Classroom Goals

One of my professional development goals this year is to increase my classroom management skills. I am studying a book called CHAMPs to help me with that. One of the exercises it asks for is to identify major goals that summarize why being in my classroom will be a worthwhile experience for my students. So far, I have come up with four:

1. Develop independence. Around grade 3 children are starting to learn to look after some of their own responsibilities. I want to help them develop the skills they need to allow for independence. Learning to ensure you have all the things you need for a day at school or all the supplies you need for your homework is something children this age are learning to handle. I also want to help them develop the skills they need to problem solve when they run into issues, problems with friends. I also want them to learn to make a plan for a project and follow the intermediate steps they have established so they can complete a project on time.

2. Love learning. I try to be a role model in this area. I want to demonstrate an attitude that learning is fun and exciting.  I do this by continually evaluating the activities and lessons we focus on as well as ensure that I am always learning myself. We also focus in learning to use technology and social media to make learning efficient and interesting as well as to connect with the outside world. 

3. Foster positive relationships. Our class is a group of people that I plan to have a long term relationship with and I conduct myself in a way that will encourage that. I teach my students how to develop strong relationships.

4. Develop a love of reading. We focus on structures to support reading that they can continue long after grade three. During grade three I will challenge my students to take on the task of reading 40 chapter books (approximately one chapter book a week) and keep track of what they have read in their reading notebook.

5. Know how to be successful in school. We have guidelines for success we follow that help students succeed. We learn to prioritize and to accomplish tasks. If we do what is most important first we will have time to do the fun and frivolous too. 

Our guidelines for success are:                                   Our classroom rules are:

 

1. Always try.                                                              1. Arrive on time with all your materials.
2. Do your best                                                            2. Keep hands, feet and objects to yourself.
3. Be responsible                                                         3. Follow all directions immediately.
4. Treat everyone with respect.                                   4. Work during work times.
5. Cooperate with others

I would love to discuss this with other teachers. What are your goals for your class?