Signs of Personal Growth

One conviction that I came into the classroom having was the notion that everything must be stated explicitly regarding rules and expectations. The whole school rule at LU is that "No one has the right to interfere with the learning, safety, or well-being of others." Although this rule does not state explicitly all of the rules of the school (what exactly might interfere with someone's learning?), the students understand that their actions do affect others and that they cannot negatively affect the environment of the other individuals of the school. What I have learned from LU and its main overarching rule is that it may not be exactly what the rules are or how explicit each of the rules and expectations are stated, but how you deal with broken rules or strict rule followers. Lately, I have found myself looking around the class and being amazed at how well-behaved these kindergartners are, many of whom never stepped inside a school until one month ago. I think that as long as the students understand that their teacher truly cares about them and wants what is best for them, then you will be on the right track when it comes to classroom management. Clearly the students in my kindergarten class understand that their teacher cares for them, and through some trial and error and testing the limits, the students are turning into pretty well-behaved five and six year olds.