School Leaders and Administration Whole School
Rules provide the foundation for a safe, respectful, and productive classroom. When middle school and high school students are actively involved in creating, connecting, and living by the rules, they develop a stronger sense of ownership, responsibility, and community. A teacher-facilitated process can guide students through four steps to make rules meaningful and lasting.
Start by working with students to define the kind of classroom community they want to create. Use the SMART framework—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound—to shape these aspirations into concrete goals. For example, a goal might be: By the end of the quarter, our class will improve group discussion participation so that every student speaks at least once during each discussion.
Why it matters: Goal-setting focuses students on what they want to achieve together, creating a shared vision before rules are even discussed.
Once goals are clear, help students articulate rules that will make achieving those goals possible. For example, if the goal is respectful discussions, a related rule might be: Listen without interrupting. Emphasize that rules are tools for reaching goals, not arbitrary restrictions.
Why it matters: Students see rules as purposeful and tied directly to their success, increasing buy-in.
Abstract rules need real-life examples. Work with students to identify specific, observable behaviors that demonstrate each rule. For “Listen without interrupting,” examples might include:
Why it matters: Concrete behaviors remove ambiguity, making expectations clear and measurable.
Refer to the rules during lessons, celebrate when students follow them, and use them as a framework for addressing problems. Invite students to reflect periodically: Which rules are working well for us? Which ones need revisiting?
Why it matters: Daily integration keeps rules relevant and reminds students they are active partners in maintaining the classroom community.
In a ninth-grade English class, students set a goal to “Build a supportive environment where all voices are heard.” Together, they developed three rules:
They then listed behaviors for each rule and agreed to use discussion sentence stems to help quieter classmates join in. Throughout the semester, the teacher highlighted moments when the rules were in action and revisited them during class meetings, reinforcing that these norms belonged to everyone.
For a deeper dive into investing middle and high school students in classroom rules, check out: