10 Classroom Management Secrets for Your Best Year Yet

Over my many years of teaching in the primary classroom, I have learned a few classroom management secrets that really do add up to success. Some of these secrets are tools that I simply couldn’t live without, and some are key features in the primary classroom routine. I wanted to share these with you because they might just be the tweak you need for your best year yet!

Classroom Management Secrets for Success

I know that teaching can be hard some days. It’s not an easy job, and even though I personally believe the benefits far outweigh the hard days, there’s nothing wrong with making it a bit easier on yourself. These 10 things are the game-changer, must-haves for classroom management that you’ll use again and again. I’ve tried out tons of products, tools, and routines over the years, but these are the things you absolutely need for a successful year!

1. Consistent Morning Routine

If you only try one thing off this list, choose this one! Having a consistent, predictable morning routine has countless benefits and is definitely something I would say can “make or break” your days in the classroom. This is so important that I wrote a couple of blog posts all about it! Read this one next to learn how a morning routine can calm the chaos in your classroom every single day! The big takeaway, however, is that routine helps students know where to be and what to work on. This is SO helpful because it means you won’t feel like you’re starting your day off herding cats. We’ve all been there!

My secret to success when it came to mornings was Morning Work that was engaging and used a spiral review of our math and ELA activities. Not only will this help you create consistency and routine in your room, but it will also allow you to squeeze in review every single day. Win-win, right?! You can read more about the morning work that we used in my classroom here.

2. Attention Grabber

This next classroom management tool is one that I wish I had learned about earlier! An attention grabber of some kind is absolutely essential to making your days run more smoothly. There are lots of different things you can use, and it’s important to choose one that will work well in your classroom. Over the years, I’ve tried a call & answer phrase, like “123 Eyes on me. 12 Eyes on you,” as well as an environment signal like turning the lights off. But my absolute favorite was a wireless doorbell. I could keep the ringer on my lanyard so it was with me wherever I was in the room. I could quickly and easily get students’ attention no matter what else was going on. My students quickly learned the sound, and I wasn’t left trying to talk over them during centers.

No matter what you choose, make sure to spend some time at the beginning of the year learning what this signal means and what to do when students hear or see it. For example, do they stop talking, freeze where they are, sit down, clean up, etc. This may take a little time, but trust me – it is SO worth it in the long run for smoother classroom days!

3. Classroom Decor That Supports Students

This next classroom management hack will make you feel like an all-out rockstar! Primary teachers often spend their summers prepping classroom decor for a cute and enjoyable space. But have you ever thought about choosing decor that fully supports the needs of your students?

This is a great way to “kill two birds with one stone,” so to speak. By filling your room with visual “tools” that support student learning, you’ll get a cute room and a way to manage common issues in your classroom. I love classroom decor and created many options that were both visually appealing and offered student support in some way.

When choosing your classroom decor, here are some of the things to look for:

• Procedure cards – classroom rules, expectations, hand signals, visual schedule, etc.
• Organizational features – labels for materials and centers, classroom library labels, labels for student cubbies and supplies
• Academic features – posters that support academic content you are teaching, like the alphabet, numbers, clock labels, calendar, etc.
• Cheerful and inviting – does the design, colors, and theme help to create a welcoming and engaging learning environment

All of these features are absolutely essential when it comes to classroom decor, and lucky for you, I’ve written a whole post that goes into depth on this topic! You’ll learn about each essential element, how it helps manage your classroom, and how to find decor that has all of these elements. Trust me, once you start thinking about classroom decor differently, you’ll see exactly what I mean about the functionality benefits!

4. Effective Organizational System

This one might seem like a no-brainer, but really, it’s so important for classroom management. When your materials and lessons are chaotic, you’re likely to feel a little out of sorts. This makes it hard to teach, hard to maintain engagement, and gets everyone a little frazzled. So, if you don’t already have some great organizational tools in place, I recommend taking some time to do so this year. It doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive. Just think about your biggest problem areas, and brainstorm solutions to fix them. Here are some of my favorite ideas:

• Rainbow Cart for Small Group Materials – The colored drawers allow you to organize by day, level, or group. This is so helpful when sitting down to do your weekly planning. Just print and sort!
• Task Card Boxes & Carrying Case – I had a LOT of task cards when I was in the classroom, and this system made it super simple and easy to organize everything!
• Extra Sturdy Book Bins – In my classroom, I liked to store books by season or theme and then pull out a new bin each month. Using extra sturdy bins means that I can place them in the classroom library without worrying if they’re going to get trashed.

For more of my favorite organizational tools, be sure to check out Top 10 Classroom Must-Haves For A Great Year next!

5. Low-Prep Center Time Activities

Centers are usually a favorite in the primary classroom. They’re an opportunity to work with hands-on learning materials, play games with friends, and practice what you’ve been working on. The dilemma with center time is often that it takes a lot of effort to prep for. We’ve all seen those beautiful activities that look like so much fun, but will also soak up your weekends just trying to prepare. This is exactly why I decided to create low-prep centers for my classroom. These include fun partner games and learning activities that require minimal prep, so you can just print and go! Check them out here.

Having some low-prep options will mean that you can provide engaging activities for students, usually ensuring better behavior overall. When kiddos are bored, we typically see issues in our classroom management, so be sure to find some activities that will work for you! Other great options include puzzles, dry-erase activities, and color by code. These are low-prep, but high-engagement, making them a total win for the primary classroom!

Try these FREE Addition and Subtraction Color by Number pages in your math centers.

6. Ample Brain Breaks for Better Classroom Management

I taught first graders for many years, and if you’re in the primary classroom, it’s important to remember that these little people need time to get up and move! There’s nothing worse than trying to teach a brand-new topic to squirmy, unfocused kiddos. So, if you see this happening in your room, it might be time for a brain break! YouTube is my go-to place for free moment activities and brain breaks. There are so many great options to choose from, just make sure to preview videos before playing for students. Some of my favorites include:

• Dancing videos from Danny Go!
• Educational videos from Jack Hartmann
• Stretching and exercise video from Cosmic Kids Yoga

This is one of my favorite classroom management secrets because it’s fun for everyone and will produce better behavior and increased focus over time. I recommend putting in scheduled brain breaks into your daily routine so that students know they are coming. You can always add more as needed, but this consistency allows students to focus on work time and rest assured, some fun movement is coming soon!

7. System for Rewarding Behavior

Every primary classroom needs a fun system in place for rewarding behavior. There are so many ways that you can do this, but one of my favorites focuses on positive reinforcement and teamwork. I liked to use a fun jar system like this one, and place a star in the jar every time the class cooperated in some way.

At the beginning of the year, this might be focused on simple things like following rules and routines to help students learn the classroom expectations. As the year progresses, you can reward other types of behavior, such as good reports from “specials” teachers like library, art, or P.E. I also liked to add a star to the jar when we had a day that ran exceptionally smoothly. If I noticed students being kind to each other, sharing materials, or helping out, this was definitely a reason to reward!

Once the jar is full, you can award a pre-determined prize. I liked to name the prize before we started filling the jar so that students knew what they were working towards. Maybe it’s a stuffed animal reading day, an ice cream party, or prizes from a treasure box. The options are endless, and this positive reinforcement system will have such a great impact on your classroom management.

8. Assign Classroom Jobs

One of the best classroom management routines I ever implemented in my room was classroom jobs. Young students love having responsibilities of their own. This is such a wonderful way to build confidence, responsibility, and work ethic. Not to mention, when everyone has a special job in your classroom, you’ll often have less to do yourself! There are so many jobs that you can assign in the classroom, including:

• board wiper
• caboose
• line leader
• door holder
• paper passer
• germ patrol
• sweeper, and more!

I liked to use a fun and colorful job chart and rotate jobs each week. It was a Monday morning ritual to assign new jobs, and the kids really looked forward to it! You can check out some of the fun job charts I’ve used in my room over the years here. Assigning classroom jobs will help create a deeper sense of community in your room and help encourage students to do their best, each and every day!

9. Plan Fun Fridays

This classroom management secret made such a HUGE impact on my classroom, so I knew I had to share! Primary students are at the age when play is so very important. They need opportunities to relax, connect with peers (and you!), and enjoy being in each other’s company. While I know we have SO much to cover when it comes to the standards, I encourage you to consider weaving in a block of time each week that’s just for fun. I liked to place this at the end of the day on what I called “Fun Friday”.

This day was devoted to activities and lessons that I knew my kids absolutely loved. This is when I’d pull out the extra-fun centers, BINGO games, play-dough activities, and other things that I knew my kids really enjoyed. These are educational, of course, but still focused on fun in some way. Then, at the end of the day, before we left, we’d spend the last 30 minutes or so we’d do something that was truly just for fun. You can mix it up each week to keep students guessing, but some of the things we did included:

• trivia
• lego challenge
• charades
• pictionary
• cooking activity
• bubbles outside
• scavenger hunt

The benefit of doing this weekly is that students will look forward to it. They will be motivated to get their work done on time and stick with the schedule so that they can enjoy the “secret” Fun Friday activities you’ve got planned. It will also help you connect with your kids and reward a long week in the classroom. You’ll end the week on a happy, positive note that everyone will love. It’s as much for you as it is for them, so definitely consider it!

10. Don’t Forget Work-Life Balance

I know, at first glance, this doesn’t seem like a classroom management tip. But hear me out – if you’re not taking care of yourself and allowing ample time to reset, recharge, and rest each evening and weekend, what do you think will happen? I know for me, this led to grouchy days in the classroom that felt hard. I was tired, burned out, and struggled to remain calm in situations when I needed to. The kids feed off this energy and, in turn, will affect their behavior and choices negatively.

Part of having a healthy classroom environment is having a healthy teacher. So, you MUST take care of yourself too! If you struggle with this, please check out these posts next. They’ll help you create a better work-life balance and, in turn, help immensely with classroom management in the long run!

• Work Life Balance: Juggling All the Things
• 10 Ways to Decompress this Summer
• 5 Practical Time-Saving Tips for Primary Teachers

I hope these tips were helpful to you as you plan to tackle classroom management with your students! These 10 ideas were game-changing for me, and I hope you find the same to be true!

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