Let’s face it – teaching is hard, but teaching middle school students is a special level of hard! You’ve probably had people tell you that it takes a special person to teach middle school – I know I’ve heard this sentiment many times over the years. While middle schoolers are their own breed of students, I don’t think it takes a special person to effectively teach them. Instead, I believe it comes down to effective classroom management.
How to Manage a Middle School Classroom
Middle schoolers are quirky, hormonal and like to push boundaries (some more so than others!) If you are new to teaching, managing a class of 30 middle school students can seem scary (been there, done that!). As a veteran teacher, there are some class periods when I think to myself “What is happening right now?” However, instead of losing control of my class when it starts to get a little chaotic, I’ve learned how to better manage my emotions (everything is not that deep) and get students back on track quickly.
If you feel like you are spending the majority of your class period managing behaviors, there are some simple strategies you can implement today!
Best Classroom Management for Middle School
Hack #1 – Create an entrance routine. How are students entering your classroom? What is the expectation once they enter? Where are you when they enter the room? For example, you may stand at the door and greet students as they wait in a line to enter the room. Once in the room, the expectation is that students go to their seats and begin the bell work that is already presented on the board. If you do this religiously every day, students will come to expect it. If this is brand new for your students, don’t fret if they struggle with this at first! Change is difficult, but keep your expectations high and students will meet them!
Hack #2 – Have timed bell work. Give students a purpose once they enter your classroom. This might mean that you hand out physical copies of the bell work as students enter your room. Or perhaps something is projected on your board for students to complete. Students who have nothing to do will invent things to do. One thing I like to do is present a timer on my daily bell work slide, along with the task students should complete. Not only does the timer convey urgency, it also helps me pace my lesson! If I have a 5 minute timer for bell work and a student is sitting at his/her desk doing nothing after 3 minutes have gone by, sometimes it’s as easy as pointing to the timer for that student and they are like, “Oh snap!” and they begin to complete the task.
Management Hacks You Can Implement Today!
Hack #3 – Chunk Your Lessons. I remember having teachers who straight up lectured for the entire class period and the sole job of the student was to take notes. This method is not a best classroom management practice for middle schoolers, whose attention span is pretty much the length of a Tik-Tok reel. In addition to reviewing the day’s agenda with students, breaking the lesson into parts, or chunking, can help the class go by faster and also improve student behavior.
“Chunking makes our brains more efficient. The more you can chunk something, the faster and easier you can process it.”
Kevin Maney
For example, if students need to take notes, that might be the first 10 minutes of the lesson, followed by some partner or independent work. As an ELA teacher, I always allot 10 minutes of my lesson to silent reading a book of choice and students know to expect this each day. Chunking your lessons becomes part of your classroom structure and students learn to expect certain elements of class each day, which becomes routine and predictable.
Hack #4 – Include “student talk” in every lesson. Protocols like “Think, Pair, Share,” “Turn & Talk,” and the like have a place in every lesson. This part of your lesson “chunk” is generally something students will look forward to daily. Students rarely ask me if they are going to work with peers because they know the answer is always “yes.” Sometimes I group students based on data, sometimes I let them choose who they work with and sometimes I randomly assign. Sometimes, you may have to begin with baby steps when introducing “student talk,” especially if you have a rowdy bunch. We all have had “that” class! Instead of telling them they can’t work together, start them off slow. A 3 minute turn-and-talk with the person next to them is a good way to initiate “student talk.” You can include these multiple times throughout the class period too. Some classes will need more framing about how to work together than others, so keep this in mind when using partners/groups.
Hack #5 – Celebrate Students! At the end of each lesson, I have a slide called “Student Shout-Outs.” Students get to “shout-out” a peer for something amazing they did during class. We then do some sort of acknowledgement, like a round of applause (link) or a marshmallow clap (link). While this might seem corny, students LOVE it and it builds community within your classroom. You might also get teary-eyed when a student gives a “shout-out” to YOU (because they will!)
Additionally, it’s important to celebrate student successes and growth. You can do this by posting student work, acknowledging students with certificates for exemplifying certain character traits and academics within your classroom, or even a positive note home. As Rita Pierson stated, “Every student needs a champion.” You can be your students’ champion every day by promoting positivity!
I hope these quick and easy classroom behavior management tips will help you better manage your classroom. Don’t feel as if you have to implement all of them at once either! Becoming an expert classroom manager doesn’t happen overnight (Rome wasn’t built in a day, right?) Which hack will you try? Let me know in the comments!
