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During middle school, it is a critical and awkward time for students. All are going through puberty and dealing with social pressures of fitting in with their peers. It is important to develop a relationship with one's students to ensure they know as well as feel understood by their teacher (Beaty-O'Ferrall, Green, & Hanna, n.d.). Furthermore, developing a relationship with one's students will help the students  foster positive as well as socially-appropriate behaviors (Beaty-O'Ferrall, Green, & Hanna, n.d.). I feel this is crucial for my students because a majority of them do not possess stable home lives, especially since most are at an economic disadvantage. With someone stable in their life, they feel they can act themselves as well as feel safe in their learning environment. Furthermore, students in middle school value relationships with their peers. In turn, teachers need to tap into the value of relationships to understand as well as better help their students.

Example: Jacob is shy and hardly talks to anyone in his class. He is always buried into a manga, shutting out the world around him. One day, I walk over to him and asked him, "Are you reading As Miss Beelzebub Likes?" His eyes light up and he starts talking to me about anime as well as manga. I listen as well as answer questions he possesses about anime and manga. Every day after, he comes up to me after class to discuss about new manga or anime releases. Eventually, he meets other students in the class who enjoy manga and anime as well. With this, he feels more confident as well as comfortable in the classroom in regards to his fellow classmates.

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Giving Students A Choice or Say in the Classroom

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Giving Students A Choice or Say in the Classroom

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When one dictates over their classroom, students feel trapped and misbehavior ensues. Additionally, they may not respect the teacher and disregard what they say. With giving students a choice, whether a say in their consequence or the rules at the beginning of the year, they feel they possess a voice (Finely, 2016). Moreover, they feel someone out in the world cares about what they say. I feel giving students a choice is appropriate due to the concept of letting them see how their decisions play out as well as letting them make a mistake without major consequences. Furthermore, it is important to see their voice is important in regards to decision-making and the choices they make throughout their life.

Example: Rick released a rat in the back of the class during the middle of the lab. A girl saw the rat and started to freak out. She panicked so bad she could hardly breathe. I gave the girl a hall pass so she could go to the nurse and calm down. Out of ear shot, I pull Rick to the side. I asked him, "Why did you release the rat?" He started to explain himself. After he finished, I asked him "Do you want to clean the rat's cage or receive lunch detention?" He replied, "I want to clean the rat's cage and I promise to not do again".

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At home, a majority of students do not possess a routine. They walk into their home every day, sometimes not knowing what will await them. When a routine is established in the classroom, the students feel their school life is stable as well as feel safe in their learning environment. Furthermore, if a student's home life is unstable, a predictable environment ensures they are safe and can open themselves up to their classmates as well as their teacher (Finely, 2016).I feel this concept is appropriate since it lets the students know what to expect each day in the classroom. Additionally, it allows students to let down their guard and feel safe in their environment.
Example: At the beginning of the year, I give the students a course schedule about what to expect for each class. Furthermore, I act out an example of how lab is conducted each day. The students feel assured about what to expect in class as well as how a lab is conducted.

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Everyone makes mistakes, especially teachers. When one is able to apologize to their students, it sets an example for the students about the concept of humility (We Are Teachers, 2015). Students find this trait important in a teacher (We Are Teachers, 2015). Furthermore, they will resist the urge to set unrealistic expectations of themselves if they see they are able to remain human in the classroom. I feel this concept is extremely important because students understand the teacher is not perfect. Additionally, it sets an example to the students to apologize to one another when one is wrong in the classroom. This concept is appropriate since it allows students to admit their wrong to others as well as the teacher admitting their mistakes as well.

Example: After attending a rough staff meeting, I felt aggravated and start talking to my first period class in a depressed tone. I suddenly realized what I did and apologize to the class for my tone of voice. Additionally, I tell them why my voice tone sounded depressed. The students replied it is okay and we understand Miss. Cowden. Furthermore, they tell me everyone is not perfect and we admire you for apologizing to us.

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Ensuring class is fun is important, especially in middle school. Students may feel stress about other subjects, their social life, and their home life.  When one is able to make class fun, they are able to learn as well as find the subject more enjoyable (We Are Teachers, 2015). I feel this concept is appropriate due to the fact laughter reduces stress hormones and relaxes the whole body (Robinson, Smith, & Segal, 2018). When students are not stressed and are able to relax, they are able to learn better as well as focus more.

Example: Before each lesson, I insert a random as well as school appropriate video into the presentation. When I teach the lesson, the students start laughing. Additionally, I make appropriate jokes in relation to the lesson. Thus, the students laugh again.

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Beaty-O'Ferrall, M., Green, A., & Hanna, F. (n.d.).

Classroom management strategies for difficult students. Retrieved from

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Finely, T. (2016). 19 big and small management strategies. Retrieved from
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/big-and-small-classroom-management-
strategies-todd-finley
Robinson, L., Smith, M., & Segal, J. (2018). Laughter is the best medicine: The
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