This week, we had the opportunity to learn from Britnay, a guest speaker who shared many valuable insights on classroom management techniques. Her presentation covered key strategies like establishing routines, incorporating SEL (Social-Emotional Learning) check-ins, implementing soft starts, modeling behavior, fostering inquiry, and setting clear classroom rules and expectations. It was helpful to have all of these concepts clearly outlined and explained, especially since I’ve observed many of them in action during L2P and my own classes.
I enjoyed learning about soft starts and transitions, as these are techniques I haven’t encountered as much throughout my education. Ideas like using Play-Doh, kinetic sand, and musical tracing maps stood out to me as creative ways to ease students into the day. Britnay’s presentation also included lots of practical templates that I’m excited to try out, especially for developing an inquiry and strength-based approach in the classroom. I did a bit more research on soft starts, and found lots of other teachers posting their experiences and techniques with this. Check out this one from Jenna Kimber.
Having written resources is very helpful for me, I feel that it supports my learning and planning process very well. I like the idea of starting with broad goals and inquiries for the class, then breaking those down into specific, individualized goals for each student. This approach feels both intentional and supportive, and I’m excited to practice applying it in my own teaching.