I am currently working on a training session for NQTs on how to prepare for teaching children with special educational needs. With a particular interest in behaviour, I started thinking about all the lessons I learned as an NQT.
I was fresh out of university with my first in education and psychology. After completing my PGCE in primary education, after one hard placement I thought I could cope with whatever was thrown at me. The last time I was this naïve was when I passed my driving test, got into my car thinking I was a fully-fledged driver and nearly wrote it off in a McDonald's drive-through after taking a particularly sharp corner at high speed. I was desperate for some chicken nuggets – urgency was key.
As much as I had read about teaching, planned and prepped, I still had a shock waiting for me when I started in the classroom. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved teaching new topics, getting to know the children and helping them progress, but there are some tips and lessons that I wish I'd known at the beginning of that first year.
Here are some helpful hints to help NQTs survive their first year and beyond:
1. Have a clear rewards policy.
This must be the one adopted by your school. Know what your rewards are and be ready to reward good behaviour throughout the school, not just in your classroom. Praise, praise and praise again.
2. Establish clear ground rules.
Don't become militant but don't be a pushover. Children are perceptive and you need to be confident within your boundaries. As with the rewards policy, your limits should align with the policy in your school. Inconsistencies in this area can cause children to play-off adults against each other. When you enforce sanctions or use the rewards policy, communicate with staff so it is followed through effectively.
3. If you're struggling, ask for help.
Don't allow problems to become bigger than they already are. If a child is particularly difficult or situations are causing you anxiety, make your senior leadership team aware, if they aren't already. Talking about behaviour is not failure. By ignoring behaviour or not dealing with it effectively, children can gain more control and staff can become anxious and feel powerless.
4. Keep up with paperwork.
Note any incidents in your classroom. This may seem excessive and will create more work but it's imperative to log any patterns or notice any potential hot spots to prevent problems escalating. Also, it will be useful when trying to get help and support from outside agencies.
5. Share the structures of your classroom with all staff in the school.
If you have particular ways of dealing with children who have behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD), communicate these with everybody in your school to ensure consistency. Situations can be inflamed by staff not knowing the routines or structures that you have in place for your children. By keeping the team well informed, you're securing the boundaries for children to flourish in.
6. Communicate with parents.
Often parents of BESD children will only be communicated with when their child has had an incident in school. If this happens continually, eventually they'll close down and avoid you. Don't allow this to happen. Greet parents, make yourself available and share positive stories. When there is an incident, communicate it openly but not in front of other parents on the playground as it can be difficult for them.
7. Seating plans.
Do not underestimate the power of a simple seating plan. I am not in favour of them at all times but I do keep it in my mind when refreshing groups. Is there a particularly hard combination on that table? Always be flexible when trying different combinations of children. For example, I've found that you can have a good combination with a BESD child if you sit them with their best friend. It doesn't always work, as you can imagine, but once I had a child who was so happy that I trusted them, they behaved impeccably.
8. Ensure you have your challenge level set right.
Sometimes adjusting your challenge level can really help. Behaviour problems can increase if a child isn't challenged enough or too much so make sure you review these regularly for your class.
9. Develop a relationship with every child.
A child can often feel disliked when their behaviour is poor so you must always reinforce that this is not the case. As soon as a child divulges something about themselves, use it to develop a relationship. For example, one year I read every article I could find on Liverpool football club to initiate conversations with a particular child.
10. Behaviour problems are not a reflection on you.
You will have bad days. You may have bad weeks. But start every day with a fresh outlook. This is the hardest thing to do, but the most beneficial for you and your children. You will not move forward if you harbour past behaviours and mistakes. Often you can be really hard on yourself and blame yourself. You can make mistakes in how you deal with children, but it's a learning curve. Be honest about your mistakes, take a note of what works and what doesn't, then keep trying.
What ways have you found effective in dealing with behaviour in class? Share your own tips for NQTs in the comment thread below.
Tracey Lawrence is a year 1/2 teacher at The Pastures Primary School in Leicestershire and specialist leader of education (SLE) in behaviour for the Affinitiy Teaching School Alliance.
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