Classroom rules and procedures are very important in developing and creating a good learning environment. Imagine the world without rules and procedures…. it would be chaotic, people would be going out and looting, killing, vandalizing freely without suffering any consequences. The same is true in a classroom if you want order then rules and procedures need to be in place. These rules and procedures need to be established and gone over on the first day of class. Not only do rules and procedures need to be told but they need to be reinforced. Without reinforcement then the rules mean nothing. In coming up with rules and procedures, you need to think about what is important in your classroom, what are the areas that kids might cause chaos and interruptions? As an art teacher safety and respect are at the top of my list of priorities. As a soon to be art teacher some of my rules would be……
1) Be kind and respectful when critiquing others art
2) Listen and follow instructions
3) no food or drinks in classroom
4) No horseplay (be aware of your surroundings)
5) Have fun and be creative
Number three and four are in effect as food and drinks can be spilt and thus ruin someones art project, plus they are distracting, and horseplay can also lead to the ruin of art projects and is also distracting. I want my classroom to be fun and creative but I want students to learn how to respectfully help their fellow peers by critiquing their work. critiques can be a very touchy and sensitive thing and i want students to remember to be kind and respectful in the way they critique others art projects.
This link will help give teachers an idea of what kinds of rules and procedures to make. There is listings of different rules and procedures for different times in the day. The author also included short video clips showing how other teachers have implemented these ideas into practice. These video clips may be geared toward the elementary grades but they could be altered and revised to work in a secondary classroom. There are many great innovative ideas about how to teach and implement these rules and procedures into your classroom.