New Beginnings: Ten Tips for Establishing Culture in the Classroom

One of the things I love about being in education is the ebb and flow of new beginning and endings that the rhythm of school life presents.  In August the anticipation and hope that comes with an opportunity for a “do over” on the things we want to improve and the chance to do again the things that brought joy and satisfaction.   New goals, new ideas and new kids.   I love watching the wide-eyed preschoolers on their first day of school.  A mixture of fear and excitement in their eyes.  Some are ready to take on the world and others hang back, hesitantly entering the unknown.  The others return, taller, looking a little older and with a little swagger in their step as they come back to familiar territory and old friends.   They compare notes on teachers, cool shoes and summer activities. 

When I first started teaching, I was given the worst advice ever.  “Be a witch until Halloween,” they said.  Let them know who is boss and then you can let up and be nice.  Fortunately, I didn’t listen because I didn’t want my children to fear me.  I wanted them to respect me and respect doesn’t come by being scary and inapproachable.  No.  The first six weeks of school is a time to establish the culture of your classroom that will set the tone for the rest of the year.  A classroom culture is simply, “how we do things here.”  How do we greet one another?  How do we solve conflict?  How do we move through the hallways?  How do we take care of our belongings?  These and other questions establish our culture. 

“Oh, but I don’t have time to focus on culture.  We jump right into the academics the first day of school because we have so much to cover.”    You don’t have time NOT to take time to set the tone and establish the culture.  This doesn’t mean you ignore academics altogether.  It means that it is not the single focus of this time frame.  A principal from Stillwater, Oklahoma reported that she gave her teachers permission to spend the first six weeks of school connecting with their children and establishing culture.  Not all took her up on her offer but by Christmas she could tell by looking at grades and test scores who spent the time up front and who didn’t.  Test scores and grades were higher. 

So what does establishing culture look like? 

Ten Tips for Establishing Culture

1.  Allow the children to collaborate and establish class rules.  When they have buy-in they are more willing to follow through.

2. Identify or create a class song that you sing each morning.  The science supports the notion that making music together builds cohesion and cooperation among group members. 

3. Spend more time in community circle getting to know one another. 

4. During the day, take more time to resolve conflicts.  Spontaneously bring the class together to discuss respectful processes for resolving issues between students. 

5. Explain to children that they will not be sent to time out but will be asked to do a “do over” when they engage in inappropriate behavior.

6. Establish the importance of “ere and repair” and the expectation that they will make repair or “make it better’ whenever they harm or disrespect someone, including teachers.

7. Discuss the concept of “accountability” vs. punishment.  They will be held responsible for the outcome of their actions. 

8. Spend time establishing routines and procedures.  Children learn how to do things through modeling, guided practice, independent practice and repetition.   Consistency and predictability allow children to be self-directed and require less of your time. 

9. Play board games.  Board games provide a structure for interaction for children who have a hard time navigating relationships.  They learn turn taking, perspective taking, cause and effect and how to be a good sport at winning and losing. 

10. Create a culture of errorless learning.  Emphasize the importance of learning from our mistakes and not trying to cover them up and hide.

These are but a few of the topics to discuss.  Some appropriate books for the beginning of the year are listed below:

• Have you Filled a Bucket Today?

• Don’t Eat the Teacher

• Chrysanthemum

• The Cool Bean

• The Invisible Boy

• The Rabbit Listened

• The Good Egg

• The Rough Patch

• I Am Enough

• The Bad Seed

• The Good Egg

• You Matter

• Stand Tall Molly Lou Brown

• The Night you Were Born

• I Like Me

• Last Stop on Market Street

• Warm Fuzzies Uncle Wille and the Soup Kitchen

• Seeds and Trees

• Thank you, Mr. Falker

• The Smart Cookie

• Decibella

• Salt in His Shoes

• The Skin you Live in

• Stick and Stone

• When Sophie Gets Angry, Really, Really Angry

• My Many Colored Days

• Grumpy Pants

• Leave Me Alone

• The Worry Bag

• I Was So Mad

• Sometimes I’m Bombaloo

• The Way I Feel

• My Many Colored Days

• My Heart is Like a Zoo

• The Very Hungry Worry Monsters

• On Monday When it Rained

• The Pout Pout Fish and the Worry, Worry Whale

• What do You Do with a Problem?

• Saturday—Handing Disappointment

• I am Courage:  A Book of Resilience