Jul 22, 2026 · 23 min · 9 segments
Hello everyone! Classroom management has never been more important in schools. Study after study cites one of the biggest reasons for teachers leaving the classroom has to do with student behavior…
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[upbeat music] Behavior, at least for me, was understanding that a lot of the mindset that I brought to it changed how I reacted.
Like, there's people, like you said, they-they're, they're wanting that compliance piece, and it's like, "Well, it doesn't matter what it is, you need to comply." Um-
And I guess I-I do understand where that kind of comes from, but the one thing that I've always-- that I-I guess I learned as I grew as an educator was, if I made a space kids wanted to be in, that was a good step.
If I treated them in a way they wanted to be treated and respectful, kind of honoring who they were, that took care of a lot.
And then when there was an issue, um, sometimes I sat back and I was like: I don't know.
Is this an issue? Like, this kid's kind of moving around the classroom, but is he bothering anybody? Is he disrupting anyone? Um, is it helping him do something? And so-- and being more flexible where, like, kids could sit, right? I had an era where I was like, "No, you have to sit this way and look this way." And then, and then after a while, I was like: Well, why can't they sit under the desk? Are they paying attention? Are they working? Are they doing all these things? And but that's a, that's a mindset shift, but is it-- why is it so hard for us to manage that control piece? Is it, it-- is it because it's such a s- you know, we're in these little boxes, so to speak, and it's just like anything could be volatile? Uh, do you think that's where it comes from, or is it a-
I think that some schools have a very, um, like, very punitive approach to behavior management, and I think that teachers are fearful of failing as teachers, and I think that they're fearful of being criticized by their leaders and feeling like they can't control their class.
And I think that also it could be that teachers are afraid to give an inch because kids will take a mile and, and, you know, if the kids are [chuckles] taking a mile, then they're gonna lose control over that space.
But I do think that, um, yeah, there is that kind of, like, fear of the flexibility because once you're flexible with a class then they're going to take you for a ride.
And it might happen, but it's about how boundaried are you? What are your expectations? How are you communicating those, and how are you being a living model of that? Because it is, um, yeah, it can be really hard to balance that as well because I think a lot of teachers teeter on the edge of, like, being credible but then a little bit too friendly.
So if you've got all of the other stuff right pedagogically, then you can be a little bit more fluid with your expectations around things like phones and kids sitting on the floor and all of those things that we should be doing because, you know, even as an adult, I'm doodling in my book when I'm in a meeting.
You know? Even as an adult, I'm kind of shifting around in my chair 'cause I really struggle to sit.
You know, I've got my legs crossed right now on the chair because I struggle to sit straight.
Just those kinds of things we do, and the mind sh- mind, mind set shift is really important around that stuff.
[upbeat music] Behavior, at least for me, was understanding that a lot of the mindset that I brought to it changed how I reacted.
Like, there's people, like you said, they-they're, they're wanting that compliance piece, and it's like, "Well, it doesn't matter what it is, you need to comply." Um-
And I guess I-I do understand where that kind of comes from, but the one thing that I've always-- that I-I guess I learned as I grew as an educator was, if I made a space kids wanted to be in, that was a good step.
If I treated them in a way they wanted to be treated and respectful, kind of honoring who they were, that took care of a lot.
And then when there was an issue, um, sometimes I sat back and I was like: I don't know.
Is this an issue? Like, this kid's kind of moving around the classroom, but is he bothering anybody? Is he disrupting anyone? Um, is it helping him do something? And so-- and being more flexible where, like, kids could sit, right? I had an era where I was like, "No, you have to sit this way and look this way." And then, and then after a while, I was like: Well, why can't they sit under the desk? Are they paying attention? Are they working? Are they doing all these things? And but that's a, that's a mindset shift, but is it-- why is it so hard for us to manage that control piece? Is it, it-- is it because it's such a s- you know, we're in these little boxes, so to speak, and it's just like anything could be volatile? Uh, do you think that's where it comes from, or is it a-
I think that some schools have a very, um, like, very punitive approach to behavior management, and I think that teachers are fearful of failing as teachers, and I think that they're fearful of being criticized by their leaders and feeling like they can't control their class.
And I think that also it could be that teachers are afraid to give an inch because kids will take a mile and, and, you know, if the kids are [chuckles] taking a mile, then they're gonna lose control over that space.
But I do think that, um, yeah, there is that kind of, like, fear of the flexibility because once you're flexible with a class then they're going to take you for a ride.
And it might happen, but it's about how boundaried are you? What are your expectations? How are you communicating those, and how are you being a living model of that? Because it is, um, yeah, it can be really hard to balance that as well because I think a lot of teachers teeter on the edge of, like, being credible but then a little bit too friendly.
So if you've got all of the other stuff right pedagogically, then you can be a little bit more fluid with your expectations around things like phones and kids sitting on the floor and all of those things that we should be doing because, you know, even as an adult, I'm doodling in my book when I'm in a meeting.
You know? Even as an adult, I'm kind of shifting around in my chair 'cause I really struggle to sit.
You know, I've got my legs crossed right now on the chair because I struggle to sit straight.
Just those kinds of things we do, and the mind sh- mind, mind set shift is really important around that stuff.
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