What’s Classroom Management Like in Middle School

Oh, Middle Schoolers! How I love thee! You keep me entertained with your sass, drama, and constant dancing. However, I do NOT love the paper spewing from every square inch, the rambunctious starting of class, or the constant hovering near the pencil sharpener just to talk to your friends! Please tell me I’m not alone! What’s classroom management like in a middle school class?

Well, I have come up with a few tricks up my sleeve to try and curb the Middle Schooler’s (occasional) tornado of out-of-control. If you are asking yourself ‘what’s classroom management’ or ‘why classroom management is important then you’ve come to the right place!

Why Classroom Management is Important

Before we get into all the strategies for classroom management, we need to know why classroom management is important. Simply put, you can’t teach if students aren’t focused. If you have to talk over students, they can’t hear you and aren’t learning. If the students are off task, they aren’t learning. 

Why classroom management is important because it helps students learn. Whether you prefer a silent classroom or a more active room, students have to be able to learn. Plain and simple.

What’s Classroom Management Like in Middle School

The joy (and sometimes burden) of middle school is that students are changing classes and teachers all throughout their day. So what’s classroom management in one room might be totally different in the classroom next door. This is a learning curve for students, especially when they are starting middle school. 

To help alleviate some of the confusion for students, sit down with a team or grade level and ask the question ‘what’s classroom management like in your room?’ This can help your grade level get on the same page and have similar norms or expectations for the students. The fewer differences, the more streamlined a student’s day will feel. If students are having to drastically switch up expectations every 45 minutes, there is going to be confusion. 

What’s classroom management like in my room?

I have a few things I use to get students’ attention (ringing a chime) and expectations that are grade-level set, like when to use the bathroom, snack time, and chewing gum. Phone use is another one that I am still working on, but for the most part, my classroom management is set by the routines I do.

Routines are where students learn how to act and what’s appropriate at different times. I don’t expect a quiet classroom unless there’s a test. I don’t expect independent work, unless it’s a quiz or test. Those routines are ones we learn throughout the first few weeks of school that help the rest of my school year go that much better!

Reward System

To train students to actually do the routine I reward those doing it with school points. My school has a digital PBIS system where students can earn points and spend them in the school store. This is the individual reward that students can earn in my class.

For whole class rewards, I use class points. If every student is working, then the class gets a point. I also give these out for being quiet after the chime (attention getter) or if everyone is working on their bellwork assignment. The class with the most class points by the end of the month gets a Jolly Rancher on the first day of the next month. Then it starts over for the next month. This keeps kiddos constantly trying to win a piece of candy and also can reward kiddos with individual points. The combo of individual rewards and class rewards is key to getting kids to buy-in.

Bellwork

When kiddos come into your room, they need something to do. Right. Away. This needs to be something they can do with very little help but something that will keep them on task right away. This can be anything from working out a math problem to cutting and gluing the interactive notebook page, to reading their book, to getting a computer and logging in. Project the bell-work and have kiddos read as they come in. I keep mine the same so that students fall into a more stable routine. In math, there’s a problem to solve in their bell work packet. In science, they answer the thinking question in their notebook, then start cutting the INB page.

This gives kiddos something to work on and gives you time to (remember) to take attendance, read an email, grab a stack of papers or find your missing cup of coffee. This is also when students can sharpen their pencils. 

Paper Distribution 

If you use a lot of paper in your class, have a system for handing out paper. In elementary, I had 2-3 paper passers that would help. In middle school, I’ve had students pick up their papers as they walked in (part of their bell work). I have a pretty small room this year so I opted to just split the stack into 6 (one for each table) and then kiddos don’t have to move from their seat. I’ve also seen teachers pass out papers in rows. Find a way that works for you and stick with it.

Bathroom 

Kids will need to go to the bathroom during your class. Kids will ‘need’ to leave the room in order to get something from their locker. Have a plan in place that addresses these situations. For me, I don’t have kids leave to go to their lockers in the middle of class. I keep their math folders and science notebooks in my room so they don’t need to grab them. I have extra pencils they can borrow.

The bathroom however is a different story. For this, I use bathroom passes. Each kiddo gets 5 passes for the quarter. This keeps a majority of the kids from leaving just to leave. If it’s an emergency then I let them go to the bathroom, but I typically try to let them wait until after direct instruction. I tell kids that they can go to the bathroom during passing periods or during lunch.

When they need to go to the bathroom they cross their fingers (sign language R) and I nod. They then need to have their pass on their desk for me to come by and sign. Kiddo signs out on the clipboard and takes the wooden hall pass.

I choose to put all their passes on 1 sheet of paper for the year but I have also done passes by quarter. For each pass a student still has at the end of the quarter, I give a piece of candy.

Community Supplies

I provide my students with supplies to share as a table. In these bins, I keep a box of crayons, a few highlighters, scissors, glue, and pencils. These bins live on each table so that students have easy access to them in the middle of lessons. At the end of the day, I have each table organize them (which takes like 30 seconds) and make sure that all the supplies are there. Because there’s a bin, students know where to put things after they use them and it keeps the tables organized.

Pencils

This is a constant battle in every grade I’ve ever taught. And I’m over it. Pencils are kept in each table’s supply bin to be returned at the end of class. If they walk off, they walk off. I don’t have time (or energy) to babysit a stick of wood. I have done the Great Pencil Challenge which I loved but I haven’t started it up in middle school, yet.

If a pencil gets broken, they can sharpen it while I’m not talking. However, there are multiple pencils in each table bin and one of them should be sharp. Sharpening pencils is also part of bell work to be done at the start of class.

Student Folders/Notebooks

As I mentioned earlier, kiddos leave their math folders and science notebooks in my room. For math, I use one side of my table bins to store their folders. For science, I use the other side to store their notebooks. Their supplies are at their table, easy for them to grab and use right away for bell work.

I have also used bins for student notebooks where everyone in the whole class was in one bin. If you go that route, have space for the notebooks to be spread out like a counter. This will make picking up notebooks even faster. Otherwise, every student is at the same place trying to grab the same thing. There’s a lot of pushing and shoving for no reason. 

What’s Classroom Management Like in Other Classrooms

I put my little enneagram 5 self to work and researched a bunch of different classroom management strategies and routines. Just because it works for me, doesn’t mean that all my ideas will work for you! I hope that you find the best routines to help you and your students.

• Classroom Management from The American Psychological Association
• 5 Principles of Outstanding Classroom Management from Edutopia
• Combating the Chaos: 3 Cs for a Well-Managed Classroom
• What is Classroom Management? A Guide for Newbie and Veteran Teachers 
• 8 Wildly Successful Classroom Management Strategies
• One Key Classroom Management Strategy for Middle Schools
• Classroom Management Strategies for Middle School
• A Classroom Management Strategy that Works for Middle School
• How I Run a 45 Minute Math Block

And there you have it! Routines to keep you and your students a little saner! What would you add to the list? What’s classroom management like in your classroom?