends. Another parent said that instead of yelling back, her son would calmly state, "Mom, I disagree with you because …." Although my class still had issues, my students learned to work together and be respectful.
