Establishing Classroom Expectations in the Upper Grades and a FREEBIE

Hi there! It's Erin Beers from Mrs. Beers' Language Arts Class.  My focus for this post is to help you establish classroom expectations with your students from that very first day of school, in order to have a "well-oiled machine" of a classroom within that first week.

Classroom management can make or break ANY classroom.  As classroom teachers, it is essential to establish routines and expectations from the MOMENT your students enter the classroom on that very first day of the school year.  In my school building, we utilize CHAMPs for our school-wide classroom management program, but it looks very different in the upper grades.  Here is a rundown of the acronym and what each letter focuses to establish...

C=Conversation: What level of conversation is appropriate?

H=Help: How can students get help when needed?

A=Activity: What is the task at hand?

M=Movement: What kind of movement is allowed?

P=Participation: How are students expected to participate?

S=Success: What does successful completion of the task/activity look like?

My goal is to encourage my students to be CHAMPS in all they do throughout the day!

Here is my VERY simple bulletin board that I created for a consistent student reminder that I review with every task we complete in the classroom.  It is not yet hanging (it will be) and it is not yet complete.  Remember that your room doesn't have to be totally finished when students walk through the door because they should be a part of your decorating process.  After it has found its spot and it is shared, I will take photos of my students modeling each letter of CHAMPS in order to visibly showcase classroom expectations. 

You can create this expectation bulletin board very simply! PRINT, CUT, DISPLAY, EXPLAIN, and KEEP REVIEWING!  I promise that with repetition, your students will quickly learn what is expected in your classroom and work to be successful champs!

Be prepared to show students what it looks like and what it DOESN'T look like to: walk into your classroom, begin work, work with a peer, work in small groups, take a test, turn in work, sharpen a pencil, play a game, line up to head to the next class, etc.  They will LOVE modeling the bad behavior, and it is quite funny!

When positive behaviors and expectations are continuously modeled, your students will be less likely to focus how not to do things within your classroom environment. I would love to hear about other tried and true resources you utilize to establish expectations in your classroom.  I wish you the best of luck this school year! 

Click the image to grab this FREEBIE...