Keeping order in the classroom? 81 class management tips & tricks

How do I stop my busy class? How can you keep order in the classroom? Class management becomes very interesting when you start using NLP. In this article you will learn 82 special tips, tricks and different methods so that you can never say, “I can’t keep order in the classroom.”

Keeping order: Tips 1 to 7 – Condition students to obedience

Has disobedience occurred? Some suggestions …

• You can take the good examples as an example: ‘And I wonder what we think of the people who don’t do what you do / what will happen to them …
• Is the child already working on something else and do you want to start, for example with a book? Then use the technique ‘follow first, then lead’ . ‘What are you doing? Let’s see if the book goes that way … ‘
• One pitfall is to give too much attention to children when they are disobedient. Sometimes you can also ignore them: “The teacher is just telling.”
• Use “command tone down”: “Let’s go.” Instead of “Let’s go?” You actually end such a sentence by lowering your vote.
• Signals that presuppose actions: a teacher is already in the circle, takes out the guitar, etc.
• Give other children a leadership role: “Will you make sure he gets enthusiastic applause?” “You pick someone out within 5 seconds (otherwise you do it yourself) and the two of you make sure he does.”
• Make sure that the rules are followed right from the start. For example, if several students talk without a finger, you can correct it immediately and firmly: 1 at a time.

Fair, hard, but not heartless.

Keeping order: Tips 8 to 39 – Keep the class alert with trance words

We can use ‘call to actions’ and hot words, also called trance words , to keep the class engaged. Below you’ll find these kinds of hot word sayings and interactive elements that you can sprinkle between your story. The subconscious of the student will automatically receive these ‘call to actions’ and, for example, look up if he was distracted.

For example, the word ‘you / you’ often occurs in the list below because the subconscious feels directly addressed when the word ‘you’ is said. In the same way, all the words in the examples below have their own use.

• This is important
• Look here
• Look at me
• Listen carefully
• Listen to me
• Do you recognize that?
• Do you understand?
• pay attention
• Focus
• I’m talking to everyone. I’m talking to 2 specific people, but this works for everyone.
• Does that make sense to you? (Of course it is.)
• Attention (followed by three loud claps).
• Do you now think “I SEE the value of this?”
• Listen to me now
• For questions to the public: yes or no? (possibly: ‘Say yes’)
• It’s too good to …
• Small tests: in the meantime ask them a short test question about your material (possibly: ‘Yes or no?’)
• Repeat after me …
• Is this something you can benefit from? (Yes or no?)
• Did I forget to say anything? Kevin, do you have anything to add?
• “Look (but) here (above) (please).” Point up with your finger at head height.

Keeping order: Tip 40 – Don’t demand, but invite

We all want to “kindly ask” whether children want to cooperate, but in practice that does not always work because children do not always respond flexibly and cooperatively.

My question is, where do you think they learned to be demanding and inflexible? Oh yes, ours! If we want our children to cooperate, we must set a good example ourselves.

Do not demand that children obey, but treat them with respect and kindly invite them. Kindly asking, inviting and working together to find a solution to a problem teaches children a foundation of trust and teamwork.

When is something a requirement? Ask yourself, “Can anyone feel free to answer ‘no’ to this request?” If not, then you are not really inviting or questioning … You demand. That’s OK sometimes, but remember, the more you demand from your kids, the less genuine, internally motivated cooperation you’re likely to get.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t have expectations of your kids. It simply means that when those expectations are not met, you see this as an opportunity to solve problems together, instead of using it as an excuse to punish the children for submission.

Keeping order: Tip 41 – Stop repeating yourself

This is a mistake we all make, especially when we don’t get the results we want. Believe me that repeating yourself is the last thing you want to do if you are trying to promote cooperation with children. The child heard you the first time, and by repeating yourself, you are simply training him / her to stop listening and wait until you get frustrated before acting.

Children discover all kinds of things about the world around them, including vast amounts of information about socio-emotional dynamics. If they throw you off your a propos or make you frustrated or angry, they are gathering very interesting knowledge about how to get what they want. Don’t fall prey to their cunning.

If you can keep a cool head and maintain clear boundaries, your kids will still test you, but after unsuccessfully testing all their theories of how to disrupt you, they will start to find your actual lesson more interesting again .

Rather than repeating asking yourself, do it in a different way. Play “forgetful” and invite them to remind you of what you just said. “Wait, I forgot, didn’t I just ask you to do something? What was that again? I think we were getting ready to go somewhere, but can you please remind me where?”

This allows the kids to be the smarter one and if there is one thing kids love it is to be smarter and more capable than adults.

Keeping order: Tips 42 to 45 – Use gestures for support

Use your body to communicate!

• Story: “Hello …” Gesture towards yourself: “Hello Pietje!”
• For example, ‘cup’ your ears to make your audience sing louder.
• Children can be cut off with your arm gestures: “You told very nicely, now it’s his turn (with your arm you go down slowly and firmly, like a conductor).”
• While maintaining your warmth, press your hand outstretched arm down to ‘cut’ someone.

Keeping order: Tip 46 – Give a child a leadership role

“I’ve noticed that a lot of other students look up to you, and I wondered if you’re interested in helping me. What you will then do is encourage others, be a good person and a good friend, be a role model for your classmates, etc. Your help must remain a secret, just between us. Are you interested?’

You can also have meetings with the small group of role models at a number of times and through role plays you can practice how they can help.

For example, you can walk by in an informal way and say: “Hey, would you like to do something and ask Marietje whether she wants to play with your group today?” This is a classic Dale Carnegie story :

Mrs. Hopkins decided to face the “Tommy problem” immediately. When she greeted her new students, she made little comments to each of them: “Rose, that’s a pretty dress you are wearing,” “Alicia, I hear you draw beautifully.” When she came to Tommy, she looked him straight in the eyes and said, “Tommy, I understand you are a natural leader. I’m going to depend on you to help me make this class the best class in the fourth grade this year.” She reinforced this over the first few days by complimenting Tommy on everything he did and commenting on how this showed what a good student he was. With that reputation to live up to, even a nine-year-old couldn’t let her down – and he didn’t. If you want to excel in that difficult leadership role of changing the attitude or behavior of others, use …

– Dale Carnegie, Principle 7 – Give the other person a fine reputation to live up to.

Keeping order: Tips 47 to 62 – Getting the children quiet

How can you calm down your class? Read the practical bulletins below and then apply them:

• In adults: ‘We really want to keep going. And if you want to participate, we welcome you here. If you do not wish to participate, you should not attend the meeting. You should let us do what we want to do. “
• Optionally, you can turn off the lights as part of the story (a spaceship!), Which automatically silences the children.
• You can also be directive: “Listen.” ‘We go on’. (Also, many teachers are good at snapping the name of a much too disobedient child. Sometimes they deserve it.)
• Be specific. You help the subconscious with that: Not: “Come here.” But: ‘Come sit / stand here on this chair / place.’
• Treat the child as a fully-fledged adult who can manage himself: ‘You can feel for yourself whether you want to take time out. You have one in the morning and one in the afternoon. ‘
• “If you participate well, we’ll play a game afterwards.”
• Take a large marble jar that is empty. Every time the class quickly becomes quiet, they get a marble in the pot. Every time they are naughty, a few are taken out. If they manage to fill the jar, they will receive a reward. It could be anything. With the pot, the children will watch for themselves. Just the sound of the marbles alone, you can do fun things with it!
• Use an anchor method (the pavlov effect) to evoke a specific response in the class for a specific trigger. The response is of course: be quiet. Calibrate to silence a room, also with the trigger included. Practice with the class a few times. Often this will be at the first lesson. A trigger could be, for example: your hand in the air / on the nose, and mouth over the lower lip. Optional: The last person to speak sings a song. That only works if they have been warned in advance.
• Having something in their hands makes them quiet.
• The mirror game: a sequence of clapping and body rhythms are used. See and imitate style. Everyone participates, with you as a leader. Once everyone joins in and mimics the sequence, you become silent, and instead of starting a new sequence, you start talking.
• Above all, keep praising the children who are already quiet.
• ‘Do it again:’ If they don’t come in properly, say so and let them sit still first. Then come in from the outside and: ‘I know you know how to do it. Show that. ‘
• When a child starts talking while you are telling, just keep going as if you weren’t interrupted, and stand next to the child. It’s important not to raise your voice or seek confrontation. Speak in an even and clear tone.
• Turn negative attention into sincerity. If a child asks for Uncle’s attention in a negative way, you can ask, “How are you”?
• Instead of telling them what to do, use the challenge frame, “I’m sure you can’t sit still for 10 minutes.”
• Firm posture, penetrating gaze, sharp and clear gestures, confrontational and personal.
• Be consistent: “You’re breaking a rule!” Always be consistent in this. “This is the 10th excuse this week.” ‘I think it’s only normal if people arrive on time. You are often late. You will be on time all the remaining times of this year, otherwise you will receive an official warning. I expect from you… ”“ Excuse me? Do we accept this language here? Punishment. ‘

Keeping order: Tip 63 – Use the proximity effect

Walk to the student who is distracted, on their cellphone, or chatting as you continue with your story. When you get closer to someone, the other feels your presence. The other feels addressed and will pay attention. This is the power of the ‘proximity effect’, or ‘proximity’ in English.

Keeping order: Tips 64 to 74 – Keeping the class alert with NLP

• Turn on your ‘peripheral vision’. Pay attention to all movements you notice by looking at the relevant student as you continue with your story.
• Ever heard of embedded assignments ? It is a powerful NLP technique. For example, a suggestion to the whole class: “People can WAKE UP.”
• Ask a question that starts with ‘ Who ‘. The subconscious receives the question, so that everyone in the class will pay attention.
• Keep talking generally to the whole class, and ask, “Can you explain to me …”
• Just a direct suggestion: “You notice that you are alert, now.”
• Are we still sharp? Complete and complete, {name}.
• AND… people are always switching between wandering and paying attention, isn’t that true Maia?
• During an individual assignment: cough in class. The people who don’t pay attention watch because they are not working.
• Give the audience something to eat (during a presentation). That is why they listen 100%.
• Is a young child in a busy mood? Start with the boogie! Let the energy flow until everything has been expressed.
• Put something under a cloth yourself as a prop for your story. This creates mystery.

Keeping order: Tip 75 – There is no wrong answer

Encourage the class to provide answers and make discoveries in this way. This is the powerful inductive teaching method. Never say no after a wrong answer, but give the right answer. “What a wonderful opportunity to discover the right answer now!”

You can safely answer and make mistakes.

You don’t get a grade for it.

Your hair won’t fall off or anything.

There are only discoveries. ‘

Keeping order: Tip 76 – Use metaphors (example of the utilization technique)

Use utilization . Let’s look at a specific utilization technique: Talk / focus about / on the audience. Make it exclusive and specific to the public. Any idea / point. Tell everything from the audience’s perspective.

You can do this by copying certain things from the public, such as their jargon, or the jokes they make among themselves. If you are explaining something to children: use something that is in their perception, such as mobile phones. For nerds you can use the abbreviation RAM, for example.

Keeping order: Tip 77 – Use encouragement / Compliment the students for the class

Provide encouragement and praise after each activity. ‘I’m curious what will happen to the people who are not going to act like …’. Always use the growth mindset when encouraging .  “Pietje is really doing his best!” “To Humphrey it looks like he’s ready to go to art school.” Or better: “Humphrey behaves like someone who is ready to go to grade 7 next year.”

You are important.

What can you eat well.

How good you can do that.

How good of you.

Acceptance: “I’m glad you are a member of this class, Pietje. I look forward to getting to know you and all your talents.

Anthony, I believe in you, and I know you can be the excellent student you want to be this year.

Also give students encouraging names: Jolige Jose, Heroic Hassan … Don’t be skimpy with your encouragement!

Keeping order: Tip 78 – Evaluate as early as possible with the child and the parents

Evaluate with the child and the parents as early as possible. Also talk about the rules.

Keeping order: Tip 79 – Listen to predicates

Watch for predicates in the other person’s speech and use them! This is a technique for making reports,  which is extra important in education because learning points are received extra well in this way.

Keeping order: Tip 80 – Ask questions and let them discover for themselves that they are disrupting the class

Ask, ask, ask, ask, ask! For example when you ask, “What should be the consequence?”

Keeping order: Tip 81 – Use the article ‘dealing with resistance’ and ‘inductive teaching’

There are many more tips : you can find them all in the article ‘ Dealing with resistance ‘. Especially the tip about utilization is very important! Also see the article about inductive teaching.

Those were the tips to calm a busy class

These were the practical and useful classroom management tips and tricks so that the teacher can keep order in the classroom and keep order among the students. What are your best practices for classroom management? Share your best ways to keep track in class. You can do that in the comments at the bottom of this page.