The list did not come in that handy when faced with a 13 year old boy with anger issues who thought it was great fun to throw his classmates P.E. kit out of the window.

I am not ashamed to say I panicked and promptly lied! I informed him (after glancing at my computer screen) that he had an urgent message waiting for him at reception and that he was to go and collect it. Removing the child from the situation enabled me to calm the class and get them engaged within the task set. It also meant that when the pupil returned I was able to meet him at the door and deal with his behaviour on a one-to-one basis preventing a confrontation in front of the class which would have served as entertainment to the class and a chance for the boy to try to demonstrate again that he “don’t care!”. By doing this I was able to award him the consequences in a calm manner and it gave the child the chance to reflect on his behaviour.

Please do not think for one second that I feel lying is the answer to classroom management. It is not, but at times a mere list of ideas is not going to cut it. At times we have to get creative.

Here is a mixture of that list that failed me initially, but has become useful since, and some of my more creative approaches:

Turning it around

When a child has drawn or written something inappropriate within their work book rather than the task set, I praise them on their creative streak. Usually students draw inappropriate things to shock people (when I say people I mean teachers) and by being rather blasé about their “work” it makes their attempt at rebellion pointless and often the pupils then decide to get back on task.

Distracted pupils

During question and answer sessions, if I see a child that is not on task, I ask a question and pretend that they have answered it, using their name in the praise. “Brilliant Sarah! That’s right. It was Mercutio that was killed.” I find that by praising the child it shocks them out of their distracted state without the need for confrontation.

Reprimand with a smile

Rather than barking “Don’t swing on your chair!” I have found I get a much better response from uttering “I’m sure you wouldn’t be swinging on my chair, would you?” It again prevents the confrontation and keeps a positive attitude within the class.

It was exactly the same for me. My first year of teaching was at a notoriously difficult school. Out of all of my classes I had one group that made me wonder if I was ever going to construct a positive relationship with them.

Within the group there was a small cluster of boys whose behaviour was atrocious. Throughout the course of the year I instigated several strategies, some of which worked well, some not so much. The ones that didn’t work for me however may well for you.

Seating plans

Most teachers set out a seating plan straight away for new groups or for a group they are having difficulty with. The main objective of my seating plan with this particular group was to separate the pupils who I was having difficulty with, without punishing the students who were working well.

When I moved the pupils, or attempted to, I was met with much hostility, (no surprise there) but I insisted and eventually the students sat where I wanted. Instantly this calmed two of the boys down and they were then able to focus on their work.

Reward system

There was no set reward system within this school and so I created one in my classroom. 10 stickers for one reward. This group was a year 10 group and to my utter amazement they loved it! Suddenly they were answering questions, reading aloud and following instructions.

Sharing responsibility

With the most difficult of students in this group I would give them a role. One student would give out the reward stickers, one to collect homework and so on. If these jobs were done well they would gain an extra sticker for being helpful. I found this helped them to remain on task and prevented them from causing large distractions.

Ignoring low level disruption

Tapping pens, swinging on chairs, repeating instructions whistling… the list goes on. And although low level disruption is annoying and frustrating I don’t challenge it in pupils who struggle to focus so long as it is not preventing others from learning.

Isolating persistent poor behaviour

This I only use in extreme circumstances. When coursework deadlines are looming or the threat of an exam is around the corner, I would create a large study area and make my expectations clear. Everyone must be focused, anyone who chose not to work was asked to leave the group and sit in the corner of the room to work independently. Two students chose to do this initially, thinking that it was a good way to get out of doing work.

I followed through with the threat and totally ignored all their poor behaviour once they were removed. The students attempted to lure others, but by praising the others and trying to keep them focused, the two who left the group seemed to realise that they had little hope of achieving disruption and quite quickly asked if they could come and work back within the group. Once they were allowed to do this they remained on task.