I am preparing for my first days in a classroom. I understand the importance of good classroom management and have assembled some ideas about how I'd like to plan my classroom.

I would consider my classroom management style to be authoritative and cooperative. While working in the technology industry, I have frequently been asked to demonstrate, train or communicate a process to others. I am polite but firm, set expectations yet allow independent thinking. I am very verbal and maintain conversations in order to clarify meaning; however, I value the communication skill of listening as well. I have an intuitive sense of knowing how well someone is understanding a concept and am able to adapt to different learning styles. I have been told I am a very nurturing person. I advocate providing positive feedback for a job well done as well as discipline for improper behavior.

Organization

I am very organized, both in my environment and on my computer. As a technical writer, I have certainly learned the importance of documenting everything! For example, I would organize and track planning materials, student work, library resources, and classroom procedures.

Communication

I take pride in my communication skills. I feel I am able to communicate with people of all ages, backgrounds and levels of knowledge. I understand the importance of non-verbal communication and the balance of lecture, discussion and one-on-one strategies.

As a teacher, I would also value communication with colleagues, administration and parents. I would regularly communicate with parents about assessments, achievements, lessons, and other classroom issues.

I want my students to succeed and I am not afraid of using communication to achieve that goal.

Rules

I expect my classroom discipline to be fair, and I hope my students will want to meet my expectations. I'm sure some discipline will be necessary along the way, and I am prepared to overplan and still deal with a situation I'm not prepared for.

I have started preparing classroom rules, suitable for middle school and high school ages.

• NO violence! No pushing, hitting, punching, pinching, kicking, etc. No verbal violence. No name calling, aggressive tones, threats, etc. I have zero tolerance for anybody that violates another's personal space or disrespects another person.
• Arrive on time, take your seat and expect to work immediately.
• No eating or drinking without permission.
• Respect your teacher, yourself and others.

Rewards

If a student is responsible and achieves an extraordinary goal, I think that student should be rewarded, no matter what age. I would enjoy making small rewards part of my classroom management.

Decor

I believe that a classroom should be warm and that students should enjoy being there. I hope to provide posters, bulletin boards, learning areas and other interior design elements to make my classroom fun to learn in. Ideally, I would have a reading corner with a comfy chair, a small library of books and maybe a lamp and some plants.

Be a good boy, remember; and be kind to animals and birds, and read all you can. ~Thomas Hardy