Last updated on October 27th, 2023 at 03:56 pm
If you’re overwhelmed by the din of a large group of children, chances are some of your students are feeling that way as well. I was able to use some quieting techniques with a tough class earlier this week, and I’d like to share these strategies with you all. These methods are simple, but effective. They’ve been honed from my five years in the classroom and two years substitute teaching in countless rooms. They work well for substitutes or for regular classroom teachers. You can use them in a box or with a fox…. (Okay, maybe not so much.) Enough with the Seussisms– Let’s dive in!
Why I train the students for times of quiet
While the subject of quieting a class may get some people thinking that objective is frumpy and old-fashioned, harkening to obsolete schoolmarm days, I tend to see it in a different light.
Quiet should take a necessary and special place in our modern classrooms.
In a world that’s louder than ever, with flashing distractions and endless dings, beeps and bops, our students need to take some time for silence, to think and to focus.
I try to infuse each school day with a variety of modes: from walking to playing to sitting on a rug to sitting at a desk. From silence to talking to singing to yelling (at recess!). Alternating between these different modes keeps us fresh, engaged, and more able to give our attention to that particular task.
And sometimes, in a busy school day full of working together, and laughter and playing, we can make time for quiet.
How to get a quiet class
(and not just quiet– cooperative, focused, attentive.)
When the students are able to pause their conversations, their monologues, and their various interesting sound effects, they leave room for others. For their teacher to share bits of knowledge or directions with them. For classmates to contribute their ideas. For thinking deeply and listening. There are times in a school day when we need this quiet. Here’s how I try to achieve that with my students wherever I teach:
Practice with a quiet signal
My quiet signal is a key to surviving the day as a substitute. I’ve used it daily as a classroom teacher as well.
There’s no particular magic in which instrument you use, as long as it makes some type of noise to get students’ attention. Use a small handbell, or a cowbell, or a rain stick. Extra cool points to the teacher who utilizes a gong. I use a small chime and mallet.
I explain what I’d like students to do when they hear the sound. Then we practice that in the midst of conversations. Our practice the other day went like this: When I rang my chime, I expected the students to quickly close their discussions and look up at me. We conducted three rounds of practice, with the goal each time of quieting faster and faster. I’d tell students they could talk amongst themselves, and sometimes I’d give them a fun prompt like food or sports or favorite animals. After a bit, I’d ring my chime to see how fast the students could quiet and give their attention.
It was a fun and effective way to set the standard. Students need to be able to quiet themselves and listen to their teacher’s next direction. It’s a crucial classroom skill, and I teach it wherever I go.
(It’s also worth noting: I recommend choosing one additional quiet signal that doesn’t require the instrument when you’re empty-handed, like in the cafeteria or playground. A hand up, peace sign up, or “Give me five” signal can work.)
Practice sound levels
Having clear sound levels in place is a gold standard for student work time. It cuts through any uncertainty. It reins them back in to focus on the task at hand.
Sometimes students will be working cooperatively with others. But there’s a difference in the noise level between classmates conversing and classmates screaming.
Teaching and practicing sound levels can prevent the inevitable ballooning of sound during these activities. To make this effective, students need a clear explanation, modeling, practice and accountability.
First, let’s look at the sound levels widely used:
Level 0= Silence
Level 1= Whisper
Level 2= Conversing with those close by
When teaching this, I would first demonstrate the different levels. Then I’d have students practice switching between the levels, and I’d give feedback and encouragement. Then when I release the students to try for a longer period of time, I would give reminders periodically using my chime. This lets students know that I’m holding them accountable for their sound levels.
Practice classroom transitions
Moving from chapter review to taking a test. Going from a whole group lesson to independent work. Dispersing materials.
In these simple tasks apparently lies a gaping wide opportunity, or so students think. Many students fill these transition gaps with playing, conversing, singing, experimenting with their dance moves and the like.
Hear me out: I’m not against breaks. We take plenty.
But with all of the transitions that occur in the classroom in a given day, we can’t afford to make them all into a break and get much else done. Passing out papers doesn’t have to erupt into a cacophonous scene. Going from one subject to the next is not cause for an extended commercial break.
So I practice these transitions with the students. In multiple rounds, role playing multiple scenarios (passing out materials, turning in papers and heading back to seats, opening our books), we fine tune the transition to achieve two goals: that it is quick and it is quiet.
I even made a simple call and response that I sing out to take up the transition time and keep students on track. I call: “This is a transition” and students repeat. “Quick and quiet transition” and students repeat.
One can make this practice into a game, rewarding groups that successfully navigate the transition. One can also stand over the students with a stop watch pretending to be an intense coachlike figure to inject a bit of fun into the whole thing.
This training does not have to take long, but putting in the time is well worth it. It tells students that each minute in the classroom is valuable, and that there are standards in place for these often overlooked spans. Transitions don’t have to be free-for-alls. Mastering these leads to a quieter, more focused classroom.
A call for quiet in our classrooms
This is one thing I don’t like to budge on, even when substitute teaching. When I am talking, giving directions or teaching, the students should be silent and listening.
When I was student teaching, I tried, in a misguided effort to be “nice,” to let the students talk over me. It didn’t work at all. The missed directions, the loss of learning, the chaos that bubbled up when I was too lenient in this area taught me a lifelong lesson.
From there, I was determined to teach quietness and listening skills to my students. The methods outlined above are those tested and proven time and again– and it helps that they’re a little fun, too.
I hope this helped you, teachers and substitutes. May your classrooms be full of learning and fun and quiet.
