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When student engagement is going downhill, we often find ourselves reaching for the prop box.

We pull out random videos, time-sucking resources, overly complex activities... anything to get and keep attention. But even these can't compete with our students' pen tricks, doodling, and discussions of what happened at recess. And there's a simple reason why:

Our students aren't engaged by things. They're engaged by us. That's why the best (and easiest) ways to increase student engagement come from you.

We compiled 20 essential strategies that generate lasting engagement, without the flashy props and hours of post-school prep.

Let the countdown begin!

20. Connect learning to the real world

We've all heard it before: "When am I ever going to use this?" Answer this question and you'll engage students with content that they know is relevant to life beyond school. Use anecdotes, case studies, and real-life examples from outside the classroom to root your teaching in "the real world".

19. Engage with your students' interests

Find out what already engages your students and build it into the learning process.

Using mathematics as an example, you could have students chart their performance in a video game over the week. You might even get your budding social media influencers to calculate a projected number of Instagram followers.

Learning what excites your students does more than just engage them. You'll build strong relationships and rapport, too.

18. Fill "dead time"

"Dead time" is any point in a lesson where students are left without something to do. You might be handing out a worksheet, getting a presentation set up, or waiting interminably for a YouTube video to load. These are brief windows that leave just enough time for students to tune out, after which time it can be very difficult to get them back.

Fill these blank spaces with low-order activities to hold students' attention. These should be quick, easy, and require minimal follow-up. For example:

Think Pair Share: students reflect on something, discuss with a partner, and then share with the rest of the class once everyone is ready

Quickwrite: write down three questions or points that have been raised by the lesson so far

What I know already: if you're just about to dive into new content, ask students to identify three things they already know about the subject and jot them down as bullet points.

17. Use group work and collaboration

Collaborating with small groups gives students a welcome break from solo bookwork. They'll benefit from each other's perspectives and the ability to express their ideas.

Use your judgment and knowledge of who works well together when organizing group work. Engineering the groups might avoid troublesome partnerships, while allowing students to work with friends might generate the buzz you need for more productive activity.

16. Encourage students to present and share work regularly

Giving students a regular opportunity to share their thoughts and demonstrate learning in front of their peers drives engagement in two ways:

it makes students accountable

it lets them hear from someone other than their teacher.

If your students quiver in fear at the thought of speaking in front of the class, combine presentations with group work. A few ideas:

Have students present in groups after a group task.

Let students share each other's work within smaller groups before asking them to choose one piece to share with the rest of the class.

Let students read or present their work while sitting down. It avoids the pressure of having to "stand and deliver".

Ask for one contribution from each group after discussion, with each group nominating a "spokesperson".

Above all else, make presenting and sharing a regular part of class activity. Your class will become an equitable and engaging space that echoes with the voice of every student, not just your own!

15. Give your students a say

If you don't know how to engage your students, let them tell you! Give your students a say in classroom activity by:

providing a choice of different activities (e.g. group work or solo)

seeking student input for assessment design (e.g. students can choose a final product, provided it meets the criteria)

periodic check-ins to monitor the pace of delivery (e.g. "do we need to go over this a bit more slowly or are we feeling pretty confident?").

Giving students a choice also fosters their sense of ownership over their learning. They'll move from passive consumers to active learners with a stake in classroom activity.

14. Use mixed media

Present learning content in a variety of mediums, including video, audio, and digital resources. Using such tech-rich resources is engaging for two reasons. It's a welcome change from the stacks of paper our students are usually saddled with, and it establishes a direct and relevant connection with the digital world they inhabit.

13. Get your students moving

If your students struggle to sit still for an entire lesson, get them moving. All that pent-up energy can be channelled into a learning activity that puts them on their feet. Try the following.

Have students come to the front and brainstorm together on the whiteboard.

Have students rotate through different stations around the room over the course of an activity.

Have students split into groups or arrange themselves in different areas of the room.

Take a stand: have students move to a particular area of the room to indicate their thoughts on an issue (e.g. "everyone who thinks x, move to the right side of the room; if you think y, stand on the left").

Movement works equally well to engage sluggish or weary students. A quick bit of physical activity will leave them more alert for the next phase of learning.

12. Read the room

If you're steadily losing students to doodling, off-topic chatter, and the pervasive "need to tear and ball up little pieces of paper", it's time to shake things up.

Cut the activity short if it's dragging, clarify instructions if there's confusion, or switch to a more student-centered activity for greater engagement.

Remember: it's impossible to have every student engaged 100% of the time. The next best thing we can do is to notice disengagement and respond to it quickly.

11. Scaffold tasks with checkpoints

If you dump all your instructions on students at the start of a lesson before turning them loose with an activity, confusion and disengagement will likely follow.

That's why it's important to scaffold larger tasks by breaking them into achievable steps. Each of these can be separated by brief "checkpoints" of instruction reorienting students and reminding them of what needs to be done next. They also serve as a periodic call to attention when students are liable to go off track.

10. Focus on discovery and inquiry

Sometimes the best thing you can do for engagement is to get out of your students' way.

Let them discover learning for themselves without being spoon-fed. They'll exercise critical and creative thinking, and pursue the lines of inquiry that interest them.

This doesn't mean you should retreat behind the teacher's desk. Observe your students, listen to them, and talk to them about what they're thinking. Be their guide as opposed to their instructor.

9. Ask good questions

Ask good questions of your students and you'll drive rich, engaging discussions that are open to everyone.

Good questions should be:

open-ended: to avoid "yes/no" answers

equitable: open to answers of varying depth and complexity

legitimate: asked because you want to hear students' thoughts and opinions, not because you're fishing for a correct answer.

When students answer a question, engage with their response. Even if it's incorrect or misinformed, recognize their effort and use it to refine the question further (e.g. "you're on the right track, but could we also think about...").

8. Allow for think time

It's gratifying to see hands shoot up as soon as you ask a question, but letting your students think it over has two benefits. It leads to more considered responses that drive engaging discussions, and it also makes the conversation accessible to those who don't have an instant answer.

After you ask a question, insist on a twenty-second pause and give students an opportunity to extend their standard responses further. For example, you might ask "See if you can explain how you came to your answer, too". You'll receive better answers and start to notice some new hands going up.

7. Shake things up

Predictability is safe, but it can get boring. Mix up your staple teaching strategies with new and novel activities from time to time. Talk to other teachers for ideas. In addition to engagement, you'll also be giving your students an example of what it means to take a risk and try something new.

Experimenting with some new parts of the teacher toolkit also makes it easier to differentiate your instruction. A new activity or delivery method might be the trick to engaging that student who has been a tough nut to crack all year.

6. Give brain breaks

Periodically give students a breather with brain breaks. These are short activities that allow students to stretch their legs before returning to work feeling focused. You can find a list of 20 brain breaks at Mind Bloom.

Meritopia in Mathletics is gamified learning at its best and keeps students engaged! When students earn enough points in Mathletics, they get the perfect brain break in Meritopia by discovering new lands and unlocking characters.

5. Be personable

Relationships and rapport are pillars of lasting engagement, and you can't have either without being personable. This means getting to know your students and letting them get to know you.

While enthusiasm for the learning content might ebb and flow, your smile, laughter, and conversation will engage students every time they walk through your classroom door.

4. Encourage friendly competition

Use in-class games, quizzes, or gamified learning programs to engage students with friendly competition. For example, Live Mathletics (a feature in Mathletics) allows students to test their mathematical skills by competing in 60-second quizzes against peers in their class or around the globe in real time.

"Friendly" is the keyword here. Make sure competitive activities are low stakes and put the emphasis on learning instead of winning.

3. Start lessons with introductory hooks

Engage students from the outset of your lesson with an introductory hook. This could be anything that piques interest, establishes relevance, or inspires curiosity in the subject of the lesson, for example:

a personal anecdote connected to the subject

a brain teaser or challenge question

a historical example

a multimedia source.

Keep your hooks short and segue them directly into an overview of the learning goal. It's an effective opening that engages while setting students up for the main instructional component.

2. Laugh together

Weaving humour throughout your lesson lightens the mood and makes for a more fun experience. Laugh with your students, and don't be afraid to let them laugh at you from time to time!

1. Gamify learning

Games are the most powerful source of engagement for students outside of class, and they're equally effective at driving engagement in learning. Transform activities into games by including levels of difficulty, rewards, and competitive elements. You can read more about gamifying learning here.

You don't have to invest hours in creating rules and drawing up game boards, either. Gamified learning programs can do the work for you. The learning programs in the 3P suite, for example, provide a host of student-friendly games for mathematics, literacy, and science. All you have to do is select the appropriate curriculum and grant your students access.

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20 Student Engagement Strategies for a Captivating Classroom

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Here's our list of the best student engagement strategies to help you create an engaging classroom and better connect with students.

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Put simply, active learning occurs when students become active, hands-on participants in their own learning experience and engage directly with the subject material.

The antithesis of active learning, or passive learning, would be the traditional, lecture-style type of learning in which teachers verbally transmit information to students, and students are then expected to take notes and remember the information.

This type of learning does not engage students in the same way, especially for students who learn best through visual or hands-on learning.

Why High School Students Are Tough to Engage

High school students are often the most challenging age group to engage for a variety of reasons:

They're behind.

One reason high school students might seem less engaged than younger students is that they have fallen behind in previous grades and are now struggling to learn the harder material. When students fall behind early, the lack of understanding only builds to create an even more frustrating high school experience.

Though students might be quiet in class and act as if they are jaded in high school, they could just be hiding their discomfort from not being able to grasp classroom content.

Learning isn't "cool."

Sometimes high school students follow the herd mentality that learning isn't in fashion, and being actively engaged in learning is especially uncool. These students might actually be interested in the material but look to their peers for approval when it comes to engaging with their teachers and the material being taught.

They are focused on results.

Since so much of student success, especially in the United States, is based on how well students score on standardized tests, students might be more worried about results like grades and test scores than on actually learning the material. High school students might also already feel stressed about future college plans and want to focus on the grades and résumé builders they need for college admissions, rather than learning for the sake of learning.

High school educators inevitably feel the same pressure to teach solely for test scores, but some active learning strategies can help both students and teachers better enjoy the learning and teaching process while still moving through important and difficult content effectively.

7 Strategies for Engaging High School Students

The great news is that active learning strategies can help engage high school students, as long as educators are willing to be creative and set a solid example for their students. Here are 7 different strategies for engaging high school students in the classroom with which educators can experiment.

1. Try team-building activities.

Anytime you can put high school students into teams, they will usually feel a sense of competition and want to try harder. Split your students into teams and give the teams a task. You can have each team pick a team name and offer easy-to-fulfill rewards for the winning team.

Within classroom teams, encourage students to engage in ice-breaker and group activities that help them build their teamwork skills. Some examples of activities to have students try include:

Act out classroom material or vocabulary words (like charades)

Come up with different examples of classroom material in the world and sharing with the class

Each team presents one component of the lesson to the class

Some students might be shy and not want to present to the entire class, in which case each team can have different roles they must assign, like scribes, presenters, timekeepers, researchers, etc.

2. Add visual components.

Since so many students are visual learners, adding visual components to lessons almost always helps students become more engaged.

You can make visual components even more active by asking the students to create them. For example, you can ask students to create word clouds of different vocabulary words used in a lesson, challenge students to paint pictures based on the lesson of the day, or have students create flashcards.

3. Consider fun additions, like music.

Music notoriously helps human beings remember information, so bringing music into your lessons can help students engage more actively with the material and solidify the information in their minds. High school students will especially love hearing some of their favorite songs incorporated into what they might have thought was a "boring" lesson.

Depending on the lesson material, some educators have found songs online to help students learn concepts, especially languages. Another great idea is to have students make up their own songs to remember concepts. They can make up words of the songs to go with famous melodies or popular (appropriate) songs they love.

Educators might also find ways to play music in the classroom while students are working to help stimulate their minds as they learn material. In a history class, perhaps an educator might play a song from that time period to bring students into the mindset of what it might have been like to live in the past.

4. Challenge students to become the teachers.

Students engage more when they have to process the information and teach it to someone else, so anytime educators can find a way for students to take ownership of the material, the students will likely be more engaged and absorb the information much more effectively.

The first strategy in this list addressed this very idea with the suggestion that groups could be assigned one concept to teach the class.

Teachers might also consider breaking high school students into groups and having the groups work through an assignment together. This will naturally activate students who understand the material to help teach the students who are having more trouble.

5. Make learning a game.

Anytime educators can create a game out of material, students will become more engaged. In high school, it's important not to make games too kid-like and try to find games that suit the personalities of the students.

Again, competition is a great way to encourage students to put in more effort. Consider breaking students up into teams or having students compete for a prize by answering questions correctly.

As a workable example, have students stand in a single-file line. Each student has to approach the board and try to answer a question correctly. When they can't answer the question, they move to the back of the line. The last person still standing after a certain amount of time is the winner.

6. Connect material to current events.

Students, especially in high school, are more likely to care about material when they can connect it to the world around them.

So, anytime you're teaching a new lesson, try to find a connection to a current event. You can explain how the lesson relates to life now, how the lesson has impacted the world and important inventions, or how the history of the lesson has led to the world students live in today.

You can even consider having students research how the material is related to their lives today and present their findings to the class.

7. Lead by example.

Of course, students will be more engaged when they have a positive relationship with their teacher and see that teacher engaged as well.

Hopefully, these active learning strategies will also get educators more excited to engage in lessons as well and take some of the stress off of the need to teach to a test or make sure all students are paying attention and taking detailed notes during a long lecture.

Not all students will want to engage, even after these strategies, but they will inevitably appreciate the effort and at least remember the material better, even if they do not show enthusiasm at the time.
About NSHSS
Since 2002, NSHSS has supported young academics on their journey to college and beyond as they prepare to become the leaders of tomorrow. The mission behind NSHSS is to recognize academic excellence and honor high-achieving students, providing them with the resources and network to excel in college, career and community. In doing so, NSHSS connects members with global events, scholarships , college fairs, internships, career and partner discounts, and more. Discover leadership programs, to student members and how you can get involved. what makes NSHSS worth it

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how to engage high school students in active learning

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National Society of High School Scholars

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How to Engage High School Students in Active Learning

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Put simply, active learning occurs when students become active, hands-on participants in their own learning experience and engage directly with the subject material. The antithesis of active learning, or passive learning, would be the traditional, lecture-style type of learning in which teachers verbally transmit information to students, and students are then expected to take notes and remember the information.

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32 Strategies for Building a Positive Learning Environment

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These tips were contributed by the educators and parents of Edutopia's community in response to our Start the Year Strong Sweepstakes. There were many amazing ...

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Simply sharing what teachers hope kids will learn may not be enough-constructing expectations together helps guide students to understanding.

Ensuring that students are clear on the expectations of learning is one of the most effective ways to impact student achievement. Yet, I have found, through trial and lots of error, that establishing clarity is not a straightforward process for students or teachers.

There was an assumption on my part that if "I do" the sharing of expectations with kids, they will learn. I thought if I shared the learning expectations verbally, stated the goals clearly on the board, provided easy-to-read rubrics, and gave students time to write down the learning expectations, they would develop clarity. That didn't seem to do the trick for most kids. Akin to hearing a lecture without checks for understanding, students watched me teach but didn't take an active approach to ensuring that they understood the expectations of learning.

Next, I tried the "you do" approach by having students review an outline, preview a passage, or review a previously taught lesson to determine what we might be learning in the future. Again, the whole class came up short on what we were learning. Without my guidance, students strayed from finding the purpose of the learning.

After a time, I found that the best way for students to develop clarity of expectations was through a "we do" process, using activities where both students and I engaged with one another to build clarity of what we were learning together. Research calls this co-construction. I found that this process not only provided students with a better understanding of what we were learning but also gave me a better understanding of what students knew when we began a unit or lesson.

3 Popular Co-construction Strategies

Write down the specific steps that you have taken

Share the specific steps with their friends and create consensus

Revise their steps after viewing multiple examples from you

The teacher solves several addition of fraction problems with unlike denominators and asks students to write down the steps that they took to solve the problem.

The teacher writes three paragraphs of an essay in front of students and asks the students to write down the key steps that they took to write the essay.

1. Silent protocol: One of the most efficient and effective ways to co-construct expectations of learning is to show students the exact steps to successfully accomplish the learning goals you want them to meet. For example, simply show students an example of how to solve a math problem, but do so without talking. See if they can do the following:

What was the error?

Why was that an error?

How do we rectify the error?

2. Error analysis: Having students detect errors from others (either the teacher or their peers) is highly engaging and allows students to develop an awareness of common misconceptions. For example, in one class, students were told that they would be assisting the teacher in developing success criteria toward a goal (i.e., counting objects). The teacher began counting and making a number of errors, including repeat counting of the same object, skip counting objects, and repeating the same number in their counting. Each time the students stopped the teacher, the teacher asked these questions:

Present students with multiple drafts of a scientific lab report, and have students serve as a senior editor to determine what criteria other editors should be using when assessing the lab report.

Present students with drafts of paintings that have a myriad of errors, and have them determine the criteria needed to prevent such errors in the future.

After the discussion, students shared the steps they took and how to use those in the future. The next day, the teacher presented a rubric to support them in counting. The students thought the teacher should have the rubric up on the wall so that she wouldn't forget how to count!

3. Evaluating examples: One of the most powerful ways to ensure that students have clarity of learning expectations is to provide work samples. For example, imagine that a second-grade teacher was expecting students to write a personal narrative. He or she presents an example of mastery to students and asks each student to independently write down what they think makes the personal narrative successful.
Courtesy of Michael McDowell
Next, the teacher asks the students to discuss their criteria with a partner and then asks the class to create consensus on one list. The teacher then asks students to use their list to evaluate other work samples. In this last step, students debate and reference the mastery example when making claims.
Courtesy of Michael McDowell

Provide students with a recording of students reading a passage, and ask them to point out what they're doing successfully to read and interpret the passage.

Show students examples of successful art pieces, and ask students to identify the criteria for success.

Show students worked math examples, and have them identify what success looks like.

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How Students and Teachers Can Develop Clear Expectations for Learning

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Simply sharing what teachers hope kids will learn may not be enough-constructing expectations together helps guide students to understanding.

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As any teacher will tell you, after the first month of summer break, the brainstorming happens. You begin searching the internet for classroom themes, décor, open-house activities, and "getting to know you" games and worksheets. You want the upcoming school year to be better than the year before, and there's nothing wrong with that! But pump the brakes. In order to build culture and community, you need to make sure your beginning-of-the-year activities address classroom expectations.

What Is Classroom Management?

Classroom management is a broadly used term in education. It all boils down to the variety of skills and techniques that teachers use to ensure their classroom runs smoothly, without disruptive behavior from students, and builds a community in which each student has a sense of belonging. Seems simple, right? I began my career as a longterm substitute. It was an absolute disaster! There was no plan. At the end of the school year, when I was hired on permanently, I took the summer to create my classroom management plan.

Unit Zero: Culture Camp

In my classroom, the first two weeks are Culture Camp. Before I can even get to teaching my first unit, students must understand my rules, procedures, and expectations and be part of the classroom's culture.

Take Time to Get to Know Your Students.

I am a firm believer that classroom management is not just about having the right rules but also having the right relationships. Get to know each student and family individually. What do they like to do in their free time? What motivates them? What makes them frustrated?
QUICK TIP: My first contact to parents is positive. I enjoy sending postcards featuring a student's positive behavior or academic achievement.
Create a Welcoming Environment.

Students want to feel like they belong and this is their classroom, and they are not just a guest passing through. How can you make students feel welcomed? How can they take ownership of the classroom?

Instead of sitting at my desk, I stand at my classroom door in the morning, welcoming each student.

Having jobs in the classroom helps students take ownership of their community and creates a greater investment. Some jobs in my classroom include:

Floor manager: Sweeps at the end of a messy activity or the end of the day

Pencil manager: Sharpens pencils at the end of the day

Trash collector: Collects scraps at the end of the day or after a messy activity

Decide What Kind of Structure You Want in Your Room.

Do you want your classroom highly structured? Do students have to ask before moving about the classroom? Do you want low structure in your classroom, where students can move freely and can sit wherever they would like? Or would you like something in the middle? This is something you need to decide well in advance of the first day of school. If you have no idea what kind of structure you would like, students will be confused and will be unable to meet your class expectations.

Enlist Students in Establishing Classroom Rules.

Students are more likely to buy into your expectations for the classroom if their voice is heard. Work with your students to come up with a list of classroom rules and consequences.
QUICK TIP: Brainstorm a list of desired behaviors and rewards with students. Once classroom rules and consequences are created, write them on chart paper and have all students sign it. Then display it in the classroom (on a wall or bulletin board).
Practice Transitions.

How will students transition from one activity to another? This seems extreme, to the point of micromanaging, but it isn't and will pay off in the long run. For each transition in my classroom-lining up for lunch and recess, switching classes, getting materials out, and getting into groups for collaborative work-I have asked myself: how does this sound, and what does this look like? After I have played out these scenes in my mind, I teach my students how to execute these transitions.

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Classroom Management 101: Setting Expectations for Students

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As any teacher will tell you, after the first month of summer break, the brainstorming happens. You begin searching the internet for classroom themes, décor, open-house activities, and "getting to know you" games and worksheets. You want the upcoming school year to be better than the year before, and there's nothing wrong with that!

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A three-phase process helps build strong teacher-student bonds, which can reduce disruptive behavior.

©Shutterstock/Monkey Business Images

It's a daunting but all-too-common sight for many teachers: A classroom full of rowdy students who are unable to focus on the lesson. Classroom management techniques may get things back on track, but valuable time has already been lost.

Many experienced teachers know that making meaningful connections with students is one of the most effective ways to prevent disruptions in the first place, and a new study set out to assess this approach. In classrooms where teachers used a series of techniques centered around establishing, maintaining, and restoring relationships, academic engagement increased by 33 percent and disruptive behavior decreased by 75 percent-making the time students spent in the classroom more worthwhile and productive.

"Strong teacher-student relationships have long been considered a foundational aspect of a positive school experience," explains Clayton Cook, the lead author of the study and a professor at the University of Minnesota. When those relationships are damaged, student well-being may be affected, leading to academic and behavioral problems.

In the study, teachers used an approach called Establish-Maintain-Restore to build positive interactions with students-a total of 220 in fourth and fifth grade-and boost their sense of belonging. (A follow-up study with middle school teachers used the same strategies, with similar results.) Relationship-building was broken down into three phases: the first meeting, maintenance throughout the school year, and points when a relationship may suffer damage, with useful strategies for each phase.

Since it can be easy for some students to fall through the cracks, a relationship reflection form-like the one we share here-can help teachers take notes on each individual student and highlight ones who need the most attention.

Starting on a Positive Note

At the start of the school year, the teachers in the study made time for establishing relationships. "The goal is to ensure all students feel a sense of belonging that is characterized by trust, connection, and understanding," Cook and his colleagues explain. For students with learning or behavioral problems, cultivating positive relationships provided "protective effects" that helped them stay focused on learning.

"Bank time" with students. Schedule one-on-one meetings with students to get to know them better. The goal is to "make deposits into the relationship" to help ease conflict in the future if you have to give constructive feedback or address disruptive behavior.

Encourage student-led activities. Students feel more invested in their learning if given opportunity to share their interests. Teachers can step aside, be supportive, and listen.

Welcome students into the classroom. Activities such as positive greetings at the door and icebreaker questions help create a warm classroom culture.

Use positive communication techniques. Open-ended questions, reflective listening, validation statements, expressions of enthusiasm or interest, and compliments help students-especially shy or introverted ones-ease into classroom discussions.

To establish positive relationships, teachers can:

Maintaining Relationships

Without active maintenance, relationships deteriorate over time, the study authors point out. Teachers may focus too much on academics and not enough on supporting students' emotional well-being, slowly using up the banked time they initially built up with students.

Take note of positive and negative interactions with students. Teachers should aim for a five-to-one ratio.

Regularly check in with students. Ask how they're doing and what support they may need. In an Edutopia article, Todd Finley explains how 5x5 assessment time helped him focus on a handful of students every day.

Acknowledge good behavior. When teachers focus attention on positive conduct, disruptive behavior is stemmed before it becomes an issue.

Teachers can maintain relationships by continuing to implement the strategies above, and in addition they can:

Repairing Harm Before Things Get Worse

Eventually, negative interactions such as misunderstandings, conflict, or criticism can weaken a teacher-student relationship. If these negative interactions are left unaddressed, students may feel disengaged and be less willing to participate in activities. They may also be more likely to misbehave, creating further damage. So it's important for teachers to "intentionally reconnect" with students to restore the relationship to a positive state.

Let go and start fresh. Teachers should avoid holding mistakes over a student's head, instead giving them a chance to start each day with a clean slate.

Take responsibility for their actions. Teachers can avoid blaming students when things go wrong, and think, "What could I have done to avoid the problem in the first place?" They shouldn't be afraid to apologize when that's called for-doing so helps build trust with students.

Show empathy. There are two sides to every story, and a teacher can acknowledge that students may have a different perspective about what happened.

Focus on solutions, not problems. Teachers can work with students to find a solution that everyone feels is fair.

Separate the deed from the doer. It's important to criticize the behavior, not the person. If teachers label children as "problem students," there's a danger that they'll internalize that label, making it more likely that they'll repeat the behavior in the future.

When relationships need repair, teachers can:

The takeaway: Effective classroom management starts with relationship building. When students feel a greater sense of belonging, they're more likely to be academically engaged and demonstrate positive behavior.

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The Key to Effective Classroom Management

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A three-phase process helps build strong teacher-student bonds, which can reduce disruptive behavior.

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.