Teaching Respect

Friends~One of the toughest things about teaching is managing children.  We never get a cookie cutter class.  It is always like a box of chocolates...you never know what you are gonna get. 

To me, that makes teaching exciting and challenging. 

(Exhausting? YES!)

I am a firm believer in teaching the whole child.  Not just academics.  Manners, social skills, behavior, and so on.  So many times we jump on board with these "behavior" systems for a quick fix.  We never take the time to teach what acceptable behavior is.  Truly if a student is having behavioral issues, a clip to red over and over is NEVER going to fix it.  

Do we need reminders?  YEP!  But those reminders need to be authentic.  They need to be meaningful. 

Look at this picture, read the words, let it speak to you!  I love the message Mandy Neal, from Teaching With Simplicity shared.  It is so powerful!

At my school, we have 4 school wide behavior expectations.  We review them every morning during our morning meeting. 

Be KIND

Be SAFE

Be RESPECTFUL

Be RESPONSIBLE

I have been working to teach each expectation indivudially.  This past week, we focused on RESPECT. 

I LOVE this Respect Rap! 

 So do my kiddos. 

 It totally spells it out!

My students connected quickly with this rap because it was made by students.  I love that the words are posted so they can hear and sing along.  Such an awesome reminder about how we need to be treating each other.  

Warning!  I have been singing this all weekend.  It totally gets stuck in your head!  So, while rapping all weekend, I got to thinking about how I can reinforce respect with this rap. 

I created this Respect Reminder! 

(Grab a FREE copy by clicking above.)

My plan is, if a student needs a reminder about how to respect others, our classroom, or our school, I am going to give them some quiet time to scan this code and listen to the rap privately.  They will then write a response and have a short conference with me. 

 I will them send it home for a parent signature. 

I plan to keep a copy for documentation as well.  It is such a simple idea but I think it is going to send an important message to my students.  

If you are looking for more behavior management tips, you can click below!