Four Classroom Management Ideas for Spring Fever

It's almost Spring!  Can you feel it.  Changing is coming.  It's staying lighter later.  We've had a few warmer days here and there.  I love Spring.

I bet your students can feel the changes, too.  Are they starting to stretch and grow?

Every Spring, I always noticed a change in my classroom.  It was subtle, but it was there.  My students became more independent and our lessons became more in-depth, but it was more difficult for students to focus and pay attention.  I had a difficult time teaching and students were sometimes not so kind to each other.

Here are a few ideas that can help with classroom management during the spring when you need to pull out all your tricks!

Use a Behavior Chart

If you have a couple students who are slightly out of control, consider using a behavior chart to check-in with them on a more consistent basis.  You can customize a behavior chart to match your day and teaching style.

Find out more about how I use a behavior chart in my classroom.

Use Literature

One of my favorite ways to build character in the classroom is through literature.  Students can identify with a character in the story and build empathy.  This is not a one-time deal.  It's something that needs to be developed consistently every few weeks.

This post has some ideas on how to use literature in the classroom to reflect on behavior.

Focus on a Specific Character Trait

Often, students don't know what it means to be responsible, caring, or to show kindness.  I know with my own boys at home, I'm often giving them the language to show empathy to someone else.  It just doesn't come naturally for one of my boys and he needs clear examples of what it looks like.

Likewise, our classroom students need clear examples of each of the character traits we want them to reflect.  I'm not sure who said it, but this quote always resonates with me: More is caught than taught. If we don't teach it, they won't learn it.

Here is one way where we have focused specifically on one character trait.

Change it Up a Bit

Sometimes all you need to do is have a little fun and do something different.  There are many ways to enjoy the classroom with students and sometimes it only takes 10-15 minutes.

Here are 80 Sponge Activities that you can use in your classroom to refocus students and just have a little fun in a short amount of time.

There you have it.  Four different ways to refocus students' behavior this Spring.  Do you have any tried and true ideas to help students focus during the changing Spring?