Classroom Management 5: Whisper Loudly

COME IN TO CLASS! GET SEATED! TAKE OUT YOUR WORK! AND DO IT QUIETLY!!!!!!

Sound familiar?

Yelling can be effective. It can push you to work harder and respect authority. In boot camp. Or in training to be an Army Ranger. Or a Navy Seal. In all three of those cases, getting yelled at is what you sign up for. Volunteer for.

Kids don’t volunteer to get yelled at in a classroom. Yet, we’ve all known teachers like that. Some of us are guilty of running the classroom like a drill sergeant- commanding kids to learn metaphor and simile in the trenches, and like it. In my early years in the profession, I, too, am guilty of donning a forest green jacket decorated with multi-colored bars and a rapier at my belt.

At five feet, three inches and one hundred and fifteen pounds, that getup was way too big for me. And laughable.  It took me a while to learn that talking to kids calmly and in conversational tones commands respect much, much more than any sort of elevated voice ever did.

Concerns and Solutions:

How to effectively use conversational tones in the classroom

• “If I don’t yell, the kids won’t respect my authority.”

Actually, they will respect you more if you don’t yell. Talking to them in calm, conversational tones makes them feel like you respect them. And, in turn, they will enjoy learning from you and work hard to meet your expectations.

• “If I don’t yell, they won’t hear me.”

They will hear you better when they have to strain to hear you. It keeps them focused. An effective way to reach students is to talk to them conversationally. Not only in the classroom is this effective, but also in the halls, courtyard, and lunch room. Walking to a group of students and telling them they should get to class is just as effective as shouting at them from across the way: “GET TO CLASS!” The difference is, if you calmly talk to them, students are more likely to listen to you the first time, and respect you, and (bonus) you are less likely to get frustrated and angry that they aren’t listening to you.

• “If I don’t yell, they won’t learn.”

I have come home parched and raspy and exhausted from a day of teaching. I used to teach my classroom as though I were on a stage, vocalizing loud enough to reach the back of the auditorium. Not only was I reaching the back of the classroom, but I was also reaching the back of the hallway. If you walk down the hall of your school during your planning hour, can you hear a cacophony of lessons vibrating the concrete blocks of the walls? The fact is, students will learn better in a calm environment. They feel safe. Teachers don’t have to perform for them to get and keep their attention as long as the lessons are focused and the classroom is effectively managed. In other words, talk less. Find ways to make your lessons more student-based rather than teacher-based.

• “I need students to be quiet while others are working.”

If you whisper, they will whisper back. It will keep your class quiet.
Try this: A student raises his hand and asks for help in a loud tone. Whisper your response and see what happens. The student should whisper back to you.

*Another helpful hint*

If a student is getting frustrated, angry or loud, lower your voice to calm the situation.