The Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tips #101-105

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip #101

EFFECTIVE LUNCHROOM STRATEGIES PART XII
EAT IN THE DANGER ZONE

You know where the most obnoxious kids in your lunchroom are. Go eat with them. Spending a lot of time eating, conversing and having fun with the kids most likely to exhibit negative behaviors is the easiest and most stress-free way of stopping behaviors before they start.

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip #102

EFFECTIVE LUNCHROOM STRATEGIES PART XIII
COVER YOUR EARS INSTEAD OF ADDING TO THE USELESS NOISE

Instead of telling kids to be quiet, try getting eye contact from a loud student, looking annoyed, covering your ears, and walking away. This can give the student the message that they are being too loud, that you know that they will quiet down, and that you know that they are smart enough to change the behavior without you telling them to change the behavior.

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip #103

GO OUT OF YOUR WAY

One of the best ways to build a relationship with a student is to stop what you are doing and start talking to him about something related to his life. When we stop one thing to give attention to a student it sends the message that, not only is the kid important, but that kid is MORE important than the thing that you were just doing. This may be the first time a student has ever had an adult do this for him.

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip Number 103
TURN THE CHAIR AROUND

This one comes from a teacher at  Mt. Ayr Elementary in Mt. Ayr, Iowa:

Ever find yourself lecturing kids about keeping all four chair legs on the ground. Try this the next time you feel like lecturing: Have the student turn their chair around so that the back of the chair is facing the desk! They can’t lean back because they would fall off their chair. 

 Brilliant!

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip #104

OFFER A CARROT AT THE END OF THE DAY… NO STICK NECESSARY

“We will play____ when everyone is ready” is a way better to get your students to be quiet, clean and in their seats by the end of the day than, “I SAID BE QUIET!!!!” One is enforceable and polite. The other is unenforceable and rude.

Kid Whisperer Nation Teacher Tip #105

EFFECTIVE TRANSITIONS PART I
SET EXPECTATIONS ONCE…PER YEAR

It will never cease to amaze me how we insult kids’ intelligence by giving “clear expectations” over and over again. One time on the first day of school, tell students that you dismiss kids to line up or to come to the carpet, etc., when everyone at their team is silently seated at a clean table. NEVER SAY THIS AGAIN.