Section 3: Classroom Etiquette

Chapter 16: Giving Instructions to Students and Classroom Rules

Now that we have talked about organization in the classroom and making things readily available to you during lessons. It is now time to talk about giving actual instructions to your students. A very big component to this is your students course materials and their books that they have as well as their level and ages. In classrooms that have an older age and involve lecture style, most classrooms will be focused on bookwork and it can be very simple to give instructions as students typically will just need to listen, repeat, and write in order to succeed in the classroom. When it comes to younger students it can be very difficult and tricky to navigate the right way to give instructions to students. In classrooms with younger students such as around kindergarten and elementary school ages, having a system with rules is very important in order to both establish yourself as a teacher and to keep your classes fun and organized. One of the most common methods is having a reward system set up, if students listen well and follow their work, they should always be given a reward for doing so. We here at TEFL Abroad find that using sticker charts or using a phone application like Class Dojo is very helpful in giving the students a visual representation of when they have been following the rules. Without a system to promote good behavior and to punish bad behavior, your students will have no incentives or see any point to constantly follow your rules. While these are two systems for instructions, you should always pick a method that both supports your teaching style and a method that is also supported by your school. It can be a very fine line having a reward and punishment system together, as some students will talk to their parents about not getting rewards; however, it is very important to always be consistent and to start the next day with a clean slate. Students should never lose points or lose something because of something they did the previous day or week. Everyday should be a new chance for your students to follow the instructions and behave well. When it comes to older students it is not always necessary to have a system for punishments and rewards, so you should make a system as you find it necessary but always be consistent with rewards and punishments. Find what motivates your students and use that to keep them following the rules! For instance, if some students really enjoy playing games like bingo or Jenga, use the games as rewards at the end of your classes as a way to keep the students engaged and constantly participating. Just remember that for giving instructions in the classroom and for having your students follow the rules that you must always be consistent when you make decisions involving behavior, don’t say something and then not follow through on it, this can often make students feel like there are no consequences to the rules so they can just do whatever they want without any repercussions. Finally, remember to make sure students are not personally attacked or given punishments that belittle them as people, there is a very fine line between fitting punishments and punishments that will cause a lot of anger from parents if they are done, sometimes the smallest things that do not seem big in the moment in the classroom can be a big deal for both your students and their parents as well.