The Hard to Handle Student/Class

Posted by Dorit Sasson Jan 20, 2007

During the first month of school, I observe my students’ work habits and behavior. I do not react at the good or bad behavior. It was hard for me to force myself to do this at first, but there is a reason for doing it.

There are all kinds of hard to handle students. My purpose is to try and find a hook and connect. If you find you are having difficulty with a particular student, perhaps it pays to find a hook and connect. Observe the following:

When is the child quiet and concentrating? What time? What is s/he doing?

Talks can prove to be effective. Tie it into learning. What does that kid like? What is s/he good at?

I am a believer in preventing problems before they happen. This is why I believe observation and the direct and individual process help me minimize classroom management problems.

Here are some other preventive tips:

Be careful how you seat students.

Be consistent and follow up. Make sure you have a plan on how you deal with those students.

Reward good behavior.

Give students time to process.

Remember, the brain loves novelty. Try to keep your lessons as diverse as possible.

Learn from the good as well as from the bad.

I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Marilyn Applebaum speak on her visit to Israel. She has lots of fresh ideas for classroom management, ADHD and positive reinforcement.

After my initial observation period, I develop a behavioral rubric chart for the particular class that I’m teaching and/or having trouble with. Students give themselves a grade for areas for those kinds of behavior I try to promote such as: work on task, contribution to the lesson, handing in work, coming to class on time, completing homework. You can design your own or use this site to help you generate your own classroom management rubrics.