Succeed With The Noisy Class
Succeed With The Noisy Class
Succeed With The Noisy Class
SUCCEED
WITH THE
NOISY CLASS
The Step by Step Method
to Deal with
Challenging Groups
www.behaviourneeds.com
http://www.behaviourneeds.com
"I found Rob Plevin's workshop just in time to save me from giving up. It should
be compulsory - everybody in teaching should attend a Needs-Focused workshop
and meet the man with such a big heart who will make you see the important
part you can play in the lives of your most difficult pupils."
Heather Beames, Teacher, London course attendee
To book Rob for INSET or to enquire about live training please visit the help desk
at www.behaviourneeds.com/helpdesk OR CALL 08452712818
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Table of Contents
1. Take Control at the door ............................................................................. 3
i)
ii)
ii)
iii)
ii)
Settled Starter............................................................................. 9
ii)
i)
ii)
iii)
Offer support............................................................................. 14
iv)
v)
vi)
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
Ive put together this little report to help you succeed with your most challenging
groups of students.
Succeeding with a difficult group of students isnt a pipe dream. I believe any
teacher can do this if they employ certain key strategies both in and out of
lessons. Teachers I have taught the Needs Focused Approach have reported
dramatic transformations in the way challenging students respond to them and
Im 100% confident I can help you achieve similar results.
Thanks you so much, by following what you have already proved to work, I am
now asked on a regular basis to cover the teacher in year 6, who earned
themselves the title "The Class From Hell" especially when they have someone
other than their regular teacher. You will be pleased to know that nick name is a
thing of the past thanks to your inspiration.
Hazel Loughran, Distance Learning Customer
How do I know I can teach you these things? Because Ive been exactly where
you are now and know how it feels to be walked on in the classroom.
Like you, I left teacher training fresh, keen and eager to teach. I was totally
convinced I would make a difference in the hearts and minds of the young
people I was about to teach and I was proud to be part of this most noble and
rewarding profession. Captain, my captain? Tell me about it!
But those dizzy dreams were cruelly followed by despair, frustration and stress...
as I began to experience the reality of students who simply didnt want to be
taught. I was working in a referral unit for students who had been thrown out of
mainstream school and it was hard. Very hard.
When I arrived there I was shocked to see students literally running wild through
the corridors, slamming doors, ripping books, screaming and shouting abuse,
running into the car park and throwing stones at the building. (Remember that
film Gremlins? Well, my first thought was that somebody had fed these kids
after midnight!) And all of this was happening during lesson time. The staff had
no control whatsoever; the head teacher was in despair - and worst of all in my
widening eyes, I had just signed a permanent contract!
I used to go home in the evenings in a rage, so angry that these students could
get away with the things they did, furious that there seemed to be no way of
dealing with them. They didnt respond to staff who were pleasant to them and
they laughed in the faces of staff who tried to discipline them. Nothing seemed
to work.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
I couldnt sleep. I became bad tempered at home and all my conversations with
friends centred around the horrors I was facing at work on a daily basis. I
became a bore and for several months I was actually broken - resigned to the
fact that I didnt have what it took to work in tough schools with tough kids. My
dream was over.
Fast forward just a few years and my life had become very different. I became
the teacher I had always wanted to be. My students loved me and they loved my
lessons. My reputation as a skilled classroom manager was spreading and I was
enjoying tremendous success with some of the most damaged, vulnerable and
challenging students in todays schools. I loved my job. How did this change
come about?
The school I had been working in all those years before had been placed in
Special Measures before I took the post, and money was literally thrown at the
school for training and development in order to raise standards. This meant I
enjoyed several years of the most thorough and in-depth professional training
any teacher could hope for in the field of behaviour management.
It was a tough few years but I consider myself so fortunate for that experience. I
believe I learned more in five years than I would have done in thirty-five years
had I stayed in mainstream education.
Since those early years I have worked in many educational settings and finished
full time teaching three years ago as the deputy head of a small special school
for students with severe behaviour problems. I now run a business providing
behaviour management training solutions to teachers, lecturers and parents all
over the world through online resources and live workshops.
In this short report I want to give you a small taste of the kind of solutions we
provide by giving you some strategies for one of the most common difficulties
faced by teachers in todays tough classrooms... how to settle and succeed
with noisy, challenging groups of students.
Lets begin...
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
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http://www.behaviourneeds.com
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
ii) Chat with individuals and small groups of students.
Spending a few minutes mixing with students, walking in between groups and
chatting informally with individuals, can work wonders in settling them down. It
also gets them used to hearing your voice and seeing you in control and
comfortable in their presence.
Teachers who are comfortable chatting about last nights television, the latest
blockbuster, football scores and current fashions tend to find students respond
to them in the classroom much more than those who try to maintain an air of
superiority and dont bother interacting.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
...........................................................................
Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
...........................................................................
Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
Have work ready for them to complete. The work should be relatively simple
i.e. it shouldnt require any input from you, they should be able to just get on
with it quietly. It could be some simple text-based copying work, some questions
from a previous lesson, a diagram to annotate etc.
TIP: Have the work/instructions written up on the board so that they know
EXACTLY what to do and add the following sentence to give the activity
importance. (If you dont so this, some students will view this work as nothing
more than a filler or a waste of time and will end up off-task):
You have ten minutes to complete the task. If it isnt completed in this time you
will have to finish it at break/after school.
iii) Let them in the room in single file but...
...be prepared to bring back anyone who runs to their chair, pushes someone,
starts talking etc.
After going through this process you will be left with the students who either
didnt hear you the first time, or chose not to. Repeat the instruction to these
students and youll find that a few more will now be ready to line up and enter
the room because they have seen the first group of students go in. Repeat steps
ii) and iii) and then admit these students.
You will then be left with a handful (if youre lucky) of students who obviously
arent ready to settle yet without further input from you - you have very
effectively filtered out most of the trouble-makers. Were you to allow all these
students to drift into the room without this filtering process you would have
great difficulty starting the lesson.
The students youre left with now obviously need a little more attention. Some
may need reassurances (those who often find the work too difficult or those who
feel uneasy in the presence of other members of the group for example); some
may need cajoling; and others need to be calmly reminded of the rules and
consequences.
Again, in the full Take Control of the Noisy Class resource we cover a wide range
of responses for students who are presenting most, if not all of the behaviour
problems youre going to encounter with a challenging group including what to
do when they wont follow your instructions and how to deal with students who
wont settle at the door. For now lets pretend youve got them all in the room.
The next step is to get the lesson started.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
...........................................................................
Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
"My preciousssss"
(The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers)
"I'm (the) king of the world!
(Titanic)
Braaaaiins
(any zombie film)
Adaptations:
Get pupils to spend a few minutes writing down quotations from films on
separate pieces of paper. Put the slips of paper in a hat so that you have a
supply of quotes to choose from.
Heres an example of a curriculum-related Fun Starter:
Fun Starter Whats in the Bag?
Number of people: Unlimited.
Materials: Prop related to the lesson content together with a suitable bag or
container.
Time: 10 minutes.
Overview: A subject-related prop is hidden in a bag or container. Students have
to guess whats inside. Younger pupils may enjoy this as a regular routine
(Whats in the bag today?) but older pupils also enjoy it as an occasional warm
up. It relies on intrigue and falls flat if the prop doesnt live up to the hype which
the game naturally generates.
Directions:
1. Write on the board You have 20 chances to guess whats in the bag.
2. Explain to pupils that they can volunteer to ask a question to try and
determine whats in the bag. Questions can only be those which have a yes
or no answer, ie they can ask is it blue? but not what colour is it?
3. Write their questions down on the board one at a time to keep track of the
total number asked and to avoid repeated questions. Answer them Yes or
no and put a tick or a cross next to the question. (I always like to have two
noise effects for right and wrong answers to add to the humorous
atmosphere - a kazoo or duck call for wrong answers and a bugle horn or
quiz masters bell for right answers. Be sure to carry an even-tempered duck
if you choose this route.)
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
4. Tension mounts once their questions are into double figures as they realise
they might not succeed particularly when you tell them they will get extra
homework if they dont get the right answer!
NB: These activity examples are taken from our HUGE lesson resource
membership site - Lesson-ology.
ii) Settled Starter
This is the type of activity to have ready for your students if you are sending
them into the room a group at a time as described above they need an activity
which requires minimal explanation, something they can just get on with.
On each desk you could have a quick topic-related puzzle, a review quiz of last
lessons work, a cloze exercise or some text copying work. Nothing too difficult
you dont want to confuse them because theyll spend ten minutes asking
questions instead of settling down. Choose something simple (and preferably
light-hearted or fun) that requires no explanation or fuss.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
...........................................................................
Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
Have a lesson outline on display and tick off tasks as they are completed.
Boys, in particular, benefit from knowing exactly where they are up to in a
lesson and whats coming next:
Starter 5 mins
Video 10 mins
Teacher demo 5 mins
Pair work 20 mins
Game 10 mins
Plenary 10 mins
Use the room move around the whole floor space, spending time with all
students.
Brief support assistants prior to the lesson on their specific role with
individual students.
Break down work into manageable chunks and give them short term
individual work targets In the next ten minutes you need to complete
the first three questions.
Include pair work and cooperative learning tasks students enjoy working
with peers.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
writing
down
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
Once the problems start to take root, they escalate and get harder to stamp out.
It is much easier dealing with problems when they are small and before they
become established.
The way to stop this is obviously to be vigilant and to jump on any problem as
soon as possible. If you see two students starting to bicker give them a warning
or get them separated - quickly. If a student is starting to get wound up offer
him some support quickly. Challenge rule breakers every time (even those
students who are prone to retaliate fiercely) and make sure you are present in
every area of the room. Be constantly on the move, teach from each corner,
walk round the tables and speak to all your students. Let them know this is your
room, that you really do have eyes in the back of your head, and you are aware
of everything that is going on.
ii) Keep a record of repeat offenders
It is imperative that you keep an accurate record of individual students who are
causing problems in your lessons. In even the worst of classes, there are seldom
more than 5 or 6 main culprits who are responsible for the bulk of the trouble
(youve heard of the 80/20 principle, right?) so this neednt be as much work as
it seems and the benefits far outweigh the extra work involved.
All you need is an A4 page in your teaching file for each student and in every
lesson you record exactly what they said and exactly what they did to disrupt
the class. You then have a vital document which can be used for evidence should
you need to speak to parents or senior staff at a later date.
Being able to quote specific examples such as:
On 17th March, lesson 2, Steven called Mark a Fat S*** without provocation
and threatened to stab him with a pencil.
is far more helpful and professional than a vague complaint such as:
Steven annoyed Mark.
Ok, thats the preliminaries out of the way. Here are five generic strategies for
dealing with behaviour problems...
i) Assess the reasons behind the behaviour
Effective responses towards behaviour problems should focus on the reasons
behind the resulting behaviour, not the behaviour itself. Ranting and raving at a
student who isnt working when the reason hes not working is because he
doesnt understand the work is not going to make him concentrate.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
When confronted by disruption or misbehaviour in the classroom a good place to
start looking for possible reasons is with the work youve given.
Is the task too simple? Too difficult? Too dull? Too text-heavy?
Change pace, seating or adjust the activity if necessary.
ii) Give them a responsibility
Consider giving responsibilities to some of the ring-leaders eg, ask them to
quieten their group/area down for you:
Paul, the group respond very positively to you, they look up to you. I need to
use your strong personality - would you mind helping me by quietening your
table down for me?
Its surprising how responsive very challenging students can be when requests
are phrased in this way.
iii) Offer support
Often students are badly behaved because they are afraid of failure and simply
dont want to look stupid in front of others. Im not saying this is always the case
they may be acting out of revenge, for fun, or because it gives them a sense
of power - but in any circumstance offering support is a positive first response.
An offer of help is totally non-confrontational and is therefore one of the best
ways to deal with a student who is attempting to escalate a situation. It also
strengthens the staff/student relationship.
I can see youve made a start but do you need me to explain that bit again for
you? Would it help if I let you start on one of the other questions first?
Do you need to get a drink or some fresh air?
I can see youre getting angry about this, why dont you go and sit over there
quietly for a few minutes and then let me know when you need some help?
Is there anything I can do that will make this easier for you?
Sometimes the behaviour of our most difficult students is a cry for help and
showing sensitivity to their needs, rather than assuming they are being
belligerent, pays dividends.
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
iv) Be quick to find something to praise
We are often too quick to look for (and find) faults but the quickest way to make
lasting positive changes to their behaviour is always with positive comments.
When was the last time you did something to please someone who was
constantly nagging you? If they make a slight improvement be quick to jump on
it and catch them being good. Youll find a stepped plan for making praise
super-effective in our Confident Classroom Management resource site.
v) Consistently follow school behaviour plan and stepped consequences,
e.g.:
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
A few years ago I was talking with a colleague after delivering training at his
school. He, (lets call him John), told me a story about one of the teachers at the
school, (she can be called Janet for the purpose of this story and for the benefit
of any Terry Wogan fans), who was struggling badly with one particular group of
students; she just couldnt get them quiet.
John was Janets head of department and he often had to pass through her room
when she was teaching in order to get resources from the main store cupboard.
He told me that on one particular day he happened to be passing through when
Janet was teaching her most challenging group.
The students were literally out of control screaming, shouting and totally
ignoring Janets cries to settle down. John didnt normally intervene unless asked
to do so but he felt this situation was only going to get worse so he walked
round the room speaking quietly to some of the students for a few minutes.
Without the need to raise his voice, a hush gradually descended on the room
and the students returned to their seats facing Janet; happy faces, ready to
work.
John quietly left the room and went about the rest of his day without giving the
incident a second thought.
At the end of the school day, when the students had left the premises, Janet
caught John in the staffroom...
John, how do you do that? How the hell do you manage to get that group so
quiet so easily?
Im sure she didnt expect the reply he gave her. She wanted a magic bullet, a
sure-fire strategy, a new way of speaking, a secret hand signal or a never-fail
script to follow. But I hope she understood the power of what he said and I
hope you do too, its priceless. It is the single, most important tool any teacher
can develop and it leads to an enviable level of respect from your most
challenging students. This is where the real rewards in teaching lie.
Ill tell you exactly how I do it, theres no magic to it....
I know these kids. Ive spent time with them. I go to support them playing
football for the school at weekends, I chat with them in the corridor, I regularly
speak to their parents on the telephone, I visit their homes, Ive taken them on
trips, I sit with them at lunch time. The door to my room is always open to
them, they know they can come and chat when somethings wrong and I make a
point of catching up with them whenever I can.
Building positive relationships with your students wont solve all behaviour
problems but it will certainly reduce incidents and will make dealing with
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Succeed with the Noisy Class
The Step by Step Method to Deal with Challenging Groups
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Coping Strategies for Teachers
Practical Help in Times of Stress
problems much, much easier. Students are, after all, far more likely to listen and
respond to a teacher they trust and respect.
I hope you have found this little report useful and wish you success with your
most challenging students. If you want more resources be sure to visit our main
website at www.behaviourneeds.com
Best wishes and happy teaching,
Rob Plevin
Director, Behaviour Needs Ltd
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