Hi! I was wondering what type of class rules do you post up in the classroom. I want to have clear rules that are easy to follow, but not too many rules. What do you guys have?
Listening ears Quiet Voices Looking Eyes Hands and feet to yourself Be a good friend! I have this rule list with pictures beside each item and we talk about why "be a good friend" is the most important rule and how breaking rules isn't being a good friend to the teacher, etc... I have it on a large poster in the front of the room where we read them at least once a day and on smaller sheets of paper on each of the other walls. I also make a big list during the first week of school where the kids tell me all the things they think need to be done to have a good class and we discuss how each item relates to the rules I use. Then I write out the rules and the kids write their name with a big discussion about why writing your name means you agree to something. One of the presenters I saw last week had one rule: Respect all people and things within this classroom. I liked it a lot, but I am not sure that kids who have never been to a school will really grasp such a broad statement.
I got a super set of rule posters from Becker's last year. They had animals acting out each rule. It was very clear to the students!
It was a Math Solutions Math & Literature Class. His name was Vance. I am not sure about putting his last name on the message board
I work at an IB (International Baccalaureate) school. Our rules are called our essential agreement. The organization's preference is that this is something that the entire class collaborates on making. Obviously in Kindergarten that doesn't necessarily happen I usually have certain things in mind (hands and feet to ourselves, raising hands, staying in seat, good listeners, and being respectful). I then kind of coerce the kids into making them think that they have come up with them on their own. That way they take ownership in it. What they don't know is that I have already listed all of these rules on a poster already Soooo sneaky!
Do you think posting the rules for kindergarteners is necessary? Maybe a better way of phrasing that question is, do the kids actually look at the chart(s) and are they able to read them? Most Kers can't read (at least at the beginning of the year), so is it worthwhile? I'm not saying there shouldn't be rules (of course!), I'm just interested in saving space on my walls (small classroom).
I think they definitely should be posted. I like the idea of using a picture to help them comprehend each rule. My first year of teaching I assigned a shape to each rule...LOL...it didn't work nearly as well as I thought it would. Don't know what I was thinking there Now I use pictures, which works much better. They really should be posted just as a reminder. Refer to them often, and the children will be able to recognize them.
I post my rules and with the simple phrases with a picture and saying them so frequently they can "read" them when I point to them. It is really environmental print - they know what it says beside the eye or beside the hands and feet. They use it as a point of reference for reading and writing. I like to ask them which rule they broke and have them touch the rule so that there is a connection between having rules and their behavior. I also remind them that they signed the contract and have them find their name on the contract rules.
I use pictures as visuals for the rules since they can't read. I will try to post a pic of my rules chart, although I haven't had much success posting pics here before I do believe it's very important for them to have that visual to pair with the auditory, especially for visual learners and ELL students.
Thank you all so much! Vanna, I love your pictures that go with it. It's straight and to the point. I like it!
I think that it is very important to post them, but you have to do it right. The posters I have include animals acting out the rules (like penguins raising their hands) and since I "taught" the rules and matching pictures, my students only needed me to point to a rule poster to know what I needed them to do. They were a great reminder and I think it is vital to post them.
I had three rules last year, developed by the class with my help: Allow yourself and others to learn. Take care of our school. Take care of each other. It seemed to cover everything pretty well. I like that they're specific enough to make sense, but broad enough that students can't try to get away with bad behavior just because it's not on the list of rules. I definitely should have more systematically taught and reinforced the rules, though. That's something I'll do in the coming year for sure!
i think you should for sure post your rules even if they can't read them. i refer to mine quite often.. it helps with having a print rich environment and they will recognize sight words in the rules. i use my rules the same way i use my helper chart. i have both just written on sentence strips and i have the class read them together as one person uses a pointer to point to each word as they read. it helps with differentiating between letters and words.
We generated a bunch of rules but the one that they pretty much all boiled down to was, "do what you're supposed to" They knew what was right and what was wrong and all I had to do was ask, "Are you doing what you're supposed to be doing?"
rules posted Hi! Rules should be posted for the children. The children will know where the rules are in the classroom. Refer to them daily. Students who read can help those who don't. The nonreaders will begin to recognize the letters and words as they are reviewed each day. This is the same as high frequency words. Use pictures to help. Your classroom should be print rich. At eye level so that the students can easily see and read. My kindergartners "Read the Room". Reading the class expectations is a good thing. They may not read when they start but they will be reading when they finish.
A new book for introducing rules that comes w/poster There is a new book called "kevin knows the rules" for introducing school rules. It has great illustrations of children "doing' the rules.... it comes w/a poster w/ the same illustrations from the book to hang in your room for daily rule review....I ordered it from amazon.com.. I can't wait to use it in the fall!:2up:
We have three major guidelines that every other falls under: Love Yourself Respect Each Other Take Care of Your World
