Setting Rules and Creating a Positive Classroom

1. Setting Rules and Creating a Positive Classroom Section 2

2. What You Will Learn… • The four anti-bullying rules and their meaning • Appropriate positive and negative consequences to use with these rules. • Other strategies to create a positive classroom. • The most important objective of OBPP is to create a safe and caring classroom environment that's free of bullying. In this section you will be introduced to four anti-bullying rules that will help you achieve the objective.

3. The Four Anti-Bully Rules and Their Meaning • We will not bully others. 2. We will help students who are bullied. 3. We will include students who are left out. 4. If we know that somebody is being bullied, we will tell an adult at school and an adult at home.

4. Ways To Teach Students about the Four Anti-Bullying Rules • It is possible to influence students' attitudes and behavior around bullying through discussions about the class rules. • Your class should discuss passive participation in bullying. Some students rarely take the initiative to bully others, but "tag along" when another student leads the activity. • It is important to make it clear that a student who passively participates has an individual responsibility for what happens.

5. Ways To Teach Students about the Four Anti-Bullying Rules Continued… • Role-playing is a very good strategy to initiate a discussion of the rules and a variety of bullying scenarios. Another effective strategy to help clarify the rules is to read aloud excerpts from students' and young people's literature. • For the rules to be effective they must be made clear. Some of these strategies concern your use of positive and negative consequences. So be very careful.

6. Consequences For Following or Not Following the Rules • Although these positive and negative consequences are discussed with regard to bullying behavior, they can be used for any antisocial or undesirable behaviors. • As you know, when students receive positive consequences for their behavior, they are more likely to behave the same way in similar situations in the future. In order for the anti-bullying rules to change behavior and norms, it is important that you, as the teacher, provide abundant positive reinforcement when students act according to the rules.

7. Consequences For Following or Not Following the Rules Continued… • Unfortunately, positive reinforcement is not usually enough to get aggressive students to change their behavior. It is usually necessary to use negative consequences as well. • When you discuss the four anti-bullying rules, also discuss the consequences of breaking each rule. Have the students suggest possible consequences that are more severe than you would use.

8. Ways To Create Positive Classroom Management • There are many attitudes and actions that make up a positive classroom management. Click on the link below and take a few minutes to read through the list and check off which ones you already have in place and which ones you might want to work on as you begin using OBPP. • Positive Classroom Management Checklist

9. Conclusion Now that you have reviewed Section 2: Setting Rules and Creating a Positive Classroom, you are ready to continue on to section 3. Section 3: Holding Class Meetings

10. Rule 1: We Will Not Bully Others _________________________________________________________________ This is the most important anti-bullying rule. It sends a clear message to students that bullying is not acceptable in your classroom or school. Your responsibility, as a teacher, is to introduce the rule, make sure students, understand what it means, and explain how the rule will be enforced. Back to OBPP Rules

11. Back to OBPP Rules Rule 2: We Will Help Students Who Are Bullied _________________________________________________________________ This rule stresses the importance of students taking a stand against bullying and siding with those who are being bullied. This attitude can be expressed in such behaviors as finding an adult to help intervene in a situation or actively defending the student who is being bullied. It may also imply becoming a friend to the bullied students and clearly and openly refusing to participate in bullying behavior.

12. Back to OBPP Rules Rule 3: We Will Include Students Who Are Left Out _________________________________________________________________ This rule is particularly designed for students who are exposed to indirect forms of bullying, such as intentional exclusion of the peer group. It is not uncommon to have one or more students in a classroom who are left out of most social activities. The goal of this rule is that "everyone should have someone to be with.

13. Back to OBPP Rules Rule 4: If We Know That Somebody Is Being Bullied, We Will Tell An Adult At School and An Adult At Home. This rule emphasizes the importance of telling an adult if students know that someone is being bullied. It should be made very clear that rule 4 does not apply only to other students who are bullied. It also applies to situations where a students is being bullied himself or herself. _________________________________________________________________

14. Types of behavior to reinforce _________________________________________________________________ -telling a student to stop teasing or kidding another student in a hurtful way -taking the side of and supporting or defending a student who is being bullied -letting the teacher know about a bullying situation that is occurring or a bullying relationship -initiating activities that include all students in the class, and activities that draw lonely students into activities with others -being helpful and friendly to students who are often left our or made fun of

15. Types of Positive Consequences _________________________________________________________________ There are several types of positive consequences. Praise and friendly attention, fun activities or privileges, healthy treat, and point systems. These all work very well, you just need to find the one that will work well in your classroom for you and your students. You may need to use more then one depending on the types of students that are in your classroom.

16. Tips on the Use of Positive Consequences _________________________________________________________________ You need to be specific, be quick, do it often, be enthusiastic, be consistent, be creative, and be honest.

17. Types of Negative Consequences _________________________________________________________________ -verbal rebukes or reprimands -time-outs: these should be used sparingly, used only on students younger the twelve, fairly short (five to fifteen minutes), carried out in a designated room or location in your classroom, explained clearly and matter-of-factly -response costs: this means that a student loses a privilege or has to give up something positive that he or she expects to do or participate in

18. Back to Consequences Types of Negative Consequences _________________________________________________________________ -student who bullies has to sit alone during lunch for a certain period of time -student has to stay class to you or another staff member who supervises recess -you contact the student's parents to let them know about the inappropriate behavior -you set up meetings about the student's behavior with the principal